Round 2 v Cowboys

[denis preston]

I totally agree, he looks slow and predictable in attack not capable of breaking the line or showing mongrel in defence like in past years. We were told in the past he was carrying injuries, what is his excuse now. He is fortunate we don’t have the cattle in the second row to put pressure on him otherwise he could be playing CC in a few weeks. He is signed till the end off 2022, Hook has his work cut out getting the best out of him by the look of it.

Off the bench so he can be dynamic for smaller minutes rather than pedestrian for 80 ?

 

[Blood Shot Eyes]

Need a BIG Drink after this game


View attachment 46795

That looks like Thurston drowning his sorrows......maybe spelt Thirston

 

[denis preston]

Yeah I would agree, I picked Alvaro for 1 but only because I couldn't pick 5 players. I wasn't super keen on Rava, but he would have to be one of the most improved players, didn't look like dropping a ball.

Alvaro had a great game and impresses. Only blemish was letting Granville run past him for the try.

 

[Blood Shot Eyes]

Need to order more alcohol for if there’s many more games like that!

Think of me mate since I've had my cancer procedure 2 weeks ago cant have a drink till finish by pills.....just checked the box....started off 30 now just 15 left.....that equates to two more games....so please fellas give it to Manly then The Knights before I can break out the Bourbons

 

[Blood Shot Eyes]

Alvaro had a great game and impresses. Only blemish was letting Granville run past him for the try.

Yes I was critical of his game but must admit looking back he went ok....as Hook said in his post interview they will tighten up the area where Granville scored

 

[Blood Shot Eyes]

Taking nothing away from the boys last night they showed guts for the full 80 in the heat.....but luckily at times when we erred and turned the ball over on a few occassions so did they.....if we are to be competitive with teams like Eels, Roosters Storm and the like we need keep these errors to a minimum.....as I said though we didnt wilt like we normally do

 

[denis preston]

Yes I was critical of his game but must admit looking back he went ok....as Hook said in his post interview they will tighten up the area where Granville scored

Yes he was caught on the back foot and didn't move towards Granville at all. Reminiscent of the Dean Young "stand back & conserve your energy by letting the player come to you " defence strategy .

 

[Inisai Toga]

Great signs from last night. They appear to be playing for Griffin and each other and when that happens its like they have an extra player out there. Just want to see the consistency continue to build starting with Manly. Those early drop balls from Lawrie and Vaughan were forgivable, however, eliminating these out of the game would reduce unnecessary pressure. Some of these guys are really just starting to develop and recognise what they can do particularly with the ball in our hand. One game at a time and enjoying the win and great to see the continual improvement.

 

[Gareth67]

Have not watched the game , but have seen clips on Foxsports , a few fumbles in the 1st half that gave the cowboys a try .

The tackle on Bird was , IMO was damn dangerous , deserving of at least 10 minutes in the bin .

Geeze Andrew McCullough reminds me of a that scheming hooker who recently retired from the game in as much as he truly knows how to organize the plays from the dummy-half position .

Our pack went forward for the first time in years due to a huge improvement from our halves , giving plenty of room to the backs to attack .

And finally wasn’t it nice to see Griffin wearing his heart on his sleeve in his Dragon jersey during the game ?

 

[possm]

But we all knew at the time didn't we ? Pity the bloody board couldn't.

I would like to see the day when the Board only approved matters put by the CEO that were outside the annual budget they set. The less interference in football matters from the Board the better. This would also mean the less influence people like Peter Doust and Craig Young have on matters football.

 

[possm]

Off the bench so he can be dynamic for smaller minutes rather than pedestrian for 80 ?

It may be that Sims is following the same path as his two brothers who faded in form and then moved to the ESL.

 

[redandwhite4evr]

Alvaro had a great game and impresses. Only blemish was letting Granville run past him for the try.

Agree- I, for one, was pleasantly surprised- he looks to have lost some weight. He ran hard and was heavily involved in defence.

However, Tariq Sims has to go- he is a spent force and looked gassed on the rare moments he was involved. As against the Sharks, he didn't threaten in attack and I actually asked my son after about 20 minutes if he was on the field (he was).

Fui to the backrow and Bird to lock for mine.

 

[BLM01]

Alvaro had a great game and impresses. Only blemish was letting Granville run past him for the try.

I blame Josh Kerr for that. he was slow to react from marker. I get he was tired and that but that was it.

 

[possm]

Agree- I, for one, was pleasantly surprised- he looks to have lost some weight. He ran hard and was heavily involved in defence.

However, Tariq Sims has to go- he is a spent force and looked gassed on the rare moments he was involved. As against the Sharks, he didn't threaten in attack and I actually asked my son after about 20 minutes if he was on the field (he was).

Fui to the backrow and Bird to lock for mine.

Too much danger in the Bird to lock idea at this stage in Birds return from injury.

