Once again, we were able to get away with fielding a rookie halves combination, who while adequate, provided little spark in attack and not enough dominance through the middle.
Please don't take this to be a bagging of either Tom Humble or Daniel Mortimer - both played fine, and Humble did well for an NRL debut against a tough opposition. However, as was the case last year Jarryd Hayne carried the halves tonight. Just as Jeff Robson and Daniel Mortimer were last year made to look much better than they actually were, tonight Humble and Mortimer got a free ride off the back of Hayne, who is the best footballer I have ever seen.
Yes, tonight's game proved that to me. His value just cannot be understated. In Hayne, you get a Cooper Cronk and Billy Slate all wrapped up in the same Blue and Gold package. We have some special players running around at the moment, but none can do what Hayne does.
Right now, Hayne is both the best broken field runner of the football in the game as well as being Rugby League's most potent playmaker. He is racking up try assists at two and three a game and in a matter of months he has gone from being a dangerous but flighty playmaker to being as good as anyone in the competition. Whereas his passing was probably a fifty/fifty proposition at the start of the year, right now he's hitting the mark nine times out of ten.
Take a moment to step back and consider this. In the space of less than two months, he has managed to master a footballing skill that only a handful of players in the world are really good at. The likes of Johnathan Thurston have been playing in the halves since they were kids - Jarryd Hayne has really only been given playmaking responsibilities this season after showing glimpses of what he was capable of in 2009.
And let's not even take into account that Jamie Soward is probably the only player who can reef the ball as far as Hayne. Did you notice the 50 metre plus kick that spun back and sat in the in-goal? Simply unbelievable. Again, that's pretty much a responsibility that has only been hoisted on Hayne this year.
So you can kick the ball out on the full to limit the number of Hayne kick returns. You can assign defenders to him to try and nullify his running game. But there is nothing you can do when he injects himself into the attack with the likes of Feleti Mateo and Timana Tahu running off his shoulder. Target his supports, as teams are going to increasingly do, and Hayne is going to have the opportunity to run. Try to jam in to stop his running and he'll fire a cut-out pass halfway across the park and put the winger away.
He is simply going to give opposition coaches, nightmares for the rest of his playing career.
Which brings me to my second point. If you're still not a Kris Keating believer, please go away and watch tonight's game and then watch the previous match against the Bulldogs. See what a difference it makes to the side when the Eels have a second point of attack.
Again, with all due respect to our halves tonight, we had nothing if Hayne wasn't involved. Coaches are going to have to design their defensive structures almost exclusively around shutting down our left-side. I must admit I was surprised when Daniel Anderson showed that he was intent on linking up Hayne, Mateo and Tahu down the one channel. I was expecting Hayne and Tahu to be the focus on one side with Keating and Mateo running the show down the other right side. However, what we have down our left is an attacking unit that is almost unstoppable. Hayne taking the ball at second receiver, Feleti Mateo running off his shoulder, Timana Tahu lurking wider and then Luke Burt as the expert finisher. Tell me that if you're a coach you're not going to be almost wholly focused on stopping that combination which produced all three of our tries tonight.
That is going to open up opportunities to go the other way and with Keating on the right we have another player with points in them that will take advantage of a team that over-compensates to stop our left. He is still prone to making mistakes and occasionally overplays his hand, but he creates points - he's already proven that this year. He is developing a strong combination with Ben Smith off his shoulder and Joel Reddy knows how to hit a hole. Both those players are also excellent in the air and Keating has a knack for producing points off his boot. It's not quite the dream team we boast down the left, but there is enough attacking potency there to force opposition teams to not ignore that side of the ruck.
With the left and right ticking over, Daniel Mortimer gets to play a game he is suited to. He can take on teams with his jinking running game up the middle of the ruck and I think you'll increasingly see him trying to suck in defenders and use his developing short pass to put one of his big men through holes up the middle. And of course, with his strong support game he can lurk around the ruck looking for broken field opportunities stemming from our second phase.
It's a recipe for a Premiership, I have little doubt about that. If we can keep enough of these blokes fit throughout the year, I just don't see any team with anywhere near that amount of attacking firepower left in the competition. And as these blokes have already shown on numerous times this year, they are strong defenders to boot. Daniel Anderson is bringing his mix to a strong simmer - just wait till it hits full boil.
Replies
Hayne is a freak and with the New South Wales selectors once again selecting him on the wing for State of Origin I, i think they have done themselves a great injustice.
To select Gidley at fullback ,is a slap in the face to all true rugby league fans in general. Whether they are Eels supporters or not, the fans know that the selectors have made a mistake, but it will not be until Queensland spanks us in the first SOO game that they too will realise grave mistake that they have made.
The warning sign was sounded tonight , the eels are coming !!!!! You must have hayne ,tahu ,burt,and mateo together on the same side, its simply a winning combo , and point scoring will come easy .
Hayne drifts too , to have reddy,smith and co on the other side with morts. We look brilliant . Finally the forwards shared the responsability . POORE played a tough game and the eels never looked like losing .
We have some real strike power in every position . I know we miss kingston and lowrie , But tonight i saw PREMIERSHIP in the eels eyes!!!!!!! They all will take alot from that win
If you're talking about tackle breaking ability, than yes, Hayne is probably the best, although Josh Dugan has broken more tackles this year.
BUT complete player, yes, you are 100 per cent spot on. Dugan, Gidley, Slater, Matt Bowen... none of them combine the complete package like Hayne does
Are you Sure that was the Storm Game, I will have to watch that when i get back
to Brisbane
Can't Wait i will fall off of the Chair Laughing Jarryd is a Freak Most Incredible
Player Ever and when he gets the Ball it is Magic
I was at the game on Monday night and sat in the stand above/behind the posts. I usually hate watching footbal from behind the goals but i must say it does give you a complete different prospective of the game! Especially when Hayne is playing. i couldn't help but watch Hayne non stop ( although i find the best thing about being at the game is watching all the off the ball stuff)and he is mesmerising!!!
I keep telling everyone and anyone about the freak he is ..... I love what DA has got him doing and its now working a treat. Instead of trying to come with the big plays he is now sucking the defenders in and then releasing these bullet passes outside of him. Its almost like he has more time...he seems to be in slow motion when he gets the ball (especially when he seems to plays the ball)man he can take his time on that.
When he torpedoed that ball down the field.....he had it remote controlled!! And as you said brilliantly ...I cant wait for the full boil!!!!!!!!!!!!
After reading your peice today at lunch i couldn't help but yell C"MON!!!!! and jump from my mac. Scaring the Shite out of all the others in my office.Keep it up man!!!!
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