I only became a member of this forum this week and I have to say I’m amazed at the passion in these discussions. I live in rural NSW, so unfortunately I don’t have the privilege of seeing every game live or meeting the players. I try to get to my fair share of games through the season, but I must say that my opinion is largely based on what I see on TV, read in the media and watch online in interviews and press conferences. The platform for blogging here is really impressive and so I thought I would give it a go and put out my opinion (for better or worse). I decided to make a report card style opinion piece -
Our Spine:
For the first time in a long time, I was excited about our spine towards the beginning of the season. Even during the Auckland Nines, we played with a degree of structure and were able to link up between our dummy half and our playmakers to create some really entertaining football.
I became an absolutely massive Nathan Peats fan, even when a scandal from Bali, 2013 demonstrated the impact of his absence; a 56-4 annihilation by the reigning Premiers. It was cruel news to take, perhaps even crueller that the news came in the form of a personal comment that his season was over and he would be undergoing a knee reconstruction for a torn ACL. For Peatsy, “2015 can’t come soon enough”, he will be back to his best I have no doubt. He is a real competitor and he has the mongrel that we need. I just wish the guy all the best on his path, it won’t be an easy one watching from the sidelines.
Chris Sandow and Corey Norman have impressed me as well. As a pretty biased fan, I have a soft spot for Chrissy’s cheekiness and I love watching him pull off the low percentage plays that he goes for (grubber kicks to himself from the kickoff, touch finders from line drop outs and all degree of forced passes, show and go dummys and throwing the ball dead when trapped in goals). But I still have to wonder with him, is he our long term halfback? From memory we signed him for 3 years on $550k (correct me there). His contract is almost up and I am torn between wondering whether we should offer him an extension or ask him to move along. He certainly has the flair and the talent but I don’t think he has the ability to 'execute the game plan’ in the way that some of the best halfbacks do.
This might be asking too much, but what I would really want to see is a player than can act essentially as an extension of Brad Arthur’s willpower, because he is a fantastic coach with a simple mindset on winning games who I feel really needs a “General”. Do I think Chris Sandow can be that player? No.
But maybe Corey Norman can be. Statistics aside, this guy has great vision and somehow manages to find himself in the right place at the right time regularly. His ability to direct traffic and his aptitude for defence have not made him a target for opposition teams. He is solid, hard working and I feel like he will reach his potential as a part of this team.
It was interesting to watch the game against the Bulldogs where Sandow played fullback and Norman played chief playmaker. He did a fantastic job and perhaps this is the way to balance our halves partners, allowing Sandow to play off intuition yet having Norman control the game and make the right decision on tackle 5. Even if that means sending the ball Sandow’s way and saying “put something on mate, we are in good position here, just go for it”. Having the ability to analyse a game situation and make the most appropriate decision is one of the most difficult things and it’s part of the reason why playmakers are paid so much!
Hopefully Brad Arthur can continue to develop our halves further into the season because I honestly think there is a lot of room for improvement in this area.
In terms of our fullback position, I can only heap praise on our talisman Jarryd Hayne. He has been phenomenal both offensively and defensively. And not just for the Eels either, it was stunning to see Queensland’s grasp on Origin slip. I honestly think that Jarryd is the complete footballer. Since being awarded the captaincy, he has improved from last year in his leadership, although he would benefit from a lesson with Cameron Smith on how to get the referees to see things your way. His ability to milk penalties must frustrate the hell out of opposing players and fans, but his rush to play the ball combined with his strength in getting up off the ground quickly (sometimes with players still on top of him) has seen us earn some useful piggy back penalties. One criticism I have though, is that Jarryd still occasionally attempts to slap either the arm, or the bal,l out of the dummy half’s hand whilst standing at marker. This tactic must be completely eliminated from his game as it does nothing but gift the opposition with a repeat set (quite often on our try line).
Overall, we have potential here, but the key will be whether or not we can achieve and unlock it. That’s only my opinion though, one voice of a huge many.
Still to come -
Backs:
Forwards:
Our Depth:
Replies
Great first blog Tyron, welcome to the site and 1ee family.
I dont agree with your summery of Norman, but we can all agree to disagree, looking forward to seeing a few more blogs from you, cheers
Great blog tyrone enjoy the ride. go parrarar
Welcome aboard Tyron.
I hope u enjoy the banter with the rest of the 1eyed mob. They can get pretty aggro at times expressing their opinions so I hope u aren't the sensitive type. Its a lot of fun though & there r some fans on here with a lot of knowledge of the game & the club, so u can also learn a lot even if u disagree with some of their opinions.
Mick stop attacking Tyron, i'll save you Tyron.........lol
I also agree with your comments re Hayne and Refs vs say Cameron Smith - i have been saying the same thing also
Welcome to the sight and if you want to know about watching ALL PARRA Games live - join up as a friend of mine and ill PM you some instructions - i assume you have the internet running or access to the internet all the time etc
Yep cheers for that Tele1. Really helps for those blokes who can't afford to fork out a bucketload for fox sports. Also just on Hola, you can run netflix as well. Pretty handy with a good net connection.
yes, indeedy me too - also firstrow if there is a limited bandwidth issue but the LS-HT (as you call it) is unbelievably good
Great blog mate. In regards to Sandow, there has been a massive improvement in his overall game this year and the key is momentum. As long as he keeps his nose clean, free of distractions and keeps building I think he could be a real champion under BA, his defense partly because of the outlawed shoulder charge has improved out of sight. That was one aspect of his game he had to get rid of. What we need from him is more of a controlled short kicking game the type that places pressure and provides repeat sets. I actually think that at times this year he has been a let down a little by the others. I still feel Hayne has not exploited his full potential as yet, he needs to get that hop skip thing out of his game and or not use it as much and run more to the gaps and line ( I know I am a hard marker) but I see more that he can do with his game.
I partly disagree Tyron as regards your assessment on Sandow, I like the fact that he plays off the cuff football, something that defences may close down with a more structured halfback. However that said there are times where he should play more structured particularly when the team is behind. Sometimes he overplays his hand in an effort to get the team on top which doesn't come off.