Round 6 v Redcliffe

[TheDefinitionOfMadness]

So this is what it feels like to be a Wests Tigers supporter for the last 4 years.

4 years? Try 13 and then you're on the money

 

[Luke Bowden]

We are a good enough team, that one win could lead to 10 in a row… just gotta get that win.

 

[Iamback]

Don't worry though, because Cleary's halfback play and Edwards ball playing are totally fine.

another reason to play Blaize at centre to give the team something and improves defence

 

[maple_69]

Edwards was becoming a functional enough ball player by about 2023 when he was just being used as a link man on the right. That's his ceiling really. Since 2024 he has been used as a creator and he is not that. Yeo and Cleary are great at what they do but we do lack that Luai/Api/Kikau/Leniu player that can really disrupt the line and drag players out of position. The structured guys like Yeo/Cleary/Edwards will then pick apart a hole or numbers advantage but they don't really seem capable of creating one.

I think Papali'i has previously been that guy. Talagi obviously has it in him and so does Laurie. Tago also but we haven't seen it for 18 months. That's about it for the whole squad. Papali'i needs to go to an edge as a start and then we need Tago resuscitated through Cup to see if he can get back to being a threat with ball in hand. Then we need to either gamble and persist with Talagi/Laurie at 5/8 or actually have a gameplan to use them off the bench properly.

 

[Fangs]

None.

You need to define successful.

At this point making the 8 is a success considering our start.

 

[Das Hassler]

So this is what it feels like to be a Wests Tigers supporter for the last 4 years.

How you liking it so far?

 

[Frankus]

Broncos lost 6 in a row in 2001 and made a prelim after they won the premiership in 2000. That would have been post-Origin though.

Not sure which teams have started this poorly and got away with a successful season.

Broncos were like 1 or 2 wins after 10 rounds in 99 after winning the comp in 98. Pretty sure they scraped into the 8 that year. I think finals is a successful year - maybe not quite what we have become accustomed to in the last 5 seasons but that 5 year run is as rare as rocking horse shit.

 

[Das Hassler]

I believe the best temporary 5/8 you ( might) have hasn't been given a fair shot at it yet...Laurie!. He didn't handle filling in at FB but 6 is his position...his last weeks at WT with nothing to play for he did a great job at 5/8 with the ball and in defense. Let him settle for a few games and I believe he'd go well with Cleary

 

[The Silverdale Phantom]

Laurie is a dumpster fire.

He does his best, but he’s a lightweight and somewhat incompetent.

 

[senior]

Our Roster needs a bit of a clean out. Paps is a complete pumpkin. Management must have been high when they thought he was a decent replacement for Fish.

Just think for a minute, the TIGERS, the 3 in a row SPOONERS were not at all fussed in letting him go

He’s out of position to be fair, he should be next to Cleary on the right edge

 

[Das Hassler]

Just think for a minute, the TIGERS, the 3 in a row SPOONERS were not at all fussed in letting him go.

Told him midway through last season that he wouldn't be extended ...he was better then than now

 

[Das Hassler]

He’s out of position to be fair, he should be next to Cleary on the right edge

When you're going well he enjoys it and can dominate..but when you're down he won't be the guy that lifts

 

[age.s]

Our Roster needs a bit of a clean out. Paps is a complete pumpkin. Management must have been high when they thought he was a decent replacement for Fish.

Just think for a minute, the TIGERS, the 3 in a row SPOONERS were not at all fussed in letting him go.

You get some people in here who think Ivan and the coaching staff could turn a beat up bomb into a performance vehicle, but it turns out we don't have Magic dust like we thought we did.

I honestly think a fair degree of hubris has crept into the organisation from management, to coaching staff down to some of the players. If there is one silver lining, that would be that a disaster year might bring some humility back into the organisation and from there we can build the hunger again.

Paps has been ok imo. Not burning it down but generally winning his contact and no major defensive lapses. He might be better utilised elsewhere, but our middles (Leota aside) have been pretty good overall.

