Round 9 V Storm

[Minh]

We might surprise them with an ambush of sorts...I hope...lol

 

[2010]

Mary should look at bench rotation. When Vaughan and Packer go to the bench we lose our intensity.
Saints will need to dominate in the forwads, that might be enough to give us an even chance.

 

[possm]

Sims is looking like he has lost the ability to bend the line in attack and smash the opposition in defence. We need to bring another prop into the rotation who is better than Sims. Also I think it's time to put Leilua on the bench.
Vaughan
McInnes
Packer
Thompson
Frizell
De Belin

Ah Mau
Kerr / Lawrie
Leilua / Sims
Field / Sims

 

[Blood Shot Eyes]

Sims is looking like he has lost the ability to bend the line in attack and smash the opposition in defence. We need to bring another prop into the rotation who is better than Sims. Also I think it's time to put Leilua on the bench.
Vaughan
McInnes
Packer
Thompson
Frizell
De Belin

Ah Mau
Kerr / Lawrie
Leilua / Sims
Field / Sims

Tend to agree re Sims whilst I like him as a player your right I to have noticed hes lost a bit of mongrel .....his brother has more impact for the bunkers friend The Donkeys

 

[ALSGI]

Tend to agree re Sims whilst I like him as a player your right I to have noticed hes lost a bit of mongrel .....his brother has more impact for the bunkers friend The Donkeys

Yes, agree I've noticed the same with Sims not that he's playing poorly. I was thinking the same with Thompson who's been quiet then he crashes through several for a try on the weekend. His 4th this year.
All the forwards need to step it up another notch (if that's possible) against the Storm to give as much space and time for Mann and McCrone.
McCrone's kicking game will be under a lot of pressure. Can McInnes and Mann kick?

 

[FlameThrower]

Our Power game - does bring risk of player burnout . So the bench and rotation of our forwards is key factor to maintain that power game. Secondly with rep season looming we do need to bring in these Bench Players to be taking up more game time. Frizel for Origin duty with JDB and Vaughn knocking on that door as well.

 

[Dragsters]

McCrone and McInnes really need to step up big time for this one and really take ownership of this team while Widdop is out.

Mann is a natural footballer, he should just be allowed to play his natural game without the burden of trying to takeover Widdop's role in the side.

Agreed bit I also hope he gets his fair share of good ball and it doesn't all go down McCrone's side like it did in that trial match when Mann got a run.

 

[Gippsy]

Mary should look at bench rotation. When Vaughan and Packer go to the bench we lose our intensity.
Saints will need to dominate in the forwads, that might be enough to give us an even chance.

Yep, agree. I think it comes from having a utility on the bench, who before the last game barely made it on the field, and a young backrower (ie Sele) who was only getting 15-20 minutes. The other forwards were being asked to do too much.

 

[kit66]

Hard to be confident going in to this game. No Widdop, A bruising encounter 5 days earlier, The Storm wrestle slowing down our usual momentum and the dodgy Cecchin running the show - he won't penalise Smith holding down players for an eternity and he'll help Storm out should we start getting on top - guaranteed.

 

[Blood Shot Eyes]

Macdonald needs to watch when he is contesting the cross kick bomb, he has got into the habit of not trying to catch it but bat it back...Ive noticed one or two opposition outside backs are not going for the ball but race into our backline and wait for the crumbs....he wouldnt want to do it against The Storm wingers they can motor if given half the chance.

 

[Dragonslayer]

Macdonald needs to watch when he is contesting the cross kick bomb, he has got into the habit of not trying to catch it but bat it back...Ive noticed one or two opposition outside backs are not going for the ball but race into our backline and wait for the crumbs....he wouldnt want to do it against The Storm wingers they can motor if given half the chance.

Yes BSE. I think he catches it then looks to pass or bat it straight away. I'd like to see him catch and take a run and use the strength he showed on Tuesday.
Speaking of which, I think that try will see him much more positive now, hopefully he can produce more of the same. He will be up against Vunivalu on Sunday which in itself is a contest worth seeing.

 

[dragonssamy61]

ALSGI, I have lost a bit of confidence tbh. Not only losing Widdop but it seems we have gone back to the one out stuff a bit. We need to chance our arm against storm. I doubt we can out-storm the storm. That is just hang in there. Only chance is to blow them away.

Agree crush.
We need to get off to a good start.
Melbourne are great front runners

 

[Blood Shot Eyes]

Yes BSE. I think he catches it then looks to pass or bat it straight away. I'd like to see him catch and take a run and use the strength he showed on Tuesday.
Speaking of which, I think that try will see him much more positive now, hopefully he can produce more of the same. He will be up against Vunivalu on Sunday which in itself is a contest worth seeing.

I agree I think his confidence is growing the more games he plays ....hoping Milne gets some game time he goes allright with Mac

 

[getsmarty]

Frizell to skipper Dragons through Storm
Fri 28th April, 03:35PM
A A



St George Illawarra Dragons back-rower Tyson Frizell will captain the club in his 100th NRL game on Sunday afternoon in the absence of Gareth Widdop.

The Corrimal Cougar also discusses his return to the Australian Test side in May.

http://www.dragons.com.au/news/2017/04/28/frizell_to_skipper_d.html

 

[getsmarty]

NRL Preview: Round 9 v Melbourne Storm
Fri 28th April, 02:00PM
A A



St George Illawarra Dragons v Melbourne Storm
WIN Stadium, Wollongong
Sunday, 4pm

Nobody would've predicted that the St George Illawarra Dragons and Melbourne Storm would be sitting in the top two on the NRL Telstra Premiership ladder after nine rounds.

