St George Illawarra players back incumbent Dragons hooker Mitch Rein instead of Robbie Farah move
- Simon Brunsdon
- November 28, 2015 6:00AM
ST George Illawarra has been linked to Robbie Farah, but Dragons players seem content with the hooker they’ve got.
With Farah on the outer at Wests Tigers and rumoured to be looking for a home in 2016, the Wollongong club is one of several in the NRL said to be interested in his services.
The message, however, clearly hasn’t made its way down to the playing group.
They have thrown their support behind incumbent No. 9 Mitch Rein.
Benji Marshall, who has a long history with Farah and considers him a close friend, doesn’t see the need for a second (or third) hooker while Rein is wearing the Red V.
“(Farah is) a class player,” Marshall said of his former teammate.
“The problem is we’ve got a class hooker as well in Mitch Rein.
“If Mitch is at the club I think he’s got a great future, he’s a future Origin star.
“If Robbie joins the club that’s another hooker on the books.”
Utility back Peter Mata’utia agrees the club is sufficiently stocked in the hooking department.
Aside from Rein, the Dragons have recruited Josh McCrone from Canberra, who may be used to complement the former rake off the bench.
Mata’utia says Farah would be surplus to needs with Rein already holding a mortgage on the jumper.
“He’s a great player, he’s an Origin hooker, but I don’t know much about Robbie,” Mata’utia told
foxsports.com.au.
“I’m happy with Mitchy, he’s a great talent.
“I thought he should have made the Origin squad last year.
“But Mitch is the future of the club and I’ll back him any day of the week.”
Statistics compiled by
Fox Sports Lab from the 2015 NRL season paint two very different players when comparing Farah and Rein.
Rein shaded the more experienced man in linebreaks (7 to 2) and tackle busts (31 to 19) last season, suggesting a better running game from dummy half.
This could, however, be contributed to the tighter rein held on Farah by Tigers coach Jason Taylor this year.
Farah also averaged almost three more kicks per game than Rein.
But the one stat that has worked against Rein throughout his NRL career lies in the “average minutes per game” column.
While the diminutive rake has long voiced his desire to play 80 minutes, Dragons coach Paul McGregor insisted on carrying a second hooker on the bench.
As a result, Rein averaged just 59 minutes a game in 2015.
Mata’utia, though, is confident Rein could run rings around most hookers in the game.
“He’s probably one of the fittest at the club, so there’s no doubt Mitchy could play 80 minutes,” Mata’utia said.
“I think he did it the last couple of games last year.”
Marshall and Farah played side by side at the Tigers through most of their careers, but the former insists he has no idea which way Farah is leaning for 2016.
He hasn’t received any indication his mate will land in Wollonogong.
“He doesn’t say anything. I asked him the other night and he said I’ll find out,” Marshall said.
“I said mate, ‘I’ve known you 20 years and you don’t want to tell me’.
“He said how good would it be to finish our careers together, and I said you’ll be finished way before me.”
http://www.foxsports.com.au/nrl/nrl...obbie-farah-move/story-e6frf3vc-1227625998109
