Rd2: 530pm Eels v Sharks GAME DAY THREAD @ Shark Park 19/3/22

[hineyrulz]

Fair enough. But you'd be surprised how little family history matters.

 

[Poupou Escobar]

Why would it be….in March ffs

Exactly. Would've been nice to win and we nearly did. But we didn't deserve to. Hopefully we deserve to win next week. And win.

 

[hineyrulz]

Gee the Presser was disheartening.
Need to play more direct. More bash and barge I suppose.
No talk of our pre season Mantra being defend and attack better in the 20. Even looks like weve given up on our Identity. It all sounds so 2014, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20 and 21.

Tonight’s game and press conference had a smell of 2018 about it. Hope I’m way off.

 

[Poupou Escobar]

And left out for the Sprog of sir Bald a lot. Who wasn’t trusted to get on the field at all.

So does BA overrate his son or not?

 

[Poupou Escobar]

Jake was always going to play.

Except he didn't.

 

[Poupou Escobar]

The most dissapointing period for mine was two periods. When we had 3-4 sets on their line and where unable to even dent their defense. The Sharks are hardly one of the best defensive sides. We created nothing and didn't look once like scoring.

Sharks everytime they where in a similar situation either scored or where close.

Twice we had over 20 consecutive tackles inside their 20 and couldn't create anything. Hate to see us against the better defensive sides.
In the 2nd half last week we had 60% of the ball and similar.

Jake Arthur has a lot to answer for.

 

[Poupou Escobar]

Lol Arthur bas more chance of growing an 8 foot mullet than us winning a comp.

Not March premiers you reckon?

 

[hineyrulz]

Not March premiers you reckon?

At least we are Feb premiers this year. It was very exciting!!

 

[hineyrulz]

So does BA overrate his son or not?

Him being anywhere near the 17 tells me he massively overrates him.

What a hindrance being the coaches son

 

[King-Gutho94]

I am not going to slit my wrists over a round 2 loss.

Normally i would be devastated losing in the last minute but really don't think we deserved to win in all honesty. Still would have been nice though as we will probably look back at end of year and rue those 2 points lost.


But there are concerning signs already in attack and defence. Yet again we look clueless inside the 20m zone compared to the opposition.

Defensively we had no line speed again maybe its a coaching tweak as it used to be a trademark early on in the season but we were again too passive i felt.

Papali'i especially his defence on the edge was disappointing. He doesn't look like the player he was last year.

And BA is slowing turning himself into a bigger scumbag than ricky stuart with his stubbornness in picking his useless son Jake in the 17 basically leaving us with 16 players.

 

[Poupou Escobar]

It's round two but I feel like I have seen enough not to have seen enough change. 6th -10th for me. I hope in the next 4 weeks things change but our structures look to similar.

The problem was never our structures. Merkins just wish it was because that's something that can change in the space of a week. Our problem is lack of ability to sustain effort and concentration over 80 minutes. But there's only a couple of teams that don't have obvious weaknesses. Penrith and Melbourne, maybe the Roosters. Their weakest areas are just average: Penrith's middle attack, Melbourne's kicking game, Roosters... depth?

 

[Poupou Escobar]

So 5 minutes ago there was no reason for Cartwright to be dropped this week unless injury and now there’s no reason for JA to get dropped from last week’s game.

This is based on your hypothetical that he was always going to play (even though he didn't). If he was always going to play then there was no need to drop him. I disagree that he was always going to end up on the bench and therefore good reason to give him a full game in reserve grade.

 

[the phantom menace]

Our problem is lack of ability to sustain effort and concentration over 80 minutes.

And lack of that occasional/random x-factor attacking capability that can sometimes make you seem dangerous and get you out of a bind where you haven't been consistent over the 80 mins... Souths, Raiders, Manly come to mind.

 

[Poupou Escobar]

The idiot chose his son on the bench wasting a spot and never played him. WHAT THE FRIG??

That spot is for injury cover.

 

[Poupou Escobar]

That ruined my almost perfect round!

I am 6 from 6. Last week only went 5 from 8 ffs

 

[Poupou Escobar]

Early in the season fellas, and you are 1-1; long time between now and September.

Play the way you did in the final few weeks last week, and then the Panthers trial at the end of this season, you can still go deep into the finals.

No team ever lost by 2 at the start of the season and then went on to win a finals game.

 

[Poupou Escobar]

Yea he isn't a first graders arsehole. He doesn't seem to have any kind of feel for the game.

He hasn't played many games. WPYSA18 is only 4.0

 

[Poupou Escobar]

Lol. The coach narrows the team down to 19, then to 18, then to 17. To say Cartwright's non-inclusion in the final 17 as a sacking shows a lack of understanding of how team finalisation works - the jersey numbers are just an initial Tuesday brain fart, as a clearer picture develops through the week.

Except the coach didn't just copy-paste the bench. He named Cartwright in the 15. More likely is he aggravated some injury in the warm up and we didn't want to risk him.

As to why coach didn't use son this week... you said yourself it was backline cover for injury - and there were no injuries.

So he wasn't trying desperately to get his son into first grade?

 

[Poupou Escobar]

I am not going to slit my wrists over a round 2 loss.

I hope you don't fist your slit

 

[the phantom menace]

Except the coach didn't just copy-paste the bench. He named Cartwright in the 15. More likely is he aggravated some injury in the warm up and we didn't want to risk him.
So he wasn't trying desperately to get his son into first grade?

Hypothetical injury claim arisis again... but the coach can change his mind on the composition of his 17 between Tuesday (for a fake deadline) and game day. Things like the weather, field condition, even wind are valid reasons to opt for the final four chosen for the bench - rather than rigidly stick with the first four listed on a Tuesday.

As for Arthur Jr - he's been selected and used in Round 1, and selected and not used in R2... above Cartwright both times. I don't expect him to make the (final) 17 next round, do you?