SMH article on fullback position

[Guest]

^^^^^^^^ Rothfield if he was a roosters supporter

[davos]

I think that had we played in the finals this year and had we not had big names coming to our club next season then mini may have retired this year. He is well past it for sure and he isn't going to get much better sadly.

But retiring in 2013, where your team makes the GF or even wins the GF might be playing in the back of his mind for him this season. I don't think he is doing it for a financial gain because if he isn't set up for life he will never be. Had he gone abroad he would have got heaps more money as well.

He will never be in the top 5 or even top 10 fullbacks in the comp and I think that the reasonable thing for Robo to do is move him to the wing.Saying that, I hope we don't lose sheck next year because Mini is hogging his jersey all season.

[The Rooster Oracle]

except that Mini on the wing would get slaughtered. He'd be a real chance of setting a new benchmark for number of times rag-dolled into touch. His legend status notwithstanding, there is simply no place for Mini in the top grade - anywhere.

Can you imagine Mini up against 'The Beast' Vatuvei? Boy, that could get ugly!!

The first thing that entered my mind when watching Josh Morris burn Dean Whare down the sideline last Friday night was, picturing Morris and just about every other winger/centre in the comp do the same thing to Mini. And the scary thing is, is that Whare has more pace then Mini.

[kurtsherlock6]

Mini ain't going nowhere and will be a certainly for first grade next year so get use to it and maybe show the guy a little respect for the meer fact that he is a club legend.
Sure he didn't have a good year but he alwyas gave his all. If anything, blame the coaching staff for continuing to select him.

Very well said 13.

[Waylander]

Mini's early season form was quite good. He earned the one year extension with a number of solid performances. No one is denying he badly lost form after that, but he wasn't alone on that front. The simple fact is he lost form, not his entire ability to play football in the space of 2 months.

I see that most people still have Kennedy & Aubusson in theoir team list for 2013, despite them both being complete crap for most of the year as well. Why do you recognise these as form issues, and not Mini's? OK, Mini is getting on, but the 3 yrs he had basically out of the game has actually advantaged him physically at this stage of his career.

Lastly, I think the players still want him there. This was evidenced by Pearces gesture of gifting him the try in his 250th, and the player s reaction to him scoring. If they were fed up with him he would be gone, but I don't think that's the case.

[Guest]

Mini's early season form was quite good. He earned the one year extension with a number of solid performances. No one is denying he badly lost form after that, but he wasn't alone on that front. The simple fact is he lost form, not his entire ability to play football in the space of 2 months.

I see that most people still have Kennedy & Aubusson in theoir team list for 2013, despite them both being complete crap for most of the year as well. Why do you recognise these as form issues, and not Mini's? OK, Mini is getting on, but the 3 yrs he had basically out of the game has actually advantaged him physically at this stage of his career.

Lastly, I think the players still want him there. This was evidenced by Pearces gesture of gifting him the try in his 250th, and the player s reaction to him scoring. If they were fed up with him he would be gone, but I don't think that's the case.

Those blokes are in their early 20's.

Mini is about 100.

That's why!

In saying that, if those blokes don't pull their finger out next year then they can get farrked too!

[Guest]

Mini's early season form was quite good. He earned the one year extension with a number of solid performances. No one is denying he badly lost form after that, but he wasn't alone on that front. The simple fact is he lost form, not his entire ability to play football in the space of 2 months.

I see that most people still have Kennedy & Aubusson in theoir team list for 2013, despite them both being complete crap for most of the year as well. Why do you recognise these as form issues, and not Mini's? OK, Mini is getting on, but the 3 yrs he had basically out of the game has actually advantaged him physically at this stage of his career.

Lastly, I think the players still want him there. This was evidenced by Pearces gesture of gifting him the try in his 250th, and the player s reaction to him scoring. If they were fed up with him he would be gone, but I don't think that's the case.

