Premiership this year ....

[Rob Dragon]

Alec's-saints,

The word "uneducated" must be preceded by the word "an", not "a". The rule is that you use “a" before words that start with a consonant sound and “an” before words that start with a vowel sound. Important for un-educated people to be grammatically correct. As an aside I hold an Honours Degree in Economics from Macquarie University. Drunk? No I was just posting my observation about where I think we will finish this year.

 

[Alec’s-saints]

Alec's-saints,

The word "uneducated" must be preceded by the word "an", not "a". The rule is that you use “a" before words that start with a consonant sound and “an” before words that start with a vowel sound. Important for un-educated people to be grammatically correct. As an aside I hold an Honours Degree in Economics from Macquarie University. Drunk? No I was just posting my observation about where I think we will finish this year.

You’re clueless mate, rugby league definitely isn’t your strong point. Your prediction is 12th, have you not seen our squad? Regardless of who the current coach is we will not finish that low.

 

[Rob Dragon]

Alec's-saints,

Thanks for another insightful posting.
1. Clueless? My success in business and in terms of my education what point to a different reality.
2. Rugby league definitely isn't your strong point. Just a grammar check for you again; no need for you to use the word definitely in this context. As an aside I have made no assertion that rugby league is my strong point. It is of little actual consequence to me outside of supporting my team.
3. My prediction is 12th-16th. You have failed to understand my prediction.

You may be correct in terms of your opinion of my prediction. I respect your right to an opinion. I am also able to have an opinion.

Great interacting with you and I am always happy to help you with grammar and other issues where you are deficient.

 

[Alec’s-saints]

Alec's-saints,

Thanks for another insightful posting.
1. Clueless? My success in business and in terms of my education what point to a different reality.
2. Rugby league definitely isn't your strong point. Just a grammar check for you again; no need for you to use the word definitely in this context. As an aside I have made no assertion that rugby league is my strong point. It is of little actual consequence to me outside of supporting my team.
3. My prediction is 12th-16th. You have failed to understand my prediction.

You may be correct in terms of your opinion of my prediction. I respect your right to an opinion. I am also able to have an opinion.

Great interacting with you and I am always happy to help you with grammar and other issues where you are deficient.

I didn’t realise I was at school again, isn’t this a rugby league forum?

 

[possm]

Yep totally agree no argument here Hasler, McGuire, Clearly, Toovey, Bennett would have all be significant upgrades however signing a more inexperienced coach (with a worse record than Mary I might add) is not the answer that's the main point I was trying to earlier.

Like your team line-up to mate although I like Aitken's work don't get all the hate on here anyway it's a long season ahead who knows what will happen.

I use to be a fan of Aitken and forgave a young Aitken for making elementary mistakes in defence and Attack early in his first grade career however, I no longer can forgive his bad reads in defence, his unwillingness/inability to set up his winger with a good pass and his inability to turn and chase down when he makes his usual poor read in defence. Despite what Mary might think, in my opinion Aitken is not a first grade outside back.

 

[Rob Dragon]

Alec's-saints, how about we respect each other's opinions and agree to disagree without referring to be as drunks, clueless etc.?What makes this forum interesting is the divergent views. The JDB matter is a case in point. Lots of emotion and strong opinion about the matter, and thankfully it is dying down. Just keep it on the up and up mate!

 

[Alec’s-saints]

Alec's-saints, how about we respect each other's opinions and agree to disagree without referring to be as drunks, clueless etc.?What makes this forum interesting is the divergent views. The JDB matter is a case in point. Lots of emotion and strong opinion about the matter, and thankfully it is dying down. Just keep it on the up and up mate!

I respect your opinion mate, but to have us finishing that low is absurd. Top 6 minimum!

