Harold Matts & SG Ball - 2025 season

[ARD]

Excellent thread, this is what this forum should be about. Thanks mate.

[Superdag]

Sorry I have to disagree .
(I have confidence in the new squad players and those taking on bigger roles due to departures of others plus injuries having seen them come through the pathways and their progression as players onto senior reps and some onto NRL) Sorry coming through the pathway playing again kids there own age group is the first step in there graduation to higher levels in the game but to be thrown into fg with a side that is rebuilding is a completely different story you might have all the skill that it takes to succeed going Into the first side but to stay at your best level it not just talent, I believe it comes down to how mature not just pure talent ,success destroys many up and come stars.

[Chook2]

Round 1 SG Ball
Sydney Roosters 56 defeat North Sydney Bears 12

Completely one sided contest from the opening minutes right through to the end. Our forward pack was just overwhelming destructive and everything good we did came off the back of that.

Best on Ground
3 - Kanaan Magele - The starting prop was an absolute beast, barged over for the first try, every carry was strong in contact and made good post contact metres, looks to have some really good mobility and speed across the park and was strong in defensive contact all afternoon too.

2 - Jax Allen - The dummy half scored a nice barge over try early in the second half, kicked a beautiful 40/20, made a really nice linebreak but most impressive was his defence. Really good low tackle technique and seems to have a wire or two loose the way he went in to tackle a few of the big guys. Love it.

1 - Both second rowers* (Lachlan Dooner & Darcy Smith) - That felt like a love letter to their coach Boyd Cordner, both hit hard in defence, were super aggresive in their carries, ran really good lines. Super impressed with both. Darcy Smith has a really nice left foot step and Lachlan Dooner converting from centre into the second row hasn't lost any speed or agility with the size he's put on in the off-season.

Other thoughts
- A lot of really exciting talent coming through from the Central Coast systems (Brooklyn Rosemeyer Half, Darcy Smith 2nd Row, Josiah Fesolai Lock forward) all really impressed
- Lavakeiaho was a scary sight off the bench, picked up right where Magele left off.
- Rex Bassingthwaighte had some nice touches, scored a good try and was good in support but was quiet in the second half
- Tyson Walker, don't need a DNA test.. he's definitely part of the Walker family. First play in good ball was a short grubber for himself lol. Played well though, always easy to overplay your hand in a game like that but he had good pass selection and scored a nice try bouncing off his left foot step twice.
- Two penalties across both grades for incorrect play the balls.. wondering if we're due another crackdown in the NRL this year..

Thanks that’s a great update
I think bassingthwaighte (needs to be named bass - his name is too long) will show real promise during the year

boy Don’t we have a production line of front rowers
Vaa bros along with Seve and Losalu and now these two young boys showing big promise
also backrow with steep, Roberts and Foketi and McAthie all fighting to get to the 17 and now Dooner and smith coming through
dooner is very high rated
And guys like rodwell, Elliot and foley still eligible

let’s hope we can keep most of them and also turn many into gun first graders

[Rooster90]

Is in the Top 30 squad so not sure if he will start in Jersey Flegg or NSW Cup in 2025 - One figures Hugo Savala will be one of the halves in NSW Cup - Half Back more than likely.

NSW Cup only

Hugo Savala - 22 - 23 in April 2025 - half back/5/8

Jersey Flegg Under 21's or NSW Cup

Jake Elliot - 19 - 20 in April 2025 - 5/8
Toby Rodwell - 18 or so - a half back
Reece Foley - 20 - 5/8

Has to be Elliot/Savala for NSW Cup they had a fire combo at the back end of the year
IMO Savala is the next man up for the halves in NRL - he is the most developed

Rodwell/Foley for Flegg, can still step up throughout the year

[Rooster_6]

Round 2 SG Ball
Sydney Roosters 22 Draw with Parramatta Eels 22

Great come from behind fight back with only 12 men on the field to rescue a point, Eels scored in the 65th minute (games only go for 70mins), Roosters won the ball back from the ensuing kick off and scored in what would be the last play of the game. Conversion successful made it 22 a piece.

