Trent Merrin on Anthony Griffin

[franklin2323]

Weren’t we without our best player For half the year? Also had Cartwright & Merrin out for periods & both dealt with significant off field issues.

Griffin had his own obstacles to deal with, not to the extent of Cleary that year but it’s not as clear cut as you make it out.

This is the point lost. Look at the team that played Canberra in 2015. Blake, RCG, Whare, TMM all out of our top team. Hiku, Will Smith, McKendry also out. Seg and Soward gone.

That is 9 out of top 25 squad missing. Most teams lose in the same situation

No Moylan, Latu or Blake this year. Hiku, TMM gone. McKendry, Browne gone. Merrin. Wallace playing busted. May off after 20 mins. During the year players in and out.

So hardly say Griffin had it easy with injuries either

 

[OldPanther]

This is the point lost. Look at the team that played Canberra in 2015. Blake, RCG, Whare, TMM all out of our top team. Hiku, Will Smith, McKendry also out. Seg and Soward gone.

That is 9 out of top 25 squad missing. Most teams lose in the same situation

No Moylan, Latu or Blake this year. Hiku, TMM gone. McKendry, Browne gone. Merrin. Wallace playing busted. May off after 20 mins. During the year players in and out.

So hardly say Griffin had it easy with injuries either

Griffin has had the better team of the two. Ivan had as during the rebuild, Griffin after. 2018 has to be "our year" or Griffin has failed.

 

[betcats]

This is the point lost. Look at the team that played Canberra in 2015. Blake, RCG, Whare, TMM all out of our top team. Hiku, Will Smith, McKendry also out. Seg and Soward gone.

That is 9 out of top 25 squad missing. Most teams lose in the same situation

No Moylan, Latu or Blake this year. Hiku, TMM gone. McKendry, Browne gone. Merrin. Wallace playing busted. May off after 20 mins. During the year players in and out.

So hardly say Griffin had it easy with injuries either

This is kinda my point. I said to whoever started comparing percentages of making the 8 between Cleary and Hook that is means nothing without some context. The stuff I said about our draw etc was more just to point out how silly and one sided we are being.

As Old panther just said Ivan took over when we were starting our rebuild, our situation was desperate and the first thing we did was get rid of all of our best players. And someone wants to say "hook is better than Ivan because he made the finals two years in a row" or some silly shit like that. Hook took over a team that had been rebuilt, they topped it off by adding two kangaroo forwards and getting to promote the juniors from probably one of the most dominant NYC sides ever. Its a completely different situation, and yes he had some troubles with injury and a couple of distractions last season, but nothing that every club doesn't go through.

 

[mxlegend99]

This is the point lost. Look at the team that played Canberra in 2015. Blake, RCG, Whare, TMM all out of our top team. Hiku, Will Smith, McKendry also out. Seg and Soward gone.

That is 9 out of top 25 squad missing. Most teams lose in the same situation

No Moylan, Latu or Blake this year. Hiku, TMM gone. McKendry, Browne gone. Merrin. Wallace playing busted. May off after 20 mins. During the year players in and out.

So hardly say Griffin had it easy with injuries either

Griffin didnt want Soward.
Griffin didnt want Segeyaro.
He chose to drop and release both of them.

Griffin also punted Hiku, TMM and Smith within 6 months of that game. 5 of those players are guys Hook didn't want.

From Hooks top 17 we were missing Blake, RCG and Whare. The other guys werent even wanted as depth by him.

 

[betcats]

Griffin has had the better team of the two. Ivan had as during the rebuild, Griffin after. 2018 has to be "our year" or Griffin has failed.

Exactly. Ivan took over and we literally gutted the team. Anyone who doesn't think this is a valid point go back and look at our teamlist in 2012/2013 and even in 2014. There are a lot of names that never did or never will play regular FG other than those couple years for us.

People can talk down our squad last year(because hook did) but the fact is the club, Gould and a number of people who have achieved a lot in the game thought it was the best squad. Its a long way past the squads Cleary had to work with, a long way.

