General Discussion Thread

[franklin2323]

Soward used to be allowed to kick. In the finish it was all he was good at. Suspect the coach was looking for improvements in Nathan's kicking game before giving him his licence.

Maloney kicked plenty too last season too.

 

[GongPanther]

I f**king hate how they edit all the classic matches to 60mins. Even with a whole channel dedicated to rugby league we still get shat on so often.

Think of it this way. They have 1 hour highlights instead of the usual 90 minutes. Which means they fit in more games for the duration of the day,which of course means more ad breaks between the more matches.

 

[OldPanther]

Maloney kicked plenty too last season too.

I think people mean the style of kicking rather than the quantity when making that argument.

Think of it this way. They have 1 hour highlights instead of the usual 90 minutes. Which means they fit in more games for the duration of the day,which of course means more ad breaks between the more matches.

Same thing with movies. Studios prefer under 3 hours to fit more screenings in.

 

[franklin2323]

I think people mean the style of kicking rather than the quantity when making that argument.

Same thing with movies. Studios prefer under 3 hours to fit more screenings in.

Maloney forced more dropouts then either Sharks half for example. Not having halves was the issue for most of our problems

 

[roofromoz]

Random question - in late 2013 / early 2014 the Panthers added 2 players to the first grade list, one being Bruce Martin. He doesn't come up as having played any first grade matches on the Rugby League Project website, but I have seen his name pop up on the Cambridge Park JRLFC website, having been made a life member in 1998. Does anyone have any info on him, and when he may have possibly played first grade, playing position, etc.

 

[Westernised Panther]

I watched the 2003 GF for the umpteeth time recently and one stat that blows me away is the fact that a total of 3 penalties were given away during the entire game. 1 against us and 2 against the Roosters. The one against us was for a simple off side after Gower kicked on the 5th tackle. Amusingly, one of the penalties given away by the Roosters was due to Todd Byrne throwing the ball away.

What was even more impressive was that not a single penalty was given away in the second half! Incredible stats given the glutton of penalties given in the game today.

 

[Buzzard Breath]

I watched the 2003 GF for the umpteeth time recently and one stat that blows me away is the fact that a total of 3 penalties were given away during the entire game. 1 against us and 2 against the Roosters. The one against us was for a simple off side after Gower kicked on the 5th tackle. Amusingly, one of the penalties given away by the Roosters was due to Todd Byrne throwing the ball away.

What was even more impressive was that not a single penalty was given away in the second half! Incredible stats given the glutton of penalties given in the game today.

I read Bill Harrigan's biography many years ago and in it I remember him saying of the match.
Along the lines of it was such a high quality game with minimal stoppages he didn't want to insert himself too much into the game. So he held back at times and let the game find its natural pace.
He also had the respect of most the players out there and they would have known what they could have gotten away with and what they couldn't.
Back in 2003 we also had minimal of this wrestling rubbish in the game today, designed to slow the play down.

 

[Kilkenny]

Back in 2003 we also had minimal of this wrestling rubbish in the game today, designed to slow the play down.

I think a lot of the blame can be attributed to Craig Bellamy and the Melbourne Storm who were particularly instrumental in introducing the rubbish which is now a blight and common place in the game.

 

[Crashtest]

I don't usually agree with what Paul Crawley has to say, but in his article in the Daily Telegraph he makes a fair point regarding NRL contracts:


Alex Johnston’s proposed move to Cowboys illustrates the problem with NRL contracts

Every time a footballer gets in strife, it seems another club is left to wear at least some of the fallout.

Todd Greenberg wasted no time over the weekend declaring Ben Barba would not be allowed back in rugby league if domestic violence allegations are proven.

Good on Greenberg for that.

But it's also high time the NRL stood up against another massive issue confronting the game, one that continues to cause so much anger and disillusionment among fans.

What is an NRL contract worth these days?

Nothing is the answer.

The league world hardly had time to digest allegations made against Barba when talk emerged that North Queensland were already preparing to poach Alex Johnston.

Why is this allowed?

It doesn't seem to matter that Johnston is contracted at South Sydney for 2019. That seems inconsequential.

The Cowboys need a new fullback. Johnston apparently wants to be paid fullback money. So it all makes perfect sense, right?

No, if this is happening behind the scenes, it is wrong. And it needs to be stamped out.

The fact is Wayne Bennett has no intention of releasing Johnston and Bennett is not happy Souths will be now forced to deal with this new speculation.

Understandably, Bennett wants Johnston concentrating on the job in front of him, which is to prepare for this season, playing whatever position the club needs him to play.

Is that too much to ask?

With Greg Inglis racing the clock to be fit for the season start, Johnston has an ideal opportunity to show his new coach what he is capable of.

It would make no sense for Bennett to release Johnston this close to the start of the season.

