The Spine

[RED73V]

Widdop never arrived to pass anything. That is the difference.

Widdop had a shocker today admittedly!! When was the last time u took your Bunji colored glasses off Vas & admit when he your bromance has ONE SHOCKER NEVER!!! You obviously didn't see the short passes before the line that we're going to be hospital passes that were never on & we turned over the ball due to barge arses great decision making . I've said it before & will say it again Vas for a golden boot winner , premiership winner & playing for his country Benji is impatient & a poor decision maker who is living in HIS past . Can't wait to see the back of him & the only extension he should get is a kick up the arse on the way out the door !!!!!

 

[dragonreddy]

The spine played poorly today. Mann, Rein and Widdop had an off day.

As for the coach, last time I watched a game, he doesn't drop the ball continuously or kick it out on the full.

Ultimately the players make the coach. Rarely does the coach make the difference.

For years Bennett coached the QLD state of origin side masquerading as the Broncos.

Take the big 3 from Melbourne and Bellyache is a flop, simple as that.

The whole team played poorly today that crap was as bad as under Price in 2014.

As far as players having an off day ,sorry that doesn't wash they get paid way too much to have AN OFF DAY.

"Rarely does THE COACH make the difference"....WOW, I think if you ask players who have played under successful coaches they will credit the coach with their development as a player.

How many ordinary coaches win premierships?

 

[Get2dachopper!]

Bunji was at his best last year when he was steering the team around the park with his kicking. It must of been really hard for him to play so conservatively, it really goes against his natural instincts. Do I think he's a natural organiser? No I don't. I actually doubt that he could recapture that from he had last year from round 3-11.

Effectively we have 6,7 and 9 who are instinctive runners. And last year we also had a 1 who was a runner. Hence the haste in probably trying Mann at FB. I don't think Mann, marshal or widdop will be dropped, so I'd be starting havilli at 9, then shifting him to lock when Rein comes on, that way we have a link man in the middle who can actually pass a ball, like we did with Young.

 

[Vasilevsky]

Widdop had a shocker today admittedly!! When was the last time u took your Bunji colored glasses off Vas & admit when he your bromance has ONE SHOCKER NEVER!!! You obviously didn't see the short passes before the line that we're going to be hospital passes that were never on & we turned over the ball due to barge arses great decision making . I've said it before & will say it again Vas for a golden boot winner , premiership winner & playing for his country Benji is impatient & a poor decision maker who is living in HIS past . Can't wait to see the back of him & the only extension he should get is a kick up the arse on the way out the door !!!!!

Don't you understand the irony? If Benji and I have a "bromance" you and several others should line up to marry Widdop ASAP. I defend our only playmaker and once again, our only player that even looked like breaking the enemy defence. You and other homies rave about Widdop and won't brook any criticism of him even though on a good day he is merely solid and "workman-like".

FFS, on another thread homies are raving about how Benji has to go after today but not a word about Widdop. Incredible!

Being merely solid and "workman-like" is fine. Teams need such players but he needs to be stripped of captaincy, paid no more than 350k a season and told firmly he is to take a back seat and merely feed off our playmaker. I keep thinking of Chad Townsend for the Warriors last year. Didn't try to do too much himself, just fed off Johnson and went well as a result. Though he seems to have much better leg drive than Widdop who never seems to even look like breaking a tackle let alone breaking the line.

 

[Mr Red]

The spine played poorly today. Mann, Rein and Widdop had an off day.

As for the coach, last time I watched a game, he doesn't drop the ball continuously or kick it out on the full.

Ultimately the players make the coach. Rarely does the coach make the difference.

For years Bennett coached the QLD state of origin side masquerading as the Broncos.

Take the big 3 from Melbourne and Bellyache is a flop, simple as that.

