Hayne, Morts etc have correctly received most of the attention over the off season, but I think how Matt Keating peforms this year will go a long way to determining our sucess.
Granted we can't win without Hayne, Mateo Fui and a few others firing.......
However, you can't win a comp IMO unless 2 of the 4 players playing 1,6,7 and 9 are origin class..... and the other 2 need to be damn good.
Morts will be a star, but for now he plays more a supporting role and I can't see that changing this year. Mateo compensates for lack of flair in the halves but without Kingston, Mk needs to go up another level.
His form in the first 5 rounds last year was crap. His running was limp, and the timinig of his passes from dummy half were terrible.
MK has played 50 games. He is at the same level of Buderus at their respective maturity, but he is also the same level of a Cory Hughes. Thing is, we need him to turn into a Buderus, not a Hughes. MK is polished IMO but needs to imporve every aspect of his game by 20%. If he can't maybe we won't get the value out of our speed men out wide.... Can't rely just on Hayne and Mateo to fire things up.
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So yeah, im having the same thoughts about you. We definantely need a number 14 who can provide spark and livliness with a solid passing and kicking game.
MK is a very good player and has plenty of potential, he definantely has all the assets but DA has to get the best out of him.
Hooker in my opinion is now arguably the most important position in a Rugby League team (depending on that particular teams style of play). Ofcourse I'm not saying this is the case at Parra as our focal point comes from the back (hayne) with Mateo our major outlet on either side of the ruck.
None the less though dummy halves control the ruck and the ruck is where a game of rugby league is won or lost these days. A good 9 must keep the team going forward, direct the play and have the ability to catch the opposition offgaurd.
Matt Keating has so far shown he is solid, yet has hardly set the world on fire where imo he has had ample time to. His workrate is fantastic and he is a great support playe, but now into his third full season of NRL he (and his supporters) have no more excuses. Firstly he must stay focused for the full time he is on the field, he is prone to the odd howler of a pass or missing an oppurtunity to attack the blind side etc. Also his decision making close to the line can be refined i.e choosing when to have a dig, when to throw the pass or kick in behind.
He has the ability to be a top hooker and he for his own sake needs to show it because Anthony Mitchell will be sniffing around this season. I myself havn't seen alot of Mitchell, however from what I have he seems nippy and skillful, I know there have been massive raps on him since the Eels signed him so we will watch on with great interest when he inevitably gets a shot this season.
That said, it will be interesting to see how DA uses his brother. Kris is very up-tempo as a dummy half and fans seem to respond to that style of play so if he's used primarily as an interchange hooker I fully expect to see many blogs arguing whether Kris should be used instead of Matt.
This is a trend I thought would grow in the NRL. In fact I think our team has the perfect set up for thsi strategy. Morts and KK for example should spend a lot of time running from dummy half at their discretion but play with the 6 and 7 on their back. The only exception being inside the oposition 30 where diummy half running has less value and quick ball distribution is needed.