Redneck Redfaces 2

[POPEYE]

Reading Fitzgerald wants to become an NRL Commissioner to show Dave Smith how it's done is slightly better than starting the day watching my dog lick his arse. Take Jack Gibson out of the discussion and Denis would have sfa to talk about after 30 years 'experience'. Can imagine the NRL an eel looking for a puddle in the Strzelecki if he is allowed to turn it into his boardwalk empire

 

[POPEYE]

Jeremy Smith says the Knights are about to focus on youth which sounds like a good idea, maybe Benny lost interest in nurturing enough youngsters when quick fixes were demanded. I don't reckon his pilgrimage to prove a point outside of Brisbane will be all that effective long term for the Dragons or Knights.

Newcastle would be in a better place now if it hadn't been tinkered with and left on a stone foundation, the joint is in an envious position which should be taken advantage of. Newcastle is an island, bush 10 minutes in 3 directions, water world in the other and unlike shitholes like Parramatta and Penrith have air you can breath and heat you can escape

Imo the Knights should advertise they are the home away from home for youngsters whose parents don't want them wandering around the Sydney Metropolitan swamp when they're not training or playing. We all know Newcastle has it's bad elements but the joint isn't surrounded by them, Stone should keep just a few hardheads and concentrate on beating other clubs to the wealth of juniors

 

[POPEYE]

Can't wait for the Nines to start, not because of the competition so much but to see how significantly enthusiasm has grown. I remember Bob Fulton, aptly nicknamed Bozo, in 1980 calling the first Origin match ''the non-event of the century", doubters of the Nines concept should look up the history of how Origin began

I'd love to see the Nines add further to Origin's relegation of the archaic Premiership, maybe then we'll get a streamlined 21st century version suitable to the time allowed and player consideration. Hopefully the Nines will expand to a point where it won't need the best NRL players because many might not be good enough

Just as most NRL players are excluded from Origin because they're not suited so will the Nines evolve and possibly cause a later, better weather start to the Premiership with teams only playing each other once or less teams twice and of course stand-alone Origin.

As time goes by less people will remember what life was without Origin and it will probably be some time before people won't remember it without the Nines but hopefully by then common sense will see a season with none of the competitions ruined by any of the others . . . Nines won't need NRL, NRL won't suffer because of Origin and International teams won't be disadvantaged by the lack of it

 

[POPEYE]

Had to laugh at Australia being ranked the world's #1 Rugby League nation when the 'world' doesn't give a f**k about the game. Most of the world doesn't give a f**k about World Series Baseball either, if Cuba went professional and kicked arse the Yanks still wouldn't change the name

As far as I'm concerned if Australia want to be the best it won't happen until they next beat NZ, Mundine is entitled to claim himself a World Champion in just enough countries to tick a box but in a 3 horse Rugby League race Waterhouse would pay only one dividend . . . first across the line

By the same token, unlike Union where there are enough genuine participants to declare it a world contest, it is laughable to assume NZ beating Australia in League at any time is regarded as anything more than king of the castle.

A world that recognises Golf as a sport when it requires the same elevated heart rate as a truck driver is far too f**king dumb to recognise a real sport when it's in the 'too hard' basket . . . then again why shouldn't Australia/NZ have their own separate little world away from the big f**kup . . . yes I renege, NZ are the World Champions

 

[POPEYE]

Not all doom and gloom for the Dragons, at least the coach doesn't poach and that's worth far more recognition than it'll get. Even if the human water tank Kasiano went to the V it could hardly be called devious, the bloke is really only a specialist bencher. Costigan is what's needed but only pinched from the Poms

None of the Dragons except Widdop, Merrin and Nightingale have wanted posters out on them so Mary can relax in '14, no-one in his right f**king mind will want his head. Might not even be that bad if Merrin takes himself out of the equation, the bloke clearly wants to play in a strong team rather than make a weak one stronger

Better that the Dragons for next year at least establish that Mary can punch above his weight and then the Mighty Red V will once again do what it was once renowned for . . . attract the upper echelon

 

[POPEYE]

Here's me and bellyache dumb enough to pay for the Geale fight card so he can show me Willis Meehan in action, the son of Kali and more importantly to a Rooster supporter the next big thing at Bondi. Willis's fight being relegated to after the 'main' event was f**king bullshit when we had to sit through the Gallen embarrassment and Geale playing cat-and-mouse giving his mate a pay day

My son-in-law reckons FPN won't be missed because of blokes like Willis the Roosters seem to dig up. JWH may well be looking over his shoulder because of him as he considers striking while the iron's hot with Sticky.

