PRE-GAME DISCUSSION: Manly v Rabbits [Round 2, 2021]

[susan]

Davey , Saab showed something

To be honest if Des can look at that try we gave up down the left with Parker turning and “ chasing “ and not see that Parker and Garrick are not first graders, particularly under the new rules, then I’m not sure where we go from here in regard to the coaching side of things.

The real issue to me was the body language and attitude. Never seen a Manly side react to conceding tries like that.

The obvious steps

-to reward players who look like they care eg Davey into starting side, Shuster obviously and Sipley who always looks to play hard

-dropping those who are out of their depth under the new rules. Parker Croker Garrick JetSki Boyle
- play people in their positions eg Walker and get Jake back to prop rotation with long minutes (13 has left him behind- see Murray, Radley,Brown)

One possible exception to that is DCE to 9 .Its not entirely crazy .Best blue halfback in history did it often for NSW. At least it gets your best three playmakers on the field.
A spine of Turbot Foran Shuster DCE surely has some points in it, at least until Fainu sorted. We are going to need points because we will concede plenty.

All of that just seems common sense. Youth may fail but they’ll learn and show interest at least



After that it just comes down to desire.Who knows about that right now ? This year is about showing a bit of toughness and no spoon.Losing with pride is our new goal it seems

Hard to cop but it seems that’s where we are at

 

[Tomay]

I hope our team for round 20 is this:

Turbo
Saab
Walker
Suli
Harper
Foz
DCE
Jake
Fainu
Tapau
GoJetski
Guacamole
Davey

Shuster
Paseka
Aloia
Sirro

that team could win a game or two.

 

[Rynostradamus]

Get in his ear Ryan. That's the side we need to run out. Garrick excluded.

Good side but Sirro you are kidding me. Davey plays 80 sirro is a deadset bludger. Garrick must never play again. Funa in for him.

 

[Clint]

Roosters atm are well settled, full of stars and have had the same core of players for awhile - so they are going to be 'red-hot' for a season or to to come.

*two

Sorry GE could not help myself

 

[Ron E. Gibbs]

Yeah, Saab is by no means a finished product, but shows potential. Davey puts in and runs hard and deserves to start. Aloiai I don't get. To be honest, I never noticed him whenever we played the Tigers and the first time I heard his name was when he came out as the sole member of the Erin Molan fan club (obviously not including Molan herself in the membership figures). Didn't see much in his game yesterday and the strapping on his leg, while good for a joke or two, suggests he might not be 100%, which is a concern for a player making his club debut.

 

[Jay Eagle]

just spent two hours reading through all the posts in this thread, the manly V Roosters game day thread and Sack Des thread one thing is very VERY obvious as the MAJORITY of replies are saying the same or very similiar things..
1- Garrick not first grade material, terrible defender, no footy smarts , zero confidence and has to go

2- Parker, tries hard but not first grader , way too slow and has to go

3- Croker, no attacking options, passes ineffective from dummy half and error riddled game, NOT a hooker and has to go

4- Fanu- hes not a utility and shouldn't be put on the bench as a utility player

5- Walker is a center and should play in that position.

6- Sirro- games to predictable, a ball hog and needs to be dropped to the bench

7- Davey- should be in the starting side

8- Shuster should be in the team on the bench at least and if at 5/8 then Foran should be our utility player

9- Jake needs to get back to being "Jake" tackle hard and play with his emotions, I don't know what happened but someone must have told him to ease it up, I remember in 2018/2019 he was basically the reincarnation of Tooves ( just bigger) .. always in the refs face, leading by example, now he looks like hes just going through the motions and at a very sloooooow pace.

10- DCE- Needs to be told he doesn't have to do everything, Just feels like he plays with so much pressure on himself that he actually cant play

So all in all in most of what I have written is what most of teh fans are seeing and complaining about then surly Des and team management can see this also.
SO F*#cking fix it..

And it starts with dropping the three pub players we have at the top of the list,
Putting Walker at center, Harper to fullback
Drop Sirro to the bench and Davey to start
Bring Shuster into the team
and give Jake the freedom to play with the emotion he displayed previously..
The DCE situation will also be alleviated because he will have a far better side on the park and start enjoying his footy rather than looking like a man carrying a team.

Now everyone will carry on " key board warriors" "sausage roll eating fools" blah blah .. but its really really plain to see where the problems are and even my 17 year old daughter who knows nothing about footy can pick our teams faults... NO HEART and NO TEAM SPIRIT.

Fix it Des that your job!

 

[grassy]

If we can’t improve this year then I can see big problems for us as a club. I honestly think Walker needs to go. Shuster needs to take his place.If des can’t get this right then he needs to go too.We are stuffing around with too many players.Believe it or not we have too much of everything and nothing is working.We have been a rabble for so long now it’s not funny.Our players are like little school boys playing big boys games.We were made a laughing stock by the Morris brothers yesterday and when they lined up different goal kickers then that told the story of how we are respected by other teams. We are far from Manly . We are being laughed at And deservedly so. Brisbane played better than we did. Sorry guys but I am seeing this for what it is.We are like a bunch of clowns With no definite answers to anything.Its getting to the point that no player would want to stay at Manly.