 

[betcats]

Griffin didnt want Soward.
Griffin didnt want Segeyaro.
He chose to drop and release both of them.

Griffin also punted Hiku, TMM and Smith within 6 months of that game. 5 of those players are guys Hook didn't want.

From Hooks top 17 we were missing Blake, RCG and Whare. The other guys werent even wanted as depth by him.

Pretty much you have a bad month and hook is done with ya, GTFO straight away, none of this end of season shit and forget worrying about squad harmony, continuity or team combinations, you get on hooks bad side and you are out the door ASAP. But this is a man who once got the broncos into the top four so we probably should let him do whatever he wants, he has a proven history of success after all

The best thing is Hook(and his disciples) then goes on to use his own player decisions as excuses for our under performance talking about squad disruption lol its crazy.

 

[franklin2323]

Griffin has had the better team of the two. Ivan had as during the rebuild, Griffin after. 2018 has to be "our year" or Griffin has failed.

But wait didn't you say Ivan only had the injuries? Better roster was never mentioned

 

[franklin2323]

Pretty much you have a bad month and hook is done with ya, GTFO straight away, none of this end of season shit and forget worrying about squad harmony, continuity or team combinations, you get on hooks bad side and you are out the door ASAP. But this is a man who once got the broncos into the top four so we probably should let him do whatever he wants, he has a proven history of success after all

The best thing is Hook(and his disciples) then goes on to use his own player decisions as excuses for our under performance talking about squad disruption lol its crazy.

So the only disruption we have had has been due to coach?

 

[franklin2323]

Griffin didnt want Soward.
Griffin didnt want Segeyaro.
He chose to drop and release both of them.

Griffin also punted Hiku, TMM and Smith within 6 months of that game. 5 of those players are guys Hook didn't want.

From Hooks top 17 we were missing Blake, RCG and Whare. The other guys werent even wanted as depth by him.

Hiku still would of been better than Hardaker or allowed Moylan to play halves if fit. Point is you have 9 out of a FT squad it limits the options and performance

 

[OldPanther]

But wait didn't you say Ivan only had the injuries? Better roster was never mentioned

This was my comment that started this:

"Griffin has a better team and no injury curse"

 

[franklin2323]

This was my comment that started this:

"Griffin has a better team and no injury curse"

He inherited a halves combination of Soward/Wallace. He also had no say in the roster for 2015. Hence had guys like Seg and Taylor that was wrong for the style.

So a lot of the good roster he had some say in getting them into FG. He may well turn out to be a dud but can't ignore the good stuff done.

As for the injury curse. Ivan had too much faith in top 17. The downside is when injury would strike he would trust the player to say he was right.

Things like Soward having surgery pre season but trying to nurse a bad back all year. Only to need an op in round 3. That sort of stuff was a fault of Cleary more than a curse

 

[OldPanther]

He inherited a halves combination of Soward/Wallace. He also had no say in the roster for 2015. Hence had guys like Seg and Taylor that was wrong for the style.

So a lot of the good roster he had some say in getting them into FG. He may well turn out to be a dud but can't ignore the good stuff done.

As for the injury curse. Ivan had too much faith in top 17. The downside is when injury would strike he would trust the player to say he was right.

Things like Soward having surgery pre season but trying to nurse a bad back all year. Only to need an op in round 3. That sort of stuff was a fault of Cleary more than a curse

I understand they've both had this not to their liking. I think it's fair that Griffin gets a move on in 2018. It's time to show what we're made of. We've built for long enough and we are into the third year with him.

 

[franklin2323]

I understand they've both had this not to their liking. I think it's fair that Griffin gets a move on in 2018. It's time to show what we're made of. We've built for long enough and we are into the third year with him.

I don't disagree. I said elsewhere I want to see us have more then 5 games straight with the same spine to judge.

I was in the camp for wanting Ivan gone. Hook shows those same characteristics for not having a plan B if plan A struggles.

