The No-Look News (Schuster Chronicles)

  • We had an issue with background services between march 10th and 15th or there about. This meant the payment services were not linking to automatic upgrades. If you paid for premium membership and are still seeing ads please let me know and the email you used against PayPal and I cam manually verify and upgrade your account.
Thanks for the insight Sir Naysaying Grumblebum.
First of all i have never once said i don't think Schuster can't be a good 5/8 as he has good ball playing attributes ballplaying deep and late into the line.

I just don't see him physically staying sharp and consistent fitness wise reducing his overall effectiveness in all facets of the game year after year.

Manly have had way too many "could be, should be, might be, he does this ok so we can overlook what he doesn't do" types throughout the squad over the years and it resembles a semi professional we will make do look lacking sharpness and hardness throughout the squad.

As for the insights i'll save your one for another day.
 
First of all i have never once said i don't think Schuster can't be a good 5/8 as he has good ball playing attributes ballplaying deep and late into the line.

I just don't see him physically staying sharp and consistent fitness wise reducing his overall effectiveness in all facets of the game year after year.

Manly have had way too many "could be, should be, might be, he does this ok so we can overlook what he doesn't do" types throughout the squad over the years and it resembles a semi professional we will make do look lacking sharpness and hardness throughout the squad.

As for the insights i'll save your one for another day.
Lets give Schuster a chance, with an injury free off season together with the added fitness regime he's on now. I'm kinda excited for what's ahead for the Shoe in 23.
 
If one was told that they are playing second row one year and then 6 the following year,then I am not sure that playing at a sustainable weight range has any meaning.
If you are doing what the staff want(,no evidence against that idea yet) motivation is not really an argument,he is "motivated" to lose the weight because he knows he is playing 6 or he knows that he is playing 6 for real this year and is getting back into the shape requires.
Has he not been already doing fitness extras even last year along with former players like A.Johns saying he is overweight and not fit and even B.Fittler talking about "getting fit is the easy part".

And i don't think his lack of playing time last year was just to do with underlying injuries he was managing.

Josh never required any extra weight to play in the back row he was already larger than many who play that position week in week out so i doubt it was a case of the fitness team saying "put on some weight" to play in the forwards.(if that philosophy is entrenched at the club it explains all about our general lack of sharpness and lethargy over the last decade and more)
 
Has he not been already doing fitness extras even last year along with former players like A.Johns saying he is overweight and not fit and even B.Fittler talking about "getting fit is the easy part".

And i don't think his lack of playing time last year was just to do with underlying injuries he was managing.

Josh never required any extra weight to play in the back row he was already larger than many who play that position week in week out so i doubt it was a case of the fitness team saying "put on some weight" to play in the forwards.(if that philosophy is entrenched at the club it explains all about our general lack of sharpness and lethargy over the last decade and more)

People forget that this actually wasn't that long ago at ALL:

 
The schuster appeal is skill And a desire to be a ball player.

youth, inexperience, and game time the obvious hurdles

the biggest challenge will be if Manly can support his growth, and susequent errors.

having tom as a foil will help

the ability to persevere with the shoe depends greatly on DCE to play a stable, error free role that gets us to the right parts of the field, to allow tom and shoe to be dangerous. Once the eyes are off dce he plays best anyway

that seems to me how it should go.

i presume dce plays right to favour his kick. But id like to see sho, oku and saab together as a combo
playing dce left might make his kick a tad harder but it may have a positive effect as he will have to adjust his positioning which has become pretty non competitive
Whilst I agree with all you say , I still believe if we don't win the ruck and the forward battle it doesn't matter how good your backline is.

Samoa over the weekend was a good example of that , as they were steamrolled up the middle and Leuai and co were unsighted. We really need a forward leader / Enforcer to win the middle and of course an explosive dummy half to capitalise.

Just my opinion.
People forget that this actually wasn't that long ago at ALL:

I loved his intercept in this footage, not so much the one this year !
 
It's beyond me why so many people are deathriding a clearly talented kid who is literally working his bum off to be the best he can be ... for us!
After watching him play for Samoa, and the emotion with that and his late best mate Keith Titmus, I was pleasantly surprised when he opted out of the WC to put in a full preseason for Manly. That wouldn’t have been an easy decision to make I believe. The fact that he did, says all you need to know about his character.
 
