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ROOSTERS SQUAD v COWBOYS
Round 13 - 4:05pm, Sunday 2nd June
Allianz Stadium, Sydney
We bounced back very well against the Raiders. Some really good power football, with strong, straight carries which we were then able to play more expansively off the back of. That's what I call "Roosters Footy". The Victor on the edge - wow. The "New Beaver" hit the ball at pace and ran some good lines on the right edge. I liked his work and I thought Whyte was damn good in the 13. It will be very interesting to see if Robbo persists with this configuration when we have a full strength pack.
An unexpected bonus this week, with Teddy available due to his (unwarranted) omission from the Blues side. Nothing against Edwards, who is a wonderful fullback, but Teddy's been playing great and has seemingly paid the price for NSW losing last series in a less than stellar performance.
Both sides missing plenty of players due to state selection, but the Cowboys are the more heavily effected. They lose Tom Dearden, Reuben Cotter, Murray Taulagi, Valentine Holmes, Jeremiah Nanai and Reece Robson. That's a huge chunk of their talent. We are without Collins, Crichton, Leniu and, remarkably Suaali’i. Left center is probably his least effective position. A strong winger, yes. Reasonable at right center, maybe. Left center? He has had one decent game there, which was last week. I'm scratching my head over that selection.
Our forward depth is tested this week, but we are still a great side - our halves are both playing great footy, Manu is on fire and Teddy? Well, he doesn't have to prove anything to anyone. He will just keep doing Teddy things, and that's good enough for me. Unless our pack crumbles ... and it won't, we SHOULD win this at a canter. Therein lies the risk. It's precisely in these types of games that we have been guilty of not turning up in the past. I think Teddy's presence this week, and the young guys getting an opportunity this week will be enough to keep us on track. We are getting on a roll, one win outside the top 4, with a very winnable run in front of us. Things are starting to look good.
Now to the down side. I don't agree with those that bag Egan Butcher. He is not a world beater, but he an honest, hard working, and, yes, talented footballer. Every team needs players like him. We really could have used him this week. But, another ACL to add to our recent history, and with Watson, Smith & our Origin crew unavailable, we are up to 112 consecutive games without our best 17, and no end in sight. But even with a re-shaped pack we should be too strong in this one. At Allianz? WAY too strong. Wong and Tupouniua come into the pack, and Jennings is also on the bench. I don't like that much.
De La Salle Va'a, not Xavier, has been named on the extended bench. Pauga gets another run at center for Sua'ali'i. I quite like him, and I honestly don't think we lose too much there. He's not extraordinary but he gets his job done, has good pace and seems to read the game quite well.
Some interesting info. I found a site that claims to have used detailed machine learning and data, and simulated the outcome of Sunday's match 10,000 times. The predictive analytics model currently gives the Roosters an 81% chance of beating the Cowboys. I tend to agree.
Rain predicted from Friday right through the weekend. That might level the playing field a little, but not too much.
Roosters by ... 14
GO EASTS !!
ROOSTERS:
1. Teddy
2. Tupou
3. Pauga
4. Manu
5. Young
6. Keary
7. Walker
8. JWH
9. Smith, Brandon
10. May
11. Butcher, N
12. Radley
13. Whyte
INTERCHANGE:
14. Smith, Sandon
15. Wong
16. Tupouniua
17. Jennings
RESERVES:
18. Dockar-Clay
19. Steep
20. King
21. Eliott
22. Va'a, De La Salle
Match Officials:
Referee: tba
Senior Review Official: tba
Round 13 - 4:05pm, Sunday 2nd June
Allianz Stadium, Sydney
We bounced back very well against the Raiders. Some really good power football, with strong, straight carries which we were then able to play more expansively off the back of. That's what I call "Roosters Footy". The Victor on the edge - wow. The "New Beaver" hit the ball at pace and ran some good lines on the right edge. I liked his work and I thought Whyte was damn good in the 13. It will be very interesting to see if Robbo persists with this configuration when we have a full strength pack.
An unexpected bonus this week, with Teddy available due to his (unwarranted) omission from the Blues side. Nothing against Edwards, who is a wonderful fullback, but Teddy's been playing great and has seemingly paid the price for NSW losing last series in a less than stellar performance.
Both sides missing plenty of players due to state selection, but the Cowboys are the more heavily effected. They lose Tom Dearden, Reuben Cotter, Murray Taulagi, Valentine Holmes, Jeremiah Nanai and Reece Robson. That's a huge chunk of their talent. We are without Collins, Crichton, Leniu and, remarkably Suaali’i. Left center is probably his least effective position. A strong winger, yes. Reasonable at right center, maybe. Left center? He has had one decent game there, which was last week. I'm scratching my head over that selection.
Our forward depth is tested this week, but we are still a great side - our halves are both playing great footy, Manu is on fire and Teddy? Well, he doesn't have to prove anything to anyone. He will just keep doing Teddy things, and that's good enough for me. Unless our pack crumbles ... and it won't, we SHOULD win this at a canter. Therein lies the risk. It's precisely in these types of games that we have been guilty of not turning up in the past. I think Teddy's presence this week, and the young guys getting an opportunity this week will be enough to keep us on track. We are getting on a roll, one win outside the top 4, with a very winnable run in front of us. Things are starting to look good.
Now to the down side. I don't agree with those that bag Egan Butcher. He is not a world beater, but he an honest, hard working, and, yes, talented footballer. Every team needs players like him. We really could have used him this week. But, another ACL to add to our recent history, and with Watson, Smith & our Origin crew unavailable, we are up to 112 consecutive games without our best 17, and no end in sight. But even with a re-shaped pack we should be too strong in this one. At Allianz? WAY too strong. Wong and Tupouniua come into the pack, and Jennings is also on the bench. I don't like that much.
De La Salle Va'a, not Xavier, has been named on the extended bench. Pauga gets another run at center for Sua'ali'i. I quite like him, and I honestly don't think we lose too much there. He's not extraordinary but he gets his job done, has good pace and seems to read the game quite well.
Some interesting info. I found a site that claims to have used detailed machine learning and data, and simulated the outcome of Sunday's match 10,000 times. The predictive analytics model currently gives the Roosters an 81% chance of beating the Cowboys. I tend to agree.
Rain predicted from Friday right through the weekend. That might level the playing field a little, but not too much.
Roosters by ... 14
GO EASTS !!
ROOSTERS:
1. Teddy
2. Tupou
3. Pauga
4. Manu
5. Young
6. Keary
7. Walker
8. JWH
9. Smith, Brandon
10. May
11. Butcher, N
12. Radley
13. Whyte
INTERCHANGE:
14. Smith, Sandon
15. Wong
16. Tupouniua
17. Jennings
RESERVES:
18. Dockar-Clay
19. Steep
20. King
21. Eliott
22. Va'a, De La Salle
Match Officials:
Referee: tba
Senior Review Official: tba
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