KOGARAH | Game Day vs Knights

[Jubileeboy]

No worries maybe just a bit fired up.
Just think the policy of taking games away has cost us wins.

I reckon you're probably right.
No worries at all mate. Cheers

 

[ronstevo]

benji played well in the second half. Good win. We're back.

 

[mickeylane]

Yeah Benji's x factor sure came in handy the last 7 weeks and in the first half today.

You are seriously a dope! I bet you this is the only place u get to be a man.. Go back to washing dishes and ironing and stop commenting on ny comments .. You can read them but don't comment!!

 

[stg666]

a lot of earlygoerofferer's at the start of thread........ and still we get the same old stuff rolled out by the doomsdayers who call themselves fans . of themselves mainly . a long way to go yet fellas . 7th and chasing the pack. we have seen that the top teams can be beaten and if all goes well , it could be us that turns it on as the finals get closer .

 

[saintjeff]

Crowd ,when you lose 7 in a row and the Knights have been bad what do we expect. The knights usually bring big busloads but not today
Alot of fans would have stayed away because were playing crap

 

[Vasilevsky]

Crowd ,when you lose 7 in a row and the Knights have been bad what do we expect. The knights usually bring big busloads but not today
Alot of fans would have stayed away because were playing crap

Be that as it may but at face value, the club lost a lot of money today. I wonder if the Knights would have brought a few bus loads if the game were being played at a stadium.

 

[BennyV]

This thread delivers...

What today really showed is that in order for us to win, Benji and Widdop need to work together. Whenever our attack is blubbering, these two are just trying to create shit on their own and noone manages the game. First half is a perfect example. However, when they hey on the same page and work together, they can be beautiful to watch and with Dugan sniffing around, we can definitely make shit happen.

Also, if we make the 8, it will be on the back of that line break by Ah Mau.

 

[Blood Shot Eyes]

Coaching staff need to watch how our boys are flat footed in defence, we don't move up at all. And in attack again flat footed. They need to fix that ASAP, a bit more spark from our forwards and halves is what we needed and in second halv we got it. But believe me I was dead set nervous with 28 to 24 score line....so glad we stuck there are scored tries, nothing would be set plays, just playing what is front of them....

Dugan was outstanding, with Ah Mah and Frizell al dug in. Not sure what is up with Nightingale but either playing injured or down in form...

Let's go Dragons!!!

Agree we are flat footed in defence and seem to wait till the opposition come to us...also we rarely put pressure on oppositions kickers unlike other teams that always put pressure on Marshall or Widdop hence our bad kicks in general play.....again did you notice that we lost focus when they scored that ridiculous try when the player was obviously held and then dived over and when AuMau was penalised for his high shot, this happens every week and something Mary needs to address...like you I was nervous when the scores were close and have to admit I was about to give the boys away at half time......one other thing I did notice was what the hell was Farrell doing when their winger scored later in the second half when Dugan missed the tackle...he could have easily made the tackle himself but instead pointed to Dugan to make it..just dumb thinking......next week I think Merrin and Hunt will be in for AuMau and Farrell

 

[BennyV]

Want Ioane back. Sorry Jakey, if you had the body to match your ticker you'd be valuable, but atm we need kgs in our pack, especially if Ah Mau gets suspended...

 

[TheRev]

The better our forward pack goes, the better Benji goes.. its not rocket science, when he has a retreating defence he is totally unpredictable and plays whats in front of him.. why you expect him to perform miracles when the defence is allowed to swamp him is beyond me.

It worried me that our pack couldnt get on top through the middle of that game, we found it hard to make metres, I thought Garvey actually was the difference, reminded blokes how to run, was threatening and got us back in the game.. what a pleasant surprise.

Also thought much of the early attacking confusion was the switching of players left & right, centres and wingers dont know which way is up at the moment.

 

[Get2dachopper!]

Glad Marshall and Widdop clicked in the second half. I noticed widdop took over some of the general kicking duties and benji did what he does best, running the footy. We need more of this for the rest of the season.

 

[kit66]

The better our forward pack goes, the better Benji goes.. its not rocket science, when he has a retreating defence he is totally unpredictable and plays whats in front of him.. why you expect him to perform miracles when the defence is allowed to swamp him is beyond me.

It worried me that our pack couldnt get on top through the middle of that game, we found it hard to make metres, I thought Garvey actually was the difference, reminded blokes how to run, was threatening and got us back in the game.. what a pleasant surprise.

Also thought much of the early attacking confusion was the switching of players left & right, centres and wingers dont know which way is up at the moment.

This shouldn't be a problem or an excuse in first grade - if you can't play wherever you're told then you shouldn't be out there.
Garvey went alright but I can't believe we have yet another hooker who has zero kicking skills. He did miss a few tackles, 4 in his 35 minute stint, which is a worry but his passing game is still better than Rein's. I hate seeing charging forwards having to check their run because of Rein's misdirected passes - he can't seem to get the idea of passing to where a player can run onto the ball without losing momentum.

 

[TheRev]

This shouldn't be a problem or an excuse in first grade - if you can't play wherever you're told then you shouldn't be out there.

