Team Announced

[B_Tiger]

Wislon at 5/8 is the best available option at the moment. Prince has been the halfback all season and so to move him to 5/8 would be to change a formula in the backline that has got us to 6th place. Kerr is as quality half, but I think it is too late in the season to change the team around so as to accomodate a new half/5-8 combo.

However, if Galea is back from injury next week I'd like to see him given the 6. He has a much better passing game, and and as such is more suited to the 5/8 role then wilson.

I still don't like having only one front rower on the bench, but Mears has certainly proven valuable as a replacement hooker. I think either fulton or bronson should drop from the bench in order to get Jamie Small into the side and provide some extra toughness off the bench.

It is great to have stability in our line-up though. It's also good to see quality players being forced out of the side, when was the last time we had that problem?

 

[daslacker]

Well if it's too late to make changes to the backline then we
will be the first team kicked out in the semis.Two weeks
ago marshall was playing in the halves but now it's too late. :roll:


U WILL NOT WIN THE COMP WITHOUT A HALFBACK.

I agree with the bench.

But we need to get a halfback ala kerr

 

[SouthernTiger]

B.tiger

that makes no sense. Given thats what we have been doing all season. There is a whole thread on the fact we have had 8 different halves combos this year. I reiterate what Daslackers says to go anywhere this year Kerr must be playing and be playing well. With Wilson, in my view we are conceding defeat

cheers

s. tiger

 

[B_Tiger]

who has been playing half the whole time though? Sure the 5/8 role has been changed around, but the stability this season has come from having one half playing consistantly all year. I think you all underestimate the work of prince at half, and I think moving him would be a terrible mistake. If we are desperate for a 5/8 then Prince may have to be moved, but until then I think keeping prince at half is the best option. At the moment I'd rather try wilson and galea at 5/8 before moving prince to the position.

 

[Mighty Tiger]

B_Tiger Prince is a 5/8th, sure he can slot into the Halfback role but he does play his best footy at 5/8th when he runs out wide and takes the line on.

We need someone who can organise things and Prince has harldy organised anything and thats something we do need an organisational half.

Kerr so far looker like the best player who could fill that roll!

 

[Vicious]

Wilson at 5/8 definately stiffens our defence.Kerr at halfback definately gets our outside backs more involved.Prince has to be there somewhere.So,why not start with Prince at half,Wilson at 5/8 and have Kerr on the bench to come on if the attack isn`t being effective?If this was the case Wilson could also move into the forwards if need be!

 

[SouthernTiger]

The point is B_Tiger is most people who have watched Prince develop as a footballer think he is best suited to 5/8th. Secdonly, Wilson and Galea are mere stopgaps. They wont make us serious contenders. A Kerr/Prince combo might just do that

cheers

s. tiger

 

[B_Tiger]

Why is he best suited to 5/8? Has his performances at half this season suggested to you a player struggling in the position? Prince is well suited to half because of his passing game, his pace and his short kicking game. On top of that, he rarely makes dumb decisions that come as a result of a player not being a good enough player to play half. He is always controlled and always aware of the situation and the players around him.

Now, to say he is most effective when he is running out wide is a simplistic view of things. When is prince running out wide? In my opinion, it is when the forwards are on a roll and a break has just been made that prince receives the ball outwide. This gives prince both the time and space to run at the line and be a threat. I think Johns and stacey jones look f**king brilliant outwide as well, but that's not to say they aren't quality halves. If you can make the right decisions at half, and provide quality ball to the players outside you consistantly then you are a halfback. Prince has done this very well. I find it very hard to see how anyone could dispute that, or even suggest that kerr is better at it.

I think the perception is that prince is a 5/8 and not a half because he came to fame at the position for nth qld and struggled at the broncos at half. But, since being here he has made our side an effective attacking team with a solid kicking game. I think his organisational skills are much better then the common view in this forum suggests. I also think the tigers have had far more set plays carried out effectively this season, and a lot of credit should go to the man who starts such plays. I like that Prince gets his hands on the ball at least once or twice in a set and I think that brings out the best in his game, and is the most effective way of utilising his talent in our side.

The NZ win was fantastic, but I think it was due to very poor defense up the middle (or good attacking runners on our side). I don't think it was due to a dominant display by our halfback. That isn't to say I don't like Kerr when he plays. He is a great half to have backing up prince, and I wouldn't be dissapointed if he was brought in to partner prince in the halves. But, I agree with sheens decision to keep him out of the side because I think Prince's work at half is invaluable to the side. It is far easier to look good in two games then it is to look good for an entire season. And while a lot of you don't rate prince's organisational skills, I think Prince is the reason we have been as good as we have been this year, and I think he has played a massive role in getting hodgson involved and effective in the backline.

 

[B_Tiger]

and I don't care about the weight of numbers supporting a particular view. The popular view has never proven to be an accurate way of discovering the truth in the past, so I see no reason to concede simply because a lot of people disagree.

 

[tigpie]

And while a lot of you don't rate prince's organisational skills, I think Prince is the reason we have been as good as we have been this year, and I think he has played a massive role in getting hodgson involved and effective in the backline.

