General Discussion Thread

[mxlegend99]

Even if the issues were true. Why were we so good 5 weeks ago and shit now?

The issues supposedly started in the pre-season. So theres no reason at all our current form should be a result of that.

I honestly think we 'won our grand final' against Dragons, had the bye and no one is putting in like they did before the bye.

You cant blame the rep period. Only 4 players have had to do short turnarounds and it was only for one gsme.

Tamou, Mez, Whare, Yeo, Hetherington, Ellis and Egan played no rep games at all. DWZ, Phillips, Crichton, JFH etc. Only played a single rep game on a standalone weekend. Standard turnaround for them.

Peachey has played about 15 minutes of rep footy. Maloney has been through this a bunch of times... of our Origin players only Cleary has an excuse and he missed 6 or 7 weeks anyway so he shouldn't be burned out.

Whilr our form has turned to shit through yhe rep period. I think its a bit of a cop out blaming that. We turned to shit after our best game and a bye. My money is on us having played do hard against Dragons. Gained confidence from it. Become favorites etc. Believing the hupe and now we are finding it difficult to get that back.

 

[OldPanther]

No. He is anti Penrith and Gould if he possibly can in the DT.

He was pretty quiet while while we were winning. I hate him.

 

[OldPanther]

Even if the issues were true. Why were we so good 5 weeks ago and shit now?

The issues supposedly started in the pre-season. So theres no reason at all our current form should be a result of that.

I honestly think we 'won our grand final' against Dragons, had the bye and no one is putting in like they did before the bye.

You cant blame the rep period. Only 4 players have had to do short turnarounds and it was only for one gsme.

Tamou, Mez, Whare, Yeo, Hetherington, Ellis and Egan played no rep games at all. DWZ, Phillips, Crichton, JFH etc. Only played a single rep game on a standalone weekend. Standard turnaround for them.

Peachey has played about 15 minutes of rep footy. Maloney has been through this a bunch of times... of our Origin players only Cleary has an excuse and he missed 6 or 7 weeks anyway so he shouldn't be burned out.

Whilr our form has turned to shit through yhe rep period. I think its a bit of a cop out blaming that. We turned to shit after our best game and a bye. My money is on us having played do hard against Dragons. Gained confidence from it. Become favorites etc. Believing the hupe and now we are finding it difficult to get that back.

Yeah our intensity from the first cows game until the Dragons game was fantastic. The bye killed it somehow.

 

[jane the pain]

No. He is anti Penrith and Gould if he possibly can in the DT.

Paul Gallen is another.

 

[Thirsty Panther]

Does anyone know if the players are being trained harder. I read that Bennett ups the training for the Broncos during the SOO period. The team suffers for a couple of weeks but then the training is tapered as the finals commence. Then you have your players primed for the final series.
Just a thought.

 

[Panther_Daz]

Let's keep the discussion on Anthony Griffin here:

http://forums.leagueunlimited.com/threads/anthony-griffin.471046/

 

[Kilkenny]

Would the NSW blues be 2-0 up had Mitchell Pearce been fit and played half back in the series instead of Nathan Cleary?

 

[OldPanther]

Would the NSW blues be 2-0 up had Mitchell Pearce been fit and played half back in the series instead of Nathan Cleary?

Doubt it.

 

[Copperhead]

Would the NSW blues be 2-0 up had Mitchell Pearce been fit and played half back in the series instead of Nathan Cleary?

If the rest of the team was still the same, yes.

 

[mxlegend99]

If the rest of the team was still the same, yes.

No chance.

Pearce couldnt go about his game like Cleary did. He would make poor decisions and overplay his hand. Cleary did just enough and let Maloney run the team.

He has lost 100% of the series he participated in. Even in far more experienced teams he couldnt handle the pressure.

We've won 2 of the 3 series he missed. Yet lost all 6 he participated in. The series was as good as won last year and he couldnt get it done

 

[Copperhead]

No chance.

Pearce couldnt go about his game like Cleary did. He would make poor decisions and overplay his hand. Cleary did just enough and let Maloney run the team.

He has lost 100% of the series he participated in. Even in far more experienced teams he couldnt handle the pressure.

We've won 2 of the 3 series he missed. Yet lost all 6 he participated in. The series was as good as won last year and he couldnt get it done

This was a completely different team with a different coach playing a much, much weaker Queensland side. Cleary had a hell of a lot easier task than Pearce ever had.

 

[mxlegend99]

This was a completely different team with a different coach playing a much, much weaker Queensland side. Cleary had a hell of a lot easier task than Pearce ever had.

Right. Cleary was 1 of 11 rookies and he had an easier task than Pearce ever did. That's bullshit.

