We Played Dumb

[nowlisten]

We had enough possession to win that game, but we lost. Why? Because we played to their strengths, whereas they played to our weakness. Our kicking game was dumber than dumb.

#1 Dumb Kicking Game

Our strength is not scoring from cross kicks or bombs, it's scoring from grubbers (or forcing a drop-out and maintaining pressure) - just look at the Souths and Cronulla finals. We do not have high flying wingers who can score from cross kicks, and we do not have big forwards to crash over the line. Rather, our strength is to rush onto grubber kicks placed in between the fullback and winger.

The Roosters, by contrast, kicked to our weakness (the cross kick and high ball). Even with Wolfman's errors, and even with SBW's brilliance, we could still have won if DCE, Foran, Glenn and Lyon peppered their line with grubbers.

This is not flashy football, but it is finals pressure football. We need to win the arm-wrestle before we can unleash the flashy moves.

Likewise Lyon should have grubbered instead of giving Wolfman a pass with nowhere to go but over the sideline.

#2 Dumb Early Opening Aggression

We know the Roosters forwards would come out firing, so why is Glenn Stewart trying to match this aggression head-on in the early part of the game. It's dumb. Again, we're just playing into their strengths. Did Glenn have a quiet game because of this early injury? We should just weather the opening storm until they run out of steam.

I recall a Roosters game at Brookie where they kicked off to Jason King and Jared WH rushed down and smashed King onto his backside. We know the Roosters forwards would come out firing but we don't have the forwards to match them, so we should avoid the heavy collisions in the opening part of the game.

We played dumb.

 

[DSM5]

Nice to be right after the event.

 

[6/71]

Dumb opening aggression? We had them early but missed Ritchie.

I am almost certain that if he played we win.

 

[MPC75]

Actually at 18-8 I thought we were playing pretty good footy. We got ran over in the end because we had 43% possesion in the 1st half. Alot of this was due to ref error and the 50/50 calls not going our way.

 

[Chip and Chase]

Jamie Lyon might argue otherwise about scoring from cross field bombs. He has pulled down some beauties this year. Choc's try against sharks was off a bomb was it not ?

Kicking game was a little off last night. We seemed to panic a few times on the 5th tackle

 

[simon64]

Maybe your first point is valid but I have to disagree with the second.

The aggression we showed early was measured and we were dominant. We didn't fall into the trap of trying to bash them to the point of throwing the game plan out the window.

We went so close to winning a premiership that most thought we weren't even in.

So proud of the boys it's ridiculous. Toughness personified.

 

[DNA]

As a rooster fan I posted on our site before the GF that the one thing I feared most was Lyon and Co grubbers which we proved susceptible to against Newcastle and I worried that Manly's kicks in goal would get enough points to thrash us. Yet I saw our boys using the kick instead and getting repeat sets and high kicks and a grubber not Manly who are renowned for these things.

The problem is we have wingers who can take a high ball but grubbers have penetrated our defense but weren't really used much. I wondered why when you have the best kickers in the entire comp. Our kicking game last night was near perfect. I think that was the real difference. We played to your weaknesses but you kicked high balls which we can handle only too well, our strength.

 

[Terry Zarsoff]

You can flock off now, Red, White & Blue Sea Pedestrian.

 

[ManlyMagic]

Rubbish! we didn't play dumb.we attacked and defended with aggression. We had the penalty count against us,a game changing try off a forward pass.If anything we tired at the end when the momentum changed.All manly players can hold their heads hi on a brilliant season.How many of you keyboard experts predicted at the start of the season that they would make the grand final.They have had a massive 3 weeks in particular playing with pain killers.you should be proud of your team.

 

[panash]

Rubbish! we didn't play dumb.we attacked and defended with aggression. We had the penalty count against us,a game changing try off a forward pass.If anything we tired at the end when the momentum changed.All manly players can hold their heads hi on a brilliant season.How many of you keyboard experts predicted at the start of the season that they would make the grand final.They have had a massive 3 weeks in particular playing with pain killers.you should be proud of your team.

No doubt we should be proud of our team... however IMO our attacking kicks did not worry the roosters while their attacking kicks resulted in 12 points.

first half try , and wolfman forgetting to catch which forced a drop out which off that set Lyon dropped another bomb which they scored 2 tackles later which changed the game.( at the time they had nothing in attack other then their kicking ).

refs chipped in their favor and they had the luck of the bounce !!!

 

[MK Eagle]

After suffering a replay of the GF today without the clouded mindset of 2 bottles of JD, theres nothing really dumb about it.
More a few crucial errors & execution letdowns in key moments.
Were so far on top when up 18-8 & they were struggling & offering 0.
Last tackle bomb from 35m out that Wolf does not make a play at that ends up smacked dead by Stewart...unfortunately it was from the time of that dropout the momentum shifted, have seen Wolf take 100 of these on the full & he was blocked legally by Lyon gifting the catch.
From that period on there were clear tryscoring opportunities with Lyon needing a standard pass to Wolf, another lottery bomb from a Rooster half dropped by Lyon to restart another set 10m out, some crucial penalty calls not given including a late shot on DCE after a kick & an even more obvious one by Friend when DCE was on the ground already held.
The reason I can't totally blame poor decisions for the loss, That Maloney pass was a clear 1m foward but it was not the pass that created the bust.
Also had the ball in great field position & points were on offer, though gritty that Rooster defence was panicking & making plenty of bad reads, just did not have the direct runners in that last 20m close to the line.
In the end there was no clear cut better side but only 1 team can win & tbh, they did enough.
The theory of dumb play is wrong as the aggressive Manly side had them making errors & looking pedestrian with the ball for long periods, unlike ANY other Rooster game this year.
Also the high balls, Sheck & Tupou have super leaps but have seen them lose some clangers under pressure & Manly smashed them off these anyway. Lyon was illegally taken out in 1 vital call where if he did not take it off Tupou would have crashed him ingoal for a repeat set.

 

[nowlisten]

Jamie Lyon might argue otherwise about scoring from cross field bombs. He has pulled down some beauties this year. Choc's try against sharks was off a bomb was it not ?

True, but the percentage play is the grubber kick into the in-goal area (if you don't score you get a dropout). The cross kick and bombs are too often just a handover of possession, and you can't win grand finals by turning over the ball.

How many times this year have we roosted up a bomb or cross kick this year, and watched as NOBODY contests it? It's just a lame handover.

You don't win finals playing dumb football.

 

[nowlisten]

Jamie Lyon might argue otherwise about scoring from cross field bombs. He has pulled down some beauties this year. Choc's try against sharks was off a bomb was it not ?

True, but the percentage play is the grubber kick into the in-goal area. If you don't score you get a dropout. The cross kick and bombs are too often just a handover of possession, and you can't win grand finals by turning over the ball to a lethal attacking team.

How many times this year have we lobbed up a bomb or cross kick, and watched as NONE of our guys contests it? It's just a lame handover. It's like watching Michael Monaghan and Michael Witt all over again - the forwards slug it all the way upfield only to see a daft kick on the end of it.

You don't win finals by playing dumb football.

---

As a rooster fan ... The problem is we have wingers who can take a high ball but grubbers have penetrated our defense but weren't really used much. I wondered why when you have the best kickers in the entire comp. Our kicking game last night was near perfect. I think that was the real difference. We played to your weaknesses but you kicked high balls which we can handle only too well, our strength.

Exactly. High balls against the Roosters wingers was dumb football. Grubber kicks might be less glamorous, but they would have won us the grand final.