Rumours and Stuff

[Gronk]

No one will ever know ... we have a new policy of stopping leaks - never announce anything

Even the draw is a secret. We’re going to have to drive by the new ground to see if there is a game on.

 

[TheRam]

Under the current rules Slater SHOULD have missed the GF

Probably only 1% of players would have got off that charge like he did - ie a handful of big name stars would get favoured .... but the other 99% would have had no chance .... and there in lies the big problem

Sure, but it is because a bad rule was going to rub out the best ever fullback in history that we got a decision that down the line ALL other lesser players can/should get a fairer rule to be judged on if they ever find themselves in the same position.

Not saying that that is right and that the NRL is run properly or fairly. Just saying that under this useless admin that masqueraded as a billion dollar sports administration, I'll take any correct decision for the good of the players/game/fans, where ever and whenever I can get them.

It was the right decision, whether favourable to Billy/Melbourne or not and should hopefully benefit others down the line. Here's hoping anyway, but we are talking about the NRL the Lou Costello of world sport.

 

[TheRam]

What will everyone think if billy does another one today?

Awesome tackle.

 

[strider]

Awesome tackle.

I agree ... i like shoulder charges and dont like they have been outlawed ... but they have been and the rules shouldnt be different for a select few

And i cant cop all the horseshit defence used to get him off .... feki did not step inside - he braced for contact and put his body into it ... feki never raised his arm ... billy lined up a shoulder charge from 7m away ..... i would have more respect if people were just honest and said, we are letting him off cos we want him to play than make up bullshit to justify it

 

[TheRam]

I agree ... i like shoulder charges and dont like they have been outlawed ... but they have been and the rules shouldnt be different for a select few

And i cant cop all the horseshit defence used to get him off .... feki did not step inside - he braced for contact and put his body into it ... feki never raised his arm ... billy lined up a shoulder charge from 7m away ..... i would have more respect if people were just honest and said, we are letting him off cos we want him to play than make up bullshit to justify it

Yes but seriously they could and never would say that. Lets just hope that they fix it up so the right decisions can be made in the future without all this horseshit. The fact is that it was ans still is a badly worded rule and no player especially one of the best players in history should not be rubbed out because of it. Is it fair that Billy gets special concession so he can play?

Life is rarely ever fair, but in this instance the Billy and the game got the right result.

 

[Obscene Assassin]

I agree ... i like shoulder charges and dont like they have been outlawed ... but they have been and the rules shouldnt be different for a select few

And i cant cop all the horseshit defence used to get him off .... feki did not step inside - he braced for contact and put his body into it ... feki never raised his arm ... billy lined up a shoulder charge from 7m away ..... i would have more respect if people were just honest and said, we are letting him off cos we want him to play than make up bullshit to justify it

Billy's defence even said "this is not a traditional shoulder charge" that should have been enough evidence for them to say he's guilty.

 

[T.S Quint]

break both his legs

Harsh, but I’ll take it.

Although we would still have to pay him and he would be counted under the cap. Maybe we should just go all out and kill him.

 

[El Diablo]

well just rip both his legs off

 

[Poupou Escobar]

I think we were getting away with murder in the play the balls last year. So we went on a bit of a run and had more than our fair share of wins, but a lot of them were coin toss results. The halves weren't great. And the refereeing in 2019 will probably resemble 2018 more than 2017, so it's no wonder we're looking to offload a half, along with the other changes.

I actually think that with the crackdown on the ruck, teams were allowed to cheat out wide (because refs were already concerned about all the ruck penalties). This new defensive reality hurt us more than other teams because we attacked more on the edges.

 

[T.S Quint]

Because the rules aren’t black and white nor are they adjudicated that way, particularly by the judiciary. Feki stepped in at the last second, and it’s bulletproof billy. Any it’s my opinion only...

So?
You can’t blame the attacking player for the defender making an illegal tackle.
Slater was going to make the same tackle regardless of what Feki did anyway.

 

[I'm a loser baby...]