 

[j0nesy]

No, I don’t think so. I hope so, but I don’t think so. Borderline Top 4 squad on paper, but missing a couple of good outside backs. Bottom half of the table coach and, while we have depth, we have a lot of players that player similar positions. Also, the loss of JDB will have an impact. I’d predict 6th

 

[Rob Dragon]

Alec, I want you to be right, and I want to be 100% wrong. I just have a bad feeling about the year. If my prediction is realised I won't be sitting here with any glee. I'll be shattered. I agree with you mate regards the roster. On paper it looks good. We have pretty tough start to the season and I just have a bad feeling in my bones that this is going to be a tough campaign. Again, I hope I am wrong.

 

[possm]

I respect your opinion mate, but to have us finishing that low is absurd. Top 6 minimum!

I'd go as far as saying we could finish top 4 but not without sacking our current coach or without Mary changing his ways. All we need is:

• Smart, logical selections each week based on form.
• Multiple game plans in place to counter the times when the opposition is on top.
• Sensible bench management during games.
• A more positive attitude towards junior development.
• A player rotation plan.
• A policy to rest SOO players during and at least 1 game after SOO.

 

[Rob Dragon]

I'd go as far as saying we could finish top 4 but not without sacking our current coach or without Mary changing his ways. All we need is:

• Smart, logical selections each week based on form.
• Multiple game plans in place to counter the times when the opposition is on top.
• Sensible bench management during games.
• A more positive attitude towards junior development.
• A player rotation plan.
• A policy to rest SOO players during and at least 1 game after SOO.

So Possm, what you are saying is that you want the team coached at a 1st grade standard?

 

[possm]

So Possm, what you are saying is that you want the team coached at a 1st grade standard?

Yes, and I am also saying that if they are coached at a first grade standard, they have the ability to land a top four position this season.

 

[Overseas dragon]

We will finish 12th - 16th. This is the year it all falls apart. Widdop pulling up stumps (but still Captain????), JBD debacle, players giving up on the coach. The good news is that there will be a strong response in 2021 and the premiership window will remain open. This is the "Year we have to have" in order for some sense to prevail about the club's coaching stupidity.

As an aside we should stop bagging McGregor. It's his employers who should be the target of our fury. McGregor is on about $400K a year. Would you be walking the plank on that coin? Not likely. He knows this is his last big paying gig and if the BOD and CEO are that stupid to continue with him at the expense of our club, well good luck to him.

Read it here first....12th - 16th.

YES YES YES ....NEW COACH COMING. There's a carnival in kogarah and this forum is delirious ............

 

[Belta]

Yes I think we could win the premiership this year.

Q: Do I say this with a lot of confidence?

A: No

Some reasons I’m reasonably confident (also based on last years performance) that we are likely to be competitive in most games. We aren’t really that much different. Graham hasn’t all of a sudden become washed up. It is likely our forward depth is better (albeit weaker defensively without De Belin) Our backs could surprise and will unlikely be worse. Our attack in our spine is likely to be more dimensional.

Like many others, I do predict another bunched leader board and feel winning and losing games will be predicated on a very small margins. Sometimes these margins are out of the players control, other times it’s just luck, good and bad. I am therefore hopeful we get enough breaks to finish in the top 8.


An interesting thing from last nights game was the lack of penalties. This will only benefit the Dragons IF they continue refereeing games this way. I’d love to see Field and/or Dufty sent in around fatigued players like we saw last night.

 

[TruSaint]

@hazzbeen , no mate.

To many unknowns and one known.

Re-shuffling of the spine. How will Gaz do at FB? I think he's a great 6.
How will Norman / Hunt combine ? Will Mary start using Hunt at 9 ?

Having a specialist FB on the bench is a waste. He either plays FB or ISP.
Our centres are average if he sticks with Aitken ( in particular ) and Lafai. Untested wingers, although Jordan deserves a crack.

The one known, is Mary, and sorry I don't have enough confidence in his judgement / selection / game plan.

We are one injury away from a depleted pack. JDB wont play, lost LAM, will have to rely on Host / Luc / Kerr / Lawrie etc which is fine for their experience, but lacking real depth.

