Worst finals series in years?

[legend]

Regardless of the Raiders fortunes, I still maintain the finals series was disappointing and had the Raiders made it, they would have only added to the disappointment.

 

[Everlovin' Antichrist]

Which at the end of the day shows the NRL got the results they wanted.

I don't see the problem with making it a fairly even competiton.

The EPL is in decline because they have only 3 or 4 possible winners in a 20 team competition.

When the NRL starts next season, we will have literally 15 potential premiers out of 15 teams.

 

[Cockadoodledoo]

When the NRL starts next season, we will have literally 15 potential premiers out of 15 teams.

It will take a miracle for Souths and Raiders to contend, throw in the Warriors and Sharks imho.. I can't even see the Roosters challenging for that matter..

 

[Everlovin' Antichrist]

It will take a miracle for Souths and Raiders to contend, throw in the Warriors and Sharks imho.. I can't even see the Roosters challenging for that matter..

Yeah....

The same things you would have said about the Wests Tigers this time last year.......

 

[Big Pete]

The finals just lacked that close game atmosphere.

We had two new teams in the grand final and we just couldn't get into their styles. Cowboys play a inconsistent style of footy while Tigers play a new brand of football which we arn't use to.

I still feel pretty flat after the finals, hopefully the Tri Nations can fix all that up.

 

[Cockadoodledoo]

Yeah....

The same things you would have said about the Wests Tigers this time last year.......

You cannot win a comp with out a great halves combo.. The Tigers had that in Prince and Marshall, though not much else as just about everyone including myself believed at the start of the season.. Those clubs mentioned above don't..

 

[Everlovin' Antichrist]

You cannot win a comp with out a great halves combo.. The Tigers had that in Prince and Marshall, though not much else as just about everyone including myself believed at the start of the season.. Those clubs mentioned above don't..

That is based on what you know of those clubs from this season.

Think back to last season and tell me that you thought Parramatta had a decent halves combination.

And before this season, Marshall was "an injury-prone prospect" to virtually everyone outside the Tigers, nothing more. Remember he was on the sideline for most of 2004.

The fact is that each of those sides you mentioned may have a Tim Smith in the wings and that's all they could be away from being more than competitive or even, god forbid, premiers.

Anyone can win the comp.

 

[Misty Bee]

Rubbish Melon. The standard was great. So hight that no one could maintain it!

re the finals, allthe league diehards I see here agree that it wasn't a great finals series. No argument here. However, all the peeriheral people reckon the GF was great. It seems to really give League a feel good outcome, and therefore a shot in teh arm. Check the TV ratings.

Overall, I reckon the season was a cracker. Parra had it's best year for ages. I loved watching Souths toward the finish too. Saints hit their best form in years, so did Manly (season low point ;-))

 

[Misty Bee]

Think back to last season and tell me that you thought Parramatta had a decent halves combination.

And before this season, Marshall was "an injury-prone prospect" to virtually everyone outside the Tigers, nothing more. Remember he was on the sideline for most of 2004.

The fact is that each of those sides you mentioned may have a Tim Smith in the wings and that's all they could be away from being more than competitive or even, god forbid, premiers.

Anyone can win the comp.

Which is why crowds are flodding to the game. Everyones in with a chance. Plus, the old hated clubs like Manly are back in business. Suddenly, despite (because of???) the abnormal finals series and the strange season that preceeded it, the NRL has the perfect marketing tool.

Fantastic, I say!

 

[marshall stalin]

I thought the season was average and only the closeness and the battle for the 8 made it some what interesting. basically most sides were average all year and no one really stood out for long periods.

Parra and the Dragons finished how they started - cowboys barely got out of 3rd gear all season. Sharks /Manly/Canberra early pace setters faded badly. Dogs and Roosters were very very poor. Souths and Newcastle only started to play when they both could not make the 8. Warriors/penrith up and down as usual as were the Storm , Broncos late season collapse again.

Tigers will struggle next year for sure

 

[TV Ted Ellery]

I thought the season was average and only the closeness and the battle for the 8 made it some what interesting. basically most sides were average all year and no one really stood out for long periods.

Parra and the Dragons finished how they started - cowboys barely got out of 3rd gear all season. Sharks /Manly/Canberra early pace setters faded badly. Dogs and Roosters were very very poor. Souths and Newcastle only started to play when they both could not make the 8. Warriors/penrith up and down as usual as were the Storm , Broncos late season collapse again.

Tigers will struggle next year for sure

I thought the battle for the minor premiership eclipsed the 3 way struggle for 8th between a dour Roosters side, the flat attack Eagles and fast-finishing Panthers. In fact, the Eagles limping into the finals and their annihilation in week 1 was the biggest anti-climax of the year.
Brisbane stood out for 10+ weeks,
Tigers stood out for 12 weeks interrupted by two bad games.
Dragons and Parra were excellent following slow starts to the year.
Various teams dominated at different periods.