Must people, as is indicated in various science articles, dont reach their athletic peak until they are on average around 25 to 27 years old. Though the highlights shown are mainly against juniors, the skill that he showed is not going to disappear but rather improve based on averages. It all depends upon his willingness to train up to the level that will ensure that skill set we see in the highlights is enhanced even further. The ability, speed, dexterity and flexibility are there. He just has to ensure he remains as fit as he can and have sufficient self belief to realise what he can do. His size is actually an advantage with those skills he has.
 
Whilst I agree with all you say , I still believe if we don't win the ruck and the forward battle it doesn't matter how good your backline is.

Samoa over the weekend was a good example of that , as they were steamrolled up the middle and Leuai and co were unsighted. We really need a forward leader / Enforcer to win the middle and of course an explosive dummy half to capitalise.

Just my opinion.

I loved his intercept in this footage, not so much the one this year !

Let’s hope the loss of weight brings back some of his speed next season.
 
Okay, all you fitness experts have solved his physical problems .... and hopefully being fitter will solve the lazy tag as well .. although I can't see him matching Foran for first up in the kick chase .

So, can we now change tack to discuss the other elephant in the room ...

Is he mentally well balanced ... does his brain work properly ... will he make the right decisions on the field ?

As I said in 2020, his no look pass is not his "trick" shot ... it is a symptom of a compulsive disorder .. he throws them 10 times a game when there is absolutely no need, and no advantage to doing so .

I did notice in his last game that he fought the compulsive desire fairly well ... must have been given a tip to lose it by Dessie .. will Seibold and Flannigan share his love of the senseless high risk play, or will they tell him to put it away ?

No doubt the Shu has the talent and skill set to be a star ... but it will be a combination of both the physical and the mental ....

I wish him all the best ...
 
Last edited:
Okay, all you fitness experts have solved his physical problems .... and hopefully being fitter will solve the lazy tag as well .. although I can't see him matching Foran for first up in the kick chase .

So, can we now change tack to discuss the other elephant in the room ...

Is he mentally well balanced ... does his brain work properly ... will he make the right decisions on the field ?

As I said in 2020, his no look pass is not his "trick" shot ... it is a symptom of a compulsive disorder .. he throws them 10 times a game when there is absolutely no need, and no advantage to doing so .

I did notice in his last game that he fought the compulsive desire fairly well ... must have been given a tip to lose it by Dessie .. will Seibold and Flannigan share his love of the senseless high risk play, or will they tell him to put it away ?

No doubt the Shu has the talent and skill set to be a star ... but it will be a combination of both the physical and the mental ....

I wish him all the best ...
"Is he mentally well balanced ... does his brain work properly ..." As a 50+ year Manly supporter saying silly things on a footy forum, I'm not sure I'm in a position to answer that question. I'm sure my wife would agree.

But I certainly hope that will come with experience as the run on 1st Grade ball player.
 
The MWSE five-eight position next season will be Schuster's to lose. I hope he fulfills his incredible potential and becomes our long-term five-eight. I can't imagine any other Manly supporter doesn't have this same hope.

However, I also think there is an extremely high chance that Schuster won't be able to live up to his potential and that the Schuster five-eight Project might only last a few rounds.

These two contradictory "thought bubbles" will co-exist until Schuster proves he is more diamonds than rocks or vice versa. If I had to place a bet on it right now, it would be rocks. Let's all hope it's diamonds instead.
 

Staff online

  • Jethro
    Star Trekkin' across the universe
  • Dan
    Kim Jong Dan
  • lsz
    First Grader
Team P W L PD Pts
7 6 1 99 14
7 6 1 54 14
7 5 2 36 12
8 5 2 39 11
8 5 3 64 10
7 4 3 49 10
8 4 4 73 8
7 3 4 17 8
8 4 4 -14 8
8 4 4 -16 8
8 4 4 -60 8
8 3 4 17 7
8 3 5 -25 6
7 2 5 -55 6
8 3 5 -55 6
7 1 6 -87 4
7 1 6 -136 4
Back
Top Bottom