Trial vs Roosters @Gosford

[Old dog]

Thought overall we did well, good score line, some very good performances from Klem, DSaf and especially JSaf who looked good. 5/8 still a bit of a worry. Backs went good especially Shibasaki and Hunt, good combination on right side think if Best or Moga come in it will be left centre. Thought Pearce and Ponga only showed flashes. Ese’ese and Barnett good think Guerra was better than Fitz. Lino was ok and showed he can kick goals

 

[Zoidberg]

I didn’t see the game but there seems to be a lot of criticism over Fitzgibbons performance. Not good as I think he’s shown quite a bit of potential in the past. Better up his game or he will be back in reserves.

 

[slotmachine]

Not much competition for back row.

 

[mozza91]

I didn’t see the game but there seems to be a lot of criticism over Fitzgibbons performance. Not good as I think he’s shown quite a bit of potential in the past. Better up his game or he will be back in reserves.

I thought he was pretty good. Had a few strong carries. Made a couple of errors but was far from terrible.

He does need to improve on 2019 form though.

 

[Tom155]

He played better than he did the dragons game but he still wasn't great

 

[Loose Cannon]

Fitz had a couple of drops, but otherwise was pretty decent. Still think he needs to up his involvement to be first choice starter. A few more carries in traffic would impress.

Overall, in spite of the under strength opposition, I thought we went well across the park.

Ponga - seemed to have that extra time on his hands, like in 18.

Lee/Tuala - quiet but solid.

Shiba/Hunt - very strong, attack and defence. Hunt on the wing seems to enjoy the hard runs coming off our line.

Mann - a step behind everyone else out there. Very clunky.

Pearce - nothing to write home about. Chip for Ponga was nice.

Lino - zippy. Still rather him to Mann, many more options in attack, linking with outside backs. Controls the game well.

Herman - great second half. Workload was big and some nice unexpected ball-play.

Barnett - Plenty of tough hit ups. Very strong.

Dan - did his job well.

Klemmer - Klemmer

Jacob - hope he stays fit. Really impressive, looks like the penny could have dropped. Definitely in the 17.

Glasby - strong hit ups and a very nice offload with 3 on his back, allowing Watson to scoot away.

Guerra - disciplined as always.

Saulo - Couple of strong runs. Will be solid bench cover, probably get a lot of 18th man roles.

Brailey - very good. Tandem attack with Watson is mouthwatering.

Watson - see Brailey. This guy is the X factor. Need him on the park for 55-60. Not sure how Obi gets that to happen if Brailey plays 80. Good role for him as the roving “lock”, just need to make sure the forward rotation works around him being in that spot.

Hoy - Kid looks the goods. Said he was keen to learn the 6 role in interview afterwards.

 

[NK Arsenal]

A few thoughts I have on the game

Ponga seemed like he was favouring the right hand side a lot, which is surprising considering how much he’s favoured the left in the last 2 seasons

Mann I thought was pretty crap. Kicked the ball dead in goal, had a knock on and missed tackle that led to a line break. Admittedly he did end up chasing the roosters player before he scored but I think he has some work to do. 5/8 is definitely my biggest worry heading in to round one.

With Mann being a bit out of place I thought it made the left side of Fitz, Tuala and Lee all have quiet games.

Really liked what I saw from Barnett on the right edge and Ese’ese in the middle

Shibasaki looks like a very good pick up.

Glasby and J Saifiti were strong off the bench

And like others have said Brailey and Watson were superb.

Looking forward to the season starting in 2 weeks time.

 

[NoSchitSherlock]

O'Brien interview post match.
Pretty well settled on the starting line-up. Says Hoy has a future possibly at 6 but needs to work on his defence.
https://www.newcastleknights.com.au/news/2020/02/29/aob-spine-cohesion-defence-hoy-plan/

 

[Knight Vision]

When watching a game sometimes a big hit, a really strong carry out of our own end , a half line break, a desperate tackle or something will catch your eye......That's never Fitz.

