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Round 3 - Rabbitohs vs Roosters: Friday 25th March 8:05pm @Accor Stadium

callmack1

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After watching the replay, here's my full report,

Mitchell: It was a big game in his career and I gotta say, he was outstanding. I would have liked him to get more involved in attack but we need to remember it's only his second game back. All of the touches he did have, aside from the misplaced bat-on to Paulo in the first half, were classy and he asked plenty of questions of the Roosters defence. His kick returns and running game in general play were strong and I thought he made some crucial tackles at times defending our line. He did get beat by Manu a couple of times but there wasn't really much he could do in both those situations. I want to give a wrap to his attitude last night which was first class. Latrell of the past would have become angry when Manu scored and he would have crossed the line to look for revenge but he showed great maturity to kind of say "alright Joey, you got me there, let's get on with the job." Obviously he had the last laugh on the scoreboard and with the play to seal the game, a great run down the sidelines that gave me flashbacks to GI. Trell in full flight is a beautiful thing. A passionate performance from Trell! Needs to work on his involvement but I'm sure that will come with match fitness and he still made his moments count.

Johnston: A much improved performance from AJ. I enjoyed his work rate with the ball, was much better than last week in this area. Still didn't make massive meters from the game but he didn't shy away from it like he kind of did against Melbourne. Gotta give him a big wrap for his try, it was great awareness for him to switch from defence to attack and get himself in a position to score the second try of his Season. A great pass back inside for Trell to streak away and wrap up the game. He did his job defensively too, obviously a couple of things got by him, but nothing that really cost us.

Milne: Taane was really good I thought. The only real negative to his night was the poor tackle attempt on Manu for the Roosters first try. He just arm-grabbed and let him slip past, you simply can't do that against Joey Manu. That was probably a big reason why he got moved back to the wing, because he did look a bit shaky in defence. Aside from that, I thought the rest of his performance was really good, super physical all game and looked really pumped up. Some great runs coming out of yardage on his way to 98 meters and he would have had a great hand in a try (off the AJ 'kick') had it not been disallowed. Was really physical in defence for most of the game, and putting a big shot on Tupounuia to force an error was the highlight. I want to see him stay at centre.

Graham: Another awesome performance from Stretch!! Super physical once again and got through a lot of the shit work to get us out of trouble a number of times. He made 108 meters off 9 runs which is a fair effort. Didn't get many opportunities attacking the line but did look dangerous and threatened to break tackles when he got the ball in good positions. I loved his defensive game as a whole as he came up with some awesome one-on-one tackles down that right edge to shut the play down, that saved us a few times. I will concede that it was Campbell's fault we conceded that last try, he got it completely wrong on Momirovski but thankfully, we had the game already wrapped up by then. Well done Stretch!!

Paulo: Credit where credit's due, Jaxson was great last night. He well and truly did his job. Looks much more comfortable on that right wing and it showed I thought. Came in looking for work and had some really solid hit ups on his way to 114 meters. Even when he went to left centre, he still looked okay. Didn't get any opportunities to really show us if he's improved there on attack but he did a very good job defensively (as he did all game). A great bit of play to scoop up that loose ball and get a flick pass away to AJ for Latrell's try, that was really great to watch. So it was a lift from Jaxson and that sets the standard for him now, he need to continue to build on that.

Walker: Much, much improved. It still wasn't perfect, still not quite the Cody of 2021 but he really stood up and showed signs. Looked pretty dangerous in the early part of the game when we had all that ball in their 20, he really asked a lot of questions there but couldn't quite crack it. A lot of times in this period, he ran the ball, I would have liked to see him get a pass away as I feel like there was a couple of times there upon watching the reply that we could have had them shot but Cody chose to run. Still, I guessing running a lot isn't a bad option as it puts the opposition in two minds more. I think he indirectly creates Cam's try as he was out the back and all eyes were on him due to how dangerous he is, that allowed Cam to slip through. Cody continued to look dangerous as the game wore on, he had a few good darts and laid on a few good passes on the left and write to create some half opportunities. Loved his try obviously, great vision and instinct to see the space, duck back inside of Cam and open his account for 2022. Defensively, it was a mixed bag. Pretty poor effort along with Taane on Manu for the Roosters first try and then got stepped by Manu for their second try just after halftime. In saying that, he did come up with some good stops at other times hence why I say it was a mixed bag defending. So I still think we need more from him but it was good to see him step up.