Mate have a look at what the other number 1’s do during a game then watch what Mini does, and more importantly, what he doesn’t do during a game. The problem is mini knows what it takes to be a good number 1, he just simply refuses to accept the fact he cannot provide that. He honestly believes he can contribute to us in 2013 when his form clearly says he can’t.

He is the worst fullback in the comp and will be an anchor if he plays in that position in 2013.

Chook.

[The Rooster Oracle]

Mini's early season form was quite good. He earned the one year extension with a number of solid performances. No one is denying he badly lost form after that, but he wasn't alone on that front. The simple fact is he lost form, not his entire ability to play football in the space of 2 months.

I see that most people still have Kennedy & Aubusson in theoir team list for 2013, despite them both being complete crap for most of the year as well. Why do you recognise these as form issues, and not Mini's? OK, Mini is getting on, but the 3 yrs he had basically out of the game has actually advantaged him physically at this stage of his career.

Lastly, I think the players still want him there. This was evidenced by Pearces gesture of gifting him the try in his 250th, and the player s reaction to him scoring. If they were fed up with him he would be gone, but I don't think that's the case.

At Mini's age I believe you can lose your ability to play footy at your usual high standard rather quickly. Kennedy and Maubs are at an age where they can turn it around.

The players do have respect for Mini with him being a club legend, and they certainly aren't going to come out and bag him. But, I have little doubt that the players will understand that if Mini is not performing and holding the team back that Trent will have no alternative but to drop him. In fact it would be understandable of the players if they got dirty about Mini keeping his spot with poor form, with feelings of favoritism and double standards.

[Guest]

I think mini is only there until we have a replacement coming through. We all know who that will be but lets just get the kid some first grade experience , learn the speed of the game, understand what being a first grader means on and off the filed, then he will be ready. No use crucifying a kid and destroying his confidence.

As much as I loved mini I never rated him as a footballer.. he just does not have timing ..hence why he was great at bringing the ball back at 100 miles an hour but not much more. How many balls has he dropped coming in too fast or early or late...how many times do you cringe when he made a break and had to draw and pass...ouch.

The game has changed and he just doesnt have the tools and will never have them.. his time has come and gone...but full respect to him and may he have a good year this year to finish off a great career before moving into his wifes shadows!

[mightyrooster]

I'm not one for bagging our players. But Mini's time is up. Seriously. Unless he can miraculously find skills that he's never shown before, next year will be another year of wondering how many shockers Mini can pull off in a match. I envy the clubs who have fast, ball-playing modern style fullbacks - most of them these days it would seem!. Instead every time the ball gets kicked down field, I expect Mini to get smashed, rag dolled and driven backwards. He will drop at least one inside ball a game and miss a grubber which directly or indirectly leads to a try.
But he will be there again next year as the club is obviously grooming RTS to take over and he's just not ready yet. What I am really dreading is Mini getting the C next to his name. Then any glimmer of hope of him being asked to move on will be completely gone.

[chook 56]

Those blokes are in their early 20's.

Mini is about 100.

That's why!

In saying that, if those blokes don't pull their finger out next year then they can get farrked too!

Eloquently put, as usual.

[Vasco]

Mini ain't going nowhere and will be a certainly for first grade next year so get use to it and maybe show the guy a little respect for the meer fact that he is a club legend.
Sure he didn't have a good year but he always gave his all. If anything, blame the coaching staff for continuing to select him.

That old chestnut...

[Guest]

Those blokes are in their early 20's.

Mini is about 100.

That's why!

In saying that, if those blokes don't pull their finger out next year then they can get farrked too!

Eloquently put, as usual.

I'm very upper class, fitty.

[Cockadoodledoo]

Mini's early season form was quite good. He earned the one year extension with a number of solid performances. No one is denying he badly lost form after that, but he wasn't alone on that front. The simple fact is he lost form, not his entire ability to play football in the space of 2 months.