Best on Ground
3 - Darcy Smith - Love the aggression this left edge backrower plays with, reminds me a lot of Radley in some ways, never takes a backwards step, loves a bit of a scrap, has great low tackle technique and he's just as good on the attacking side of the ball. Runs good lines for his halves, always looking for a carry and has a great left foot step

2 - Mikey Nassar - Playing on the wing although will probably see some fullback with the injury to Rex, looks really good in open field play, moves really nicely and had a really nice touch of class on the pickup off the ground in the lead up to the 2nd try

1 - Phillip Lavakeiaho - Big prop killed it again in round 2, just really good in yardage, has a real good understanding of movement around the ruck and knows how to build a roll on. Identified the opportunity in the ruck for the 3rd try of the game.

Other thoughts
- Jax Allen the dummy half had a mixed bag, did some really nice things but also kicked out on the full twice. He seems to be a very tricky dummy half and has great speed will be really interesting to see how he develops through SG Ball this year.
- Lachlan Dooner on report and will be in some trouble, competed for a kick and took the fullbacks legs out pretty dangerously.

[Rooster_6]

Round 3 SG Ball
Sydney Roosters 14 defeat St George Ill Dragons 12

First half very poor and went in deservingly down 12-0 but was a noticeable shift in attitude in the 2nd half and showed great character to fight back and hold the Dragons scoreless in the process.

Best on Ground
3 - Phillip Lavakeiaho - Again the big prop just super impressive, I believe he was captain for this game and you can see why he went looking for work in every set, got quite a few good offloads away and again just super aggressive in defence.

2 - Lui Lee - debut this year in SG Ball for the winger after playing Harrold Matts last year, had some great aggressive yardage carries, set up a try with a nice flick pass, has a really good left foot step and his solo try to win it at the end was the definition of toying with them. Left foot, right foot, left foot & over!

1 - Brooklyn Heath - Really like the way this guy moves, has a nice powerful fend, finished one of his two tries very nicely and has some pace about him. Has probably been the standout 3/4 so far for the Roosters to begin the season.

Other thoughts
- Liam Bell made his debut with Jax Allen out for this one, really nice left to right passing game, good kicking game. There's just something nice about watching a dummy half with a beautiful left to right spiral.
- Coby Thomas, I'm very confused does anyone know if this is the same Coby Thomas who was coming through as a half over last couple of years? He was absolutely huge and powerful running on the right edge
- Itula Seve made his debut, took some good carries, got about 20-25mins off the bench, expect we'll see more from him the longer the season goes.

[Rooster_6]

Round 4 SG Ball
Canberra Raiders 30 defeat Sydney Roosters 28

Top of the table clash certainly played out that way, Roosters really hard done by I thought. Scored a legitimate try down the right wing around the 55th minute mark, touchie who was clueless all day (also missed a blatant forward pass to a winger who was offside standing right in front of him earlier) said he had a foot in touch. Would've made it 26-24 to Roosters with a kick to come instead Raiders went up 30-22 which ended up being a little bit too hard for the Chooks to chase down. Thought Canberra looked a little sharper in attack in good ball but Roosters pretty much dominated every other area of the game and were controlling field position for the most part, 2nd half were very dominant in territory so definitely put up a good fight.

Best on Ground
3 - Jax Allen - Good to have the dummy half back this week, threw a beautiful cut out pass to set up the 2nd try, showed really good speed on a line break to set up 3rd try and had a really impressive 1 on 1 try saver on the Raiders number 10 who was absolutely huge, had no right to make that tackle.

2 - Phillip Lavakeiaho - Again the big prop just super impressive, in a side that's got some really impressive front rowers this kid looks a step above at the moment. So hard for the opposition to bring to the ground, shows good mobility, good ruck intelligence and his try to get it back to 30-28 with 5 mins to go was just evidence he's just too good for this level which is impressive given he's only just moved up from Harrold Matts.

1 - Josiah Fesolai - In a middle full of giants I really like what Fesolai offers this side, he's always super busy around the ruck whether he's ball playing or carrying, has good mobility with subtle footwork, good tackle tech in defense and threw a good offload in the lead up to the 3rd try.