Guys like Barny cop a wack for an error which occurred because he's up to his eyeballs in the game having a crack and playing himself to a standstill.....meanwhile there's Fitz , just happy to do the easy carries, the easy tackles, get's his reasonable stats and goes home.

The question is would we win a GF with a player like Fitz. .....probably not.

 

[Yosh]

Not a knock on Mann but he seems to be missing 2% of everything required of him. Service seems 2% off in terms of timing and accuracy. Kicking game is barely passable and his defense also questionable. Isn't elusive nor quick.

I think I would consider him our weakest player in the 17. Stability is important but perhaps we need to groom/recruit a 6 for 2021 and beyond.

 

[Knight Vision]

Not a knock on Mann but he seems to be missing 2% of everything required of him. Service seems 2% off in terms of timing and accuracy. Kicking game is barely passable and his defense also questionable. Isn't elusive nor quick.

I think I would consider him our weakest player in the 17. Stability is important but perhaps we need to groom/recruit a 6 for 2021 and beyond.

5/8 is a headache that isnt going away anytime soon I imagine.

Both Mann and Lino are average at best. Both were tried last year, both had limited success..... the definition of insanity is to try again hoping for a different result.

I'd throw Crosslands in and have patience for the future....surely he cant be worse than Mann or Lino.

 

[Frederick]

 

[Jono078]

When watching a game sometimes a big hit, a really strong carry out of our own end , a half line break, a desperate tackle or something will catch your eye......That's never Fitz.

Guys like Barny cop a wack for an error which occurred because he's up to his eyeballs in the game having a crack and playing himself to a standstill.....meanwhile there's Fitz , just happy to do the easy carries, the easy tackles, get's his reasonable stats and goes home.

The question is would we win a GF with a player like Fitz. .....probably not.

This is something what I want to say about Fitz. After the first set of defending, he was the LAST player back to be ready for a run and was hands on hips. This is absolutely awful, especially for your team mates to see so early on what your attitude is.

I think he's one of (and if not, should be) the players with most pressure to keep their position. I like him but I feel he has hit his ceiling and it's not up to standard of us being a premiership team, especially with how important it can be to have a strike or workhorse backrower.

 

[Mr_Knightside]

I agree with just about everything that has been said about Fitz. Knows how to hit a hole when close to the line on attack but he’s a powder puff in defence and doesn’t seem to put his hand up for the hard work when we’re working the ball off our line.

These are definitely things that can be improved but I think this is the year when he needs to show improvement week in and week out or he could slip right down the pecking order. O’Brien has made it clear that we’re looking for an elite back rower so I hope Fitz has realised what that might mean for him if he doesn’t show a bit more every week.

 

[Loose Cannon]

As we, (me included) have said. Fitz needs to up his workload.

First graders can’t just sit back and wait for Ponga to lay it on.

I like him, but it’s a team sport.

 

[mozza91]

I remember hearing that we’d never be a top side with someone like Barnett in the team not so long ago.

Funny how things change.

 

[slotmachine]

So who is replacing Fitz if you're dropping him?
There's a reason we're looking to sign Frizzel and it's not cause we're flush with gun backrowers.

 

[Spot On]

I remember hearing that we’d never be a top side with someone like Barnett in the team not so long ago.

Funny how things change.

Are we a 'top side' all of a sudden?????? We haven't made the eight for years.

We have one of the weakest backrows in the comp.

Nothing has changed, hence trying to recruit Frizzel. Hopefully we can go after another one as well.

 

[mozza91]

Are we a 'top side' all of a sudden?????? We haven't made the eight for years.

We have one of the weakest backrows in the comp.

Nothing has changed, hence trying to recruit Frizzel. Hopefully we can go after another one as well.

Obviously not. Just a comment on how quickly opinions on players change and how our fans underrate Barnett.

 

[Spot On]

Looks as though our coaching staff know we are definitely weak in the backrow. As do most Newy supporters.