Re: So what does that result tell us : Sun Mar 10, 2024 7:51 pm  

cocker wrote:

We need 2 half backs and quick !

We need two quick half backs and a fast 9 ,the ones we got are all way past there sell by date Think questions have got to be asked about how come our two so called big signings in the back are no were to be seen .Griffin is way to slow to be in the Centre (We are going down the same road as last year of playing a back 7 of mostly slow injury prone players .Know the pitch was shocking but still no excuse for a disgraceful performance like that

Re: So what does that result tell us : Sun Mar 10, 2024 7:57 pm  

That game could have gone either way today but we bombed it and Fev took their chances well, so all credit to them for that.
The season proper starts on Friday. We scrape the mud off, analyse the video of where we went wrong today and work our little booty's off to try and ensure that doesn't happen again. Today could have been a blessing in disguise but time will tell

Re: So what does that result tell us : Sun Mar 10, 2024 8:02 pm  

1315trinity wrote:

Really?!! Why don't you go tell Atoni that!
He ran his blood to water today - did you actually see the game??

Yes, I saw the game.

My comment was more of a collective, and wasn't singling anyone out.

In that first half we were totally outmuscled by their pack, of which Atoni spent time in the bin, along with one of theirs.

Amyway, its done, forget it, and move on to the league and 1895 cup.

Looking at the forecast for the week ahead, looks a bit drier

Re: So what does that result tell us : Sun Mar 10, 2024 8:21 pm  

I have to shake my head in disbelief any anyone questioning the pace of any player today.

Usain Bolt couldn't run on that potato field.

It's a good one for experience, but dust it off and move on.

Re: So what does that result tell us : Sun Mar 10, 2024 8:50 pm  

So far this year we have performed similarly dire against some very weak opposition and the writing was on the wall that we were going to get beaten by the 1st decent team we came up against. Ball spill, offside, six again, head high and repeat.
Nothing we did today suggests that we will be any different v Bradford on Friday.

Re: So what does that result tell us : Sun Mar 10, 2024 9:13 pm  

Agree with the last posting, playing like that we will loose more than we win, every team that we play will see the game as their cup final, prepared to spend extra energy to prove a single game of proof they can beat the best whilst knowing their next weeks game they will be short on energy & their body needs a rest, this will not help us of course.
Our half backs are not good enough to win the championship, gale goes quiet, Link has wild passes in his game & poor decisions !

Re: So what does that result tell us : Sun Mar 10, 2024 9:20 pm  

Hardly any of our new signings will have played in conditions like that before. Hopefully they won’t ever again!

Fev were more motivated than us and more enthusiastic.

We clearly have issues in the halves.

Lino is neither an organiser nor is he a runner, he’s just very very average.

I’m not in the doom and gloom club to be honest.

We need to focus on comps we can win, I think the players had that in the back of their minds too.

Having Thornley and Jerry out reduces the quality of our exit sets and that is something we need to look at.

Should we struggle against Fev in the league on a better pitch in better conditions I will be concerned but at the moment I’m comfortable with where we are despite the loss today, which in real terms counts for nothing but bragging rights for a couple of weeks.

[PopTart]

Re: So what does that result tell us : Sun Mar 10, 2024 9:33 pm  

It was a bad day for us today but plenty of good signs despite that.
Some of the tactics weren't right but ultimately its about quality of what we are trying to do.....and that will improve with time and better weather.

Re: So what does that result tell us : Sun Mar 10, 2024 10:17 pm  

If anything was to seriously concern me about today’s performance it was the unwillingness of some to roll their sleeves up and embrace the hard slog, physically relentless, tough war of attrition. Championship teams may not have full time athletes, they may not have a squad full of talent and potential but they will bring that dogged, hard nosed, grind and front on challenge for 80 minutes.

If we can’t or won’t meet that challenge then we will get turned over and as I’ve said before, we’ll find ourselves on the team bus asking how did we lose that game?

Re: So what does that result tell us : Mon Mar 11, 2024 12:02 am  

The Avenger wrote:

If anything was to seriously concern me about today’s performance it was the unwillingness of some to roll their sleeves up and embrace the hard slog, physically relentless, tough war of attrition. Championship teams may not have full time athletes, they may not have a squad full of talent and potential but they will bring that dogged, hard nosed, grind and front on challenge for 80 minutes.

If we can’t or won’t meet that challenge then we will get turned over and as I’ve said before, we’ll find ourselves on the team bus asking how did we lose that game?

However we chalk that up we just lost our first real challenge against one of our contenders for top spot. That’s something that needs rectifying in the season.

Season starts on Friday and Bulls will be loving the fact we had a tough slog that went into extra time.

Luckily we will have a few players available (hopefully) in Thornley, Croft, Cozza, Bain, Lawford who can step in.

I’d like to see a few players move back into the positions they were performing well in early pre season like Griffin > second row and Pitts > 13.

With Taufua on the wing too I think I’d go for Croft on the edge for a bit more size.

Something like :

Jowitt
Walmsley
Pratt
Thornley
Croft
Lawford
Lino
Bowden
Hood
Atoni
Ashurst
Griffin
Pitts

Doyle
Uele
Vagana
Bain