I'm hoping we have De Belin at lock and Bird at five-eighth where he and Hunt would form a top halves pairing. We just need to recruit a couple of top grade edge forwards now, so don't confuse the matter by weakening our backline to fortify our forward pack.

We should have enough cap to buy both Grown and Creighton for season 2022 and beyond. So along with the new recruitment of Molo, we should have a healthy forward pack for 2022 and beyond. Our 17 should look balanced and full of speed and talent:
Ramsey
Matt Feagai
Max Feagai
Lomax
Ravalawa
Bird
Hunt
Kerr
McCullough
Vaughan
Brown
Creighton
De Belin

Dufty
Molo
Alvaro
Lawrie

What a strong 17 that is. I'd say it is a top 4 contender if Ramsey and the Feagai brothers transition well into their new positions.

With Faamausili, Fuimaono, Blacker and Ford as backup forwards, we will have plenty of good forwards depth in 2022.

Sims to opt for an early release to play in the ESL rather than to play in reserve grade.

 

[Gareth67]

Did Faamausili get many minutes and if so , did he show he could force his way into the starting side ? The reason I ask is that he is a big bod and the more of those players we have in the pack the better .

 

[Brutalitops]

I think people should relax on the Sims retirement or release talk. As of now, he's been out of form for exactly one more match than a huge chunk of the team. Perfectly feasible for some to take slightly longer to click than others without it meaning they're permanently past it.

 

[Slippery Morris]

Great first up win for Griffin and the Dragons for 2021. They made errors but were quick to make up for them. They showed accountability and a desire to make up for it. Defense in the back end of the game was immense. The tries conceded were soft which Griffin noted and will work on with the boys.

I was not impressed with the Alvaro signing but he played really well. Always glad to be proven wrong in this type of situation. The signings of Bird, McCullough and Alvaro are proving to be really good signings which we all had doubts for but you can see they were made for a particular reason, the McCullough one especially.

Sims will come good as he usually gets a few games to hit his straps and when he does is outstanding.

The backline I feel is perfect as it is, no changes required. Bird and Lomax are the ideal centers and Ramsey / Rawa are the best wingers at this stage. If there is to be a change, it may be Ramsey to Fullback and JP to the wing as Dufty letting bombs bounce may not be tolerated much later especially when they play the better sides.

Forwards also played well and no changes required. The Norman/Hunt/McCullough combo looks like the best we will have seen in a long time.

This really shows how important a coach is, as Griffin looks to have the guys playing to their strengths. They also look like they are playing for their coach and more importantly their position. The morale looks good and the boys look they have found belief in themselves to challenge the other teams in the comp.

 

[LINESPEED]

Too much danger in the Bird to lock idea at this stage in Birds return from injury.

I'm hoping we have De Belin at lock and Bird at five-eighth where he and Hunt would form a top halves pairing. We just need to recruit a couple of top grade edge forwards now, so don't confuse the matter by weakening our backline to fortify our forward pack.

We should have enough cap to buy both Grown and Creighton for season 2022 and beyond. So along with the new recruitment of Molo, we should have a healthy forward pack for 2022 and beyond. Our 17 should look balanced and full of speed and talent:
Ramsey
Matt Feagai
Max Feagai
Lomax
Ravalawa
Bird
Hunt
Kerr
McCullough
Vaughan
Brown
Creighton
De Belin

Dufty
Molo
Alvaro
Lawrie

What a strong 17 that is. I'd say it is a top 4 contender if Ramsey and the Feagai brothers transition well into their new positions.

With Faamausili, Fuimaono, Blacker and Ford as backup forwards, we will have plenty of good forwards depth in 2022.

Sims to opt for an early release to play in the ESL rather than to play in reserve grade.

I think Fui might hold his spot if he performs consistently.

I’m glad your better half has convinced you to keep Duff -

who’d have a field day running off Bird in the pack

I back the Feagais & your back 5 too Possm

...although neither looked as trimmed down as that very fit looking team that ran out last night.

A shame, because Max was all set to begin where he left off last year at 3
Been grazing too much in the top paddock in the offseason maybe.

IMO Hook’s wasted a bench spot with Williame -

.... and I think he only got 9
predictably unremarkable minutes.

 

[Dragsters]

I think people should relax on the Sims retirement or release talk. As of now, he's been out of form for exactly one more match than a huge chunk of the team. Perfectly feasible for some to take slightly longer to click than others without it meaning they're permanently past it.

Sims will be back to his best soon enough...

 

[matPORTS]

JDB returning to this team will be a massive advantage, and will put pressure on others to continue performing.

2.5 years out of the game is nothing to be sneezed at, but no doubt he will be determined and hungry to repay the faith and under the guise of Hook there is a good chance he'll re-discover some form pretty quickly.

He'll go into the props rotation. Fui should hold his spot in the 13, unless there is a big sudden drop in his form.