To me, on paper we are a fringe top 8 side.

PS, as to replacing Mary with Barrett, well that is groundhog day.
Price to Mary, then Mary to Trent... what could possibly go wrong there ?

Had to bump this thread, as my fear in the bold text, came to fruition. Granted its only round 1.
JDB, Friz out, even Latimore is in a neck brace.

Mary has work to do. Big test against a very solid Souths this week.

 

[Crush]

Had to bump this thread, as my fear in the bold text, came to fruition. Granted its only round 1.
JDB, Friz out, even Latimore is in a neck brace.

Mary has work to do. Big test against a very solid Souths this week.

In a weird way I'm kind of happy that we have experienced some early challenges with injuries.
I want to see McGregor under some pressure and not race off to a lofty start on the back of Frizzel, JDB, Vaughan.
Lets see how much his extension means, is he capable of canceling the Widdop to fullback experimenting (I doubt it).
Can he get the team up without the full roster available?
I'd rather it happen this way at the start of the season than under the circumstances of the past 2 years where we have fallen apart at the end.
I hope he can make the necessary adjustments and get us back but a part of me wants to see him under pressure.

 

[Old Kogarah Boy 1]

In a weird way I'm kind of happy that we have experienced some early challenges with injuries.
I want to see McGregor under some pressure and not race off to a lofty start on the back of Frizzel, JDB, Vaughan.
Lets see how much his extension means, is he capable of canceling the Widdop to fullback experimenting (I doubt it).
Can he get the team up without the full roster available?
I'd rather it happen this way at the start of the season than under the circumstances of the past 2 years where we have fallen apart at the end.
I hope he can make the necessary adjustments and get us back but a part of me wants to see him under pressure.

Crush,
I too would like to see him succeed but he keeps shooting himself in the foot.
Anyway, will be interesting to see how he handles it, along with how the management does as well.

As you say, rather see it now than later in the season.

 

[rednwhites]

In a weird way I'm kind of happy that we have experienced some early challenges with injuries.
I want to see McGregor under some pressure and not race off to a lofty start on the back of Frizzel, JDB, Vaughan.

I think many of us would, after the last 5 years, have to admit we feel the same. When you stop and think about it, it is really quite a miserable state. While I remain significantly intrigued by league and interested in the game, I can't say there's been a time I have actually felt this bad about my club. Even when we were at our least competitive in years gone by I had more pride in my club. Now honestly the McGregor show just infuriates me, especially when I think of what could have been. On the outside he is a popular guy and a media fav when he is actually getting away with sabotage of a once proud club. He makes me miss St George even more.

 

[Dennis Papaioannou]

Alec, I want you to be right, and I want to be 100% wrong. I just have a bad feeling about the year. If my prediction is realised I won't be sitting here with any glee. I'll be shattered. I agree with you mate regards the roster. On paper it looks good. We have pretty tough start to the season and I just have a bad feeling in my bones that this is going to be a tough campaign. Again, I hope I am wrong.

Just listening to Graham's interview before the start of the game, you felt he had very little confidence in the coaching group. He was towing the club line and that's about it.
I reckon McGregor will struggle to maintain the payers confidence in his ability to coach this side.
If that manifests itself in the dressing room, then it will be hard to reverse.
It's happened in previous years and the hype about the roster and top 4 finish starts to disappear..

 

[hazzbeen]

Just listening to Graham's interview before the start of the game, you felt he had very little confidence in the coaching group. He was towing the club line and that's about it.
I reckon McGregor will struggle to maintain the payers confidence in his ability to coach this side.
If that manifests itself in the dressing room, then it will be hard to reverse.
It's happened in previous years and the hype about the roster and top 4 finish starts to disappear..

Last year was our best chance of a crack at the Grand final but fell over the line again . This year is IMO be a real struggle , can't see us anywhere near top 4 ... Hope I am wrong .....