I see that most people still have Kennedy & Aubusson in theoir team list for 2013, despite them both being complete crap for most of the year as well. Why do you recognise these as form issues, and not Mini's? OK, Mini is getting on, but the 3 yrs he had basically out of the game has actually advantaged him physically at this stage of his career.

Lastly, I think the players still want him there. This was evidenced by Pearces gesture of gifting him the try in his 250th, and the player s reaction to him scoring. If they were fed up with him he would be gone, but I don't think that's the case.

The problem is Mini never had most of the skills that are now required of a Fullback, however to put down his poor performance down to form is a stretch. Mini's strength was always his running game and ability to bust tackles. He no longer break tackles consistently returning the ball, more often than not he runs sideways and gets driven backwards. I am not sure how this is going to improve one year on when it is an attribute which has been absent from his game for a number of years now. This is not surprising given his age. He has lost a lot of pace and leg drive, this is not form related.

Also he has struggled in the past few years to get down to pick up the rolling ball. This has also deteriorated rapidly, this is not form, this is physical ability and would be related to his back problems. His loss of pace has also led to his ability to cover grubbers in the in goal to become almost non existant. The number of tries scored this season through simple grubbers was alarming, also the fact he was commonly not remotely close to the ball. Watching the Bulldogs score a try through a grubber in the final round was hard to stomach given we saw on the replay Mini standing on the goal line and simply just turning and watching in hope that the ball would not go dead instead of chasing whilst Barba ran past and dived on the ball. He knows he no longer has the pace to beat players to the ball. If we are hoping for Mini to add a couple yards of pace in the off season, we may as well turn the porch light back on for Harold Holt. The less said about Mini's defence, the better.

The thought that 3 years of injury would extend his career takes the cake, he was out for 3 years with a major back injury. It is a miracle that he made it back on the field at all. This injury has imho significantly impacted on his ability to play at NRL level and certainly prevented him from performing anywhere near what he could before injury. The usual aging process just compounds the impact of this injury. Some people just refuse to accept this.

[The Rooster Oracle]

The problem is Mini never had most of the skills that are now required of a Fullback, however to put down his poor performance down to form is a stretch. Mini's strength was always his running game and ability to bust tackles. He no longer break tackles consistently returning the ball, more often than not he runs sideways and gets driven backwards. I am not sure how this is going to improve one year on when it is an attribute which has been absent from his game for a number of years now. This is not surprising given his age. He has lost a lot of pace and leg drive, this is not form related.

Also he has struggled in the past few years to get down to pick up the rolling ball. This has also deteriorated rapidly, this is not form, this is physical ability and would be related to his back problems. His loss of pace has also led to his ability to cover grubbers in the in goal to become almost non existant. The number of tries scored this season through simple grubbers was alarming, also the fact he was commonly not remotely close to the ball. Watching the Bulldogs score a try through a grubber in the final round was hard to stomach given we saw on the replay Mini standing on the goal line and simply just turning and watching in hope that the ball would not go dead instead of chasing whilst Barba ran past and dived on the ball. He knows he no longer has the pace to beat players to the ball. If we are hoping for Mini to add a couple yards of pace in the off season, we may as well turn the porch light back on for Harold Holt. The less said about Mini's defence, the better.

The thought that 3 years of injury would extend his career takes the cake, he was out for 3 years with a major back injury. It is a miracle that he made it back on the field at all. This injury has imho significantly impacted on his ability to play at NRL level and certainly prevented him from performing anywhere near what he could before injury. The usual aging process just compounds the impact of this injury. Some people just refuse to accept this.

Great post Cockadoodledoo, you have hit the nail on the head there! When you truly think about it, form is a mental thing, its mainly confidence. As Cockadoodledoo mentions, its not a mental/confidence thing with Mini that is his problem, his problem is his physical inabilities due to age and history of injuries, which unfortunately can not be rectified. As a result, the days of the abilities he had in 2002-2005 can not be recaptured.