:shock:

 

[BLM01]

Well if McFadden is under pressure for losing 10 in a row..what about the media print a story about Mary and his 25% success rate over past 16 NRL games. I am going to keep posting these worrying stats until someone picks up on it and runs with it or we have a form reversal. If we lose to Souths then it is 23.5% of past 17 games. Then we have Penrith, Cowboys & Broncos...WOW
Embarrassing and lack lustre last 55 minutes since the sin bin. I actually thought we started well in defense and maintained some mongrel for 25 minutes anyway.
I said Mary needs help in attack as he cant coach that side of the game or see where we are weak. Dugan moving to centre proved as I said not a best fit for the team ATM to be replaced by someone unproven at NRL yet regardless off the glimpses of potential.....or we scrap the whole back 5 and start again with Dugan the only certain starter at 1.
I thought Matautai looked most dangerous in a well beaten team in attack.

 

[2010]

Rein should be dropped, flo, sad to say it but it's time to give it up, he can't cut it anymore for speed.
I think Mary should be put on notice to, he has to share the blame.

If all of us can see the problems so should he

 

[Saints Forever]

I'm not going to call you a moron because that will deflect from your obscenely idiotic post.

Straight Shooter

Suggest several of you calm down.

You are conducting yourselves in the same fashion as you did when Saints lost the first 2 games of last season.

Players have off days. The problem on Sunday is that too many of them had an off day at the same time.

The forwards are looking good. Better use of interchange would help enormously.

 

[Vasilevsky]

It is an accepted fact that the spine (1, 6, 7 & 9) are crucially important to today’s game. Our spine is dysfunctional to say the least. Let’s consider the following:
1. Kurt Mann
Has he ever played fullback at 1st grade NRL level before? We have shifted the NSW SOO fullback for this bloke? Really?
2. Gareth Widdop
He is slowly building into one of the most over-rated players I have ever seen. For mine I would love to see him ask for a release.
3. Benji Marshall
He was a world class 5/8 in 2005. That is 11 years ago. His strength is broken field running. His weakness is running a football team from half-back. He is not a 1st grade standard half-back.
4. Mitch Rein
Refer to point 1 above. He simply is not 1st grade standard.
This season is far from lost but remedial action is required and it should look as follows:
1. Josh Dugan to fullback
2. Benji Marshall to 5/8
3. Euan Aitken to centre
4. Blake Wallace to half-back ( we need a bloody half-back to play half-back)
5. Silvia Havili to hooker
What happens to Widdop? God knows!
There is a lot of industry in this side but unless the key spine players are up to it; our team is doomed.

Back on topic. This is one of the best posts I have read on this forum. Hopefully if Mary stripped Widdop of captaincy and forced him to wear the 7 or even moved him to fullback, Widdop would throw a fit and ask for a release. Then get Mann and Lafai off the books for as cheap as possible (I have doubts any other NRL teams would want either so we may be stuck with paying them) and make a play for Hayne if he comes back or even Israel Folau or another union player after the World Cup. No SBW. Need backs. Forwards were off yesterday but have were pretty good last season and in the first round.

 

[giboz71]

Anyone that wants to watch a lesson in halves play should tune into Monday Night Football.

Perhaps people may want to change their opinion of Brooks and/or Moses.

 

[Dragsters]

Bunji was at his best last year when he was steering the team around the park with his kicking. It must of been really hard for him to play so conservatively, it really goes against his natural instincts. Do I think he's a natural organiser? No I don't. I actually doubt that he could recapture that from he had last year from round 3-11.

Effectively we have 6,7 and 9 who are instinctive runners. And last year we also had a 1 who was a runner. Hence the haste in probably trying Mann at FB. I don't think Mann, marshal or widdop will be dropped, so I'd be starting havilli at 9, then shifting him to lock when Rein comes on, that way we have a link man in the middle who can actually pass a ball, like we did with Young.

Exactly.

This what needs to happen. Havili to start with rein on at the end of each half.

 

[duck]

Exactly.

This what needs to happen. Havili to start with rein on at the end of each half.

Close but not quite. Havilli starts. Rein on 10-15 mintes either side of halftime.

