Firstly it's nice to say hi again to all my beloved people, a few family things going on lately but nice to make a small contribution again.
It's been hilarious watching the witty and creative banter going on here lately and it's kept me smiling, but I have wondered if there were people reading it wondering what all the fuss was about and what it all mans? ...this is for you.
"FRONT LOADING"
Thank god for BA's pressers, this site wouldn't be as funny without the fodder they provide some of the wittier members.....but what is BA talking about and why is he talking about it?
Since 2020 the NRL made rule changes to make the game quicker, less stoppages, "6 to go", quick restarts, less scrums....we've all seen it. The impact has not just been a quicker game but it has skewed the game significantly in favour of the top teams.
The facts behind what we all see are significant: there have been nearly 10% fewer 2nd half come backs in the past 2 seasons versus the 5 years prior, there has been a 1.4 tries per game increase in winning margins over the same period, and the points ladder has polarised, the top 4 teams in particular have taken more points from the other teams than in the past 5 seasons.
But so what?
Well it all adds up to the BIG M....MOMENTUM. The rule changes have made it harder for teams to swing the momentum in games because they are getting less possession and less opporunity to stop the game and regroup.
If the term "Front loading" is too funny to take seriously insert the word momentum. Coaches including ours are really focussing on winning control of the momentum early because it saps the opposition and the statistics show that teams winning the momentum in the first half have a higher % of winning the game in 2021 than in years gone by.
Our own team has a 90% winning percentage when we lead at half time (higher than the competition average which is just over 80%) In fact after 16 rounds we had a 100% winning % when we lead at half time. It's a poor and simple choice of words, but simply put when we win the momentum in the game early we usually win.
"CHASING THE COLLISION"
If you cast your minds back a few years you'd remember our games against the big teams like Melbourne and the Roosters where we would go into the early stages very passivly, waiting for the opposition to come to us. We would look nervous, timid and lacking confidence in our own footy. We were giving up big leads in the first 20-30 minutes then trying to fight back, usually without success.
Getting our team to be more aggressive, not intimidated by the opposition and try to physically dominate early especially against top teams is the intent here, I'n not defending it just telling you what it is.
IN SUMMARY
IMO I think the rule changes have gone too far and at the very least there should be rules changed to give both teams a more even chance of winning he game such as "scorer kicks off"....the game wasn't meant to be played with one team having the ball for 10 minutes, this is why they changed the unlimited tackle rule, but I've watched games this year where one team completely gasses out the other by pure weight of possession in a 15-20 minute period.
I'm not here to debate, or incite or spark another slanging match, I'll leave that to the witty and creative.
I do see issues with our team & recruitment I'd love them to win more games but IMO we aren't ready to compete for a trpohy - me getting red in the face and getting into arguements online hasn't helped yet, I won't be responding to any replies.
Hope you're all safe and well, keep on supporting our team through thick and thin.
Cheers
Replies
Hi Enbers, great to hear from you again Hope your doing well.
:-)
Great explanations mate. Still, they are funny terms to make fun of. Hours of fun.
A good read Embers. Thanks for posting.
"FRONT LOADING THE EFFORT"
That's Cheif's excuse for being a premature ejaculator!
Berty, I've rectified that. Watching BA interview after interview has left me with life long limp biscuit prognostics.
Is this what is meant. Frontload the momentum , chase the collision, lose momentum at the top and watch us tumble backwards.
Sounds about right. I wonder if BA understands that in nature if you put all your momentum at the start of a game or the start of a season, nature dictates that you will not reach the top, momentum will stall and you will tumble backwards out of the game or out of the season, so to speak.
I think the old begin nice and steady, build momentum, peak at the right time , and run over the top comes to mind.
Further i'd rather hear chasing the gaps instead of chasing the collision, we might just score more points if we could find a gap instead of finding a player to collide with. Its a mental game at times.
yep the car crash Eels, go hell for leather, and knock yourself out. Now if she chased the gap ?
hahahahahahhahaahahaha
Here's one for you Embers lol
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