Ilias: Speaking of stepping up, I have been liking what I've been seeing from Lachie lately, thought he's been going really well but he certainly took it up a notch last night. Was great to see him get more involved and really own the contest. His ball playing was pretty good in this one. Over the opening two games, he's been criticised for always going out the back and becoming a bit predictable. However, it looks like he's working on that because there was a lot more variety to his game last night, still went out the back at times of course but there was a handful of times he played short and hit the lead runner. While most of these didn't yield actual results aside from good meters, it is good to see because it makes him less predictable if he can play long and short. It's great signs. Was a beautiful out ball to cam for Cody's try, that was a real peach of a pass and he created that try did Lachie. A decent running game, took the line on plenty of times and looked good there. Made the one error but he'll learn from that. His kicking game was solid, got it wrong once when the ball was caught in goal but aside from that it was pretty good and something he'll continue to improve. Great to see him force a line drop out too. Also, outstanding defence all night, chopped down everything that came his way and really stood tall there. I already think he's a better defender than Reyno. So a really impressive night from our young halfback! Still a lot to work on but he is building nicely.
 

callmack1

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Tatola: Didn't do anything special but he was very, very solid. Just about every single one of his carries were strong for 136 meters. A good amount of work in defence too, making 19 tackles so he certainly held his own against the Roosters pack.

Cook: How good was it to see Cookie finally step up and own a contest!!! The best he's played for us in two years I reckon! A big game to do it in against the arch-rivals at home and his 150th NRL match. The running game was back! Plenty of really good darts that threatened to break the Chooks and he didn't do any of that silly running in circles stuff. Good service from dummy half, brought the forwards onto the ball well and picked up a lovely try assist with that wonderful pass to Keaon. Top shelf effort in defence too as he made a massive 42 tackles with just 2 missed. Well done Cookie, that sets the standard for the rest of the year, back it up next week!

Nicholls: Pretty much could say the same for him as I said about Junior. He did his job and did it well. Played a key role in sticking it to the Roosters pack. 17 tackles and 85 meters from his minutes isn't a bad effort at all.

Koloamatangi: Has been very quiet the opening two Rounds but was back with a bang last night!! Back to his damaging best!! His runs had that 'ompf' back in them and boy did he get through some work with the ball making a stack of meters! 146 to be exact, 64 of them post-contact which is a pretty big effort. Terrorised that Rooster left edge. Showed a mega effort to almost score that try from dummy half, it's a shame he lost it but he wasn't going to be denied a second time as he ran that beautiful line off Cookie to crash over for his first try of 2022. Very solid without the ball too and put of few big shots on. Keaon is back!!

Arrow: Another great effort last night for Jai. That's three really good performances in a row where he's been one of our top forwards so he's really starting to find some consistency which is just fantastic! It was effort upon effort for him, quality run after quality run on his way to a massive 173 meters! He even threatened to break through a couple of times running some good lines off Cody. I loved his defence too, it was nice and aggressive. Felt like he could have been more onto it and followed the play a bit more to put himself in a position to stop Tedesco once he got the ball for his try but that was his only real negative of the night. well done Jai!

Murray: I could say well done to Cam for his game last night but simply saying well done would be one hell of an understatement!!! Seriously, I struggle to find the words to explain how good the skipper was last night. A gigantic performance performance, easily man of the match and probably one of the best games of his career. Right from the start he set the tone with that great run, dummy and try. That was amazing work. Then a magical piece of play a few minutes later to scoop up a Roosters mistake and then put AJ over. Later on in the game, his hands were all over it again with that amazing pass to send Cody through for his try. The way Cam stepped to his right to get on the outside of his defender while the ball was in the air was very special. His hit ups were all quality, running for 152 meters. His ball playing was so on point and his defence was top notch as always. 2 try assists, 1 try himself, 44 tackles and 152 meters. It was a special night for Cam and I feel privileged to have witnessed that.

Host: Not a bad game from Hosty, it was a solid performance right from his first run to his last. I'd like to see him get even more involved but he did do his job pretty well, 76 meters off 7 runs. wasn't a great effort by him on Manu's try though.

