Everyone needs to remain calm!!!!

[God-King Dean]

Look at the ladder boys:

1. St George Illawarra

March premiers.

There's no pleasing some people.

 

[kit66]

Look at the ladder boys:

1. St George Illawarra

March premiers.

There's no pleasing some people.

I'm lovin' the ladder, ladder's good. Oh when the Saints, go marchin' in March, oh when the Saints go marchin' in ! Good stuff but....
I'm also looking at the draw, Bunnies, Storm, Warriors, Rorters, Doggies.
Giggigiddy, I'm a little noivous !

 

[Minh]

On a plus note, some of Quinlan's passes were pin point and very easy to catch. There was a cut out pass he threw that had number 7 written all over it, he could possibly make the switch if needed.

 

[GT0007]

On a plus note, some of Quinlan's passes were pin point and very easy to catch. There was a cut out pass he threw that had number 7 written all over it, he could possibly make the switch if needed.

My recollection is we resigned Quinlan late last year for a further 2 seasons and I believe we will find a place for him this year. Duges will be back this week and I expect Quinlan to go to the bench and Kyle to Cutters, Williams will be given another week.

I am sure at some point Quinlan will get a shot at 7. It might very well be if Witt gets another shot at 7 and moves to 9 to give Rein a breather and Quinlan comes on at half. IMO he will bea relevation at half.

The break he made which included a great pass inside then getting back off the ground to take the ball 2 passes later was special and really should be counted as a try assist. Hopefully that will give him some confidence to hit the line at pace, doesn't need to smash into them just step toward a hole

 

[TruSaint]

Has anyone noticed Quinlan's body language on the field ? He's like Mr. Casual, he does a run and gets up from the tackle with this bored look on his face or overruns a play ( backing up but no off-load ) then runs back onside with that same bored look. It's very disconcerting, very hard to remain calm about his apparent calmness.

Anyway we haven't played too well for the last 2 weeks so these are my coaching tips.
Make Widdop co - captain. On field Creagh runs the show in defence, he barks out the orders and the boys do what he says. Widdop controls the attack, including keeping Williams in line. At this stage Williams is too inexperienced to be given free reign. You don't want to stifle the kid completely but until he learns the importance of field position and maintaining momentum he needs to let his dance partner, Widdop lead ( the same way Cronk lead Widdop at the Storm ).

Forwards.
Our bench sucks. New bench - Stockwell or Cooper,Ah Mau, Harrison plus a utility be that Quinlan, Witt or god help us, Style.
Gives us a bit of size and power off the bench. Harrison has been overlooked but I think he's perfectly suited to the new rules, he has great line speed, defends well and his backing up is almost as good as Quinlan or Nightie's.
Starting pack - Frizell, Rein, Hunt up front, Creagh, Thompson, Merrin in the back row. We have to start well and adding Thompson can give us a bit more aggression early on.

Harsh reality - it might be hard to make room for Quin when Duges comes back. If you do put him on the bench it can't be as a second hooker so other option is Witt to 7 to be moved to 9 when Quin comes on ( to 7 ).

Just re Quinlan, he had one average game.

He plays above his weight, and in a most difficult position.
There will be a space for him on the 17.

I would worry more about his effort than his apparent "calm" demeanour.

He is a valuable asset.

 

[Redvpassion]

I think we all should do what the title suggests. The dragons were given no chance this season and we are first ans have been playing some good footy, while all the favourites for this season have either lost 3 in a row or been held to zero or got hammered over this weekend. No undefeated teams left. So let's all just reeeeeeeeellaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaax. For now that is

 

[Redvpassion]

Yes, presumably Dugan will be back next week so for Quinlan it'll be more a question of where he can be slotted in if selected. He can play anywhere in the backline. I don't think he should be dropped if it can be avoided.

When is Witt coming back? Williams' position under threat from Witt (and perhaps even Quinlan).

Stanley is too slow at dummy half. I feel he cost us a lot of go forward on Friday night. Rein is the man for the job but it is the habit of modern coaches and the interchange to have two hookers. Maybe Witt can fill that role.

Rein's turnaround in form has been very good to see. Plus he did a truckload of tackles on the goal in the first 20 minutes, saved us being further behind imo.

Some good points willow. I'll drop stanley in favour of Quinlan, he can cover some major positions in case of onfield injuries. Also would drop Williams for Witt if fit. Big call to give Stanley the gig if Witt isn't fit and Williams is out of form.

What about also giving Thompson a starting run in place of frizzel, apparently in doubt due to ankle problem. That may give Stockwell a starting spot with Debelin. Pending Dan Hunt.

 

[Minh]

My recollection is we resigned Quinlan late last year for a further 2 seasons and I believe we will find a place for him this year. Duges will be back this week and I expect Quinlan to go to the bench and Kyle to Cutters, Williams will be given another week.

I am sure at some point Quinlan will get a shot at 7. It might very well be if Witt gets another shot at 7 and moves to 9 to give Rein a breather and Quinlan comes on at half. IMO he will bea relevation at half.

The break he made which included a great pass inside then getting back off the ground to take the ball 2 passes later was special and really should be counted as a try assist. Hopefully that will give him some confidence to hit the line at pace, doesn't need to smash into them just step toward a hole

Agree, he is a creator and a finisher (backing up in support), but he is not a hard charging fullback. Half back might see the best come out of Quinlan maybe, just maybe....

 

[kit66]

Just re Quinlan, he had one average game.

