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From: The Daily Telegraph
May 09, 2012 12:00AM
COULD Greg Inglis be The One?
Not just the number but the best fullback to wear the cardinal and myrtle of South Sydney since Clive Churchill?
They are valid questions to ask in the aftermath of Inglis's rarefied form since his switch from centre to fullback - a fact spectacularly underlined on Monday against the Sharks as he scored three tries, saved two, and generally ran riot.
Even the Little Master himself would've approved if he was sitting among the true believers although he would've been amazed at the size of the bloke wearing his old jumper.
In his day, Churchill weighed 73kgs. Inglis is 33kgs heavier, weighing in at 106kgs; a lethal combination of speed, size and skill.
Asked if he could recall seeing a larger fullback, Souths coach Michael Maguire said: "Not that I know of. He'll go down as one of the largest fullbacks going around.
"He's worked very, very hard on having to the fitness levels required to play there. People don't see the hard work going on behind the scenes at the moment."
During the All-Stars weekend, Inglis was adamant that he would not be moving to fullback.
Maguire insists it wasn't a dummy. With Nathan Merritt also in the squad, they were keeping their options open.
Now that is seems improbable that Inglis will play any other position for the remainder of his career.
It raises questions of how dominant he could've been if not for Billy Slater's emergence ahead of him at the Storm.
For their part, senior Rabbitohs always thought the positional shift was destined to work, and is responsible for the club's recent run.
Sam Burgess said Inglis deceived a lot of rival players with his own hulking frame.
"GI is a big human. When you stand next to him he's quite an imposing figure," Burgess said.
"To see the way he moves and changes direction, that's why he finds space. He is a natural athlete, and if you tell him to do anything he'll do it. I always knew he'd succeed at fullback, it's just a matter of getting the kilometres into his legs.
"Billy Slater runs 10km to 11km a game, and Greggy isn't far off that."
Says Issac Luke: "For a big boy like him he can still move. Give him space and it's really hard to stop him.
"He's earning his strips in the team, he has the respect from fans, his teammates and the Maroon boys as well.
"He's a different player to Billy. Billy, he's hard to pin-point. GI is powerful yet elusive. They're both world class."
Merritt lost his spot at the back to Inglis but is delighted to remain on the wing and be part of the show.
"The kid's on fire, we're on a roll, and it's all come on the back of GI's performances at fullback," Merritt said.
"The best thing is GI and his kick returns. He gets us on the front foot, for a big boy he knows how to take the line on and get quick play-the-balls. I can jump in and scoot out from dummy half for the second hit-up."
Now the heat is on Maguire and Souths' management to ensure Inglis wears the cardinal and myrtle jumper for life.
Inglis is off contract at the end of next season but the club would extend it tomorrow if he wanted to.
"I've got no comment about those sorts of things. We obviously see him here for a long long time," Maguire said.
http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sp...s-the-big-master/story-e6frexnr-1226350181236 http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sp...s-the-big-master/story-e6frexnr-1226350181236
From: The Daily Telegraph
May 09, 2012 12:00AM
COULD Greg Inglis be The One?
Not just the number but the best fullback to wear the cardinal and myrtle of South Sydney since Clive Churchill?
They are valid questions to ask in the aftermath of Inglis's rarefied form since his switch from centre to fullback - a fact spectacularly underlined on Monday against the Sharks as he scored three tries, saved two, and generally ran riot.
Even the Little Master himself would've approved if he was sitting among the true believers although he would've been amazed at the size of the bloke wearing his old jumper.
In his day, Churchill weighed 73kgs. Inglis is 33kgs heavier, weighing in at 106kgs; a lethal combination of speed, size and skill.
Asked if he could recall seeing a larger fullback, Souths coach Michael Maguire said: "Not that I know of. He'll go down as one of the largest fullbacks going around.
"He's worked very, very hard on having to the fitness levels required to play there. People don't see the hard work going on behind the scenes at the moment."
During the All-Stars weekend, Inglis was adamant that he would not be moving to fullback.
Maguire insists it wasn't a dummy. With Nathan Merritt also in the squad, they were keeping their options open.
Now that is seems improbable that Inglis will play any other position for the remainder of his career.
It raises questions of how dominant he could've been if not for Billy Slater's emergence ahead of him at the Storm.
For their part, senior Rabbitohs always thought the positional shift was destined to work, and is responsible for the club's recent run.
Sam Burgess said Inglis deceived a lot of rival players with his own hulking frame.
"GI is a big human. When you stand next to him he's quite an imposing figure," Burgess said.
"To see the way he moves and changes direction, that's why he finds space. He is a natural athlete, and if you tell him to do anything he'll do it. I always knew he'd succeed at fullback, it's just a matter of getting the kilometres into his legs.
"Billy Slater runs 10km to 11km a game, and Greggy isn't far off that."
Says Issac Luke: "For a big boy like him he can still move. Give him space and it's really hard to stop him.
"He's earning his strips in the team, he has the respect from fans, his teammates and the Maroon boys as well.
"He's a different player to Billy. Billy, he's hard to pin-point. GI is powerful yet elusive. They're both world class."
Merritt lost his spot at the back to Inglis but is delighted to remain on the wing and be part of the show.
"The kid's on fire, we're on a roll, and it's all come on the back of GI's performances at fullback," Merritt said.
"The best thing is GI and his kick returns. He gets us on the front foot, for a big boy he knows how to take the line on and get quick play-the-balls. I can jump in and scoot out from dummy half for the second hit-up."
Now the heat is on Maguire and Souths' management to ensure Inglis wears the cardinal and myrtle jumper for life.
Inglis is off contract at the end of next season but the club would extend it tomorrow if he wanted to.
"I've got no comment about those sorts of things. We obviously see him here for a long long time," Maguire said.
http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sp...s-the-big-master/story-e6frexnr-1226350181236 http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sp...s-the-big-master/story-e6frexnr-1226350181236