Other thoughts
- Geez James Finegan is a tough son of a .. for a little guy his tackle tech is so impressive, has no right to be playing in the middle but he's really handy off the bench and plays well above his weight. Will be interested to see how he continues to develop but I love his attitude.
- Kynan Toevai had to come on early due to injury to Uini in the first minute again just super impressive big prop, takes all the no nonsense hard carries. Was a toss up between him and Fesolai for one point this week.
- Easy to see the comparison to Taumalolo for Itula Seve, real thick upper body and the way he bumps off players with ball tucked under his arm is very Taumalolo esque. Still seems to be finding his feet in this side but you can see the talent a mile away.
- Uini injured looked like a headknock in the first minute and wasn't cited again, assume that will mean he misses next weeks game which a prop rotation of Lavakeiaho, Mageale, Toevai & Seve is going to be something fun to watch if they get enough ball.
- Toby Rodwell looked decent, scored a nice try and had some nice kicks but could tell he hasn't done much training or played much with this side, was a little disjointed at times.
- With a top 6 finals format and only 9 rounds Roosters can probably only afford to drop one more game in the next 5 if they want to be safe. Hopes of a week off in first week of the finals probably gone but not a bad thing given I thought it was probably to their disadvantage last year.

[Rooster90]

Round 3 SG Ball
Sydney Roosters 14 defeat St George Ill Dragons 12

First half very poor and went in deservingly down 12-0 but was a noticeable shift in attitude in the 2nd half and showed great character to fight back and hold the Dragons scoreless in the process.

Best on Ground
3 - Phillip Lavakeiaho - Again the big prop just super impressive, I believe he was captain for this game and you can see why he went looking for work in every set, got quite a few good offloads away and again just super aggressive in defence.

2 - Lui Lee - debut this year in SG Ball for the winger after playing Harrold Matts last year, had some great aggressive yardage carries, set up a try with a nice flick pass, has a really good left foot step and his solo try to win it at the end was the definition of toying with them. Left foot, right foot, left foot & over!

1 - Brooklyn Heath - Really like the way this guy moves, has a nice powerful fend, finished one of his two tries very nicely and has some pace about him. Has probably been the standout 3/4 so far for the Roosters to begin the season.

Other thoughts
- Liam Bell made his debut with Jax Allen out for this one, really nice left to right passing game, good kicking game. There's just something nice about watching a dummy half with a beautiful left to right spiral.
- Coby Thomas, I'm very confused does anyone know if this is the same Coby Thomas who was coming through as a half over last couple of years? He was absolutely huge and powerful running on the right edge
- Itula Seve made his debut, took some good carries, got about 20-25mins off the bench, expect we'll see more from him the longer the season goes.

Can't be the same Coby Thomas - he is 24yrs old and left us midway through last year to join the Bears

[Rooster_6]

Can't be the same Coby Thomas - he is 24yrs old and left us midway through last year to join the Bears

Thought so just couldn’t find any information on a Coby Thomas currently in our system.

[King Salvo]

No listing of Sydney Junior Reps squads as yet - won't hold my breath for either the Jersey Flegg and NSW Cup squads to be announced let alone the Top 30 NRL Squad.

[Batemans Bay Rooster]

Round 1 Harold Matts
North Sydney Bears 28 defeated Sydney Roosters 26

Was a back and forth game, Roosters lead 26-16 with 10 minutes to go but two late tries and a penalty goal just before the siren to North Sydney got them the win.

Best on ground
3 - Charleston Te Rore - The starting prop scored an awesome solo 60metre try and then also just powered over for a second close to the line. Just raw power and speed, super impressive for a big kid. Has a good offload in him too and played long minutes, not even sure I saw him go off for a rest.

2 - Baiston Armstrong - The left edge centre looks a really decent player, understands space well, runs good lines, scored a nice try and had another nice linebreak which he probably regrets kicking on but all in all a very strong performance

1 - Lachlan Metcalfe - The halfback I thought did a really good job of keeping the team organised in good ball, he plays very direct and isn't afraid to play into the line, has a nice left boot on him with good distance for such a young kid.

Other Thoughts
- Another performance of note was Jeziah Papa, just wasn't his day but the class and skill level in this kid was very evident. He's a very slick mover.

Very good summary 6, thanks for posting it.

[nayfo]

Carter Mareko for the CC Roosters Harold Mats is a family friend and is definitely a name to remember. Captain of the team and head and shoulders above. Another name to remember is Issac Fotu-Moala from the CC Roosters Laurie Dailey cup team. Both are halves and dominate in their positions

[rcptn]

Nice to see Aloysius Va'a make his debut off the bench in Harold Matts another big bopper.