 

[Dragsters]

I'm happy with that as well though rein may be more dangerous running from dummy half with fatigued forwards at the end of each half.

 

[Slippery Morris]

Sharks lose a player to the bin and Saints go for 2 points. After that cop 30 unanswered points. Saints don't take the kick and it is a different ball game. That decision played a huge role as Saints were on top until then and Sharks were woeful. Saints invited them back in the game.

That will do me. Blame the halves but hey when they get close to the line they take 2 points (some teams do it on purpose knowing this).

Then some say Saint scan't score points. Well if the Team that plays think like this how will they? Taking 2 instead of going for a possible 4 or 6 with Benji and Widdop in the side is pretty demoralising? I feel for them as they have no faith that they can get the 4 or 6 points. If they don't get a try kick it in goal and grind then down. Why go for 2 and then attack from your own half with NO SPEED. Yeah that's right. If they make a break they won't make it to the line anyway. Alot of drop ball from forwards which do't make it to the last tackle? They only completed 15 or 16 out of 35. MOst of that 15/16 were in their own half. How can you blame the halves with those stats. Not even Cronk/Thurston halve combo can do anything with that.

 

[Slippery Morris]

Is it just me or did anyone else get pi$$ed off when Rein kicked out on the full and when the camera went back to him he was laughing? Really? WTF

That was really annoying and shows he has no care factor. Bring in Havili ASAP. If I was Mary I would. That is poor form. If he gets picked he literally has a mortgage on that jumper and will never get dropped.

 

[West coast dragon]

I'm not going to call you a moron because that will deflect from your obscenely idiotic post.

Straight Shooter

can't help yourself can you?you are one sad miserable human being your first response was to insult!

 

[mickeylane]

Rein has to go!
id swap Benji and WIDDOP around where WIDDOP is first player off the ruck and Benji gets his hands on the ball as a 5/8.. At least he's responsible for throwing the money balls and u know he's good for at least 1-2 miracle passes per game

 

[Vasilevsky]

Is it just me or did anyone else get pi$$ed off when Rein kicked out on the full and when the camera went back to him he was laughing? Really? WTF

That was really annoying and shows he has no care factor. Bring in Havili ASAP. If I was Mary I would. That is poor form. If he gets picked he literally has a mortgage on that jumper and will never get dropped.

Yes, I noticed that. But he was smiling, not laughing. Apart from his obligatory uncatchable pass from dummy half causing a mistake, I don't think Rein played so badly. At least not that I saw but I was pretty busy sticking pins in pictures of Mann, Widdop and Lafai. To that end I think at least some of the abuse Rein is copping is due to homies being desperate to keep people talking about how Widdop played.

 

[Country Dragon]

Yes, I noticed that. But he was smiling, not laughing. Apart from his obligatory uncatchable pass from dummy half causing a mistake, I don't think Rein played so badly. At least not that I saw but I was pretty busy sticking pins in pictures of Mann, Widdop and Lafai. To that end I think at least some of the abuse Rein is copping is due to homies being desperate to keep people talking about how Widdop played.

You really have deep seeded problems don't you!

 

[twinkletoes]

Is it just me or did anyone else get pi$$ed off when Rein kicked out on the full and when the camera went back to him he was laughing? Really? WTF

That was really annoying and shows he has no care factor. Bring in Havili ASAP. If I was Mary I would. That is poor form. If he gets picked he literally has a mortgage on that jumper and will never get dropped.

Unfortunately Slippery I get this sinking feeling that Mary is becoming more and more like Price...unwilling to make changes unless forced by injury and sticking with the same players week in week out. Its obvious that he has no clue when it comes to attacking play structures and even the rugged defence is starting to show signs of wear and tear.

The worrying statistic quoted elsewhere on this forum is that since mid last season Mary's winning percentage is only 25%.

I was very hopeful during the off season that we would be a real force this season but unless things change very quickly we may be looking at another Price era...