Havili: Not too much to say about Siliva as he did play very limited minutes but he still did a good job and had some pretty decent carries.

Burgess: Not his finest game that's for sure. Only had a few runs and then made that very poor error which cost us a try. Was seemingly hooked after that and if that is the case, I applaud JD for doing so as it puts everyone on notice.

Knight: A very successful return for Knighty!! He ran hard and got through plenty of work with NO ERRORS!! Very good signs for Liam.

What a night, I'm still on a high!! We do still have some stuff to work on but we have now claimed our first win of 2022, against the team we hate who are considered Premiership contenders!! Can take a lot of confidence from that and hopefully it's exactly the kind of win we needed to kick-start our Season.
 
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Another mod-of-the-round effort @callmack1, other forums would kill for this.

I’d be interested in your observations of any global game plan patterns you may have detected. Any targeting of opposition players, sides favoured, defence posture?

I saw it as building on last week, how do you think JD got them up to win against a side who are premiership favourites?
 

Souths Till I Die

First Grade
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5,929
Another mod-of-the-round effort @callmack1, other forums would kill for this.

I’d be interested in your observations of any global game plan patterns you may have detected. Any targeting of opposition players, sides favoured, defence posture?

I saw it as building on last week, how do you think JD got them up to win against a side who are premiership favourites?

I know you were asking callmack but I personally would be very concerned if I was a roosters supporter for a few reasons.

1. Luke Keary is not a halfback just like Cody Walker isn't a halfback. He will never be that player that organises players and plays that first receiver role. He's a running half and thats what he excels at. The roosters are making a mistake trying to transform him into a player that he's not.

2. Their forwards are soft. They got absolutely rolled through the middle and only looked like troubling souths when JWH came on and started running it hard.

3. Trent Robinson appears to have told the team to play their own brand of footy and its definitely not working. Their completion rate is worse than ours and that's saying something because we love to drop the ball.

I cant see the Roosters being premiership contenders this year and I think they were overhyped at the start of the year. They've had so much success though that they need a break from the top. Let some other teams succeed.
 

callmack1

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11,611
Full team and player stats can be found here: https://www.rabbitohs.com.au/draw/nrl-premiership/2022/round-3-rabbitohs-v-roosters/

Another mod-of-the-round effort @callmack1, other forums would kill for this.

I’d be interested in your observations of any global game plan patterns you may have detected. Any targeting of opposition players, sides favoured, defence posture?

I saw it as building on last week, how do you think JD got them up to win against a side who are premiership favourites?
Thanks mate!!! I'm going out tonight so will get back to you on that one tomorrow.
 

handyman2190

Bench
Messages
3,386
Well great to see the team back to winning , more so how to win. The play the ball speed much better and also the defence . Liam Knight back and missed a tackle for a try, David Moale is waiting in the wings and only 19 he needs more run on time. Lachlan Illias really stepped up and taking on the line more was a feature. Captain Cam was a super man , he best game so far, and Jai Arrow certainly consistently good. Tatola running good metres. Great game as well from Cook. Jacob Host solid as was Nicholls. Cody was good especially backing up Murray for a try. A special mention to Jaxxon Paulo often gets bagged here in the forum but he was great especially the pass to Johnston that led to Mitchells try. Johnston looked better last night and Milne an enthused game, LATRELL WAS LATRELL great game.The forwards really lifted and this made a lot of difference to the likes of cook, walker etc. Tom unfortunately was very quite , dropped the ball which led to a roosters try. Credit to the coach for some tactical moves with switches between Paulo and Milne.
I think tom got hooked after that dropped ball or he mustnt have played long min,i think his mind isnt on the job,that mid week speculation got to him
 
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15,386
I know you were asking callmack but I personally would be very concerned if I was a roosters supporter for a few reasons.

1. Luke Keary is not a halfback just like Cody Walker isn't a halfback. He will never be that player that organises players and plays that first receiver role. He's a running half and thats what he excels at. The roosters are making a mistake trying to transform him into a player that he's not.

2. Their forwards are soft. They got absolutely rolled through the middle and only looked like troubling souths when JWH came on and started running it hard.

3. Trent Robinson appears to have told the team to play their own brand of footy and its definitely not working. Their completion rate is worse than ours and that's saying something because we love to drop the ball.

