Going all in… I like it.
And come they will, aided and abetted by the salary cap and the ability of some clubs to circumvent it, plus the NRL’s failure to implement a properly constructed system that rewards the clubs that are the real nurturers of rugby league via junior pathways (and that most definitely does not include the Easts Rorters and all others resting under their salary sombreros).
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Worrying signs from the Knights last night. If they don’t sort out that defensive line they are in for a long, long season.
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some very interesting calls for this year.
Its only round 3 and we already see some teams with major issues and a couple who have impressed.
of course the comp doesn’t finish after round 3 and an awful lot can happen.
Panthers look a clear choice to be on track for GF #5
The major improvers are Roosters and Manly
There are a few who have improved Storm and Cowboys and a couple who look about the same as last year, Warriors,Canberra
There are a few “red flags” about 2 teams, one being Souths who appear to be in all sorts with a reluctance to do anything about Mitchell being their core issue and Broncos who seem to have a mix of issues namely fitness of Reynolds and a lot of individuals who are not playing as a team.
Others like Eels whose best is behind this side, Knights whose year rises and falls on Ponga, Dogs who got the wrong coach and despite what appears to be an unlimited budget cannot buy a “team” and is fast becoming a graveyard where you go to end your career.
Cronulla look hit and miss.
Dolphins may cause some upsets and Titans look impotent under Hasler (god knows why these old coaches still get gigs and why younger more progressive coaches don’t get a chance)
All this being said, a couple of key injuries to any player will force a rethink of how the final 8 looks.
I suspect the Top 4 for 2024 will look nothing like last year.
I will go with
1…Panthers
2…Roosters
3…Manly
4…Storm
the bottom 4 of the 8 is a lottery atm and suspect as usual we may see a smokie.
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The Souths situation is interesting.
I thought they made a bad decision a few years ago to not let Reynolds have the 3 years he wanted, opting for a then untested Ilias to take over in the halves.
Now they have turned on Ilias, who has shown them up with a stellar performance in NSW Cup, while their first grade team put in arguably their worst performance in about 10-15 years.
Benching Cook, arguably their best player, seems a bizarre move, unless he is carrying an injury.
Meanwhile Mitchell & Walker seem to be running the club (and Mitchell running his mouth). No one wants to rein them in, probably from fear of alienating their large indigenous fan base.
Demetriou looks like nothing more than a puppet coach, telling the media all is good, while seeming to have little effect on the playing group.
If they can pull their heads in & play to their ability, they are a top 4 side, but something tells me there are players & coaching staff not happy with what is happening behind the scenes, and performances like last night only reinforce it.
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I would also consider the fact that their owner Russell Crowe (who by many accounts is a DH) got hands on in the dismissal of Burgess who raised concerns about a clique running the club. Seems like Burgess has some valid points after all…
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It’s early days but some signs are starting to emerge;
We could go for 4, we are humming nicely.
Roosters are performing well for now, let’s see how next week goes.
Cowboys are showing the form expected of them for the last two years, but can they remain consistent?
Warriors and Storm will be up there again.
Canberra are going ok, but have the feeling a capitulation is imminent, together with a Rocky spray at the media.
Manly are going nicely. Barring injury the should be challenging for a top 4 spot.
Brisbane are in a lot of trouble, they certainly don’t look like top 8 let alone top 2 like the media had them pre-season.
Parra and Cronulla lack a full squad and rely on 1 or 2 key players way too much. Nicho was an imposter last night.
Knights are one Ponga injury away from joining Tigers and Bulldogs in just sitting ahead of Souths.
Can’t get a read on Dragons or Dolphins yet.
I thought the Titans under Des would be much improved and finally realise their roster potential. So far I am very very wrong.
Souths are headed for the spoon. They need a full clean out starting with head office, and ending with their current fullback.
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