NRL 2023 + Internationals

[mariner4life]

Coates is a spud. I assume Cobbo would be on the other wing. That is a lot of potential for catastrophic fuck ups. Definitely Hammer to a wing.

Forwards are looking good. I bet Hunt and DCE can't wait to get away from busting their asses trying to carry their shitshow clubs over the line every week. Grant and Munster still look good. Holmes is in good touch. Should be a competitive series.

[bayimports]

@African-Monkey said in NRL 2023:

@mariner4life If you were to bring the hammer in, I would have thought that left wing would be the only spot. Coates is good in the air but offers nothing else. He's poor at coming out of his own half, something that Tabuai Fidow is better at.

I think Ponga needs to stay at the back too. He's quality but gets brought down with the crap around him at Newcastle (partly his fault for staying there). You see how good he is when he's playing with better players around him.

Other than that, I think QLD are in a strong position with many players knocking on the door compared to previous seasons.

Agree with most of this, personally I wouldn't pick Ponga at fullback but as the incumbent it is likely. However if Hammer were to play, that's where I would play him. I don't think Walsh is ready for Origin. AKP might find himself on left, he has some serious x factor

[bayimports]

@mariner4life said in NRL 2023:

@bayimports said in NRL 2023:

Roosters had no direction then lose Manu in game, S.Walker also gets injured and all of a sudden even their back up plan looks average. For all the stars they have there still looks to be no cohesion.

because their spine is fucked

Cheese is not a good hooker. He's a dummy half to start the game then a middle forward. Walker is tiny and has nothing except an errant cut out pass. Keary can't run the team and has been down on form for ages. Their fullback runs like a waterbeetle and cannot bring others in to the game. Manu, bless his beautiful face, does not pass. They've got rugby australia's great hope playing at centre when he is a wing. Their selecting is cooked and it's sort of all their own making.

Bellamy worked out how to use the cheese and I think the initial plan was to also follow this however Connor watson also injured. Still surprised they haven't tried with other players though.

Manu in the halves is there to straighten and provide a late offload or two, but still relies on Keary for the of the play which just isn't working

Enough depth of stars to find a way out just doesnt look like it right now

[mariner4life]

Just back to the NRL, i reckon after 11 rounds the ladder is starting to look pretty clear

Souths, Penrith, Brisbane, Melbourne and Cronulla will all definitely make finals, and will in all likelihood fight it out for the premiership
The other 3 clubs to play in September will come from the Dolphins, Raiders, Warriors, Roosters and Cowboys. The Eels aren't done with yet, but already having 7 losses is going to make this very tough
I don't think either of the Titans or the Knights are good enough.
Manly are in danger of dropping in to the Spoon race with the Dragons and the Tigers.
The Dogs are going nowhere without halves.

[bayimports]

@mariner4life said in NRL 2023:

Just back to the NRL, i reckon after 11 rounds the ladder is starting to look pretty clear

Souths, Penrith, Brisbane, Melbourne and Cronulla will all definitely make finals, and will in all likelihood fight it out for the premiership
The other 3 clubs to play in September will come from the Dolphins, Raiders, Warriors, Roosters and Cowboys. The Eels aren't done with yet, but already having 7 losses is going to make this very tough
I don't think either of the Titans or the Knights are good enough.
Manly are in danger of dropping in to the Spoon race with the Dragons and the Tigers.
The Dogs are going nowhere without halves.

Trying not get get ahead of ourselves, but Warriors have BYE, Broncos, Dolphins, Raiders, BYE for next five matches. If ever there was a season where the under performing Warriors could actually set their season up, it is now. Guaranteed 4 points and will play a depleted sides across this time, they should be aiming at a 8 out of 10 possible points, which I cant believe I am saying this but it puts them in a real position of playing finals football.

I don't think Manly are out of it yet either, but Dragons, Tigers and Dogs for sure look to be playing spoiler role to stop others rather than going on any further

[mariner4life]

I don't think we are on the Broncos level unless Origin hits them hard.

Dolphins and Raiders are genuine 4-pointers i think, and both will be bloody close. It says a lot about how far we have come that i will be disappointed if we drop either of them.

[bayimports]

@mariner4life on a normal week I would say we are not broncos level either, but potentially no Cobbo, Walsh, Carrigan, Haas, Capewell, and Reynolds possibly still injured some big outs

[bayimports]

@mariner4life said in NRL 2023:

St George surely sacking their coach today

apparently just happened lol according to the reports

[Kruse]

I had to look up Paul Kent to see what all the fuss was about.
Found out, but then also stumbled across this boring seppo who happens to share the name, and it sounds like the most interesting thing to ever happen to the fluffybunny... and his chance to shine:

[mariner4life]

Hook officially gone

And in true Dragons fashion, they sack him, and he's seen leaving the ground before the players are told. Journos know more than players. Classic

[mariner4life]

That useless ginger fuck of a ref screw over the warriors? Rewarded with the marquee game the next week

When he fucks that up however, he gets dropped
And so does Sutton

Good riddance fuck heads

[bayimports]

Yep Sutton just as guilty in the bunker glad both also get a rest

[mariner4life]

Ian healy of all blokes off the long run!

https://twitter.com/SENQLD/status/1658261063941623808/mediaViewer?currentTweet=1658261063941623808&currentTweetUser=SENQLD

[bayimports]

Ahh the NRL for all the shit off the field it coughs up on the field this year it has delivered more often than not..

