Eels sign Fa'aoso

[Eelementary]

I know alot of people don't agree but I am not keen having 3 workaholic backrowers on the field at one time as I feel it weakens our go forward.

i.e. Wagon, Hindy, iHindy, Chad.

I much prefer a pack with 2 workaholic backrowers and 3 metres gainers (or where 1 of the metre gainers is a ball player).

Something like the dogs had :

13. SBW 12. Ryan 11. Mason 10. O'Meley 8 . Asotasi

Therefore, for Parra I would like to see.

13. Wagon/Chad/iHindy
12. Faaso
11. Hindy
10. Cannings/FFMM
9. Riddell
8. Caylo

14. Marsh
15. Cordoba
16. FFMM/Cannings
17. Mateo


Hagan also tends to like the go forward style forwards

Totally agree. A back-row of Hindmarsh, Hindmarsh and Robinson makes me cringe - no go-forward there at all.

 

[parramatta_eels_123]

8.Nathan Cayless
9.Mark Riddell
10.Josh Cordoba
11.Nathan Hindmarsh
12.Richard Fa'osoa
13.Chad Robinson

14.PJ Marsh
15.Feleti Mateo
16.Fuifui Moimoi
17.Ian Hindmarsh

 

[BlueNGoldBlood]

Totally agree. A back-row of Hindmarsh, Hindmarsh and Robinson makes me cringe - no go-forward there at all.

Atleast the other team won't be going anywere either, with them three brick walls :lol:

 

[Ron Jeremy]

Ian Hindy makes more yards then you think, however i've gotta agree with Parraren, we need more strike weapons, and for that reason either Cannings or Fa'aosso will be starting.

 

[caylo]

id have to agree, mabey would could see Mateo start at lock. With Fa'aoso coming off the bench.
imagine:
Marsh
Fa'aoso
Cannings
Moimoi

hey i assume Fui will start but that is huge bench

 

[yy_cheng]

Atleast the other team won't be going anywere either, with them three brick walls :lol:

But the opposition won't have to go far if we can't make it out of our 20 !!

 

[Pazza]

At least our defence would be fantastic! All the guys in the starting pack are effective and tough tacklers. They are quick off the line and mobile. If we where highly disaplined, with a good kicking game and we have a good completion rate then we would be a top 4 force.

Chad and Ian can make ground but I want to see consistency in that department. I want to see they guys fight for the ball in the first 20. I want to see them running off Tim smith so they aren’t such a target for bigger forwards and I know they will gang tackle and force opponents back which I is our strength for 2007.

 

[Bigfella]

I am not keen having 3 workaholic backrowers on the field at one time as I feel it weakens our go forward.

I agree with that statemen but take it one step further.

The problem is that we seem to have also been using workaholic frontrowers as well, who also struggle to make yards. With fui out last year, we used cayless, vella and cordoba. Mobile, all of them, and good workrates, but so little yardage and impact between them that we were often not truly in contests even when they were close on the scoreboard.

This also meant we were never, ever going to beat sides like brisbane canterbury and melbourne.

I see the most important players for us next season as faoso, cannings, tsoulos and moi moi for this reason.

However, I am not as confident as some people are on this board because of the 4 only fui has proved himself at nrl level, and he has also proved that he will inevitably miss a lot of football.

I agree completely that the other 3 have great potential. I am also excited about heraki and paolo - but at this stage it is all potential and these guys have a lot to prove, and a great deal of improvement to make.

I would have loved us to chase some of the proven hard heads that were available (asotasi and the guys the roosters picked up). But we have gone for youth, and potential, which is at least exciting.

Let's hope they can step up, because we really do need them to. It will be a great season if they do!

 

[BlueNGoldBlood]

But the opposition won't have to go far if we can't make it out of our 20 !!

I dont think you give the hindy's and robbo enough credit..

Anyway if you start with those 3 and having Fui start will give that impact we need, then bring on say Feleti and Fa'aoso in the backrow, and Cannings comes on for Caylo. Our whole momentum changes from big defense to big attack.

 

[The Colonel]

8. Cayless
9. Riddell
10. Cannings
11. Hindmarsh
12. Taia
13. Robinson

14. Marsh
15. Mateo
16. Moimoi
17. Cordoba

If I was coach that is who I'd be picking in all honesty.

