It’s beginning to look like a three horse race for the premiership

[Perth Red]

Its the kids who stay indoors all day gaming.. Change is needed in this dept before any kind of expansion should even be even talked about. Then the litigation for broken bodies later in life means we are never going back to the good old days regardless.

Junior participation is up isn't it?

 

[Perth Red]

Who’s everyone? Storm games are generally up their with the highest rated games. Just because a vocal group of fans with sour grapes like to complain doesn’t mean they represent reality.

The delusion that the game was actually better back in the 80s and 90s is laughable. I want to see a little more open play but the a lot of fans need to take off their rose coloured glasses.

It was a lot faster at the play of the ball which opened up more opportunities for the ball players. Watched a few games over the off season from the early nineties and they were so much quicker without the tree men tackle and wrestle.

Id speed the game up again and reduce interchanges, only way to get more excitement back.
Get rid of scrums, allow quick taps, get rid of the f'ing video replay

I watched Waqa Blake in SG ball, he was incredible to watch, watching him now for Panthers its plain to see his talents are being smothered by lack of ball and safety first expectations. I don't believe it is the players coming through, just the way the game is being played.

Fair play to Titans yesterday, they lost but they wanted to throw the ball around and create attack as much as they could. The fact their players couldn't actually catch the ball when they did it seemed problematic!

 

[Dragon Slayer]

Just remember the NRL Premiership is a marathon not a sprint.

Lots of injuries, form slumps and scandals to come.

Strap yourselves in for the NRL roller coaster!

 

[Perth Red]

Born in Apia, Samoa, Tuivasa-Sheck attended Otahuhu College in Auckland, where he played both rugby union and rugby league. Tuivasa-Sheck represented the New Zealand rugby union schoolboy team and captained Otahuhu College at the New Zealand Rugby League's Secondary Schools tournament in 2011 before being signed by the Sydney Roosters in October of that year.

Taken from Wikipedia but I had seen it mentioned previously.
I just imagine that a guy playing league in auckland may have benefitted from investment in junior league by the local pro team.

Id class a jnr as SG Ball/U18's onwards. Before that its the leagues club, state governing body, school or volunteers/parents that are paying for the kids involvement in the game mostly.
Its not until SG Ball that the NRL club is really involved. Its a very outdated notion that because a kid plays school age somewhere that somehow makes him a jnr of the NRL club and that another club signing him at 18-19 is somehow poaching. If the NRL clubs were paying for jnrs then it might be relevant but they aren't.

How many locally produced jnrs of SG ball and above age do NRL clubs have I wonder?

 

[STORM.99/07]

I think the Broncs can challenge the op mentioned top three teams.

broncos have only beaten Storm 3 times in their last 20 games

 

[Mr Angry]

We are not scared of the Storm they are scared of us.

 

[STORM.99/07]

We are not scared of the Storm they are scared of us.

don`t kid yourself

 

[myrrh ken]

We are not scared of the Storm they are scared of us.

Scared and scarred.

 

[Mr Angry]

don`t kid yourself

Ok then, not scared at all?

I reckon Cameron disagrees, he hates playing us and the Roosters.

Souths not at all, sell outs.

 

[Perth Red]

Depends if its a semi or final

 

[txta2]

And who have we cherry picked?

Tedesco (who would have gone to the Dogs otherwise) and... Cronk at 34 years of age?

And does it go both ways, i.e. Warriors "cherry picking" RTS?

Tedesco is the a good point I'm trying to make in regards to the discussion.
The point is these richer clubs seem to be able to "persuade" up and coming superstars from the smaller clubs.
Thus making the competition lop sided and boring.

 

[Tommy Smith]

Tedesco is the a good point I'm trying to make in regards to the discussion.
The point is these richer clubs seem to be able to "persuade" up and coming superstars from the smaller clubs.
Thus making the competition lop sided and boring.

Unfortunately the only solution is to get better as a club - from the top down.

If you give 16 people $1m and tell them to invest it wisely, a few will double their money, a whole bunch will tread water, and a few will just blow it on the races or pokies.

 

[Bring back John Fifita]

I know we haven’t quite finished R.3 yet, but even at this early stage it really is starting to look like a race between the Roosters, Storm and Rabbitohs for the premiership.

Strong form early from all those three. I've tipped the bunnies to win the comp.

But I personally don't think there can be a true gauge on any team - be it good or bad - until at least 5 rounds, but more comfortably 8 rounds.

By this stage all teams will have played home and away, a mix of teams on various form and status (eg premiership contenders, middle rank sides, cellar dwellers). Also - teams with new coaches and/or players in key positions (eg spine) will have settled into their new clubs and can assess how the combinations are working or not.

At this stage last year the Roosters weren't world-beaters with Cronk into the squad. The Bunnies were steady under new coach Siebold. The Storm were well-performed as always, you could set your watch to them. And of some of the other teams, the Dragons and Warriors flew out of the starters blocks.

I do think these 3 are genuine title contenders but by no means it is just between them. It's like saying the Melbourne Cup trifecta is already decided in the first furlong, it's only the order that's debatable. Long way to go yet. Give it another few furlongs to see how all the horses have settled in..

 

[footy75]

S Long way to go yet. Give it another few furlongs to see how all the horses have settled in..

What other horses do you think could be in the running?

Broncos, Sharks, Penrith?

 

[The Vaulting Violinist]

knights

 

[Bring back John Fifita]

What other horses do you think could be in the running?

Broncos, Sharks, Penrith?

Yeah I think those 3 are in the mix. All 3 could figure strongly if they get their sh!t together. If..

At the start of the year I had the Tigers as my smokey. There's usually one each year and with a cage-rattling coach like McGuire with a side on the up including a good mix of senior leaders (inc Marshall & farah - the band back together) I reckon they could do some damage.

I also liked the Raiders to improve this year.

The other potential was my Dragons. I reckon they could still figure but we've got massive holes to fill in key positions. De Belin and Widdop, along with Leeson Ah Mau (in my mind one of our best forwards last year) are all gone in 2019. We will get Frizell back in time. But taking my Red & White glasses off - I think we'd need to play out of our skins to do it.

 

[Silent Knight]

knights

We've got a lot of work to do before we ever become a premiership contender.

 

[The Vaulting Violinist]

We've got a lot of work to do before we ever become a premiership contender.

you've got the cattle, just need to play in the right spots. i think brown has figured it out a little with glasby and ponga moving

 

[Albert Rosenfeld]

It is a three horse race, but one horse is a bit superior to the other two.

 

[Rhino_NQ]

it would seem the warriors horse has already tumbled and is currently roasting in the hangi