Not seeing Willis in action was more disappointing than not seeing Gallen give Watts a flogging but Paul's one-liners about rotator cuffs and 'moving on' made up for some of what was a laughable value for money night. Let's hope none of the League players there to watch broke anything or anyone on the way home

 

[POPEYE]

There appears to be some danger signs for the Manly that are almost insurmountable for the time being at least, it's not because players are leaving but how they are leaving. Nothing as disastrous as Sons of Anarchy where everyone's copping a bullet but the Seagle patch is in danger of losing it's menace.

The trouble with refurbishing is that some of the youngsters didn't think the deadwood needed throwing away, players like DCE and Foran may have been so accustomed to using the outgoing players as inspiration that they fear the new responsibility. What is happening on the Manly island was inevitable but recriminations have to be kept to a minimum

Players don't matter, coaches don't matter although Toovey is not the problem, what matters is the preservation of the culture. To retain that culture people have to be phased out if need be gracefully, more importantly the blokes left behind must see them riding into the sunset with their heads held high. Nothing as drastic as shooting Mum but Foran for example has to keep his patch to quell real anarchy

 

[POPEYE]

Maguire saying his team is ready to move on from last year reminds me of another Manly stalwart, one perhaps that deserved more than any other to ride out of town with the sun setting to the appropriate music. Souths could be the beneficiary of Glenn Stewart's will to win if an inordinate amount of good fortune befalls the bloke

If you believe like most that Sam Burgess determined the gf outcome, whether by talent or by the inspiration he showed that kept his team's mind on the job, it is still a prerequisite that all teams have a player the rest have no choice but to follow. Imo when the Dog's equivalent, James Graham, tried to rally his troops it was Te'o who stepped up big time

The inordinate amount of good fortune I speak about is for Stewart to go the whole season without injury, if that were to happen he would easily replace any other inspirational player. Even with both Te'o and Burgess gone the rest only have to look towards Stewart for all the guidance they need. The Seagles weren't prepared to gamble on his longevity but Souths definitely need him . . . at least at beginning, middle and end of the season

 

[POPEYE]

Trying to find anything interesting in League in the off season is akin to buying too small a baked chicken, turn the f**ker over as many times as you like but there's not much meat. Justin Hodges did say he might upset Benny by not playing fullback, not sure why the coach would want a casual employee entrusted with organising the defence

Hodges want interchanges to stay the same because he reckons big indigenous players don't have enough stamina and Myles wants them reduced because he thinks the smaller blokes should shine in the latter part of the game . . . Nate knows he does have the stamina and Justin doesn't want to be the only indigenous malingerer.

Interchange reduction won't happen because Todd is trying to resign Kasiano on big bucks and we all know what will happen to Sam if he's asked to play any more than 10 minutes at a time, you can only fall on players and regain your feet limited times without a rest.

Sticky is looking at everybody to find the new Raiders captain, he should probably include the ball boys if he's making the choice, great minds and all that. Seriously, there's so many new faces that it would put only a few noses out of joint if Blake Austin was given a shot. The bloke's a better coach than Sticky already and he's going to do what he thinks best anyway . . . may as well give him a badge

 

[POPEYE]

If Fox thought they could get away with broadcasting League the way they do their Boxing Fight Night there would really be something to whinge about. Could you imagine Andy Raymond commenting on the virtues of the combatants, at one end we'd have the Bulldogs and the other a combined team from the Phillipines, Indonesia, Brazil . . . anywhere League is not considered

The crowd would all have soupbowl haircuts with bushy black beards and each of the Bulldog opposition players would have to be a head shorter than his counterpart and naturally physically underdone. If Rothfield's 20 minute quarters came to fruition you'd see Hasler in a huddle throwing pretend passes amongst the uppercuts, in the opposition huddle there'd be a wife of one of the players giving instructions on how to stay upright

Thank f**k Fox don't think League supporters are the total f**king imbeciles they consider the followers of Boxing to be, we'd have Billy Dib draped in one of his national flags doing laps on a Segway during the breaks with the scalp of some poor bastard who was looking for a bowl of rice to feel his family