I cant see the Roosters being premiership contenders this year and I think they were overhyped at the start of the year. They've had so much success though that they need a break from the top. Let some other teams succeed.

All good, I like all constructive and interesting posts.

I think Keary has lost his X factor wherever he plays. He’s sub-marquee, much better than most players, but in the decline.

JWH is also fading.

Trent is staggering into the year a bit, but I think he’s proven elite. I said it before on the roosters forum. He’s big time, except his whinges.

But on last night, nup, they looked mid tier.

My thoughts.
 
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4,544
I'll give you some credit, you showed up even after your chooks became KFC
Chooks ball control and set completions are getting worse- 46% possession and 67% set completions are not going to win you many games - Tedesco is trying too hard in playing 3 different roles in the one game - fullback/half back and 5/8.

Move Keary back to 5/8 with Walker half and Tedesco picking his moments in attack and reduce the errors especially the unforced ones and the Chooks will be a contender.

Not to worry always next week

Norths(Chooks Reggies side) beat Souths 24-16 in NSW Cup

Roosters beat Souths 42-18 in Jersey Flegg

So it was Roosters 82 to Souths 62 across the 3 games
 
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All good, I like all constructive and interesting posts.

I think Keary has lost his X factor wherever he plays. He’s sub-marquee, much better than most players, but in the decline.

JWH is also fading.

Trent is staggering into the year a bit, but I think he’s proven elite. I said it before on the roosters forum. He’s big time, except his whinges.

But on last night, nup, they looked mid tier.

My thoughts.
It's only round 3 though and new combos in the halves/dummy half/wing and centre and a number players behind on where they need to be match fitness wise for various reasons- returning from long term injury/off season surgery and what not.

They didn't give themselves a chance of winning though with poor ball control an set completions - 46% of the ball and 67% set completions and it went down hill from there.

I think if you asked Souths fans if they are a genuine premiership chance i would say if they were being truly honest they would say no - reason is they lack depth and will need a lot of luck on the injury front to even make the 8

If something happened to Walker and Roosters developed Mitchell say and they were out for a long period/season then their season will be done and dusted.

On a foot note Titans led 22-4 at half time vs Raiders (Raiders score right on half time) and they get beat 24-22 so anything can happen even in the same game.
 
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Souths Till I Die

First Grade
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5,929
I thought the only thing that JWH showed is that he is past his "use by" date.
.

I think he's a grub but I still rate him as a forward. He's never afraid to put his hand up and run the ball hard. I dont think ill ever like him though because of some of the shit he pulls on the field.
@Souths Till I Die JWH is washed I completely disagree.

I wouldn't say he's completely washed yet. I thought he was the only Roosters forward that looked remotely threatening. Maybe SST as well.
 
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15,386
It's only round 3 though and new combos in the halves/dummy half/wing and centre and a number players behind on where they need to be match fitness wise for various reasons- returning from long term injury/off season surgery and what not.

They didn't give themselves a chance of winning though with poor ball control an set completions - 46% of the ball and 67% set completions and it went down hill from there.

I think if you asked Souths fans if they are a genuine premiership chance i would say if they were being truly honest they would say no - reason is they lack depth and will need a lot of luck on the injury front to even make the 8

If something happened to Walker and Roosters developed Mitchell say and they were out for a long period/season then their season will be done and dusted.

On a foot note Titans led 22-4 at half time vs Raiders (Raiders score right on half time) and they get beat 24-22 so anything can happen even in the same game.

Yeah, point taken but the bunnies aren’t the same side as last year either. Much weaker in key areas. No Gags or Renno. Renno was one of the best players on earth last year. Gags is the thinking mans back.

We were going through the sides at work earlier in the year and we had to put the roosters in the top 4, but by rights you should be leading the comp by now and there’s something amiss at Bondi.

Everybody thought you would stomp on the bunnies and put Latrell into a coma.

Trent will probably sort it out, but so far this year has been unsatisfactory.

You could see the vibe of the bunnies at half time, very pumped and ready to go with it.

Demetriou is looking unstoppable. He used that game v Storm to enormous effect.

There is the Cam Murray factor as well. He has to stay up for Souths to press their claims. He’s a freak.