[Rooster_6]

Round 5 SG Ball
Newcastle Knights 38 defeat Sydney Roosters 32

Very hot day which seemed to play a part in the real lackluster defence through the middle of the field at times. Roosters went in at half time 16-14 up, and lead in the second half 32-20 so they'll be disappointed they let this one slip. For the most part the Roosters were dominating the territorial battle but some loose right edge defence and some sloppy misses through the middle gave Newcastle cheap field position which they capitalised on. Newcastle got a run of about 5 penalties (some questionable like the phantom shoulder charge call) which was what really drove the fightback for them, Roosters just couldn't repel many sets of 6 on their own line.

Best on Ground
3 - Toby Rodwell - Accurate placement on his short kicking game, scored off a nice left foot step for the first try, supported well on the 3rd to get across the line and threw a nice cut out ball for the 5th try of the game. Looked more at home today, not sure what the story is with Tyson Walker but I think if the Roosters can get them as a combo they're going to be a very hard side to beat.

2 - James Finegan - Off the bench again, had a really nice linebreak running back in behind the ruck to set up the 4th try for Seve and crashed over from short range for the 6th try of the game. Again just really good tackle technique and runs smart lines around the ruck for his hooker.

1 - Lachlan Dooner - Had some really nice unders lines that he ran today, one resulting in a good linebreak. His acceleration for a second rower is a real weapon, still seems to be learning the position but really like the angles he offers his halves and seems to have a really good read on the play as to what lines he should be running.

Other thoughts
- Would like to see Itula Seve get some more minutes, hard given how stacked the squad is with front row talent at the moment he's getting 10-15 minutes either side of half time but his best carries seem to be coming at the back end of each stint when he's just starting to feel his way into the game.
- Jax Allen has so much speed out of dummy half, would just like to see some better decision making. There's a lot of similarities to a young Damian Cook in this kid except that he also just an absolute beast in defence. I think we'll have a lot of fun watching this kid over the next couple of years.
- We are definitely missing Rex Bassingthwaighte, real shame he's out for the season
- Cohen Dittman looked good on his first game of the season, nice strong yardage carries and didn't put a foot wrong.
- Lui Lee had some nice touches filling in at centre this week, got a great left foot step.
- We really should've won that game or at worst drawn, butchered so many opportunities including a forward pass try with 3 mins to go and a dummy half scoot that should've been a spread on last tackle with only seconds to go.

[Rooster_6]

Round 2 Harold Matts
Sydney Roosters 30 defeat Parramatta Eels 6

Dominant display by the Roosters boys in what was a game that got a little testy at times, highlighted by their physicality in defence. Just didn't let Parramatta out of their end very often especially in the 2nd half where they were camped in Parramatta's half for most of the time. Roosters went in 14-6 at half time ahead and then ran away with it in the 2nd half.

Best on Ground
3 - Bastion Armstrong - Left edge centre set up two tries and score one himself. Was really impressed with his movement and eagerness to set up his outside man. First try he just took on his centre and powered over the line, 2nd try he set up for his winger was a nice show and go and then real late pass in the tackle and the 3rd put a really nice move on his opposing centre to get on the outstide then cut back in to draw the winger in and lobbed it over the top to his unmarked winger. Really good attacking centre play from him today, looked assured in defence and wasn't afraid to help out in yardage too.

2 - Felipe Fakauho - Left edge winger scored a hattrick today, admittedly not heaps to do on all three but he finished them all well. I thought he was great coming out of the back field though, super aggressive, powerful in contact and real high energy. Really helped set the tone for the day.

1 - Jackson Rodwell - Right edge second rower, along with Fakauho really set the tone for the game with his defence, he was supper aggressive, beautiful tackle technique, chopped down numerous Parramatta players and was not afraid to let them know about it, definitely had them rattled.


Other thoughts
- The starting dummy half, Kalen Cashin had two nice linebreaks out of dummy half, one that resulted in the last try of the game.
- Triston Ross the fullback had some nice touches, wraps around nicely in attack and looks a natural ball player. Nice try assist on the 4th try and supported well to score the 6th try of the game.
- We look a little guilty in good ball of just throwing it to Te Rore but admittedly you can see why, the kid is an absolute beast for this age group.
- Kobi Sitala, bench prop who came on had some really nice carries, Parramatta struggled to put him down all game, keen to see some more of him.
- Overall this looks a very good team, there were no obvious weak links and they worked very well as a group in defence to limit Parra's yardage.