EELS vs TIGERS

[Poupou Escobar]

There are three rules for being a mad merkin:

1. Look good
2. Be good
3. If you can't do 2, see 1

 

[tresurehunt]

in all honesty i really hope playing along side CS he will re capture his 80 minute form streak he had in 09.

 

[the slippery eel]

Esi isnt a first grader...its a trial ffs. And the bloke scored a try. What else you gotta do.

My god, he scored a try and that means he can play. You must not watch the game and just go by the score card in the papers. He is crap, thats why he has been the 3rd and 4th pick centre for the last 3 or so years at the club that finished 16th of 16 last year.

 

[Maroubra Eel]

Anyone got any news on how Keating went? Did he look sharp out of dummy half? Did he work well with the halves?

 

[Eels Dude]

My god, he scored a try and that means he can play. You must not watch the game and just go by the score card in the papers. He is crap, thats why he has been the 3rd and 4th pick centre for the last 3 or so years at the club that finished 16th of 16 last year.

I reckon we just signed Esi as a bargaining tool to get Willie over here. It worked at least.

 

[natheel]

whilst we're in the mood to crucify anyone and everyone, i'm surprised no ones mentioned Horo?...stayed down yet again after a hit, albeit it did look high and gave away several stupid penalties.

i don't see why kearney perseveres with horo, he is behind the 8 ball last year and seems that way still. had a good year in 2010 but hasn't kicked off since

 

[Eels Dude]

Anyone got any news on how Keating went? Did he look sharp out of dummy half? Did he work well with the halves?

I think MK has to step up this year. With more ad lib players like Hayne and Sandow in the spine someone has to do the organising.

 

[Poupou Escobar]

in all honesty i really hope playing along side CS he will re capture his 80 minute form streak he had in 09.

Mate RLW gave him 10 out of 10 for that game. He set the record for LBAs in a single game (at least since the stat has been recorded) with 7, had 4 try assists and scored one himself.

There's only a handful of plyers in the game who are that dominant at their best - Thurston, Marshall, Hayne, Carney - and Roberts is on a lot less money than all of them, meaning we can afford to have him in the same team as Hayne and Sandow.

 

[Poupou Escobar]

I think MK has to step up this year. With more ad lib players like Hayne and Sandow in the spine someone has to do the organising.

Teams that play with a tight structure do so precisely so that they don't need much in the way of organising.

This is one of the reasons split halves came about - due to a shortage of organising halfbacks. This is how St George were able to win a premiership with Soward and Hornby in the halves.

We don't need Sandow to sift through various options and change the shape of the team on the fly, we just need him to do what he does best, which is kick well, and run to the line.

These days far too much is made of 'organising' which became a bit of a buzzword back in the 80s and 90s. But back then smart halfbacks were more valuable because defences weren't as good and they could be exploited more easily through quick thinking and trickery. The game is a lot simpler these days and the focus is on executing well rather than trying to outsmart defences.

 

[tresurehunt]

Mate RLW gave him 10 out of 10 for that game. He set the record for LBAs in a single game (at least since the stat has been recorded) with 7, had 4 try assists and scored one himself.

There's only a handful of plyers in the game who are that dominant at their best - Thurston, Marshall, Hayne, Carney - and Roberts is on a lot less money than all of them, meaning we can afford to have him in the same team as Hayne and Sandow.

well if he can re-capture half of them stats we'll be ok then :sarcasm:

 

[Jake the snake]

whilst we're in the mood to crucify anyone and everyone, i'm surprised no ones mentioned Horo?...stayed down yet again after a hit, albeit it did look high and gave away several stupid penalties.

Yeah I did mention him and his poor game. He's was up there with Keating as one of the Worst on the field.

Joseph Paulo looked very fit and keen. Liked some of his touches!!

 

[Poupou Escobar]

well if he can re-capture half of them stats we'll be ok then :sarcasm:

I think you missed the point mate.

Most players, even at their best, can't win games on their own. Roberts is one of the few who can.

So hopefully we'll see him at his best a few times this year. For those games where he isn't, we're lucky he's not the focus of our attack.

 

[Parramatta1947]

Keating isn't a surprise - we all said it when he was resigned, he offers nothing and there isn't a clear backup to put the pressure on him.

I love all the articles about the game - the front page of the Tele is how good Benji was over Sandow. Seriously, it is a TRIAL game. Sandow did well, he didn't have a shocker.

 

[tresurehunt]

I think you missed the point mate.

Most players, even at their best, can't win games on their own. Roberts is one of the few who can.

So hopefully we'll see him at his best a few times this year. For those games where he isn't, we're lucky he's not the focus of our attack.

well i have to agree there ,good point..

 

[Poupou Escobar]

Keating isn't a surprise - we all said it when he was resigned, he offers nothing

He offers solid defence and a high workrate at a reasonable price. The fact we have an 80 minute hooker means we can blood a halfback off the bench (Barba? Seage?) the same way Ben Barba and Cronk were eased into first grade.

and there isn't a clear backup to put the pressure on him.

I don't think pressure is going to turn him into Cameron Smith or Robbie Farah - Keating already tries his guts out. He doesn't need fear of losing his spot to motivate him.

I love all the articles about the game - the front page of the Tele is how good Benji was over Sandow. Seriously, it is a TRIAL game. Sandow did well, he didn't have a shocker.

Agreed. Our edge defence was shit just like it was last year. That was the difference between the two teams.

 

[I bleed blue & gold]

Did you watch the same game as I did. Esi got stood up cold by Gareth Ellis. Chayse may not be a winger, but Esi is not a 1st grader.

Ill tell you what he's still a better pick than Ryan Morgan. Esi was abit suss in defence but he went alright in attack. dont bother mentioning anything positive he may have done. :roll:

 

[I bleed blue & gold]

whilst we're in the mood to crucify anyone and everyone, i'm surprised no ones mentioned Horo?...stayed down yet again after a hit, albeit it did look high and gave away several stupid penalties.

I was still dissapointed with Horo. I did think that hit was high, he tried to milk the penalty and got nothing.

 

[I bleed blue & gold]

My god, he scored a try and that means he can play. You must not watch the game and just go by the score card in the papers. He is crap, thats why he has been the 3rd and 4th pick centre for the last 3 or so years at the club that finished 16th of 16 last year.

It wasnt that much of a try tbh, a try none the less though. He may not set the world on fire but ffs, did he f**k your mrs or something?? It's hard to cement a spot in a team when you have had a bad run of injuries like he has over the last few years.

 

[Poupou Escobar]

Ill tell you what he's still a better pick than Ryan Morgan.

To be fair, Morgan was stuck with Sandow defending outside him. That said, Sio did come in to protect Sandow a bit too often which is what led to Utai scoring a double.

Our right side is going to be a defensive issue as long as Sandow's at the club, but that's a weakness we're willing to work around. Morgan's a good defender, and we don't need him to be anything special in attack.

 

[I bleed blue & gold]

I'm not just talking of last night. In general Esi T > Morgan. IMO.