My view is a little different; how unusaual!
I for a long tme have believed that Soward and Price have disagreed on the game plans. Soward remembers fondly how Bennett devised a plan in which Soward could stand deep in attack and defence making it very comfortable for him indeed. The trade-off was the accurate long kicks on the fifth tackle, a sprint from the deep with a long pass before the line or sometimes after sprinting through the line. So the bottom line here is there was minimal contact with opposing players - Soward likes that.
Bennett identified Soward's strengths and weaknesses and got the best out of him. This 'Soward game plan' was not adopted at SOO level and also not part of plans under Price. Hence Soward's fall from SOO and fall-out with Price. You can be absolutely sure that Penrith will take the Bennett road and Soward will once again weave his magic.
As for Price and the Dragons, all that can be said is that one of the main reasons the Dragons are performing so badly is because Price let go of the very things that made the squad so great.
Doust and Young did not replace one-for-one with the type of player Bennett put in place i.e. one hard-nosed forward for one hard-nosed forward and one top line fullback for one top line fullback etc.
Enough said other than to say that there is much to be done at many levels at our Club before things can be on track again.
It's unusual how you spell unusual - but it just adds to your charisma Possm ;-)
I agree with your assessment 100%
Steve Price did not keep the structures that worked. And they included playing to Soward's strengths. Now either Jamie is justified in speaking out against those gameplans (whatever they are) as they have shown repeatedly they don't work. But he has no right to sabotage them on the field, if that's what he has really done. It doesn't change the fact that Steve Price has has completely mismanaged Jamie Soward, for the talented (but maybe recalcitrant) player he is.
Indeed Steve Price should have used his authority and said 'Jamie, if you don't play along there will be consequences' Those consequences should have taken effect a long time ago and Jamie would have been taught the lesson he needed to learn - how not to be a sulk. Stupid Steve Price.
Mind you I maintain Steve Price has a whole raft of incompetencies. People management is just one of them.
And if Possm's assessment is correct (which I think it is), it would indeed seem that Steve Price did not get the support he needed from Peter Doust and Craig Young - at least in terms of recruitment.
However, if this all plays out like it is looking it will, then there seems to be a lack of support by some for others amongst key personalities. Do Steve Price and Paul Macgregor for example get on?
Importantly, personality clashes need to be recognised and differentiated from with club culture. They're separate things and our Dragon's culture is it's greatest strength. Certainly no problem there.
But I agree wholeheartedly with Possm
.
Both Soward AND Price need to go.
Only then can we finally start the re-building process on field
, and capitalise on the youth potential that is currently being ignored and the new signings that have been made.
I'm no supporter of Ousting-Dousting.
Seems to me that he, along with the Board, is instrumental in the strong successes and positive culture the club has recently enjoyed. Time will soon tell that they just made a dud decision regarding Steve Price's re-appointment.