 

[susan]

Every top side has a good to great 9. Under the new rules it’s a deal breaker.
The only person in our club who even approaches the required skill set is DCE. The rest are simply not up to it.Add to that his form at 7 has been average at best.Fainu back changes all this of course.

Harper
Saab
Walker
Suli
Funa
Shuster
Foran
Sironen ( middle, gives Suli a chance )
Davey
Okalatu
Marty
DCE
Jake

Aloia (mobile , can cover back row)
Paseka
Cust
Fainu ( mobile )

We are just short on backrowers. Just can’t keep picking JetSki
Kepppie and Boyle behind Sipley in regards to next in line in middles rotation.
Throw Fainu and Tommy back in and we won’t win spoon if we also recognize early the players that are not first graders under new rules.

 

[Ryan]

Every top side has a good to great 9. Under the new rules it’s a deal breaker.
The only person in our club who even approaches the required skill set is DCE. The rest are simply not up to it.Add to that his form at 7 has been average at best.

Harper
Saab
Walker
Suli
Funa
Shuster
Foran
Sironen ( middle, gives Suli a chance )
Davey
Okalatu
Marty
DCE
Jake

Aloia (mobile , can cover back row)
Paseka
Cust
Fainu ( mobile )

We are just short on backrowers. Just can’t keep picking JetSki

Most importantly mate, good to have you back !

 

[SeaEagleRock8]

We are being laughed at And deservedly so. Brisbane played better than we did. Sorry guys but I am seeing this for what it is.We are like a bunch of clowns

Interesting, you may have stumbled on the answer. How about Bozo to 5/8, Krusty to fullback and Ronald McDonald can start at 9?

 

[KaZa]

What's the point. Dessie will be unchanged

 

[Clint]

Every top side has a good to great 9. Under the new rules it’s a deal breaker.
The only person in our club who even approaches the required skill set is DCE. The rest are simply not up to it.Add to that his form at 7 has been average at best.

Harper
Saab
Walker
Suli
Funa
Shuster
Foran
Sironen ( middle, gives Suli a chance )
Davey
Okalatu
Marty
DCE
Jake

Aloia (mobile , can cover back row)
Paseka
Cust
Fainu ( mobile )

We are just short on backrowers. Just can’t keep picking JetSki
Kepppie Boyle behind Sipley in regards to next in line

This is my back line too with DCE, Foz and The Shu interchangeable. That is, I'd be happy with any two of those three in the halves, but all three MUST be in the 17.

 

[HoldenV8]

Giving my 2 cents worth, my side for next week would be:

FB - Harper
WG - Saab
CE - Walker
CE - Suli
WG - Funa
FE - Foran
HB - Cherry-Evans
PR - Aloiai
HK - Croker / Cust
PR - Taupau
SR - Davey
SR - Sironen
LK - Trbojevic

Bench - Schuster, Gosiewski, Boyle/Keppie, Paseka.

 

[Rocky]

While it is not our only problem, the lack of an enforcer stands out for me. While i was ok to see the club let AFB walk, given his attitude and perhaps him potentially not offering as much under the new rules, he was the only guy who had the necessary mongrel to lead a pack. We now have no-one to take on this role and Marty T clearly doesn't have this in him which given his size and strength is pretty surprising. I was hoping Alioai might be one the step up as well but i dont think so. Jake is too nice and so is Paseka (at the moment).

The potential singing of Nathan Brown is promising but would be a year away and obviously no guarantee of happening.

So who's going to lead this rabble up front?

 

[SeaEagleRock8]

I'll try to watch the Blacktown match this arvo, and would love to see Sipley, Schuster, Olakaatu, Cust, and Tuipulotu have massive games.
If they needed any further motivation then 1st grade provided that yesterday.
They know Des will stick to plan A unless they force his hand by playing too well to leave out.

 

[Kez]

I'll try to watch the Blacktown match this arvo, and would love to see Sipley, Schuster, Olakaatu, Cust, and Tuipulotu have massive games.
If they needed any further motivation then 1st grade provided that yesterday.
They know Des will stick to plan A unless they force his hand by playing too well to leave out.

That sounds more appealing than the crap we had to put up with yesterday..tell me..how does 1 watch the game on media..is it on kayo cause i dont have foxtel atm

 

[Snoz1976]

Parker to the wing????? You lose all credibility right there.

We are scraping the barrel anyway. Who else is there.

 

[AlxFromNthNarra]

I'm done being diplomatic.