Tonight.. we have a team with a sacked coach pull off the dead cat bounce, but then Parra pull off the big one no one saw coming and a demolition of Souths. Having Moses back helped but a couple of NZers played a massive part in making this happen. Brown outstanding but young NZ maori prop Wiremu Grieg had a big night out against his opponents. A result that keeps the top 8 worrying, very enjoyable watch

[bayimports]

best comment of heard about last nights result...Roosters choked harder than Paul Kent lol

[mariner4life]

Origin Teams are in

For NSW
Tedesco
To'o
Mitchell
Turbo
Addo Carr
Luai
Cleary
Hass
Koroisau
Paulo
Frizell
Murray
Yeo

Hynes
Martin
Pangai Jnr
Young
18th man Campbell Graham

Interesting side. Turbo has one good game and is straight in.
The comps best player in Dylan Edwards can't get in
Pangai Jnr? Hudson Young?

Jesus if the pack gets parity that backline has the potential to just cut sick.

[mariner4life]

Qld

Walsh
Cobbo
Homes
Tabuai-Fidow
Taulagi
Munster
DCE
Flegler
Hunt
Collins
Gilbert
Fifita
Carrigan

Grant
Big Tino
Cotter
Arrow

Walsh over Ponga the big call. Can see why it is made, but those Walsh errors are frightening.
Gagai gone for Hammer. Big call. But he wasn't great in Origin last year, and Hammer has been killing it. Good pace to match those NSW centres.
Fifita back in, and surrounded by guys who just do hard work. Flegler has progressed from a dumb fluffybunny from Tully that gives away too many penalties to a starting origin prop. incredible.

[mariner4life]

weird old round of NRL. Panthers beat the Broncos in a strange game filled with ref involvements.
St George dead cat bounce to beat the Roosters, but hilariously actually drop a place on the table
Parra smack the previously flying Souths
Cronulla predictably smoke the Knights
Then the result absolutely no one saw coming. The Tigers put 66 points past the worst Cowboys performance i have ever seen. Luke Brookes looked like prime JT, they had young players have stormers all over the park, and they just destroyed the Cows. Awesome night for their fans.
Melbourne held out the Dolphins
And yesterday Manly came back to life by Hammering the Raiders in Canberra

Warriors jumped a place with our bye points and the Raiders getting flogged. She's a tight comp though. Origin period could get very weird.

[bayimports]

@mariner4life said in NRL 2023:

Interesting side. Turbo has one good game and is straight in.
The comps best player in Dylan Edwards can't get in
Pangai Jnr? Hudson Young?

Yeah I would not have picked Turbo, I still don't think he was at top speed yesterday but ran ok against the Raiders. Then Tedesco who has also struggled also gets in, go figure. Perhaps its more Fitler feels that players of this calibre will play better with other form players around them. Think you need everyone at full fitness for Origin, so not quite sure on either as well. However Campbell Graham is the form centre of the NRL and is 18th man. Im definitely ok with the recall of Addo Carr given NSW has a semi fit centre and below form fullback, any space given to this guy will make him hard to stop. Not there for defence though.

TPJ one hit up away from a send off, but perhaps there to match fire with fire, but I am ok with Hudson Young. Runs good lines and is tough and has the unlikely asset of a short kicking game.

[bayimports]

@mariner4life said in NRL 2023:

Walsh over Ponga the big call. Can see why it is made, but those Walsh errors are frightening.
Gagai gone for Hammer. Big call. But he wasn't great in Origin last year, and Hammer has been killing it. Good pace to match those NSW centres.
Fifita back in, and surrounded by guys who just do hard work. Flegler has progressed from a dumb fluffybunny from Tully that gives away too many penalties to a starting origin prop. incredible.

I personally thought under NRL rules of what a Cat 1 head knock is defined as, that Ponga should not have even been allowed to play on, on the weekend. Whether he played ok afterwards to me was irrelevant. Not playing Origin for me makes sense which only leaves Walsh. If NSW muscle up Reece is going to be in for a tough night. In saying that, if QLD dominate in the forwards he will create through his speed alone.

Gagai always peaks for Origin and is an oversight in my opinion. NSW players do not like playing him. I would have found a way to keep him in my 18, even if it meant moving the Hammer to a bench role. Would have allowed QLD to cover Walsh if he gets monstered.

Fifita form edge forward of the year in my mind in Australia. Only guy who was even close before injury was Keaon Koloamatangi (but NSW)

Surprised no Horse..? thought the big red headed Canberran would have been ahead of Flegler, but if Tino drops off, maybe first in

Still pretty solid team