I reckon its muscle memory.. you get 1 or 2 weeks on the wrong side of the field, the blowtorch is applied and not surprisingly you have slight defensive read issues, or your not in sync with your winger, or your offloading in the opposite direction, its all the difference between a masterful piece of footy, and a dropped catch or opposition squeezing a try in the corner.. I particularly hate seeing Nightingale off his wing, because hes flawless on the right, and hes not on the left.

Imo the centre and wing positions should have been set weeks ago (injuries aside), they need combinations before finals.. as it is we go better not even trying to have a centre pass the ball, just let Benji throw a cutout ball and have blokes running off him.

 

[Cagey Mac]

Reminded me a little of turnaround in the Canberra game. We were a different side in the 2nd half , the key difference is we won the forward battle.

Benji, Dugan and Widdop can really show their stuff when the team is going forward.

Indeed! Let's hope it's the beginning of something beautiful.

 

[Saints Forever]

What a run from Leeson today. Great footwork and speed!

Benji showed us he is still one of the most creative footballers going round.

If we win the forward battle, Marshall plus Widdop equals points.

 

[SAP58]

Agree we are flat footed in defence and seem to wait till the opposition come to us...also we rarely put pressure on oppositions kickers unlike other teams that always put pressure on Marshall or Widdop hence our bad kicks in general play.....again did you notice that we lost focus when they scored that ridiculous try when the player was obviously held and then dived over and when AuMau was penalised for his high shot, this happens every week and something Mary needs to address...like you I was nervous when the scores were close and have to admit I was about to give the boys away at half time......one other thing I did notice was what the hell was Farrell doing when their winger scored later in the second half when Dugan missed the tackle...he could have easily made the tackle himself but instead pointed to Dugan to make it..just dumb thinking......next week I think Merrin and Hunt will be in for AuMau and Farrell

Good comment, Farrell should never have been there on the wing he is way too slow unfortunately he is with us until the end of 2016 but he should get to know the NSW Cup coach. Unfortunately Mary thinks otherwise, from what I can see on the St George web site he was dropped to make way for Farrell who came back from injury....hopefully Mary has now changed his view.

 

[Mr Red]

we saw what Dugan can bring to the table today from fullback - a power running game when running the right lines and angles and feeding off the halves.
this type of fullback power negates the need for a strong passing game.

i am still at a loss at to why we dont see this combination with the halves or backing up the forwards a lot more, especially from set play.
poor coaching is my only answer.

 

[giboz71]

we saw what Dugan can bring to the table today from fullback - a power running game when running the right lines and angles and feeding off the halves.
this type of fullback power negates the need for a strong passing game.

i am still at a loss at to why we dont see this combination with the halves or backing up the forwards a lot more, especially from set play.
poor coaching is my only answer.

Agreed Red...Dugan had a great game.

I've been one of his harshest critics given what we see from either top line fullbacks who all can send their wingers over for tries with perfect passes off backline movements. Wighton and Tedesco come to mind this weekend alone.

In the absence of a passing game, we need to be seeing his power running game 10 fold which granted we did see yesterday.

But I was pulling my hair out when he bombed that try late in the game with Widdop in support. Pass the ball Josh!!!

 

[giboz71]

The better our forward pack goes, the better Benji goes.. its not rocket science, when he has a retreating defence he is totally unpredictable and plays whats in front of him.. why you expect him to perform miracles when the defence is allowed to swamp him is beyond me.

It worried me that our pack couldnt get on top through the middle of that game, we found it hard to make metres, I thought Garvey actually was the difference, reminded blokes how to run, was threatening and got us back in the game.. what a pleasant surprise.

Also thought much of the early attacking confusion was the switching of players left & right, centres and wingers dont know which way is up at the moment.

Agreed Rev. For much of the year, our forwards have held their own against better packs but we've just been down a little the last 7 weeks. Run of 7 losses, confidence being down, injuries etc.

We were being outrun by over 250m in the first half, and this turned 180 degs in the 2nd half and suddenly we saw our big 3 all fire.

I hope with Merrin coming back, he can lead our pack. If our forwards win the battle, we've all seen what Benji, Widdop and Dugan can do.

 

[Lovemedragons]

Finally the forwards clicked into gear in the 2nd half and the rest was history. So pleased to see Gareth , Benji and Dugan 'step up' to the plate once they were given enough room to move by the excellent runs of Ah Mau and co. Now they need consistency.

First half was dreadful...again - just watch it and count the number of times our attack out of our half consisted entirely of backs running the ball one out and getting smashed accordingly. When its finally given to a forward (i.e. Rein) he knocks it on! Then watch Newcastle make a minimum of 60 metres off the back of strong forward running and a defensive line which refuses to move up.

It all changed in the 2nd half and we saw some really promising play at last off the back of damaging runs from forwards - admittedly a bit more possession helped. Now with Ah Mau likely to go for a few games Merrin needs to step in and fill his shoes.

Warriors game is crucial, win it and we are definitely back in the running for the 8, lose it and start planning the end of season festivities. Our record against them has been good, with Johnston out they don't pack the same punch so we are in with a big shot at it.