Tui being lured away?

[Benek]

Looks like Cappy's selection f**kups might cost us one of our most talented young players...

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/news/article.cfm?c_id=4&objectid=11677124

 

[Meth]

Use him or lose him. Would be a monumental screw up

 

[vvvrulz]

Bloody hell McFadden wtf are you doing.

We are fielding an incompetent winger, an injured half and a plodding five-eighth and you're benching the best person to fill those gaps. Surely, surely something is going on behind closed doors which is leading to the snub.

 

[Rich102]

Bet he's in the team announced today.

However I for one am not convinced he will be a good fit with Johnson. They are too similar and both have the same weaknesses.
What makes it more difficult is that Fusitua is a superior fullback and Lolohea has shown reluctance to catch bombs.
I wouldn't be rushed into paying overs to keep him.
Besides he would probably do better under a good coach.

 

[vvvrulz]

However I for one am not convinced he will be a good fit with Johnson. They are too similar and both have the same weaknesses.

I agree with this, but despite that he'd still be a hell of a lot better than Leuluai.

And if he does manage to click with Johnson, it would potentially be a lethal pairing, he'd take a lot of play making weight off princess. Of course that's all speculation, the trouble is we just don't know until we actually field the guy.

Wasn't one to put the boot into McFad but I'm starting to lose interest in him fast.

 

[JJ]

Be a shame to lose him - at the end of the day we have all our eggs in the Johnson basket... that will cost us players, and to be honest I am disappointed that he himself hasn't developed into a more rounded half with better game management and involvement

 

[Manu Vatuvei]

I would probably lean towards Lolohea being the starting fullback at the moment but with some reservations- I really like Fusitua at fullback. If Fus plays fullback I would be inclined to replace Maumalo with Lolohea but again with some reservations as Lolohea has some limitations as a winger and Maumalo is playing ok.

I'd also be ok with Lolohea coming in for Leuluai at 6 but I have big question marks over him in the halves. Basically there are 3 possible positions for him but it's a 51-49 call on each.

In general I think he's starting to become massively overrated on the back of a marginal decision to pick other players over him.

 

[JohnDoe]

Andrew Voss has said that the Dragons are one of the clubs after Lolohea. Also says Lolohea has being promised the number 6 jersey next season.
https://m.soundcloud.com/nzherald/crowd-goes-wild-breakfast-andrew-voss-talks-to-cgw

 

[Meth]

I would probably lean towards Lolohea being the starting fullback at the moment but with some reservations- I really like Fusitua at fullback. If Fus plays fullback I would be inclined to replace Maumalo with Lolohea but again with some reservations as Lolohea has some limitations as a winger and Maumalo is playing ok.

I'd also be ok with Lolohea coming in for Leuluai at 6 but I have big question marks over him in the halves. Basically there are 3 possible positions for him but it's a 51-49 call on each.

In general I think he's starting to become massively overrated on the back of a marginal decision to pick other players over him.

I think part of the frustration, and something hindering his development, is that we don't seem to have a strategy for his usage.

 

[vvvrulz]

That's one of the setbacks of being a jack of all trades, master of none.

But it's not his fault that the coach didn't bite the bullet and given him an extended run in one spot.
Can't expect much development with short term flirts with four/five very different positions.

All three of Maumalo, Leuluai and Lolohea are flawed players, but of the three Lolohea has the most potential and is the most well rounded. On that basis he should have won wing or five eighth. I don't even have a problem with him being a bench impact, at least put him on the park!

 

[JJ]

He's still young and promising... coaching has done a bad job with him - the Dragons badly need someone in the halves, he might complement Widdop well?

I don't see him as a half, and too similar (IMO) to Johnson for us to have the right balance.

I wished they'd put him at centre and gone with that, but of course Ayshford and Kata have done well - he needs tone be on the field, and we have a glaring weakness on one wing...

Funny thing is, McFadden had decided (it seemed) Tui was the answer at 6, then RTS went down... McFadden is nothing is not inconsistent - if the kid can't get a regular run, I hope he gets a gig somewhere else

 

[Meth]

Again, I see his best position as a centre. Problem is Kata and Ayshford are going better than expected.

It's hard to know for sure what he would become with an extended run in the halves.

 

[Penrose_11]

Again, I see his best position as a centre. Problem is Kata and Ayshford are going better than expected.

It's hard to know for sure what he would become with an extended run in the halves.

Like you, I actually see him fitting in the team as a centre. Yes Kata has had a good season but I really don't think he's a centre but he's actually more a winger. Kata does not have the passing skills to set up his outsides. Kata doesn't have an 'in and away' to beat his opposite. What he does have is a put the ball under his arm and run through you mentality. This is what coach currently expects from our wingers in Manu and Maumalo.

So the sinic in me says we're currently fielding 3 wingers in our 13 - and Fus at fullback. And then we're trying to do that without any obvious bench tactics, with last week just using 16 players.

I feel part of our bench rotation issues stem from both Hoff and Mannering being 80 minute backrowers. And they're defensive tackle bots which in turn limits our attack. But that's another issue in itself.

 

[Penrose Warrior]

Bet he's in the team announced today.

