If the Dragons happen to...

[Easts To Lose]

take it from me tiger nick

your team isn't winning anything this year.

 

[Brutus]

Wow I cannot believe how uncommercial all the replies from non Dragons supporters are. How good would a full house at the SFS be?

As for the Dragons supporters I can understand given the current structure how you want use your home ground advantage. However this system has to change.

The league has to take these issues out of the hands of the clubs. The league should have the power to say these super clashes are played at appropriate grounds. A ground which holds 20,000 is not appropriate. God the AFL must think we are idiots.

Sort of agree with you.

 

[boxa777]

if wests come 8th then they will have won 8 from their last 9. would be full of confidence and have no pressure whatsoever on them. in the 3 games since morris has been moved out of the halves we have won at an average of 37-12

we only lost 21-10 against the dragons without galloway, heighington, gallant and with morris in the halves. despite all that we were probably the better team and if a few last passes went to hand could of pulled off an upset.

its still a long way off happening but i dare say there a number of teams the dragons would prefer to play against apart from the tigers.

Calm down homeboy..

You've put 3 together and you're already handing out the threats. There is a massive difference between the 2005 Nathan Brown led team compared to this season's Saints side.

And there won't be no pathetic 'slip' at the first scrum by the pretender Gasnier to get you off to a good start in a final. We'd accommodate you.

Like you said, it's a long way away anyway. Count your lucky stars that dipsh*t Sheens finally saw the merit in playin Moltzen in the halves.

 

[Sleep]

IN HIS inaugural season as St George Illawarra coach, Wayne Bennett has helped the Dragons to all but secure the joint venture's first silverware after moving four points clear of second-placed Bulldogs in the race for the minor premiership.

The Dragons' 29-4 defeat of the Warriors in Auckland yesterday coupled with the Bulldogs' shock 27-8 loss to a resurgent Parramatta has also enhanced their standing as premiership favourites, with TAB Sportsbet last night shortening the odds of the famous club winning its first grand final in 30 years to $3.25. The Bulldogs were quoted at $4.50.

The other big mover in the betting markets was defending NRL premiers and world club champions Manly, who are now $5.50 third favourite and moved to within sight of the top four for the first time this season after Friday night's 44-20 defeat of Newcastle.

The size of the win and North Queensland's 28-20 loss to Penrith has enabled the Sea Eagles to leapfrog the Knights, Cowboys and Panthers into fifth place.
Wests Tigers' 25-4 victory in Canberra yesterday, Brisbane's 34-18 loss to Gold Coast and the Eels' upset win over a near full-strength Bulldogs at ANZ Stadium on Saturday night has also thrown open the battle for the bottom four positions in the top eight.

A South Sydney win tonight against last-placed Sydney Roosters would put the Rabbitohs just one point behind eighth-placed North Queensland and Brisbane (22 points) and one-point ahead of the Tigers (20).

After consecutive wins for the first time this season, Parramatta are on 19 points - two clear of the Warriors and three ahead of the Raiders, who are now out of the reckoning for a play-off berth.
At the other end of the premiership ladder, the Dragons are now on 32 points - four clear of the Bulldogs and third placed Titans (both 28) and five ahead of Melbourne (27), whose 30-10 win over Cronulla on Saturday night has helped create a three-point buffer between them and Manly, Penrith and Newcastle, who are all on 24 points.

St George Illawarra boast a 102 points superior for-and-against to the Bulldogs and are 159 points better than Gold Coast - meaning they would have to lose three more games than their rivals in the remaining six rounds to miss out on the minor premiership.
NRL chief executive David Gallop is expected to present the JJ Giltinan Shield and $100,000 prizemoney for achieving the feat to the Dragons after their final home match against Parramatta at Jubilee Oval in round 26.

It would be the first time in the 11 years since the formation of the merged entity between St George and Illawarra that the club would have finished the regular season in first place - although they were edged out on for-and-against by the Eels in 2005.

With a home semi-final already guaranteed in the first week of the play-offs, there is debate over which of the joint venture's two home grounds they should choose to host the final but Bennett is believed to favour Wollongong's WIN Stadium.

Source: SMH.

 

[gregstar]

why not make all finals special & play them out of the one venue again?

i miss the top 5 format which didn't reward mediocrity.

i understand the financial benefits of more finals, but it has cheapened the overall product.

make them hard to achieve & only achievable to worthy teams. play them in one venue to make them a special event again.

 

[Hass]

I really feel that we've gone backwards playing finals matches at suburban grounds.

From 1908 to 1996 finals were played at major grounds. It's one thing for us to hang onto our suburban grounds in the regular season, but finals matches should be played at the big venues.

There was no problem with neutral venues for 90 years, yet now we are considering playing a final at the 14k capacity WIN Stadium.

Some may argue the McIntyre system requires home ground advantage in the first week to be fair. Well that's just another reason to scrap the ridiculous system.

All Sydney teams should play home finals at the SFS or Homebush. You can't change it for this season, it should be fixed in time for next year.

