R8 // Bulldogs 16-12 Knights @ ANZ // Sat 7.30pm

[Burwood]

Thing is, last year our sweeping back movements seemed to work so well. More often than not if we had a set in the opposition 20 we would score. Not sure if it's just not clicking this year, or if the defence is now more aware of what we do and shut it down well.

We need to mix things up a bit. Get our wingers from the opposite side to where we're going to chime in the back line somewhere. Tyrone needs to show and go more, put doubt in the defenders minds.

All you need to do to shut down our back line movement is rush up on Boyd. Look at what Brisbane did to him last week- it was no wonder he was getting frustrated by the end of the game.

I don't know what the solution is. Maybe the boys need to stand deeper in attack and give themselves a bit of extra space.

 

[Bring it home Knights]

Sometimes outside backs just need early ball with abit of room to work in, we insist on going through 4-5 sets of hands until the centre and winger are left fighting the touch line

Yep, very true. I recall a couple of seasons where one of the leading game plans was to get early ball to Doogs and Uate. Macdougall had a great record of either beating his man and passing to Uate, or drawing the centre and winger in and giving Uate a clear passage. Heaps of trys were scored down that side and it had little to do with the halves putting the outside backs into holes Rather it had more to do with just getting them early ball and letting them do the rest.

 

[Apey]

As far as I'm concerned 'effort' should be a prerequisite for a first grade football team.

What we lack beyond all else and beyond any lingering doubt is attacking threat and attacking structure. Even in games like against Brisbane where we end up conceding a lot of points, it's our inability to dictate terms with ball in hand that leads to the pressure building on us and our defence cracking.

There's a split hair in a game like tonight, but where they got a try from a big backrower running over the top of our usually reliable half in defence, we get a guy like Houston getting sat on his ass.

Where they get two tries from bombs into the chaos, we get Mullen's standard chip bomb garbage that not only fails to threaten but also helps the opposition get a roll on up field.

Pretty much all our problems start with what we do with the football. And the sideways nature of attack inside the 20 is embarrassing. I feel sorry for Gagai, he never gets the ball from a quick shift after momentum has been made up the middle by strong straight running, decoys, quick shifts etc. He always gets the ball from stupidly predictable backline sweeps that have not been earned the hard way.

And the fact we try those stilted shifts when we haven't got the defence on the back foot highlights just how one-dimensional Boyd really is. When he's not assisting tries for our wingers he's not doing anything. Massive waste of salary cap. Some of the fullbacks out there are just absolute class, and Boyd is not one of them.

Agreed with pretty much all of this. Especially the description 'stupidly predictable backline sweeps'.

 

[Jobdog]

All you need to do to shut down our back line movement is rush up on Boyd. Look at what Brisbane did to him last week- it was no wonder he was getting frustrated by the end of the game.

I don't know what the solution is. Maybe the boys need to stand deeper in attack and give themselves a bit of extra space.

Kicking in behind the up-and-in defences we come up against would be a good start. Doesn't have to be all the time, but even once or twice will make the defence think.

 

[doggone]

The boys played well last night a bit unlucky, but in saying that the bullies were off the scent. A good effort not good having the captain on the bench, direction is needed at all times. Its like sharing a lolly bag.

 

[Zoidberg]

Are we missing Aku? I think we do, attack wise, but I don't really want to lose Mamo either.

 

[Noname36]

If it were up to me Aku would be on the wing and Mamo would be at fullback.

And we'd use Boyd's huge contract to put towards a good forward.

 

[The Showstopper]

We lost from a lucky bounce. We were the better side all up.

 

[voltron]

I thought that hitting the ball forwards on purpose to regather was regarded as a knock on
so that last try shouldnt have been a try should it?

I havent had a chance to watch the last two games (mainly because i didnt see it live and we lost)
But over the last two weeks our completion and metres and everything are really good at the moment
which is where i think bennett is getting that we are playing well
We just need that last bit to come at the end which isnt working for us.
We'll figure it out
hopefully sooner than later

 

[perverse]

I thought that hitting the ball forwards on purpose to regather was regarded as a knock on
so that last try shouldnt have been a try should it?

I havent had a chance to watch the last two games (mainly because i didnt see it live and we lost)
But over the last two weeks our completion and metres and everything are really good at the moment
which is where i think bennett is getting that we are playing well
We just need that last bit to come at the end which isnt working for us.
We'll figure it out
hopefully sooner than later

If done intentionally, most definitely. I believe the rule exists to stop players throwing the ball over the defensive line to themselves.

I'm happy enough for them to let accidental ones go, but to the letter of the law it was an illegal try. I guess the questio nis - where does one draw the line between regathering a fumble - and propelling the ball forward to your advantage? You could certainly argue that it was advantageous for him to bat it forward for that try, though. He doesn't score without it.

... and you're right, we're not playing horrible football at all, we just can't get over the line at the moment. It's odd, because attack is rarely an issue for us.

 

[Zoidberg]

I'm still not convinced that video ref calling on the wrong call for our scrum feed was correct (forgetting that the video ref shouldn't have said anything). I might need to see it again, but I thought it hit both players hands simultaneously and went straight down. As much a knock on by them as us.

 

[Dogs Of War]

Geez guys your grasping at straws. I could look at things that happened to the bulldogs like how we didn't get a penalty till the 60th min(excluding you guys kicking out on the full on the half time restart). You guys weren't that perfect yet you lead the penatly count very well.

 

[Nuffy]

I can tell you one thing, if the Dogs had of got beaten in the same way, Hasler would have burnt the joint down and been writing a 10k cheque as we speak.

Bennetts "turn the other cheek" schtick is a waste of time, it buys us zero goodwill with the refs and hasn't improved our karma one iota.

Some clubs do very well out of the NRL whether it be the draw, judiciary or "the cap", we've always been given the pineapple sideways.