Squad named vs Warriors

[Steggles]

With Toops out, your team is probably the strongest team we could and should be fielding . Maybe if Billy Smith had a few more games under his belt i would have in instead of Momo but that's about it.
Surely the Suaali experiment at centre has to end now, he is leaving us after next year so why bother developing into a centre now, if it was staying long term i would be happy for him to be there longer as i remember Manu took a while to adjust from wing to centre but Suaaali isn't staying long term so back to the wing.

It’s quite ludicrous that our coach sees fit to spend the time (and competition points) to develop Suaali into a centre in first grade when he’s pissing off to Rugby Union, yet he won’t let Walker further develop and mature in the position he’s bloody good at in firsts. His dopey decision then necessitates moving the world’s best centre to 5/8th and Keary to half. Then he persists in picking Hutchinson out of position or as the bench utility when everyone (except a peanut on this forum) believes he’s not first grade standard (but agree he’s a good bloke).

I think Coach Robinson ran out of ideas a couple of years ago and believes too much in his own “guru coach” status. His constant tinkering to attempt to outsmart the opposition only succeeds in outsmarting himself. Remember Toups on the bench for a final? Coach Robinson has been drinking his own Kool-aid for a while now and it could be that the players have had a gutful.

[Chook2]

It’s quite ludicrous that our coach sees fit to spend the time (and competition points) to develop Suaali into a centre in first grade when he’s pissing off to Rugby Union, yet he won’t let Walker further develop and mature in the position he’s bloody good at in firsts. His dopey decision then necessitates moving the world’s best centre to 5/8th and Keary to half. Then he persists in picking Hutchinson out of position or as the bench utility when everyone (except a peanut on this forum) believes he’s not first grade standard (but agree he’s a good bloke).

I think Coach Robinson ran out of ideas a couple of years ago and believes too much in his own “guru coach” status. His constant tinkering to attempt to outsmart the opposition only succeeds in outsmarting himself. Remember Toups on the bench for a final? Coach Robinson has been drinking his own Kool-aid for a while now and it could be that the players have had a gutful.

Could not be said any better
like it’s been said we have a team of champions but not a champion team
some of our players lack confidence like momo, we have players out of position
manu the best centre playing half, where he can’t kick or set players up outside him
and that’s what a half is suppose to do, not take the off run out of dummy half

[Rooster_6]

It’s quite ludicrous that our coach sees fit to spend the time (and competition points) to develop Suaali into a centre in first grade when he’s pissing off to Rugby Union, yet he won’t let Walker further develop and mature in the position he’s bloody good at in firsts. His dopey decision then necessitates moving the world’s best centre to 5/8th and Keary to half. Then he persists in picking Hutchinson out of position or as the bench utility when everyone (except a peanut on this forum) believes he’s not first grade standard (but agree he’s a good bloke).

I think Coach Robinson ran out of ideas a couple of years ago and believes too much in his own “guru coach” status. His constant tinkering to attempt to outsmart the opposition only succeeds in outsmarting himself. Remember Toups on the bench for a final? Coach Robinson has been drinking his own Kool-aid for a while now and it could be that the players have had a gutful.

Won’t let Walker further develop and mature?

We really need to stop pretending that giving him time in reserve grade to spend some time on his game out of the limelight isn’t for his development.

[HunchoRooster]

Won’t let Walker further develop and mature?

We really need to stop pretending that giving him time in reserve grade to spend some time on his game out of the limelight isn’t for his development.

I agree with Steggles completely. Especially the point about JS in the centres. I believe Dom Young said a big part of wanting to move is to be made into a centre. Perfect, he can play there next year with JS on the wing given he has signed for 4 years.