Things like age of the squad. The leaked story on Bryce. Moylan at the end of the year. The 3 stood down in Melb etc

Only buys him so long eventually we need to start beating the top teams regularly. Or it will be new coach time

 

[TheFrog]

I'm confused. Didn't this club just extend Griffin for another two years, ie to the end of 2020? Is this club so flush with money it can pay a bloke to sit at home watching the footy on TV? And isn't this coach aiming to be the first in our history to make the finals three years running? Maybe I don't know much about the game after following it for a lifetime, but its hard to imagine anyone being any more secure in a coaching job really.

 

[betcats]

So the only disruption we have had has been due to coach?

No but people literally use 'squad changes' etc as one of the reasons for our performance or underperformance however you want to look at it.

If what has been published about Moylan is true then it should never of gone on so long, it should of been dealt with after 2016 which is when this supposedly go back to. Poor management to let a distraction like that remain captain and in the picture, really poor, while the coach didn't create that disruption he also didn't handle it and instead let it drag out and blow up 18 months later a week before a must win game, really poor from both Hook and Gus there.

And the Bryce stuff I don't really want to go into, terrible for all involved but I don't see it as effecting our season either way besides keeping Bryce our for a little longer then he needed for that injury which lets be realistic Bryce being out is a bonus half the time.

 

[PANTHERMIKE]

I'm confused. Didn't this club just extend Griffin for another two years, ie to the end of 2020? Is this club so flush with money it can pay a bloke to sit at home watching the footy on TV? And isn't this coach aiming to be the first in our history to make the finals three years running? Maybe I don't know much about the game after following it for a lifetime, but its hard to imagine anyone being any more secure in a coaching job really.

Hey hey hey, ease up... Being the only coach to make the finals 3 years running with 1 of the most successful win % doesn't mean anything...

 

[Pomoz]

I think it really is as simple as this. Hook has had many different spine combinations, something Cleary didn't have to endure. Least of all, he didn't have a rookie halfback. Hook had a broken Soward and a halfback in Wallace whose time was up. The spine is everything. It's why the Storm let Inglis go and kept Cronk, Smith and Slater together. It's why the Cowboys have been successful when they have two Australian halves in Morgan and Thurston and the Roosters with Pearce and Maloney. That is why Hook quite rightly rubbished the talk of top four. Our spine wasn't good enough for top four. Simples.

Having said that, neither Cleary or Hook have had the benefit of a superstar in their spine. Moylan was good, albeit for one season, but he isn't in Slater or Hayne's class. He isn't even as good a fullback as Tedesco or Trbojevic. There is a reason he didn't get picked in SOO or the Australian team this year. He isn't rep quality at the moment. Maybe he will develop at Cronulla and make it there.

This year we will have a rep quality player in the spine for the first time since Soward arrived when he was still fit. I think this year Hook has got to show signs of improvement or he needs to go. The youngsters are a year more experienced and finally there is a proven top quality half to guide the team. No excuses, only injuries should stop the team from progressing further than last year.

 

[OldPanther]

I'm confused. Didn't this club just extend Griffin for another two years, ie to the end of 2020? Is this club so flush with money it can pay a bloke to sit at home watching the footy on TV? And isn't this coach aiming to be the first in our history to make the finals three years running? Maybe I don't know much about the game after following it for a lifetime, but its hard to imagine anyone being any more secure in a coaching job really.

Hey hey hey, ease up... Being the only coach to make the finals 3 years running with 1 of the most successful win % doesn't mean anything...

He hasn't gone 3 in a row with us yet. If he does you'll see some opinions change here. I also think top 8 means more if you beat some top teams but we really struggled.

In 2018 we have nurtured Cleary and provided an experienced/rep 5/8 to partner him. We have a settled spine all round with Wallace/Katoa/Edwards. The off field problems are behind them. Top 4 and past week 2 of the finals has to be the goal.

 

[Royce is King]

Gee Betcats..... Lucky Griffin took over a such a great total rebuilt team..... the last game they played before he came in was the wooden spoon playoff with Newcastle..... but as usual .... keep making stuff up to justify your negative shit.

 

[Royce is King]

wow OLD PANTHER..... sounds like you would be more happy if he didnt make it 3 in a row..... just so you could give us a big ' TOLD YA '