eagles2win said:
Masked Eagle said:
To brutally honest, I don't think Magnus was ever going to make it to the NRL. Tried his guts out, but he was too undersized to be a prop and didn't have the agility/mobility to make it as a backrower.
IMO there is a huge different between what Magnus showed in toyota cup and what Jake has so far produced. Jake will be a star in the NRL, but I wouldn't be throwing him to the wolves for a few year yet.
As for winning games at the NSW cup level. Couldn't care less. I've said in numerous threads, lower grades should be about development, if they win then thats OK, but it should all be about getting players ready for first grade.
Wouldn't winning games at a lower grades actually help with player development......
Can play a part, but its not the be all and end all. Look at some of the real dominant teams in lower grades, the players reach first grade and they can't cope with the pressure because they've been doing it easy their entire career up til that point. A kid who plays in a team that does it tough every week might find the transition to first grade easier because he knows how to push himself.
I'm not saying winning isn't good, but it shouldn't be a priority. I'm sure we could pick some players who would make us more competitive in the NSW cup, but are you really going to give a player a spot in that team if you don't think they will be NRL standard over someone who might be? Clubs are doing more of this in recent times, having some players play in NSW cup even though they are still eligible for 20s. It costs them in 20s, and he might not be that much better than the older player he is replacing but its better for the players development and ultimately it should help the NRL team.
I would judge a successfull lower grade coach on how many of his players get better and graduate to the next level, not necessarily the amount of games they win.