He plays above his weight, and in a most difficult position.
There will be a space for him on the 17.

I would worry more about his effort than his apparent "calm" demeanour.

He is a valuable asset.

Ideally I would want Quinlan in the 17, I was just wondering how best to juggle the roster to fit him in. I'd much rather him on the bench than Kyle. And I'm only kidding about his calm demeanor, I think it's just a quirk of his and was wondering if anyone else noticed.

 

[chillwinston]

Was at the game friday night few things I got out of it

- Flat in defense, we weren't meeting their attack and just sat back all game
- Attack was a bit off as well, few too many short kicks that didn't come off.
- Goal line D 10-15m either side of the posts was woeful and we have let soft tries in from everyone we've played so far, the broncos just exposed it best.
- Still a bit light in weight with our forwards.

Apart from a few off calls from the refs, Our D never stood up to the Broncos until there was less then 10 mins to go. They only looked good because we allowed them to run and put no pressure on any of their playmakers.

Positive note was getting points on the board again.

A flat performance in the end, you can't win them all but the defense needs some work, especially on our goal line and hopefully a little kick up the ar$e might get them fired up...

 

[saint.nick]

I'm always perplexed when players decide to sit back and refuse to meet the attack in defence. Every bloody person with knowledge about the game knows that it never works, yet teams still always fall into it? The Broncos weren't that particularly brilliant that it kind of made us do so, it was just that we were defensively shit house. Amazes me how a team just decides to forget how to defend after 3 years of quality brick-laying under Bennett. Defence is all about attitude and commitment.

 

[kit66]

I'm always perplexed when players decide to sit back and refuse to meet the attack in defence. Every bloody person with knowledge about the game knows that it never works, yet teams still always fall into it? The Broncos weren't that particularly brilliant that it kind of made us do so, it was just that we were defensively shit house. Amazes me how a team just decides to forget how to defend after 3 years of quality brick-laying under Bennett. Defence is all about attitude and commitment.

You have to take the speed of the game this year into account, it's hard enough just to get back on side and get your defense set let alone be back there and moving forward again as soon as the ball is played. It's easier said than done and that's why the games are so high scoring this year, teams can get fantastic momentum going. Brisbane controlled the ruck a bit better than we did by holding us down just that little bit longer even at the risk of copping penalties (which lucky for them weren't forthcoming ). But you are partly right, it's noticeable that when we do have time to get our defense set we aren't moving up quickly or as one. We have players like Beale and Ah Mau always rushing up in defense, which only works if you manage to shut the play down ( Beale misses every time unfortunately ) if you don't you just leave gaps, as shown and exploited by Brisbane ( and Tedesco made a fool out of Beale in rnd 1 ). We need to control the ruck much more efficiently.

 

[matPORTS]

Ruck defense is an area that we need to address pretty quick smart. I can cope with it for the moment because no doubt learning how to attack again has been a main focal point for us for late. If we can get the defense right again, we can be a force in this comp. Need time though.

 

[giboz71]

Ruck defense is an area that we need to address pretty quick smart. I can cope with it for the moment because no doubt learning how to attack again has been a main focal point for us for late. If we can get the defense right again, we can be a force in this comp. Need time though.

Can you really coach defence tho? Tackling and defensive alignment isn't that complex really, it's all about attitude and fitness isn't it?

Attack yes, it's all about practice and repetition and we've definitely seen improvement there. The players just need to have their minds on the job to stop teams just running through them.

 

[TruSaint]

Ideally I would want Quinlan in the 17, I was just wondering how best to juggle the roster to fit him in. I'd much rather him on the bench than Kyle. And I'm only kidding about his calm demeanor, I think it's just a quirk of his and was wondering if anyone else noticed.

Yep, atm, he is a galaxy or three ahead of Kyle.

 

[jenninga]

Can you really coach defence tho? Tackling and defensive alignment isn't that complex really, it's all about attitude and fitness isn't it?

Attack yes, it's all about practice and repetition and we've definitely seen improvement there. The players just need to have their minds on the job to stop teams just running through them.

We had the best defence for 3 years,and one of the best in history,you don't achieve that without coaching.

 

[R&WTILLIDIE]

Can you really coach defence tho? Tackling and defensive alignment isn't that complex really, it's all about attitude and fitness isn't it?

Attack yes, it's all about practice and repetition and we've definitely seen improvement there. The players just need to have their minds on the job to stop teams just running through them.

Definitley...You can coach a team how to mark your man, defend in a line and as a team and come up in defence. It's no fluke we had the best defence under Bennett

 

[giboz71]

Definitley...You can coach a team how to mark your man, defend in a line and as a team and come up in defence. It's no fluke we had the best defence under Bennett

Hear what you're saying and I totally agree. But marking your man and defending in a line is schoolboy stuff, if they haven't mastered it by now, they never will.

First Grade players know how to defend, the difference between the good defensive teams and the rest is fitness and commitment to each other. We had that in spades during the Bennett years and it's somewhat lacking with the current team.

 

[The_Team_Won]

No problem at all a slight glitch in the system on Friday night. Unless the Titans turn into world beaters tonight and win by 38 or more points by 8:45pm the Dragons will be still on top of the NRL Ladder.:alcho:

 

[Jersey No 14]

This season is like NASCAR.
There's only one line.
You get shunted aside, it may be ages before you can get back into position and by then - its thanks for coming, but we've got it.
We exposed ourselves to the comp and I'm worried we'll be exploited. It is a real possibility
Thanks for coming, but we've got it from here