Ditto to all B Tiger has written in the last two posts. Whilst respecting everyone's right to express an opinion, it gets a bit tiresome reading posts from some people constantly wanting something different ... and thereby suggesting that Tim Sheens is not making the best calls. If it isn't Scott Prince being played out of position, it's John Wilson or Daniel Fitzhenry or Benji Marshall or Shane Elford or .... And there's always someone in Premier League who should be there instead (Farah, Greally etc. etc. etc.). Give me a break! If they were better than the current first grade players (in Tim Sheens' eyes) ... they'd be there!

 

[Eddie.]

B Tiger i agree with alot of what you say. people seem very quick to have a go at Prince, for instance when they belived he wasnt taking the line on early in the year and for his kicking game in a few matches. I thought in the first 7/8 rounds Prince organised the side very well, a side that was not going forward managed to scrape out some victories based on being more professional and organised. Also i didnt see anyone bagging Lockyer's kicking game in here after origin 2, the fact that heaven forbid he kicked it on the full to the wingers and fullback on a few occasions.

And the better at 5/8 argument - Well he might be, against Manly though Prince did nothing for on 60 minutes until Reynolds - THE halfback was injured - Prince subsequently got more involved and set up 4 tries from halfback. His work from halfback in the first 2 games of origin Outplaying both Gower and Finch illustrate that the man can actully play halfback, and match better halves in the comp given a decent pack.

Having said that i doubt the long term success of John Wilson at 5/8. i reckon i could of slotted in at 5/8 and made a few runs and a few passes last week and looked ok. and given the injuries to marahall, reynolds, shitness of buetner i think Prince at 5/8 might be the way we have to head. kerr has more than held his own and i worry that we will become one dimensional with Wilson at 5.8, as Prince will be targeted with the kicking and will have to create all the play. Having Kerr at half or alternating each side of the ruck with Prince gives us 2 kicking options, more line breaking ability, less pressure on both

Hope that made some sense

 

[B_Tiger]

I don't like weakening one part of the side to strengthen another, which is why I prefer seeing wilson given a chance at 5/8 before being forced to move prince there. There is no doubt that Wilson is simply a fill-in, but as long as he performs competently, I am satisfied with him being there. I think a kerr/prince combo is a viable option, but I wouldn't move Prince until wilson and galea fail at 5/8.

 

[SouthernTiger]

Tigpie

my adivce if after 12 posts your already finsing this tiresome then I suggest you keep off football forums as that is what 90% of this is about. Tigpie let us know what you think it is appropriate to talk about because it could get very boring around here if we follow your rules

B_Tiger
I think you overestimate Prince's organisational skills. For mine, and I am biased, our backline had a much better structure in the bulldogs and the warriors games. Prince, in my view is a natural 5/8th, in that he is far more effective when taking on the line, not as a distributor. Finally, i dont have such a high opinion of Prince's long passing game as you do, as a link man he is brilliant, and some of his short passes are great. Prince isnt the most structured player going round. He plays better in broken play, which I think means 5/8th suits him better than half. I still reckon a Prince/Kerr combo would be a halves combo that could match the best in the comp. Kerr didnt too bad either in dispatching of Jones and Sherwin. As for Finch I expected better of you B, surely you dont think he is in the top 10 halves in the comp

cheers

s. tiger

 

[B_Tiger]

I don't think I mentioned Finch anywhere. I hate all roosters players, coaches, board members and have great difficulty liking their bandwagon fans. Finch is lucky to be on a side that is very good at working the rules to their advantage, he is a very average player in my opinion.

As for prince, I don't think he is unstructured. I agree that in broken play he is very effective (and often unstructured), but I don't think that means his work in structured play should be ignored. I think prince's distribution has been the best part of his game this season. I think his running to the line has been good, but not great. I like the way our backline is positioned when we are dominant, with players standing both deep and flat, it has added a new dimension to our attack and I think Prince has made terrific decisions all year in the distribution of the ball and utilising the structure of the backline well. Players like Hodgson, Elford and Moodie have all looked very good, when in the past they were rejects, at their respective clubs. I think Benji also looked better with Prince at half then when kerr was there. I think Prince is the more effective organiser, where as Kerr is more of a threat as a runner, so we are seeing things very differently.

 

[Vicious]

I rate Kerr very highly.I think he will become a regular in the side,with Prince at 5/8.However when we play the better sides it is a good choice in atleast starting with John Wilson at 5/8 as it stiffens up our defence significantly!

 

[SouthernTiger]

Yeh you were making a comment about how Prince outplayed Finch. However, we are never going to agree on this one. Lets just hope we keep winning and that im proven wrong

cheers

s. tiger

 

[B_Tiger]

eddie wrote that.

I agree, we have no chance of agreeing. but, winning isn't what will prove you wrong. The play of prince will .

 

[SouthernTiger]

sorry mate for that outrageous slur

cheers

s. tiger

 

[Eddie.]

I dont rate Finch either, should of said outplayed better "rated" halfbacks

 

[daslacker]

I agree with everything southern tiger says.

I am a huge fan of a kerr/prince combo.
I just don't think u blokes who want prince at halfback
know how much more dangerous he is at 5/8.Esp in the
opp 20.

Some of u blokes just want to make the 8.
Not me,i wanna win the comp.