Yeah, but what age do swimmers retire? Phelps is the only Olympian individual swimmer to ever win a gold medal past 31. They peak much earlier and retire much earlier because the work load is so intense. Crank junior rugby league players up and they'll be done by 25. Does anyone want that? For every Olympic swimmer produced there's a shitload that completely burn out and develop a hatred of the sport. I know, I went to school with some. Their schooling suffered because they weren't getting 8 hours of sleep a day, they either drifted off or completely fell asleep during the day. I don't see the Olympic/league parallel. Two completely different sports, one collision one not. One peaks for a four-year or 1-2 year cycle (world champs etc) the other has to get up week in, week out. And you reckon you're going to get Polynesian kids, living in South Auckland below the bread line or near it, on a specialist diet? None of that is realistic for rugby league. Maybe I'm playing the man and not the ball because Mark Watson is an imbecile. But I don't think I am.
Totally take your point that the Warriors were seriously underdone fitness wise and there was no excuse, it was pitiful. And that's clearly the change this year, as well as Kearney being a better coach. You're uncoachable when you're unfit, you're mentally unfit when you're physically unfit because as soon as fatigue sets in and you're not used to it, you make poor decisions. And that's what we did, we couldn't execute skills or stay mentally in games because we were unfit.
Thing that gets me, clearly Alex Corvo is the best of the best. But how can someone like Carl Jennings, or whoever else had us unfit be so poor at what they did? Surely even if Alex Corvo is the benchmark, surely the other guys can design and implement a programme that gets guys fit to play 80 mins in the NRL? Isn't there a loose blueprint everyone follows? Every guy in the NRL can run wind sprints and lift weights. Go watch Corvo, or Nick Gill (All Blacks trainer) for a couple of sessions then copy/research.
I don't disagree with anything you have said. Swimming and League are very different animals and you argue that well.
The main thing League or rugby for that matter could learn from elite Olympic culture is that there are no limits placed on Athletes....and in the non subjective sports....sports without 'Judges; there is no bullshit...you are either faster or stronger or you are nothing.
Don't forget that no limits means poor countries like Jamaica and Kenya just outrun the bullshit.
Communist Factories like China and Russia invented the child World record breaker...because someone in those countries stopped to ask "why cant a child go faster or further than conventional Western thinking ?
The New Zealand Olympic row team of coaches knows ten times as much about turning smaller less talented athletes into world beaters than any Alex Corvo could ever dream of.
League is a contact sport sure, so is Boxing Wrestling...and in the same vein we see so many power sports like Lifting.....Throwing....and Wrestling.
All injury risk sports....all populated by super Kids. Look at commonwealth Games Gold medalist David Nyika....an average day in the office for him is ten times a Warriors Junior...getting punched in the head for a living.
Don't be limited by this idea of where the endurance line is for League.
New Zealand may not foster the diets for South Auckland kids because of economy...but did that stop a bunch of kids right across Africa from becoming the greatest runners the world has ever seen ?
Yes Waddo and his Mt Albert Chair leading is annoying but....my Daughters eastern European Gymnastics coach had her doing twenty five pull ups for warm up when she was seven,.so....
As for why Jennings couldn't get them fit....one man on the job is bullshit....Olympic sports have teams of coaches.,
Our Best fitness trainer before Corvo was Craig Walker ex Roosters,,,,the best in the NRL....he was on his own and only got us as good as the Ivan Years,,,,which included useless knobs like Mateo and Inu....
Walker needed a team like Corvo has supporting him and applying the science.