 

[yy_cheng]

I dont think you give the hindy's and robbo enough credit..

Anyway if you start with those 3 and having Fui start will give that impact we need, then bring on say Feleti and Fa'aoso in the backrow, and Cannings comes on for Caylo. Our whole momentum changes from big defense to big attack.

I know we're a different side but I was watching the doggies play (against who I forget) but they were relentless. Folkes' rotation of Asotasi, Shrek and Mason (SBW wasn't replaced) meant that they were forever pounding the opposition in attack and defense. There were times this year when the bench players came on, we lacked a little go forward.

And tbh (without looking at stats and just from memory), I don't consider Hindy a big metre eater any more. iHindy, I am not sure about as it's been a while), Robbo, when asked, he was a 100 metre man but wasn't consistently doing it. This applies to Wags as well. Wags made some really good hitups this year but wasn't consistently doing it.

 

[BlueNGoldBlood]

Like you said we are a different side. Dogs pack last year was absolutely ruthless at times, but other times had no impact at all really.

To be fair though i would also like to see a different backrow combination picked, as they dont have enough impact at the start of a game. I do believe though that hagan (odds on) will pick the hindy brothers and robbo to start the season in the backrow.

Our backrow is a bit like our fullback position, the people starting there wont finish there by the end of the year.

 

[Parraren]

I'm actually hoping guys like Fa'aoso, Cannings, Zeb, Weller, Feleti etc put their hands up during the year and force their way into the starting side to give us a more dynamic and dangerous looking forward pack.

I mean if someone told me last pre-season that Fui Fui would be starting prop by the middle of the year I would have roflmao.

I'm confident some of those guys will get there at some stage of next year but early on I'd be putting my faith in blokes that have the runs on the board.

How long has it been now that we've been pinning our hopes on Cannings to fulfill his potential?

 

[Eelementary]

Atleast the other team won't be going anywere either, with them three brick walls :lol:

:lol:

Don't get me wrong - defensively, that back-row is brilliant (although they still have their own individual weaknesses, of course).

It's just that in terms of attack...Yikes!

 

[Eelementary]

8. Cayless
9. Riddell
10. Cannings
11. Hindmarsh
12. Taia
13. Robinson

14. Marsh
15. Mateo
16. Moimoi
17. Cordoba

If I was coach that is who I'd be picking in all honesty.

Good team - but no Fa'aoso? No Lowrie? No Ian Hindmarsh?

 

[Eelementary]

What do you see as more important:

(1) Forwards who make 10 metres per hit-up;

or

(2) Forwards who make 7 metres per hit-up, but really sting with each run they make?

Ideally, a combination of 1 and 2 would be brilliant. But it won't happen.

We have guys like Moimoi who combine both brilliantly, and then you have the rest ofd the pack - they'll probably each make 100 metres a match, yes. But they won't sting with their hit-ups. They won't tire out their opposing forwards.

In short, I believe we lack aggression. I'm not saying we need 6 Moimois in the pack. But one or two big, aggressive forwards other than Moimoi would certainly help our cause in my opinion.

Enter Tsoulos, Fa'aoso, Cannings and Taia.

 

[The Colonel]

Good team - but no Fa'aoso? No Lowrie? No Ian Hindmarsh?

It is unlikely that Hagan will pick that side, as much as I'd like him to but with Chad and Nathan in the side IMO they aren't needed. Mateo and Moimoi add impact from the bench while Cannings does it by starting. Stability is there in Cayless and Cordoba.

 

[Eelementary]

I agree with you, buddy.

I'd love to see Mateo, Cannings and even Taia play.

It's just that I've heard a lot about Fa'aoso (I honestly don't remember him), and I've heard good things about Lowrie, and so I thought maybe you didn't rate them that highly. Which is cool, of course!

 

[The Colonel]

one or two big, aggressive forwards

Tsoulos

We could only live in hope..... ;-) Unfortunately that is what the big unit lacks......

 

[Eelementary]

:lol: True.

I live in hope - when he came onto the scene, I was impressed. Made good metres, had a nice offload. And this year he put on some massive hits.

If he can learn to focus and harness his size...Hello!