Tactics : Tue Apr 06, 2010 9:25 am  

I was thinking yesterday about our tactics. Last season we played open, expansive and entertaining rugby with an attitude of "You score 30 points, we'll score 36" or whatever. It didn't leave a lot to be desired from our defence, but it was entertaining and exciting to watch.

But it does leave us open to hammerings from time to time so obviously it was important for the defence to improve. This year we seem to have taken to employing a lot of the wrestling and slowing tactics that are rife in SL at the moment and seriously detracting from the spectacle of the game. I actually think the game is slower now than it was 7 or 8 years ago.

The thing is we're trying to employ these tactics and we're no good at it, which detracts from our overall performance and leaves us in the situation we find ourselves in today. Defence seems to be a lost cause at the moment so why don't we just go back to trying to score more than the opponent can put past us, as we did last season?

Just a thought.

Re: Tactics : Tue Apr 06, 2010 10:02 am  

Good post. We haven't scored over 24 points in a match yet this season. Which is disgraceful imo

The games are becoming very stale and boring as of late. I'm glad i didn't have to pay to get in to the Wakefield match. That was the most boring game i have seen in many years.

Yesterdays game (first half) was quite entertaining and very close. The second half was just pure class from Saints with very poor defence from us.

As you say we are not good at the slowing down tactics. you would have thought Matterson would have realised this instead of using the extremely poor and tiresome excuse about the size of our squad. Yes we know we have a small squad but who's fault is that? We could promote youngsters or even sign NL players who could possibly make the step up, there are plenty at Barrow and Widnes that could do a job more than what we have already, even if its just to bolster the squad.

I, like many others, am becoming extremely frustrated at our lack of ambition, tactics and enthusiasm. It is becoming very repetetive, stale and boring and we are very slow and predictable in attack.

Re: Tactics : Tue Apr 06, 2010 10:49 am  

Sadly for us, watching Saints in attack yesterday was a pleasure and an absolute contrast to how we play. At the play of the ball, there was always a wave of 3 or 4 players running forwards onto the ball, supporting and playing for each other. As soon as the first man was half tackled, the ball was offloaded, offloaded and offloaded again keeping the momentum of 3 or 4 players going 'forward'. The key words being 'going forward'.

At the play of the ball we pass to an almost static man, who barely injects any pace. Each player then runs sideways, passes, sideways and passes etc. We never seem to have anyone hitting the line at pace, at an opposing angle. It's all too predictable. Even Rangi seems to be having his natural ability coached out of him and is becoming predictable.

The thing is we do the same week in week out, and it isn't working!

Re: Tactics : Tue Apr 06, 2010 11:08 am  

We've got one move. Two dummy runners with either Chase and McGoldrick running round the back and then throwing it out to the winger. It's so predictable that it's starting to become embarassing to watch.

Re: Tactics : Tue Apr 06, 2010 11:16 am  

BD wrote:

We've got one move. Two dummy runners with either Chase and McGoldrick running round the back and then throwing it out to the winger. It's so predictable that it's starting to become embarassing to watch.

I said the same yesterday. It's the same move over and over. Or Chase just running across the defensive line dummying the ball to the defenders before getting tackled.

Re: Tactics : Tue Apr 06, 2010 12:09 pm  

We've been winning or very close at half-time in all our games. Second half displays suggest the opposition coaches find our game-plan totally transparent and confirm there is no plan B. It just amazes me that in these days of video/DVD we're not sussed out before the kick-off because nothing changes from one game to the next.

Re: Tactics : Tue Apr 06, 2010 12:34 pm  

The dummy runner is so far forward that it's obvious to all who it is going to be and what they're going to do. It's so slow they might as well not bother.

I would really love to know what goes on down at training.

Are fans allowed to spectate at the training ground when they are practicing moves etc? obviously not at the gym because that would just be weird

Re: Tactics : Tue Apr 06, 2010 12:56 pm  

Bonzo wrote:

I was thinking yesterday about our tactics. Last season we played open, expansive and entertaining rugby with an attitude of "You score 30 points, we'll score 36" or whatever. It didn't leave a lot to be desired from our defence, but it was entertaining and exciting to watch.

You played open expansive rugby on Friday night in the first half, and were overall the better side if you had carried on like that in the second half the likelyhood was that you might have won it, but instead chose to take it up the middle for whatever reason which was as we all know was your downfall.

Re: Tactics : Tue Apr 06, 2010 1:08 pm  

chissitt wrote:

You played open expansive rugby on Friday night in the first half, and were overall the better side if you had carried on like that in the second half the likelyhood was that you might have won it, but instead chose to take it up the middle for whatever reason which was as we all know was your downfall.

I disagree. Friday's game was one of the slowest and most boring that I've ever seen. Whilst we may have thrown the ball around a bit in the first half, we didn't exactly look threatening with it and very quickly ran out of ideas.

Re: Tactics : Tue Apr 06, 2010 2:22 pm  

Bonzo wrote:

I disagree. Friday's game was one of the slowest and most boring that I've ever seen. Whilst we may have thrown the ball around a bit in the first half, we didn't exactly look threatening with it and very quickly ran out of ideas.

I agree with that

Very stale, Very boring, Very quickly