Five points from the Warriors game.
1. The Wind – It was instrumental in making sure the Panther fans had their usual anxiety levels for large parts of the game. In the first half the Warriors used it to help neutralise the Panther’s go forward. The ability to hoof the ball, literally miles, allowed the Warriors some good field position and the lead at half time. In the second half, without the wind to help, the Warriors were found wanting and struggled to make metres.
2. Goal Kicking – Jamie Soward and Shaun Johnson take a bow. Their kicking was quite extraordinary considering the conditions. To give you an idea how strong the wind was, Shaun Johnson put up a bomb from half way and it went reasonably high, but it travelled 60 metres and over the dead ball line. In slow motion you could see he barely put any effort in and the wind nearly took it out of the stadium.
3. The Panther style – Kick for the corners force the opposition to ruck the ball out and drive them back with tough defence seems to be what we are trying to do. A lack of discipline has rendered this tactic ineffective at times, but yesterday the Warriors were pinned down for large periods using this tactic. In the second half they barely got over half way.
Now we just need some set plays. At the moment, the cupboard is bare. We make it up as we go along.
4. Speed – When DZW got in the clear the Warriors showed that we are a team of very slow players. He was run down easily by TWO Warriors and looked like he had divers boots on. He is probably our fastest player and even with a head start, Shaun Johnson had time to brush his hair before he gave chase and caught him.
Speed is an area of weakness for the Panthers and is one of the factors in why we struggle to score points.
5. Jamie Soward had his best game this year and used every bit of experience to outsmart the Warriors. His tactical kicking was brilliant whilst his opposite number was going for miracle plays and kicking out on the full.
That said, Shaun Johnson’s running game is a delight to watch. He could step and swerve his way past a squadron of SAS in a phone box. We desperately need a half with a running game to open up play for us. Jamie does this 1 in 10 games and we usually win when he does.