However I for one am not convinced he will be a good fit with Johnson. They are too similar and both have the same weaknesses.
What makes it more difficult is that Fusitua is a superior fullback and Lolohea has shown reluctance to catch bombs.
I wouldn't be rushed into paying overs to keep him.
Besides he would probably do better under a good coach.

Won't it be interesting. It will be further proof that McFailden has NFI if he's back in the side. So really, if he's named in the starting side, the coch is even more wishy washy. If he's on the bench again, he needs to be used better.

I'm not a fan of players being used in an attempt to keep them happy and at the club, like McF did with Konrad earlier in the year with that stupid bench spot he used him for (then as per so many times, canned it 2-3 weeks later). So playing Tui just to keep him at the club would be silly. But as we've said so many times, Tui should be on the wing ahead of Maumalo. If he's playing badly or out of form...COACH HIM. MAKE HIM BETTER. He's clearly too good to be getting splinters. And the silliest thing is, he didn't need to be benched. No one was calling for Fus to move. No one saw it coming. No doubt Fus is a better FB but has anyone thought he's been so good that moving him back to the wing would be a waste? No.

There is a real conundrum coming up and I am certain McF is not the man to deal with it. Come 2017, RTS will demand the FB spot. Then Fus cannot be left out, he's too good. Our centres cannot be touched, they've been our best. Then at 6, surely it's Ata's time after doing all he can at NSW Cup level? If we don't play him, he becomes susceptible to other clubs. If we don't play Tui somewhere, same thing. That wing spot is increasingly looking like his spot, if Manu is on the decline as I believe he is and we all know Ken isn't an NRL winger's a-hole (cept the coach).

 

[Penrose Warrior]

Like you, I actually see him fitting in the team as a centre. Yes Kata has had a good season but I really don't think he's a centre but he's actually more a winger. Kata does not have the passing skills to set up his outsides. Kata doesn't have an 'in and away' to beat his opposite. What he does have is a put the ball under his arm and run through you mentality. This is what coach currently expects from our wingers in Manu and Maumalo.

So the sinic in me says we're currently fielding 3 wingers in our 13 - and Fus at fullback. And then we're trying to do that without any obvious bench tactics, with last week just using 16 players.

I feel part of our bench rotation issues stem from both Hoff and Mannering being 80 minute backrowers. And they're defensive tackle bots which in turn limits our attack. But that's another issue in itself.

That's okay though - you can carry one blockbusting centre. Not everyone has to be a ball-playing centre. Tate wasn't, and he went okay. He's a huge unit who can do what you're saying. Plus he's been defensively better and better each week, I've been so impressed. Why would you jeopardise that? Tui was in the centres in the final pre-season game, got touched up by Euan Aitken which was enough to convince McFail to change his mind which is his legacy at the Warriors. Absolutely no long-term strategy and plans he works to. Chop and change until something falls in his lap.

Rich and JJ are right, Tui is too similar to SJ in the halves - it simply won't work. Well it will, against bottom 8 sides. Not the ones you need to beat to win finals/premierships. SJ would need to play like he did last week, every week and mature into a much more solid leader of our side around the field. And we're still waiting 5 years later for that (although my caveat is that he's never had a good club coach since 2011). I still believe a good coach can rectify that. We've got to get one, that's the issue.

 

[Benek]

Doyle says "Tui's not going anywhere" and his future is in the halves...

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/news/article.cfm?c_id=4&objectid=11677124

 

[Meth]

Like you, I actually see him fitting in the team as a centre. Yes Kata has had a good season but I really don't think he's a centre but he's actually more a winger. Kata does not have the passing skills to set up his outsides. Kata doesn't have an 'in and away' to beat his opposite. What he does have is a put the ball under his arm and run through you mentality. This is what coach currently expects from our wingers in Manu and Maumalo.

I actually agree with this.

 

[JJ]

I don't think the bench rotation has anything to do with Hoffman and Mannering (and presumably Thompson) - that's all McFadden's inept coaching

Bit disrespectful to describe them as tackle bots - Hoffman certainly isn't that, and Mannering's work is invaluable. Over and over we see the best defensive sides winning comps and making grand finals - the problem is not the players with high work rates who make lots of tackles and clean up a lot - Mannering's effort on the weekend has gone largely unheralded - most stats suggest 60 tackles plus or minus a couple, with no misses - add the conditions and that's impressive stuff.

And if Doyle is being honest, what does that mean for Hingano?

I haven't seen enough of him, but good judges like him

 

[Penrose Warrior]

And if Doyle is being honest, what does that mean for Hingano?

I haven't seen enough of him, but good judges like him

Yep, we need to know what it means for Hingano. We probably won't, however, because Joe Public and John Media don't really know anything about him. I doubt he'll want to play NSW Cup for another year if someone is savvy enough to lure him away. Surely Stacey has told someone up top that he's the goods?

 

[JJ]

Yep, we need to know what it means for Hingano. We probably won't, however, because Joe Public and John Media don't really know anything about him. I doubt he'll want to play NSW Cup for another year if someone is savvy enough to lure him away. Surely Stacey has told someone up top that he's the goods?

For those that have seen a bit of him, how does he stack up with Ash Taylor and Nathan Cleary - like most I am incredibly impressed with Taylor