 

[Timmah]

Exactly my sentiment. All NSW & ACT teams play finals at SFS Weeks 1&2, QLD at Suncorp and Melbourne at Etihad. Week 3 finals should be SFS & ANZ respectively unless it's two interstate teams involved, then it moves to the highest placed teams state.

 

[chrisc101]

Exactly my sentiment. All NSW & ACT teams play finals at SFS Weeks 1&2, QLD at Suncorp and Melbourne at Etihad. Week 3 finals should be SFS & ANZ respectively unless it's two interstate teams involved, then it moves to the highest placed teams state.

your going to have to delete this statement, it is way too logical...

 

[Loudstrat]

home ground....wollongong.

Exactly the venue. Wollongong deserves it.

A double header on the Saturday night would be an awesome fixture, The dogs finishing second and Dragons finishing first. Both home game advantages.

Against whoever it is they verse

But the NRL wont change it cause 1 v 8 is usually sunday arvo game, their to dumb to change it try and get a sellout capacity double header

Stupid idea. Double header is a gimmick - semi finals ar e far too serious for a stupid gimmick idea from a queenslander with no idea about the seriousness of semi finals.

And F*ck ANZ - still remember they shafted the Dogs home semi for the Swans a few years ago.

 

[BrisVegas]

Exactly my sentiment. All NSW & ACT teams play finals at SFS Weeks 1&2, QLD at Suncorp and Melbourne at Etihad. Week 3 finals should be SFS & ANZ respectively unless it's two interstate teams involved, then it moves to the highest placed teams state.

What a load of Rubbish. Why give a club a home region final if two interstate clubs are involved, but then move it to Sydney should should a NSW based clubs qualify for week 3 of the finals? That is one monster double standard. Especially considering the last time a week 3 final was held out of Sydney (Melbourne hosting at Docklands in 2007) it drew a larger crowd then the corresponding Sydney game, and Brisbane's week 2 final in 2008 was surpassed in attendance only by the grand final.

I am however all for Sydney based home games being at the SFS/ANZ in week 1, especially for Sydney V Sydney club clashes, simply to meet ticketing demands. Can you imagine all the complaining in the press if it is Dragons/Dogs V Tigers in Week 1 @ WIN Stadium?

 

[SSFC Hitman]

Good take it to WIN if it is against Souths because am i right in thinking both Home and away season ticket holders and members gets first dibs on tickets? Souths have 8,500 season ticket holders--- they will all almost buy a ticket and then we have another 7,000 odd members. We would easily match the Dragons in numbers without a doubt.

 

[Swiftstylez]

^^^

Whichever team plays them in the first week REALLY needs to do this chant:

You do the okie chokey and you turn around,
that's what the finals are about,


*Repeat until enough dragon fans are pissed off by it*

OHHHHHHHHHHHHHH the okie chokies *mexican wave*
OHHHHHHHHHHH the okie chokies *mexican wave*
OHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH the okie chokies *mexican wave*
OHHHHHHHHHHHHHH the okie chokies *mexican wave*
OHHHHHHHHHHH the okie chokies *mexican wave*
OHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH the okie chokies *mexican wave*
OHHHHHHHHHHHHHH the okie chokies *mexican wave*
OHHHHHHHHHHH the okie chokies *mexican wave*
OHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH the okie chokies *mexican wave*

 

[Raudonikis]

Actually if parra do scrape thru the dragons should be worried about playing them,they may just need that second chance.

 

[Easts To Lose]

Actually if parra do scrape thru the dragons should be worried about playing them,they may just need that second chance.

clearly someone gave you another shiner Raudonikis
the eels :lol:

 

[hardbaby]

Never give a sucker an even break. Who cares about the short term money? If they win the comp they are laughing all the way to the bank. And 2 home ground games will give them a huge advantage.

 

[Ausguy]

go the titans!!!

 

[thommo4pm]

This whole thread is quite silly.
Kogarah doesn't hold any les than Brookvale. Would people suggest Manly moving it's match should they finish in the top 4 and possibly play Penrith or Newcastle (if they finish 5th or 6th).

And to those people saying Saints should be worried about playing this team or that team, please keep in mind we have beaten the sides you have mentioned, and we aren't running 1st by luck or chance this year.

Those sides who finish 7th or 8th should be the sides worried about playing Saints & the Dogs....the sides finishing 7th or 8th will have all the pressure on them, one slip up and they are gone for the year.

 

[SSFC Hitman]

And to those people saying Saints should be worried about playing this team or that team, please keep in mind we have beaten the sides you have mentioned, and we aren't running 1st by luck or chance this year.

.

I must have missed the game where you played Souths.... ;-):lol:

 

[Timmah]

Yeah because they're in the same category as Saints in terms of form in 2009 aren't they? :roll:

Saints will put 30-40 points on them if they play anything like they have this year.

 

[Timmah]

And F*ck ANZ - still remember they shafted the Dogs home semi for the Swans a few years ago.

:? When? We've always played home semis at ANZ last I knew...