I actually think that with the crackdown on the ruck, teams were allowed to cheat out wide (because refs were already concerned about all the ruck penalties). This new defensive reality hurt us more than other teams because we attacked more on the edges.

My recollection is that early on, when we were at our worst, both the ruck and offside defenders out wide were being penalized more than last year.

 

[Poupou Escobar]

I remember edge defenders were all up in our faces from round one this year, whereas last year they weren't. The ruck crackdown would've benefited our attack rather than hurt it.

 

[Stevie]

Side note. f**k the Storm. Hope they die a miserable death (football death) today.

 

[I'm a loser baby...]

I remember edge defenders were all up in our faces from round one this year, whereas last year they weren't. The ruck crackdown would've benefited our attack rather than hurt it.

But wouldn't a slower play the ball lead to that?

 

[TheRam]

I remember edge defenders were all up in our faces from round one this year, whereas last year they weren't. The ruck crackdown would've benefited our attack rather than hurt it.

We had the slowest play the ball in the NRL this season. So so much for that ridiculous theory. Small teams need fast play the balls and fast games overall. Slow or stop start games only helps the bigger players rest longer.

The ruck crackdown killed us this year. Our tactics killed us this year. Our injuries killed us this year. Semi leaving killed us this year. The fact that we didn't have any forwards that could power over the advantage line consistently to scuttle and break up the structured defenses killed us this year. And finally the coach not having a clue before the season(recruitment wise) and during the season to adjust our attack in anyway killed us this year.

 

[Poupou Escobar]

But wouldn't a slower play the ball lead to that?

The crackdown on the ruck sped up the play-the-ball. It didn’t slow it down.

We had the same forwards in 2017.

The crackdown hurt our defence (because we used our mobile forwards to get numbers in the tackle which was often a flop) but it stopped other teams doing the same to us. That’s why by the end of the season we were grinding through the middle. But that style suited us less than other teams.

 

[Poupou Escobar]

We had the slowest play the ball in the NRL this season. So so much for that ridiculous theory.

You would need to compare it to previous seasons, not to other teams.

Small teams need fast play the balls and fast games overall. Slow or stop start games only helps the bigger players rest longer.

Agreed but it’s a separate issue. The ruck crackdown discouraged defences from slowing the play-the-ball. Every team benefitted from it (in attack) but we benefited the least since our quick play-the-balls came from isolating defenders on the edges. Our middle forwards were only used to set the ruck back in the middle of the field.

And as I said, the faster ruck hurt our defence, as it hurt every team, but it hurt us the most because we were smaller.

The ruck crackdown killed us this year. Our tactics killed us this year.

Our tactics suited the players we had, who suited the refereeing in 2017 far more than in 2018. But changing tactics, as we did, might’ve suited the new interpretations however they no longer suited our players.

You can change your tactics mid year but you can’t change your roster.

Our injuries killed us this year. Semi leaving killed us this year. The fact that we didn't have any forwards that could power over the advantage line consistently to scuttle and break up the structured defenses killed us this year. And finally the coach not having a clue before the season(recruitment wise) and during the season to adjust our attack in anyway killed us this year.

The fact all the experts had us among the premiership favourites at the start of the year shows there was nothing wrong with our recruiting. The problem was the change in refereeing. Wealthier clubs were able to adapt better because they had more points of attack. We were only built for one style of play.

 

[Obscene Assassin]

We also need the ball in play for longer minutes. The more penalties meant more time the ball wasn't in play. Also helps when you hold onto the ball and don't have to make 100 more tackles than your opposition.

 

[Poupou Escobar]

Yeah. We lost the merkin with the most errors in the NRL in 2017 but luckily every other merkin in our team stepped up to cover the loss this year.

 

[Eelogical]

Side note. f**k the Storm. Hope they die a miserable death (football death) today.

Well, they are the reigning premiers backing up for another shot at the title. In the process they lost Cronk to their GF foes yet are worthy enough to be in contention for back to back titles. Who am I kidding? Go the lesser of two evils........Rhode Island Reds.