Overall it was a bit of an up and down game for the NSW Cup lads, there were glimpses of brilliance and excitement for depth for the NRL side. This come quickly with moments of bizarness. I'm going to go through my thoughts particularly of the players related to the 30 man squad.
Sean Russel - Very young and very raw, Russel i believe will become a decent fullback in high level of the game, however at the moment (being still eligable for Jersey Flegg) NSW Cup is a little out of his league for now. Rankin back there is much better for the team moving forward for this year though Russel should take this experience to improve his game further.
Haze Dunster - Quite a disappointing performance, particularly in defence. He looked lost and indecisive in decision making, even being quiet in attack. Did this performance make me less keen to see Dunster replace Fergo? Well no, but does make me consider will he only be a stop gap or the next 5-10 year replacement? Dunster in attack shows strength with his post contact metres, his leaness and strength in his legs are what push him for metres though in this level he should wow me and i havent seen it as yet, hope he gets a game of NRL or two to improve his overall game and confidence, with Oldfield due back from injury the added competition may be good for him.
Will Penisini - Looked good though defensively needs work with reading, though this could be from switching from left to right centre and adjusting to the position? though for an 18 year old he does not look out of place or out of his depth, making it exciting for this team moving forward. Penisini i feel is not far from a debut, though Arthur i believe would love to see the defensive improvements come into fruition.
Wiremu Greig - a suprising inclusion and honestly looked really good. Ran for 105 metres for 2 tackle breaks, in a performances that makes me feel confident of his spot in the 17 when the time comes. Greig showed experience in that level, toughness and utilised his size well. If i had to nitpick it would be in defence at times he seemed a bit hesitant and a few times arm grabbed an oppenent and gave up on a play. Of course Arthur will demand that to be fixed before a debut is handed out, however the 21 year old still has a lot of room to improve and is not the finished product, hence why he chose to come to Parramatta from North Queensland early, learn from Brown RGC and Paulo to become a full-time first grader. ONE TO WATCH!!!
David Hollis - the man above i believe was signed to cover for Sam Hughes, but also feel he was brought in quickly due to Hollis not developing as quickly as thought. Hollis is nowhere near ready for the top grade and has been a massive disappointment to begin the year. Granted limited minutes yesterday, however only 2 runs for 18 metres, for someone who was dropped to bench that is not the impact needed to get back into the starting line-up. Perhaps a stint to regain some confidence in Jersey Flegg would assist Hollis for a week or two. Hollis i believe will get there, standing at 196cm and only 105kg he is still growing into his body and developing strength, perhaps a late bloomer but for now the Wiremu Greig signing shows that Arthur is not sold on Hollis enough yet to be counted on if our Props start to drop out of the team.
Jakob Arthur - A very composed game from the 18 year old, and though he doesn't set the game alight on thing is for sure, this kid will debut in the NRL and will be at minimum a serviceable Halfback who will get plenty of game time in his career. He is not afraid defensively, possesses a calm and coordinated kicking game and passing game. His passing can be a bit rushed and points and that will come with his positioning and organising improves upon getting used to the speed of NSW Cup football. I very highly doubt he will be given a debut until minimum late 2022, though i do feel fine with Arthur being in development for the club moving forward.
Nathaniel Roache - A far more superior Hooker than Lussick to me, adds value also if added to NRL bench with his versatility being able to play Lock and Centre. Managing 25 tackles and 64 metres running, we looked better with him in the team.
Joey Lussick - Honestly havent seen the hype and never really been keen on him being our no.2 hooker, always preferred Roache. Lussick started with a stupid double movement, only recording 15 tackles in his 34 minutes and ran 2 times for 9 metres. Enough said, Lussick may be fine to fill in for a game or two or even be at 14 for a game or two, but if he needs to be relied on for half a season (touch wood) we are in big trouble.
Cartwright - Showed experience, needed a full 80 minutes and grew into the game as it went on, stats did not jump out but his role in the top grade this year will be to add versitilty and to offer some free flowing game play off the bench. Cartwright should be named against St. George Illawarra, if Smith is only getting 3 minutes than Cartwright can get into the speed of the top grade with his spot.
Jordan Rankin - Shows experience, looked our most dangerous player in attack, though feel fullback is his best spot. He's an eyes up player in attack and having room at fullback would be ideal for him, though at 6 he's offered support for Arthur and if Smith comes back to NSW Cup then Rankin will move back to 1.
Finally i want to mention Tim Lafai, for a player who has played over 100 NRL games, he is being overplayed by Penisini, now is it harsh yes but you can tell the players who have played first grade in NSW Cup but Lafai looks like a regualr NSW Cup quality player. Perhaps explains how he did not get an NRL contract anywhere but still would expect more than what has been delivered so far.
What did everyone think, how did these players go, did one stand out more than others or is one player i saw as being good a player you're not keen on?
Replies
LB, Top notch review!
Nice work mate. I think people need to realise that it is hard for Cartwright to set reserve grade on fire as a backrower unless he has quality players around him. Players with brute strength such as David Fifita can set reserve grade on fire, but Cartwright who has more playmaking and offloading skills will struggle to look very good unless the players around him continue of his good work. I am not saying he shoud be a permanent spot in our 17 yet, but against Dragons he can surely come on for 20min or so to see if he has fixed his attitutude.
Well spotted re Cartwright Electric - early in the game he offloaded with 3 defenders hanging on to him which led to Rankin having an overlap and running for 50 meters with no one backing him. Catwright is most effective when he creates little plays out of nothing which can lead to a break or try.
Exactly. Cartwright creates little plays and than good players are able to take advantage of it. Unfortunately, our reserve grade team is very young and majority are still learning their game.
Wiremu Greig looked really good definitely first grade in his future
Lafai is useless. He has no acceleration and easily gets burned on his outside. Very lazy and his time in the NRL is easily over. I think you have over exageratted how bad Penisini was. I would definitely say he has a lot of ineffective tackles but I woulnd't say his defensive reads are that bad.
Personally, Russel should be spending time in Jersey Flegg. Our reserve grade team is so inexperienced because our youngester are rushed in to reserve grade without the opportunity to develop in Jersey Flegg. I have similar concerns for D Brown because I do rate him but I feel like he was rushed from Jersey Flegg straight to the NRL without any time to hone down his skills and craft in reserve grade. As a result I believe it has slowed down D Brown development slightly.
Wong he was good last week against Newtown. I don’t remember him being replaced in that game.
Great analysis. I also watched that game with interest.
Grieg is a good thing isn't he? I can definitely see him getting a run in NRL this year. What a great pick up for the squad.
Totally agree on Roache. He's a tough defender and pick him time to run well. He could find himself on the NRL bench giving Reed a break. Or possibly starting during State of Origin period if Reed gets picked. Yet another astute signing.
Cartwright will be much better for the run. I feel he'll develop well playing directly under BA who will keep his role simple. Importantly he made his tackles which was what I was most interested in seeing.
Penisini is very young and will keep improving but yes he's not NRL ready at all.
Our outside backs are very thin at the moment. The Magpies fullback was a class above yesterday. So too their winger. We don't have any outside backs pushing for NRL selection at all. Not even close.
Until Michael Oldfield is back. He is not a world beater but capable NRL wing nonetheless.
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