What part do you mean if I say so? I’d argue it’s pretty irrefutable that rookie coaches don’t do what he’s already done with our roster. Credit to him. He’s doing it his way and it’s sink or swim.
Your whole optimistic slant. Yeah sure he is doing it his way, but he hardly has any real runs on the board being a rookie coach and all and he is losing a hell of a lot of quality and invaluable experience and replacing then with unproven rookies who are hardly the next big thing in the junior world, so that alone tells me he is taking a massive risk and hoping(believing in his own ability) that higher fitness standards and a different(better) attitude and mindset will lead us in the right direction.
Of course these are all great traits and strategies if he has indeed the talent to pull them off, but I have been around to long and seen way to many failures in all forms, shapes and sizes and I find this very risky when you are losing so much talent and experience all at once and then replacing them with unproven rookies.
Now if Iongi does indeed measure up as a genuine and consistently good NRL standard fullback(defensively as well as with the ball in hand) and Lomax continues on as he has played this season and not regress back to his hot and cold self, and we can keep most of the squad on the park and injury free, especially Moses, and somehow not be to weak up front in our forward rotation, then sure if he indeed does get us fitter then ever before under Potates and he improves our attitude, especially in defence, then sure we may end up in the 8.
But look at all the things that need to go right for us to have a shot at making the 8. Would I have done what he has? I don't know. He might be seeing something we from the outside can't and feels that he needs to make these major changes to get the place right. I am not saying he is wrong, I just hope Iongi does step up or else losing Gutho could really come back to bite us.
But like I said, I have seen to many rookies come in and fail versus succeed. I hope he is in the success category. We won't know for at least 2 seasons though and what he can do in attracting quality and his strength of character to get his own way in regards to junior pathways and pissing off the Ponsni of the West sooner rather then later.
What will be a huge indicator for me is our attitude in defence. If we show a genuine enthusiasm and hunger in the way we as a unit defend (extra fitness will help of course in this regard) then he will have achieved something that the last few coaches haven't been able to and we may actually be moving in the right direction at long last. That for mine is the priority of what has to change on the field more so then anything else. If he can't get the players to buy in to a new and more tenaciously aggressive defensive attitude then he will never succeed as a coach. That is his main task for right now. All else is secondary. That should be his line in the sand. If you can't aim up defensively you don't get to play NRL. Full stop.
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