Lately we have been seeing a change in approach to how Arthur is demanding the standards for his players. From dropping Ferguson to the point of naming a 19 year old rookie to take the place of Sivo over him shows how Fergo needs to improve further. Dropping Cartwright and Kaufusi back to NSW Cup to fix parts of their game (it wasn't them being rested or getting minutes in as they need to warrant getting mintues based on their performance) and hope he brings them in when they meet what he wanted them to achieve.
In the past we have been critical, and so have i, of Arthur not holding players accountable for the way they are playing. It seems there has been a push and focus of Arthur saying enough is enough and start to hold players accountable to get pressure of himself which is what he should do. If the players you named aren't doing the job, get rid of them for someone who may do it or try their heart out to achieve it. Players in today's NRL can get comfortable, in the sense that if they play a few bad games their paycheck and or experience and relationship with the coach will keep them in the side. That is not how it should work but it does, however Ferguson, 500k a year, played 243 NRL games, played for state and country, gets dropped to work on his game which was needed.
If anything, the longer you have played the harder coaches should be based on them knowing better, though with growing pressure on Arthur in the point of view that he is nothing but a coach that can build a club from ground up and create a great atmosphere for players to be in, he knew he needed to take charge and set standards. Yes, getting to semis two years in a row and being in top 4 this year is great but now is the time to play and act like a top 4 team to which was not the case in rounds 11 & 12. Arthur decided a top 4 standard needed to be set and therefore had players work on their game, giving others a chance to get a spot and hold it.
It is a change i like and a change that was needed however is it too little too late to implement?
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I like it to good for players to know if you are not up to what the team expects you will be visiting reserve grade we do have some depth so keeps the pressure on player's to perform week in and out
At least parra is winning and have been last few years, I just don't want them to stay around the top 4 for another 3-4 years without actually looking like winning a comp and then go back to 10-12th or the spoon again. If we're not going to win a comp this year I least want us to keep moving forward and stay a top side for along time.
I think you are drawing a very long bow here. You've made a number of assumptions that you simply cannot show to be true in any way, and then you've used those assumptions as "proof" of your argument.
Firstly, yes we agree that Fergo was dropped for form reasons, but it doesn't necessarily follow that it was overdue. I like what we have in Haze Dunster & Sean Russell, and I think they both have huge futures, but there has been a noticable drop off in our yardage game coming out of the back field since Fergo was dropped, and it was very noticable against the Dogs without Sivo as well. For our power game to work, it has to start from the backfield. We got away with it against the Dogs, but we'll see how we go against the Panthers. For all his flaws, Fergo gave us that. Dunster tries, but he doesn't have the same power in his game. He has different strengths.
As for Cartwright & Kaufusi, BA has said he wanted to get their minutes up in Cup footy, especially Carty, and I believe him when he says that because I also thought they needed that. Oggie isn't taking minutes away from Junior, RCG or Brownie any time soon & Carty certainly isn't taking minutes away from Papa or Matto, so his reasoning is perfectly logical. Both have been great this year, and yes Carty put in a poor kick last week against the Tigers, but that's the risk of playing him, as BA would've well known when we signed him. Actually playing him for 80 minutes in NSW Cup would've given him a chance to settle into a game without feeling like he had to make a splash in limited minutes in League footy.
You're right, some members have been critical of what they believe is BA not holding players accountable, none of whom have ever coached a game in their lives, yet seem to think they know better than a career coach who is with the players 7 days a week.
Yes, getting to semis two years in a row and being in top 4 this year is great but now is the time to play and act like a top 4 team to which was not the case in rounds 11 & 12. Arthur decided a top 4 standard needed to be set and therefore had players work on their game, giving others a chance to get a spot and hold it.
That whole statement is one big assumption that you've got no evidence to support it with.
Excellent post Brett.
Only area of concern I have is the Fergs one, while we got away with the dogs game without him, his form in NSWcc on Sunday did not do his case much good at least what I saw of his game, and I watched the whole lot. Its possible when the comp gets going again, and the tough street we play against starting with the Riff, the big question for me is does Fergs return or leave Dunster in situ?
