Berry will play. Ed blew his chances. They tried really hard to make an NRL player out of Ed. Also there are a number of options before using Ed, there is E I T, MGT and even Harper who I think was signed to avoid having to call on Ed.
Also we are in a rebuilding year, and as such Webster has been prepared to try lots of high risk calls on his squad make up, none more so than his halves choices.
We saw last night what a rebuild halves duo look like under pretty sustained pressure. Timing and positioning was well off, and that usually means communication is not happening effectively.
The good news is that we should expect this from a half back that has not played his footy as a half back.
And we should expect these problems (you see it in other NRL teams with new pairings) till these two get enough game play (a full season minimum - ergo to argue this isn't a rebuild is semantics from my pov).
People don't like that language, rebuild is a dirty word to some, a cop out, well it isn't from the way I look at it. This is a positive thing, it means there is a future to look forward to, one that is planned and therefore more likely to change under performance longer term.
What I do like about the last two weeks is it feels a bit like 2001, the year Kevin Campion introduced grit to this club, this is like then, there is a feeling that we are building something that in future could be exciting.
We are winning ugly through courage and superior fitness.