I completely agree with the overall point about hubris though and I think it applies to both the staff and senior players. Watching guys like Kenny, Garner and Alamoti play so well in a grand final must have been a heady experience. It isn't working the same with Casey, Jenkins, Cole and Talagi.

 

[Luke Bowden]

Paps has been played in the middle a lot, I’d like to see him on an edge for a while, I think we need to consider moving Sorro into the middle rotation off the bench.

I’d like to see

Mose - Starting middle
Henry - Starting middle
Yeo - 13 80mins

Paps - Starting L edge
Martin - 80 mins R edge

Sorro - Middle Bench
Larry - Middle Bench
Garner - L edge Bench

 

[Pomoz]

There has been plenty of good commentary on here about technical changes to improve things but I do have a couple of points:

- I agree with the Realist, definitely the Panthers team and coaches have built up a level of arrogance and that hasn't helped. Lets hope they aren't still thinking everything is OK. We started the season flat, unfit and disorganised.

- The whole team has looked underdone this year from game one. We always outlast teams and you could see last night the fitness is coming back by how much we dominated field position. But we weren't fit enough at the start of the year and that's on the coaching staff.

-I don't know why we never mention Turuva, but replacing him was not as easy as we thought. He at least had a decent turn of speed, was safe under the highball and after a spell in reggies, he could defend OK. We must have the slowest backline in the NRL.

-Dyl is not 100% and Cleary looked like what he is, a guy who has only played a few games after shoulder surgery, and has timing and fitness issues. He looked rustier than an 89 Ford Falcon and he had a rookie five eighth and hooker to try and manage through the game.

- Watching last night, I compared the team to the 24 GF winners. No Turuva, Luai, JFH, Kenny, To'o. Five starters missing and replaced with four rookies and a fat Papali. It was arrogant to think you can replace half your spine with rookies and sprinkle a few more elsewhere and then chuck in a chubby Papali and be good to go. But it is worse than that because we also lost May last year. A quality first grader who would be pretty handy right now.

We have a good junior system, but nothing can sustain losing so many quality players in one go. Quite simply the cupboard is bare. There is no star in the lower grades coming to rescue us, at least not this year. We just have to suck it up and let the junior development processes do its thing.

 

[Chins]

Paps has been played in the middle a lot, I’d like to see him on an edge for a while, I think we need to consider moving Sorro into the middle rotation off the bench.

I’d like to see

Mose - Starting middle
Henry - Starting middle
Yeo - 13 80mins

Paps - Starting L edge
Martin - 80 mins R edge

Sorro - Middle Bench
Larry - Middle Bench
Garner - L edge Bench

Yeo can play 80 but it's killing him with almost every other forward playing like a bitch.

Martin isn't close to earning his pay cheque

 

[Black Magik]

How you liking it so far?

Im at the laughing stage. What should I expect ?

 

[Black Magik]

4 years? Try 13 and then you're on the money

Don’t brag. You haven’t had 13 wooden spoons

 

[Fangs]

Paps has been played in the middle a lot, I’d like to see him on an edge for a while, I think we need to consider moving Sorro into the middle rotation off the bench.

I’d like to see

Mose - Starting middle
Henry - Starting middle
Yeo - 13 80mins

Paps - Starting L edge
Martin - 80 mins R edge

Sorro - Middle Bench
Larry - Middle Bench
Garner - L edge Bench

Good changes and its nothing too crazy either.

I'd take either Papali'i or Garner starting and Tailagi stays the 6. Might help Tailagi with his short kicking if Garner is in his ear and running onto the ball in the red zone.

 

[Fangs]

Broncos were like 1 or 2 wins after 10 rounds in 99 after winning the comp in 98. Pretty sure they scraped into the 8 that year. I think finals is a successful year - maybe not quite what we have become accustomed to in the last 5 seasons but that 5 year run is as rare as rocking horse shit.

They were a special team. Over the cap? Maybe but the post-origin slump was their kryptonite.

I read this morning they lost 8 straight in 2003 coming into the finals against us. They did a good job to have the lead at halftime but we ran away with it.