With Reed Mahoney out it seems pretty simple swap of Lussick in at 9 and Smith stays on the bench. However, it is not as simple, Paulo returns from Origin and that leaves the bench being Niukore, Lane, Kaufusi and Cartwright. So not sure who you pull out to fit Smith in. I do feel Smith needs to be there, Lussick missed 9 tackles in NSW cup on sunday and i believe will struggle with playing full 80 mins therefore Smith on the bench is needed and handy.
Could this be a resting opportunity for say Papali'i or maybe Arthur will put Paulo on ice after playing origin? however it is a selection headache as that bench is our best bench, though with Mahoney out the need for a utility intensifies.
Added note, do we believe Arthur will leave Dunster or bring Ferguson back? i believe he should leave Dunster and keep letting him gain experience, he had a good game and that's all you need from a winger. Is Ferguson more flashy and may create something from nothing? perhaps though those positives are outweighed by the negative in his performances, Dunster should remain at 5, it is his spot to lose as far as i see it. If Dunster shows in a few weeks he's not the winger for us at the moment then Ferguson will come back in.
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Not sure how many minutes Papa played last week but looked like he could do with a rest to get over some niggles. If not I would keep 2 props an edge and a utility. I would keep Nuikore and Kafusi and drp Lane. Lane played well last week but prefer the other two.
Depending on how many minutes he plays in SOO, I would look to rest Paulo.
If they decide to play Paulo I would give Papali'i a well earned break.
If they don't want to do that then Will Smith drops off the bench.
Papa needs a rest, Dylan Brown, Niukore and RCG had a bit of a rest with their suspensions.
I don't know why people are saying Papa needs a break. The form he was in at the start of the season is virtually impossible to maintain for the entire year. It's not like he's dropped below 100 running metres a game. He's still churning out big numbers.
It's called regression to the mean and the plebs don't know what it means.
How is Roache going? Is he ready to be brought in? Lussick just does not inspire me and that a personal opinion.
Roache is going well from what I've heard, but not sure he'll get a crack ahead of Lussick, but if something were to happen to Lussick then we might see him.
I think will Smith will drop of, Dylan Brown might jump in at hooker in the last 10mins of each half, like he did against roosters to cover when Mahoney got concused.
I don't think Paulo will play. It's a tough ask to back up after Orogin.
I feel that was looking for a break prior to SOO.