The Roosters will need to emulate the Tigers style or adopt a watertight defence if they are to gain ascendancy once more.

 

[TV Ted Ellery]

Regardless of the Raiders fortunes, I still maintain the finals series was disappointing and had the Raiders made it, they would have only added to the disappointment.

Strangely enough the only time that Wests played a game with any resonance of old fashioned grit and intensity was against the Raiders at Bruce.
Whether or not you think that the Tigers free-flowing style is to the detriment of proper intensity/sustained pressure etc, they maintained the same approach throughout the season.

Personally, I hated watching those Maroons sides of the past years that ran 1-out for the first 30 minutes of a game although I can appreciate that this style of football is more evocative of grinding, high intensity footy. Is n't 'war of attrition' the cliche that is always used?

 

[Everlovin' Antichrist]

Which is why crowds are flodding to the game. Everyones in with a chance. Plus, the old hated clubs like Manly are back in business. Suddenly, despite (because of???) the abnormal finals series and the strange season that preceeded it, the NRL has the perfect marketing tool.

Fantastic, I say!

Exactly, these boneheads that are claiming 2005 was a poor season would prefer it to have been a 7-6 Grand final with 6 penalty goals and one field goal. Something Union wouldn't blink at.

We've had a fabulous season, crowds are up significantly and so are the TV ratings. The Football was for the most part free-flowing and teams like the Tigers, Cowboys and Parra could put 40 on you in the blink of an eye or get 40 put on them just the same.

The Roosters were stuck in 2002, the Dogs had injuries but when it came to the crunch they ran out of heart, the Broncos seem to be stuck in Groundhog Day and the sides that did the business last season found themselves to have missed the bus this year.

No team was woeful for the whole season, every team had some extended period where they were better than average. If your team didn't turn up mentally to any game, they left without the points. There were no guaranteed wins in the second half of this season.

These people think that they're purists but they're not purists, they're idiots.

Bring on 2006.

 

[Everlovin' Antichrist]

Tigers will struggle next year for sure

And I'm sure you'll be back this time next year to take your medicine if they don't struggle.

You should be more concerned with the fact that your Coach didn't come to terms with the latest change in the landscape.

 

[hybrid_tiger]

Tigers will struggle next year for sure

Lolesi, Harris, Galloway and O'Hara all added.

I can't see how they will struggle...?

 

[marshall stalin]

Lolesi, Harris, Galloway and O'Hara all added.

I can't see how they will struggle...?

Lolesi- too injury prone
Harris - solid with few skills
Galloway - too green and too many errors
O'hara - ditto Lolesi

One has to wonder why your club did not re-sign players such as Richards and Elford certainly integral to your success this year.Also Cashman was a bad loss as he could have stepped up to do what Harris has been signed to do leaving money to re-sign players such as Richards/Elford.

 

[marshall stalin]

You cannot win a comp with out a great halves combo.. The Tigers had that in Prince and Marshall, though not much else as just about everyone including myself believed at the start of the season.. Those clubs mentioned above don't..

Interesting as i suppose Finch and Fittler are hack's in that case. OH By the way how many NRL games have you played compared to comrade Finch??

 

[hybrid_tiger]

Lolesi- too injury prone
Harris - solid with few skills
Galloway - too green and too many errors
O'hara - ditto Lolesi

One has to wonder why your club did not re-sign players such as Richards and Elford certainly integral to your success this year.Also Cashman was a bad loss as he could have stepped up to do what Harris has been signed to do leaving money to re-sign players such as Richards/Elford.

Injury prone? :lol:

So what did everyone say when we signed Prince, Richards and Hodgson? :roll:

Would you like to answer that?

Richards wasn't signed because you just don't pay $350K for a winger, no matter how good he is. And Elford was given a big offer by South Sydney which we wouldn't match, since we already had signed Lolesi and have a ready made replacement in Dean Collis.

On paper, the Tigers side in 06' is BETTER than this years side. More depth and bigger forwards.

 

[RABK]

Injury prone? :lol:

So what did everyone say when we signed Prince, Richards and Hodgson? :roll:

Would you like to answer that?

Richards wasn't signed because you just don't pay $350K for a winger, no matter how good he is. And Elford was given a big offer by South Sydney which we wouldn't match, since we already had signed Lolesi and have a ready made replacement in Dean Collis.

On paper, the Tigers side in 06' is BETTER than this years side. More depth and bigger forwards.

Why change a winning formula? Could come back to bite them.

 

[hybrid_tiger]

Why change a winning formula? Could come back to bite them.

Nothing will change. Just that if teams want to try and bash us we can compete in that area as well.