After watching the replay, my stand outs are as follows,
Walker: Obviously. It seems he's taken all the talk around missing Reyno and Wayne personally and is going to do absolutely everything he can to make sure we're a top team this year. That was evident last night as he was in pretty much everything. He was everywhere, super dominant. Sweeping both left and right, creating plenty of chances, laid on a try for Paulo through some magic and then scored one himself with great vision and brute strength. His efforts didn't always come off, he got a few passes wrong but of course that's going to happen when you still have a bit of Off-Season rust. I noticed we varied our attack a lot with Cody at both first and second receiver and I like that, creates a lot of variety and is harder to predict so that's good signs and it'll go to the next level once Cam and Trell are back. His kicking game and defence (apart from the odd missed tackle and a poor effort on Lomax when Ravalawa scored) were solid.
Ilias: he was the biggest question mark heading into the game for me and the one I was most interested to watch. Well, I'm very happy to say he met my expectations, maybe even exceeded them a bit. I thought he was really, really good. Glad to see we have a halfback who can take the ball right to the line, straighten the attack, not be afraid to cop a shot, and then get a nice pass away. It's just like Reyno did and we've all said it's something our new half needs to do in order for our attack to continue to function. He didn't always get it perfect but here's no doubt Lachie can do it. I was also pretty impressed with his ball playing, threw some lovely passes. Most notably the play before Cody scored, that was an amazing ball to Keaon and he was in off Lachie if it wasn't for a desperate tackle from Ben Hunt. Then he threw another pearler for Nicho to make that break in the second half. So he was creating chances, good signs. Running game looked okay, had a couple of darts. I thought his kicking game was pretty impressive too as he put in a lot of great kicks to get us out of trouble so he's already shown that side of his game is rock solid. That 20/40 especially was incredible. Would've liked to get more of a look at his short kicking game but we didn't really get a chance. I do have a bit of constructive criticism for him though. There was a few times that a play wasn't on but he forced the pass we and came up with an error however he'll learn to hold the Footy and take the hit in time I'm sure. Also, while the majority of his defence was decent, I do think he needs to work on his slide on that right edge. I think the Dragons first try was actually his fault as he didn't slide hard enough and it meant Stretch and Sauce had to stay in, this happened a few times so that is a work on for him. But all in all I'm very impressed by Ilias. He showed enough in that game to suggest to me that he certainly can make it and be a good NRL quality halfback. It's not always going to be a smooth ride but I now have the confidence in him and will back him 100%.
The entire second row: Arrow in particular was outstanding, probably our best forward. Plenty of work with hard running, fends and a bit of footwork. He rumbled his way to 90 meters off 11 runs which is pretty solid. Keaon has a new role on that right edge but he looked super impressive, right at home. Great to see that barnstorming running back and he was so strong, threatened to break through on every run. Him and Lachie look to already have a bit of a combo because Keaon was running some good lines off him so that's a welcome sign and I'm excited to see how that progresses. I thought Hosty was very solid in limited minutes and Chee-Kam provided some pretty good energy.
Unfortunately, there were a few really disappointing performances last night,
Johnston: AJ is the first one I'm going to single out. Aside from the try saver where he gathered the ball and dropped down in the field of play during the first half, he didn't really provide much. A pretty poor effort on Lomax leading to a try too. Benefit of the doubt for him as we know how good he can be.
Paulo: A lot has been said about Jaxson already and I agree he was terrible. Looked like a plodder out there last night, did everything with about 60% intensity. Waaay too casual and looked pretty lost and disinterested to be honest. Only really good thing he did was his try but even then, he just plodded to the line instead of really going for it. Didn't go looking for work, his runs weren't that strong and he didn't really pose a big threat out there on the left. Not once did I see him put on a nice pass for AJ. Just on his passing game, Jaxson missed a huge opportunity with about six minutes to go in the first half. Cody delivered him a nice ball on an attacking raid about 35 meters out and AJ was unmarked. With his speed, he could have raced away to score if he got the pass but no, Jaxson didn't even look, just plodded into the line and the play dies. Then there was the defensive side of his game, just all at sea. he doesn't seem to trust those inside him and I don't know why because they are good defenders inside him. That was evident in the Dragons fourth try, no way did Jaxson have to be in that far, Campbell had his man. So a very disappointing night again for Paulo. He's had two opportunities at left centre now and has shown us absolutely nothing. Surely he can't be there for Round 1.
Mansour: Obviously Sauce was the other big one who didn't aim up last night. I do just want to stick up for him on one instance though. The first Dragons try was not his fault, he did what any winger should do in that situation and followed his centre, he was let down by those inside him not sliding and that's why Ramsey got on his outside. I will concede though that the other tries and breaks we conceded down that right side, he was a contributor in. He's just too slow these days, way off the pace and can't read the play. Also, his work rate has dropped off BIG TIME. At the Panthers he was taking a lot of hit ups and making like 200 plus meters a game, where the hell has that gone?? This is meant to be a big year for Mansour and it needs to be. It may still turn out that way but the signs aren't good at the moment.
Romano Cook and Jack Campagnolo: I just want to bring up two inexcusable moments from these two that have left me absolutely fuming! The first was from Cook. We're down by 6 with about two minutes to go and ON THE 4TH TACKLE, he decides to kick for the corner from half way. While it's not a bad play normally, no way in hell should you be doing it in that situation. Why not try and put on a play for a try from long range and if it doesn't come off, you have the option of a bomb on the 5th which as we know, anything can happen from. But no, Romano robs us of that opportunity and just kicks the ball away which means the next set, we're coming off our own line. The second from Campagnolo was the final play of the game. I know it's a trial but it is the Charity Shield, why the hell would you not try one last hail Mary for the win?!!!! Seeing him just take the tackle left me fuming. Both of these moments are a disgrace to the jersey in my opinion because they are signs of giving up. That's not what South Sydney is about.
In terms of our attack over all, yes it was a bit sloppy and scratchy, certainly not up to our usual standard. But hey, we have to realise that was the first proper hit out for the team since the Grand Final so of course we're not going to be on straight away. Those combinations will build as the rust goes and we'll be a completely different team once Cam and Trell are back. Plus, we need to remember that this Pre-Season has been heavily impacted by Covid so the boys haven't done as much training as they usually would have over Pre-Season so are a bit underdone. I'm not making excuses, we need to rectify it with a bit of hard work but I'm just stating a fact.
I do concede that we have some issues in defence though, particularly down that right edge. That would be my biggest focus at training for the next week or so.
Really disappointing to lose the Charity Shield for the first time in ten years and we do have some work to do before Round 1 but don't shit the bed, it's very early and I'm hoping we'll be okay. Good to get a hit out and get rid of some rust I guess.