Watching the cup match, Fergs was not leaving his wing poistion as much as he did in his earlier games as well as in the cup match, that is an improvement, but not by any great amount. With Sivo back for our next game, that will at least mean we have a better line up, and Sivo matches with Waqa much better.
Which then is the greater risk for the Riff match with the #5 spot? Dunster or Ferg's? Dunster does not wander/leave his wing much in defence, and has the agility to turn quick to take down an opposition player going for a sideline run, Fergs is not as good in that area, but has more experience?
Coryn the weekend break should help Fergs with his leg/knee issues but I really wonder regarding his defense reads, which has him jamming in and leaving his sideline open. His last NRL game was a shocker with him running to the inside player with the ball and away from his sideline, he came to a stop as the ball went wide and try scored. He had his head down, I guess he realised the problem, & it concerns me that even having a different centre with him he did not change from his usual. While Opi is a steady centre, he does not have the speed that Waqa has and he is working well with Dunster.
If there is any concern with his leg/knee he is a risk even with his experience. The other aspect is that the Riff have some ready made replacements that showed up against the chooks and they would play havoc with Fergs, and the right side if he comes in.
In his scoring of a try in reggies, he was almost run down, when he picked up the ball from multiple doggie knockons in a rut, he was at least 15 metres on the way to the try line before the doggie players started after him and one nearly got him as he scored, there was no deviation in his side line run, as there were other dogs on his inside.
It's about time BA frikin did something about our long-lasting right edge defensive issues since last year.. I can't believe he was so stubborn and kept the same problems there till halfway through our season this year... A great coach would have noticed the issues last year and sought to change it. Yeah BA has done significant improvements to the squad in general but he's not practical enough like the greater coaches in bennett and yellemy. Even trent robinson has been known to drop players when they aren't performing but BA kept persisting with the 2 blakes on the right. I hope by bringing in dunster next to opacic, it solves our issues on the right in the long run and can possibly help us get deep into the finals.
I just remember 09, when Reddy and Grothe Jnr were on the right side defending, especially that game against the Dragons at Kogarah, they defended well together, they didn't rush in and were committed/ dedicated in what they were doing. Seeing something like that these days would definitely cheer most of us up..
Defence is always key, regardless of how fast the game is now. Our attack is one of the best in the comp, we shouldn't have to worry about that, and it can only get better if we are defending well as a team.
R u kidding ? You need to get your memory or vision checked, or both. EGJ rushed in every play, to the extent that Joel Reddy used to automatically fold in underneath to cover for him when inevitably got beat.
I like that Arthur is growing as a coach, and is taking cues from the best coaches in the game. Let's not forget he was a rookie coach given a wooden spoon team to begin with. You can see where BA wants us to be - a squad where one player can step in as required and the team balance remains pretty much as it was. Yes last week we saw 2 rookie wingers which limited our drive in kick returns, but that was a risk BA was happy to take, knowing that he had the team to overpower Canterbury. That's giving a lot of confidence to the playmakers and senior players in the team, which will rub off onto the whole team.
I also like that BA is not afraid to do what is needed to keep his players at the best level they can be. Fergerson, Catright and Kaufusi playing reserve grade may have seemed unthinkable just a short time ago, but makes so much sense now for the longer term. Those players will be back, and will be better for their time away from NRL to work on key areas.
Of course there are still areas to work on, particularly in some defensive structures and smart attacking plays. I have no doubt the club has these areas in their sights. Is this all too late? No I don't think so, as it is what is required right now.
Longy, with the general quality of our team/squad, its pretty much possible for the key forwards to have some rotation time from NRL to CC, there are players in CC that can fit in to the NRL team without any real problems, Makatoa is a good example and is similar to Papi, likewise a vg winger in the team, but having a rotation setup with the forwards that are seen as not just potential but probable NRL standard player can only benefit by it, also builds confidence.
BA's willingness to drop players and bring others up is due completely to having the cattle in Reggies to do that now. We never used to be in this position. His options were limited to guys like Gower etc.
He's been working with those young kids almost since he got here. They're just starting to emerge now. BA can take credit for that.