I had a look at that silly Newcastle hit. 3 weeks is fair.
 
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Yeah, point taken but the bunnies aren’t the same side as last year either. Much weaker in key areas. No Gags or Renno. Renno was one of the best players on earth last year. Gags is the thinking mans back.

We were going through the sides at work earlier in the year and we had to put the roosters in the top 4, but by rights you should be leading the comp by now and there’s something amiss at Bondi.

Everybody thought you would stomp on the bunnies and put Latrell into a coma.

Trent will probably sort it out, but so far this year has been unsatisfactory.

You could see the vibe of the bunnies at half time, very pumped and ready to go with it.

Demetriou is looking unstoppable. He used that game v Storm to enormous effect.

There is the Cam Murray factor as well. He has to stay up for Souths to press their claims. He’s a freak.

I had a look at that silly Newcastle hit. 3 weeks is fair.
Robbo will get the team back on course it will just take a bit longer - need to get back to basics
 
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3,616
Chooks ball control and set completions are getting worse- 46% possession and 67% set completions are not going to win you many games - Tedesco is trying too hard in playing 3 different roles in the one game - fullback/half back and 5/8.

Move Keary back to 5/8 with Walker half and Tedesco picking his moments in attack and reduce the errors especially the unforced ones and the Chooks will be a contender.

Not to worry always next week

Norths(Chooks Reggies side) beat Souths 24-16 in NSW Cup

Roosters beat Souths 42-18 in Jersey Flegg

So it was Roosters 82 to Souths 62 across the 3 games
That level of propaganda and spin would make your namesake proud. The only question is whether I mean Benji or Joseph.
 

big hit!

Bench
Messages
3,452
It's only round 3 though and new combos in the halves/dummy half/wing and centre and a number players behind on where they need to be match fitness wise for various reasons- returning from long term injury/off season surgery and what not.

They didn't give themselves a chance of winning though with poor ball control an set completions - 46% of the ball and 67% set completions and it went down hill from there.

I think if you asked Souths fans if they are a genuine premiership chance i would say if they were being truly honest they would say no - reason is they lack depth and will need a lot of luck on the injury front to even make the 8

If something happened to Walker and Roosters developed Mitchell say and they were out for a long period/season then their season will be done and dusted.

On a foot note Titans led 22-4 at half time vs Raiders (Raiders score right on half time) and they get beat 24-22 so anything can happen even in the same game.

Most likely, or most likely not. It's elite sport and you adapt. Everyone wrote off Souths last year when Mitchell was rubbed out and Taafe came in did a job. They got one step further than in the previous 3 seasons.

Most of Friday night's tries weren't from great backline shape that we've seen in previous seasons with Reynolds digging into the line and creating space for players outside him, but more from Roosters putting pressure on themselves and Souths capitalising on this.

Penrith's defence won't be as porous. They're up in your face style will put some pressure on Ilias again which will affect the players outside him.

Souths will need to have another completion rate like Friday night to get anywhere near Penrith. 81% much better than 63% & 61% in the first 2 weeks.

Win is great for the confidence though. Better to be 1-2, then 0-3 going into a match vs the reigning premiers on their home deck!
 

BotanyBorn&Bred

Juniors
Messages
1,896
It's only round 3 though and new combos in the halves/dummy half/wing and centre and a number players behind on where they need to be match fitness wise for various reasons- returning from long term injury/off season surgery and what not.

They didn't give themselves a chance of winning though with poor ball control an set completions - 46% of the ball and 67% set completions and it went down hill from there.

I think if you asked Souths fans if they are a genuine premiership chance i would say if they were being truly honest they would say no - reason is they lack depth and will need a lot of luck on the injury front to even make the 8

If something happened to Walker and Roosters developed Mitchell say and they were out for a long period/season then their season will be done and dusted.

On a foot note Titans led 22-4 at half time vs Raiders (Raiders score right on half time) and they get beat 24-22 so anything can happen even in the same game.
We will make the 8, don't you worry about that.
We have the hardest draw in the comp for the first 5 rounds, it's ridiculous.
How come we don't get Warriors, Cowboys, Bulldogs in the first 5??
Every year it's the same story.

The NRL is a joke.
They are lying when they say, "Oh the computer did the draw, it's completely random."

Yeah sure.....
 

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