Look at it from Queenslands point of view. They faced the most inexperienced NSW side with terrible defence and failed. This Queensland team had an easier task than any in the past 13 years. They just whinged about who left and ignored who was available.

Pearce turned Origin sides to shit. Queenslands dynasty was largely on the back of Pearce failing.

NSW with Pearce had a 0% series win rate in 6 series
NSW without Pearce won 66% of their last 3 series

Pearce found ways to lose rep games.

 

[Frankus]

Would the NSW blues be 2-0 up had Mitchell Pearce been fit and played half back in the series instead of Nathan Cleary?

NSW could play Hodgkinson and still win a series whitewash. QLD don’t lose the 4 best players of the past 10 years and remain competitive.

 

[mxlegend99]

NSW could play Hodgkinson and still win a series whitewash. QLD don’t lose the 4 best players of the past 10 years and remain competitive.

But Trent proved himself capable of being s better rep playerthsn Pearce in 2014.

It's not a coincidence rgar Pearce has lost 6 series. It's a consistent and predictable result. Ben Hunt and Csm Munster are both better than Pearce

 

[Frankus]

But Trent proved himself capable of being s better rep playerthsn Pearce in 2014.

It's not a coincidence rgar Pearce has lost 6 series. It's a consistent and predictable result. Ben Hunt and Csm Munster are both better than Pearce

Oh I agree with you MX.

My point is that Qld were always going to lose this series 3-0. You don't take Smith, Thurston, Cronk, and Slater (1 game) out of the side in one go and replace them with McCullough, Hunt, Munster and Morgan and expect them to win. Most importantly losing Cronk and Smith at the same time. Losing 1-2 of them, you may have given them the slimmest of chances. Losing all 3 (or 4) you give them no chance.

You only have to look back the 2014 series to see how important Cronk and Smith being on the field at the same time have been to that side for the previous 6 series from 2012-2017. Hell, look at Melbourne during that same period.

Watch games 1 and 2 from the 2014 series and tell with a straight face that if Cronk doesn't break his arm in the first 20 minutes of game 1 that NSW win that series. Because I just don't see it.

 

[mxlegend99]

We can never know what would have happened in 2014. Although i would back Pearce to have lost in 2014 and 2018 had he played.

In no way is that talking up Hokko or Cleary either. Both series had close results in Game 2 where Pearce would have f**ked it up.

 

[OldPanther]

Oh I agree with you MX.

My point is that Qld were always going to lose this series 3-0. You don't take Smith, Thurston, Cronk, and Slater (1 game) out of the side in one go and replace them with McCullough, Hunt, Munster and Morgan and expect them to win. Most importantly losing Cronk and Smith at the same time. Losing 1-2 of them, you may have given them the slimmest of chances. Losing all 3 (or 4) you give them no chance.

You only have to look back the 2014 series to see how important Cronk and Smith being on the field at the same time have been to that side for the previous 6 series from 2012-2017. Hell, look at Melbourne during that same period.

Watch games 1 and 2 from the 2014 series and tell with a straight face that if Cronk doesn't break his arm in the first 20 minutes of game 1 that NSW win that series. Because I just don't see it.

QLD had more rep experience. It wasn't the sure thing people say.

 

[mxlegend99]

QLD had more rep experience. It wasn't the sure thing people say.

Yep. Constantly looking at who was missing rather than at who was playing.

Fullback:
Michael Morgan - Origin and Premiership and International winner

Replaced by Billy Slater for Game2. Who is all those thing also.

5/8th:
Cam Munster- MOTM last year on debut for QLD. Premiership winner and International. Probably yhe Australian 6 this year.

HB:
Ben Hunt... had played Origin and International footy before. And a grand final.

Hooker:
McCullough had played in a grand final also.

Their spine was still stronger on paper than ours. Throw in Chambers/Inglis centre pairing. Holmes and Gagai on the wing. It's far from a side that should lose 3 nil. In comparison we had 11 rookies including the whole backline and half the spine.

 

[Abacus]

Game 1 last year, Pearce cops a concussion and is gone for the game. NSW lift to win.

Game 2, Pearce back and shits the bed after NSW leading convincingly at half time for NSW to lose.

Game 3, all QLD.

NSW's best performances have been sans-Pearce. If he was named for Game 1 this year, NSW lose.

 

[Kilkenny]

There is no doubt in my mind the NSW Blues would be 2-0 up in this series with Mitchell Pearce as our halfback.

There has been a lot of hate directed at Mitchell Pearce over the years for the woes of the NSW Blues but leaving that aside he has been, in my opinion, the best half back at NRL level for some years. If Nathan Cleary gets to the same level of performance that Mitchell Pearce has consistently displayed his whole career at NRL we will be very fortunate, assuming we resign him that is.