 

[POPEYE]

C'mon, fair's fair, splashing a little piddle on a car is hardly worth bothering about, you're not a man if you haven't once or twice been caught out with nowhere to go. What are the chances a bloke would even get reprimanded let alone charged on his wedding night for such a misdemeanor

If I was in attendance, not because I think he's overrated mind you, I'd be so jealous of such a f**king meathead punching above his weight, making so much money, that I would stand and piss beside him . . . laugh and say "I bet you think they'll notice me as well"

Did I see a headline saying Fittler considers Flanagan the coach most in danger of losing his job next year. Poor Freddie, probably the second worst coach behind Wally Lewis, a lovable meathead slowly becoming adept at great one liners because he has a captive audience, really thinks the Sharks could finish with the spoon.

Flanagan's mob are without doubt going to finish well enough up the ladder to make him nowhere near the most endangered . . . Freddie deserves to be given the bird

 

[POPEYE]

Although I try to pass myself as a Rugby League supporter first and foremost, something that shouldn't be that hard to do for anyone who's really interested in the game, I'm still a black sheep man to the bone. People I talk to tell me Melbourne are f**ked because the so-called big three all played busted when it counted this year and from here on in it's down hill all the way

Imo it's a good thing the nucleus of the side are fighting hard to keep on the ball rather than giving up or walking away. The Storm need time to regroup just as much as the Qld team need time, no coincidence when the three amigos struggle more than one team struggles.

I'd be content to see Melbourne drop down the ladder while they try to blood new stock, as long as they don't poach players that are needed to be kept by other teams. As far as I'm concerned Melbourne's player recruitment ethics are ahead of any other club that expects to win all the time, it would be just as big a shame if they poached as it would be if more than a minority appreciated them

In the meantime I might just buy a Cronulla jersey, close friends are getting weary of the loudest pisshead wearing purple

 

[muzby]

In the meantime I might just buy a Cronulla jersey, close friends are getting weary of the loudest pisshead

yes, but wearing a cronulla jersey means you take that last word literally...

 

[POPEYE]

While I was down at the vet's yesterday dropping my pup off to get him separated from his balls there was a cat in a box that looked like that grumpy thing making millions of dollars on the internet. It struck me, how much do they look like James Maloney. Same absent minded glare, no look of belonging and certainly no hint of being anyone's man but his own

I always wondered if the NRL was run properly and there was a team in Central West NSW to give promising youngsters more incentive to stay in the game would Maloney have returned to play in Orange where his old man made his name. Josh Jackson and many others might have stayed on the best side of the Bluey's as well.

At first I thought it a pity the bloke didn't stay with Bellamy, admittedly he had high fences to hurdle, then I was glad to imagine he'd be a long time guide for the Warriors until he found a horses head in his bed. Now I look at him and think what a f**king waste, a country boy made a mercenary when he should have been a local hero

As it is now Maloney is the epitome of a true professional, he'll go where there's the biggest quid and along the way no coach will never know if it's the bed or the feed he wants

 

[bluey]

There is some good reading in the above,s Popeye well done

 

[POPEYE]

My all time favourite player is Mick Cronin, not just because of his talent and respectability but also his determination. Country boy stayed country, loaned but never owned, the bloke drove around 150k in each direction to train and play home games. I bet city slickers don't have a clue what country players are used to doing to play the game they love.

If the NRL included a team from the Central West there would be players from 3 cities and many towns that play in Groups 10/11, a population of around 175,000. If Cronin had of been born in the area you could bet your bottom dollar he'd play for Orange if it was in the NRL. Forget the distance, players would drive 2hrs20m from Mudgee to Orange if they didn't want to be bivouacked closer, just a cruise control down the road

Supporters would do likewise, wouldn't matter if the mob from the bush played in pink polka dots with moonbeams on their shorts, they'd teach Melbourne/Manly what a real culture driven team can do. Even if a few city born players crossed the divide to join you'd be flat out getting them back once they tasted the hospitality.