While the Dragons have suffered a few bumps in the road over the past week – namely the golden point loss to the Roosters on Anzac Day and skipper Gareth Widdop's knee injury – they won't spend their short turnaround worrying about the negatives.

The Storm produced a handy win over the Warriors on Anzac Day and will be boosted by the return of Kenny Bromwich in the back row.

Dragons coach Paul McGregor has named Kurt Mann at five-eighth in place of Widdop, with Taane Milne returning to the 17 from the bench.

The Dragons will also celebrate the 100th NRL game of back-rower Tyson Frizell ahead of his return to the Australian Test side in May. He will also captain the side in Widdop's absence.

The Emergency Services Cup will also be on the line in this top of the table clash.

Teams –

Dragons: 1. Josh Dugan, 2. Nene Macdonald, 3. Euan Aitken, 4. Tim Lafai, 5. Jason Nightingale, 6. Kurt Mann, 7. Josh McCrone, 8. Russell Packer, 9. Cameron McInnes, 10. Paul Vaughan, 11. Tyson Frizell (c), 12. Joel Thompson, 13. Jack de Belin. Interchange: 14. Tariq Sims, 15. Leeson Ah Mau, 16. Hame Sele, 17. Taane Milne, 18. Jai Field, 19. Blake Lawrie, 20. Luciano Leilua, 21. Jacob Host.

Storm: 1. Billy Slater, 2. Suliasi Vunivalu, 3. Will Chambers, 4. Cheyse Blair, 5. Josh Addo-Carr, 6. Cameron Munster, 7. Cooper Cronk, 8. Jesse Bromwich, 9. Cameron Smith (c), 10. Jordan McLean, 11. Felise Kaufusi, 12. Kenny Bromwich, 13. Dale Finucane. Interchange: 14. Christian Welch, 15. Tim Glasby, 16. Nelson Asofa-Solomona, 17. Ryley Jacks, 18. Joe Stimson, 19. Mark Nicholls, 20. Young Tonumaipea, 21. Curtis Scott.

Key Match-Up: Jack de Belin v Dale Finucane: They'll likely be teammates in the Country Origin team in the week following, but that won't stop these two from colliding on Sunday afternoon. De Belin spent time in the halves on Anzac Day but will revert back to his preferred lock role with little fuss. Tough-as-nails Finucane has become an integral member of the Storm's 17 over the past few seasons and shouldn't be taken lightly.

The History: Played 33; Dragons 9, Storm 23, Drawn 1. The Dragons had the last laugh when they last played Melbourne in 2016. While it was during the Origin period – and both sides were missing players – the Red V prevailed by 10 points. Melbourne however haven't dropped consecutive games to the Dragons since their first two meetings back in 1999.

Match Officials: Referee: Matt Cecchin. Assistant Referee: Chris Butler. Sideline Officials: Ziggy Przeklasa-Adamski and Belinda Sleeman.

Televised: Channel Nine – Live Coverage from 3:30pm; Fox League – Live coverage from 3:30pm

Radio: ABC and Triple M

http://www.dragons.com.au/news/2017/04/28/nrl_preview_round_9_.html

 

[BennyV]

Yes BSE. I think he catches it then looks to pass or bat it straight away. I'd like to see him catch and take a run and use the strength he showed on Tuesday.
Speaking of which, I think that try will see him much more positive now, hopefully he can produce more of the same. He will be up against Vunivalu on Sunday which in itself is a contest worth seeing.

He'll be up against Ado-Carr. Still not easy.

 

[This Year?]

I'm praying we will beat them because I'm on suicide watch every time we lose to the purple filth.

I just don't see how we can do it unless they have an off day, The time we saw Mann at 5/8 he got shifted which was sad to see. We need someone who can create like Nona or Field.

 

[Saint_JimmyG]

i get the feeling both teams will be flat, short turnaround. i reckon saints in a close one. Mann has to stick to our structures and play simple and not try anything silly. give duges and our centres more ball mcinnes will need to run more also. 18-12 saints

McInnes will play a vital part in determining Saints' chances on Sunday afternoon. Yes, he can throw a pass onto a runner's chest (usually) well but he still doesn't make opposition defences 'second guess themselves either. With Widdop missing, a lot of pressure will be applied on Mann, so he really needs to step up and provide some creativity.

Last week, he was terribly quiet against the Chooks and failed. Hopefully, this game will be vastly different.

 

[Blood Shot Eyes]

He'll be up against Ado-Carr. Still not easy.

Your right Benny but if we are to get anywhere in this comp all our players have to aim up against their opposite number....yes Melbourne are a good side but its still 17 on 17......we need to stick it up them early and bustle them...sure they will keep coming back at us all good teams do, if we're good enough (and I think we are) we need to go with them and put in a full 80.....as far as Mann is concerned whilst he hasnt had much exposure in FG of late its an opportunity for him to man up (excuse the pun).....hes built just like The Cowboys Ponga and Melbournes Munster if they can do it so can he......they made an impact for both their clubs right from the start...now its his turn.....our biggest problem on Sunday is not our 17 but the way Smith and Co manipulate the referees...its up to all our supporters to get out there and give it to em....just like the Melbourne mob would do to us if we were down there....end of story

 

[ruthless dragon]

Frizell to skipper Dragons through Storm
Fri 28th April, 03:35PM
A A



St George Illawarra Dragons back-rower Tyson Frizell will captain the club in his 100th NRL game on Sunday afternoon in the absence of Gareth Widdop.

The Corrimal Cougar also discusses his return to the Australian Test side in May.

http://www.dragons.com.au/news/2017/04/28/frizell_to_skipper_d.html

This is a good idea Fritz will kick ass for lazy play