Garrick. Should be dropped this week. There is giving someone a go, then there is incompetence. If he isn't converting conversions from the sidelines, then he is bringing nothing - being out-muscled in kick defusals, rag-dolled in hit-ups and . Being gifted the only try means nothing.

Parker. I always backed Parker on his defensive skill mainly. Seems that has gone backwards. Sorry mate loved ya effort and improvement in 2019, but we have better, younger, faster options now. Des just has to use them.

Croker. Did as I feared and just fed ball from dummy half. 3 dummy half runs ALL game by Manly, Croker did 1 of them. (11 made by the Rooters). Also missed obscene amount of tackles proportionally for a Hooker (made 34, missed 5 and 2 ineffective). "Experiment" failed imo.

Funa. Why bother having him on the bench to play 6mins. Pointless. Use him to replace some of the dead wood above, or leave him on the reserves bench.

DCE. Good leaders and managers delegate. DCE is failing on that front, and that is a sign of poor leadership/management. Not backing others to get the job done that he feels burdened with week upon week is a self-defeating mentality. Gives his all, but tries to do it all - and that creates lopsided playmaking opportunities that are easy for opposition teams to isolate/shut down. By all accounts/stats DCE had a poor game though.

Davey had the fastest play-the-ball speed (was the only Manly player under 3-secs, Roosters had 4 below 3secs). Overall Roosters play-the-ball was faster on average - and Paseka was noticeably slowest on field, even though I am not singling him out for poor effort.

Sironen. Always liked the energy he used to bring. Nowadays he seems like a selfish player, wanting to pad stats for Fantasy, or some ****, ala Gallen. He is stifling our attack now with his decision making - that is invariably the same old **** every game. Cut back in against the grain into traffic and maybe turn for an offload no-one either wants or expects.

Must get Schuster in the team - at the least its character building, and at best he adds a spark that somewhat inspires these plodders to a slightly less insipid performance. Get Harper in somewhere too, he at least has the skill to develop and makes some of those 1% plays others are incapable of. Sipley/Guac/ (when he's ready)

Our forwards need to step up, our backs need defensive boot camps, and a sense of accountability has to return to this team off the back of a worrying string of losses.

Have an agreement at training, so it is well understood - that if you have a shocker on the weekend - no matter how well you are 'training the house down', then you can expect to be dropped to reggies. It's only career ending if the person stepping up in their place nails it - and ultimately that is the best case outcome anyway. That is how you create culture of winning - by being accountable for failure. And mark my words, this team is now in the realms of failure.

Seems like Des is terrified of dropping some players from 1st Grade because of some reason I can't explain. That is not a coach, that is a hostage. And a hostage with Stockholm syndrome at that.

 

[susan]

It’s on Kayo at 1.10 nsw I think
V the Bears

don’t need to lose to the ****ing bears to finish the weekend

 

[madmax]

this is what I’d explore:
1: Harper - did enough in the trial to warrant a pick. Went with Walker (which I was ok with) but it was a dog awful choice.
2:Saab - it was nice to see a player leaping for a catch rather than Jorge the garden gnome.
3: Walker - but I have no confidence in his defence or his fitness!
4: Funa - he’s not been given enough of a shot in his natural position. He’s not a winger imo. If Suli gets picked that’s ok too but his D needs to improve.
5: anyone but Garrick!!!!!! So next in line on depth chart. Tuipolotu if he’s next in line.
6: Foz - thought he was good and will be until injury strikes. May have already.
7ce - god awful yesterday maybe his worst game. What was worrying was how many tackles he fell off. Usually tackles well.
8: Jake - 13 is passing him by.
9: Croker - he is one dimensional but a tough gig v easts first up. Happy to give him another go. Made some tough tackles in the middle.
10: Marty - there were times yesterday where the calls of him playing for himself weren’t unwarranted.
11: Siro - on notice for 16
12: Jack - thought he was ok in the first half. Missed him in the second
13avey- like this guy. Won’t be surprised if Des puts him ahead of Jack next week.

14: Schu - why he was not selected week 1 is beyond me.
15: Aloai - liked his performance. He and Marty could swap here tbh
16: Olakautau - if fit he comes into the bench and performance can warrant him a start in coming weeks.
17: Paseka - had sone strong moments yesterday. Offered good punch but sone errors too.

Waz.......agree with list of your suggestions. In fact similar to what I’ve been calling for. Walker needs to be in the Centre position full stop. Suli to partner him. Funa omeceingv& Saab the other. I’d drop Jake to reggies until he gets his mojo back....gives away too many penalties & 6 agains & puts pressure on the rest of the team. Marty was one of our best yesterday without doubt. Paseka was strong & bending the line constant albeit a couple of errors. Davey needs to start alongside Olakau’atu with Siro at Lock. Siro has been average coz I feel his playing to Haslers instructions. Bench to consist of Schuster, Paseka, Keppie, Saddler. Parker, Garrick, Gosiewski, Jake dropped.