But there is also no question this latest development involving Barba could now potentially distract Johnston, or other players at other clubs.

Last year we had players and coaches breaking deals left, right and centre and it just goes on and on with no end in sight.

In the old days a players word was his bond. These days a contract is not worth the paper it is printed on.

Some will have you believe it is just a part of the professional era, and the fans just have to suck up.

In reality it is mostly bad business that causes the majority of the pain. Clubs are as guilty as the players in all this. They make poor choices but are allowed to wipe their hands of responsibility.

The Cowboys took a huge risk signing Barba given his history. It is not their fault Barba allegedly assaulted his wife.

But their problem should not now become Souths.

We shouldn't be talking about players potentially swapping clubs at this late stage of the pre-season and it really doesn't seem that difficult to fix.

How about this for a novel idea: If a player or club enter into a contract, honour it, for the full term.

Clubs might become a bit more select about who they recruit and players might also take a bit more responsibility.

 

[Buzzard Breath]

Random question - in late 2013 / early 2014 the Panthers added 2 players to the first grade list, one being Bruce Martin. He doesn't come up as having played any first grade matches on the Rugby League Project website, but I have seen his name pop up on the Cambridge Park JRLFC website, having been made a life member in 1998. Does anyone have any info on him, and when he may have possibly played first grade, playing position, etc.

I have a Bruce Martin playing 1 First grade game in 1980. That is from The Encyclopaedia of Rugby League players. Penrith edition 2005.

 

[Buzzard Breath]

I think a lot of the blame can be attributed to Craig Bellamy and the Melbourne Storm who were particularly instrumental in introducing the rubbish which is now a blight and common place in the game.

Agreed. Bellamy started it and the rest of the clubs in fear of missing out copied him.

 

[Matthew Ellis]

 

[mxlegend99]

f**k we got some sort of off-season competition going for who can get jacked as f**k?

Some very fit looking guys in our team.

 

[Matthew Ellis]

Agreed. Bellamy started it and the rest of the clubs in fear of missing out copied him.

Bennet actually brought in wrestling to the game originally. Storm did the most successfully though and resulted in everyone copying it.

 

[Kilkenny]

Bennet actually brought in wrestling to the game originally. Storm did the most successfully though and resulted in everyone copying it.

My memory is not that good but unless I am mistaken Craig Bellamy invented the chicken wing and other concoctions of illegal tackles that have been detrimental to the game.

 

[Panther Pete]

My memory is not that good but unless I am mistaken Craig Bellamy invented the chicken wing and other concoctions of illegal tackles that have been detrimental to the game.

Yeah I am sure we can thank Bellamy for the chicken wing and crusher tackles. I never really understood why he needed to do that crap as he generally had the best team and would have won anyway.

 

[TheFrog]

Todd Greenberg wasted no time over the weekend declaring Ben Barba would not be allowed back in rugby league if domestic violence allegations are proven.

This sounds like a back step. The other day it was "barba needs to find a new job" and now it's dependent on charges being proven. There are no charges to prove. If there were going to be charges we'd know about it by now. His missus has not made a complaint and won't, why would she? For Toddles? I don't think so. So what happens next?

 

[Matthew Ellis]

This sounds like a back step. The other day it was "barba needs to find a new job" and now it's dependent on charges being proven. There are no charges to prove. If there were going to be charges we'd know about it by now. His missus has not made a complaint and won't, why would she? For Toddles? I don't think so. So what happens next?

The police are pressing charges I believe.

 

[Kilkenny]

This sounds like a back step. The other day it was "barba needs to find a new job" and now it's dependent on charges being proven. There are no charges to prove. If there were going to be charges we'd know about it by now. His missus has not made a complaint and won't, why would she? For Toddles? I don't think so. So what happens next?

I don't know how the justice system works in Qld, but in NSW they don't necessarily require the alleged victim to make a complaint in DV related matters. If there is other evidence available ie CCTV, other witnesses who provide statements then that is sufficient to proceed. Given the fact these incidents are alleged to have occurred in a casino there would be cameras covering just about everywhere and it sounds like there were plenty of people around during the three incidents. Given the high profile nature of the incident I would expect the Police to obtain all the available evidence before laying charges, applying for protection orders etc if appropriate.

 

[Crashtest]

Its no surprise the bookies have the Bulldogs, Eels and Sea Eagles as favorites for the wooden spoon this year, in that particular order.

But I would swap the Eels and Bulldogs in the order to finish last, given the Eels halves this season will be the biggest wanker in the NRL and a rookie half.

I know Gould cops a lot of flack from some with with his cap management, but god I'm glad we have him and have not ended up like these three other Sydney clubs. Four actually if you add in the Tigers.

https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/s...n/news-story/f7326f7ff0805b416eda61d82239f932