Got to feel for Watmough, might only be 45 minutes drive from his beloved island culture to Parra but its equivalent to running a gauntlet. What about Bulldog players, surely none would voluntarily want to reside in Sydney's black hole, the drive in and out of the shithole must be torture. People dismissing the validity of a team from Central West NSW are really dreading the thought of another culture driven Super Team rocking their leaky boat

 

[POPEYE]

Been a long time since I came close to 'hating' any team or anyone playing Rugby League, not the pretend version but the real thing, Greenberg's Dogs however are about to surpass Arthurson's Seagles as the straw that broke the camel's back. No secret I despise the SWS conclave for reasons depicted every day on the news so it's appropriate that most things bad should be encapsulated in the one place

At least in Arko's day there was no official shame in throwing money at players other clubs needed to keep, then however the once great Canterbury Bankstown Bulldogs made their name fighting alongside Parramatta against the scourge. Wonder how many people like me who lived through those times would today be hoping Toovey keeps Manly near the top of the tree and Hasler shits in his own nest

Ironic that Melbourne did it's dastardly best to keep from stealing from other teams by breaking a Clayton's law that was introduced to deter what the old Manly did to win Premierships. So, what we have now is Rugby League returning to biting its f**king nose off to spite its face because administration don't have the courage to protect the best thing for the game . . . cultivating new players

Smith can prance all he f**king likes but he'll never be Santa until he ensures clubs win Premierships not by default but by dedication to the game itself, there are as many ways around the salary cap as hairs on Greenberg's pillow, only way to stop the f**king rot that the Dogs will use to win a cup is protect clubs that produce NRL players

If the above doesn't turn over a few rocks nothing will

 

[POPEYE]

I dislike being traitorous, even my daughters that live in Qld don't like me barracking for the Maroons, I should have felt guilty when I laughed at Gallop's mob being beaten and I didn't like it when the Irish were beaten by Australia in the International Rules Series . . . thank f**k Cricket is not a threat to League

Which leads me to Dave Smith who I think is doing a good job considering. He could be doing a great job if he listened to people who didn't have selfish agendas but he wouldn't have made inroads if the power brokers who only wanted a fair deal led the way. With luck when/if he becomes solidly entrenched he can rise above his less admirable 'advisors' and make decisions that please everyone

The reason the KKK died in the arse was that African Americans were given the right to defend themselves, not as dramatic but one day the NRL may become the National Rugby League because it has become a game for the people and not primarily for those that administer it

 

[POPEYE]

Still sfa to talk about that hasn't brought the game into disrepute so it's appropriate RLW come up with a list of the top 100 players, the resultant thread should be a 100 page humdinger. Will at least match the incredulous waste of time and energy back and froing as media try to sell advertising while some f**king crackpot holds people hostage in a chocolate shop . . . both events remarkably similar in intellectual achievement

So, the list contains most of the players that just won the 4 Nations and most that lost it, surprising which are more favoured. It doesn't give a shit about combinations, which players are twice as good with favoured offsiders and some that are lost when not propped up.

I reckon I could find the players I wanted in my team somewhere on that list if I bothered to peruse it, would probably be easier to start at 100 and work my way up, just to get 'you're f**king kidding' out of the way early. Definitely go for the best combinations and ignore show ponies, that in itself would deem the list in order null and void

Most importantly any player other than a front rower that couldn't make his presence felt for 80 minutes would be disregarded, pity we couldn't send them all to the NFL. Every front rower would have to be dragged kicking and screaming from the field and be pissed off until he was sent back on. Must be 17 that fit the bill somewhere in the 100 you'd imagine

 

[POPEYE]

Funnily enough the people that will derive the most mileage from the 2015 Rugby League draw are those with the least meaningful input, the media. The media are merely a necessary evil, on a par with funeral directors and lawyers. Club administrators are just that, concerned with keeping up appearances, making a contest from what they do with other club administrators

Supporters are probably the most important group of people that care about the draw but have the least control, they care the most if their team is disadvantaged or not. Even the majority like me who can't or won't actually go to the games but will remonstrate just as much as anyone who thinks they're more dedicated because they're part of the crowd

All that aside its interesting that the most important individuals in the game, the players, don't really give a shit about anything else other than playing. They might run out on the field as a group but anyone who has been close enough to smell the liniment and sweat knows all they think of is not embarrassing themselves with a bad performance

Immediately a game is finished the players are more concerned about what their opposition thinks of them . . . when, where and who they play against next is the furthest thing from their mind. In reality the people who contribute the most to Rugby League are in a world of their own, far more removed than all observers like to imagine