You're both right
@maxta and
@jbb/james in regards to Hodges' flaws! I've seen all that ur saying all season watching the NSW Cup boys play!
He does lack direction, doesn't look to have a plan and his service to his 2nd receivers is mediocre to say the least. It seems that every time he positions himself as dummy half, all he has in his mind is to pick and run but then he hears the halves calling the play, and then he sees another attacking option on top of what he wants to do and what his halves want him to do, so as soon as he picks up the ball he's constantly in 3 minds of what he should do! So for the majority of the time its inevitable that no matter what he decides to do, his execution suffers! Passes to receivers are too high, too low or even at their feet which put the receiver under unnecessary pressure to catch the ball and not make an error!
He is also predictable when he scoots out of dummy half too! He naturally scoots right out of dummy half and 99% of the time if he does change it up and scoot left, then straight after getting past the markers he will constantly dart back to the right!
What also frustrates me is that whenever the boys are within the 30m line of scoring a try, he hogs the ball and really has no ears to plays called and does only what he wants to do! Yes he has serviced some great grubber kicks for his team mates like Reardon to dive on and pinched some try's of his own but more often than not it doesn't wk, while at the same time stuffing up the set play the team have set up for meaning the whole team are left to adlib their attack, all because he chose to be greedy!
Don't get me wrong the kid has the talent but he needs a coach that he listens to and that can coach out his bad habits and refine his skills! Maybe then he could be a quality first grade rake!
The NSW Cup team looked more settled and controlled in attack last week against Newcastle, especially when Lathem shifted into hooker, and I am hoping for the NSW Cup teams sake, Hodges doesn't play!
As for last week's game vs the Roosters, even though Hodges wasn't absolutely terrible, the game did show he was simply just out of his depth! And the longer the game went on the more of his natural bad habits crept in! Like passing to Fozs feet out of dummy half on half time, trying to pinch a try on the line against a massive defense which was never an option and then holding onto a leg in a tackle with DCE and giving an unnecessary penalty, to which DCE showed how filthy he was at him for it!