I can't agree with you re: Walker though. Yes it's not the end of the world for him to be in ressies for a bit but he has played 50 odd games for us already, including finals games that he has won for us in attack AND defence (Titans game), been in QLD camps and was apparently an outside chance at making the Australian World Cup side last year. He has won games for us at 6, 7 and 14 yet he is losing his place to the likes of Hutch the Handbrake and Momo. I can't see how him carving up ressies would make him better at game managing us in firsts or whatever area he needs to work on. He has already done too much in his career to benefit from playing in reserve grade long-term. 14 would be a suitable demotion where he can analyse the game and we get the best out of him against tiring sides as he has shown in the past.

My opinion is that the only think Sam needs to work on are his bench press and deadlift and his long-kicking game.

[Steakface]

Why the hell isn't Turpintine jersey 14?

It is because we have both Cheese and Radley that can (and will) cover hooker.

Robbo is picking Hutch because Hutch can do a job in the halves or centres if there is an injury there.

I can see the rationale.

But havnig said that ...... Turpin deserves a better crack than he has had in my opinion.

Walker is pointless off the bench I think - it'll cause organisational chaos on field and defence issues if he is playing his style as a roving 9 or 13. It's starting 7 or nothing for him.

[HunchoRooster]

It is because we have both Cheese and Radley that can (and will) cover hooker.

Robbo is picking Hutch because Hutch can do a job in the halves or centres if there is an injury there.

I can see the rationale.

But havnig said that ...... Turpin deserves a better crack than he has had in my opinion.

Walker is pointless off the bench. It's starting 7 or nothing for him.

Robbo is picking Hutch because there is a hard-drive somewhere in Chooks HQ of their "off-season" together that neither want out...

[Steggles]

Won’t let Walker further develop and mature?

We really need to stop pretending that giving him time in reserve grade to spend some time on his game out of the limelight isn’t for his development.

I don’t disagree that time in the lower grades would help him develop his game, however unfortunately that should have happened much earlier on, not after 52 FG games. Our coach was impatient and blooded Sam at 18 during an injury crisis. That could have been short-term, then back to develop his game in the lower grade. But no, our coaching staff put all their eggs in the Sam Walker basket. They let Lachlan Lam sign with the Super League mid last year, who is a good half with 5 years on Sam. Unless there’s some behaviours that we are not privy to, I think Sam would have every reason to be feeling let down by his coach. The move would make some sense if there was a suitable replacement taking his place, but there isn’t. All that’s been achieved is to weaken further positions in my opinion. Let’s hope this doesn’t result in Walker playing for another club next year.

And if reserves will help Walker develop his game, would it not also hold true for Suaalii to go to reserves and develop his game as a centre? What about Manu; should he go back to reserves to develop his 5/8th’s skill set? Walker is currently a better half than either of those two as centre and 5/8th respectively, in my opinion.

Edit…..and I note that HunchoRooster beat me to the reply with a similar theme. I’m just too old and slow at typing.

[tloos1999]

It is because we have both Cheese and Radley that can (and will) cover hooker.

Robbo is picking Hutch because Hutch can do a job in the halves or centres if there is an injury there.

I can see the rationale.

But havnig said that ...... Turpin deserves a better crack than he has had in my opinion.

Walker is pointless off the bench I think - it'll cause organisational chaos on field and defence issues if he is playing his style as a roving 9 or 13. It's starting 7 or nothing for him.

Sitili or Angus could fill in better in the centres than slowpoke could, just as Victor, Teddy or Suaalii could do a better job in the halves than he could. It’s simply an excuse for the genius Robinson to get to pick his favourite player (for reasons I do not know). Unfortunately his favourite player isn’t even cup grade quality.

[tloos1999]

It’s quite ludicrous that our coach sees fit to spend the time (and competition points) to develop Suaali into a centre in first grade when he’s pissing off to Rugby Union, yet he won’t let Walker further develop and mature in the position he’s bloody good at in firsts. His dopey decision then necessitates moving the world’s best centre to 5/8th and Keary to half. Then he persists in picking Hutchinson out of position or as the bench utility when everyone (except a peanut on this forum) believes he’s not first grade standard (but agree he’s a good bloke).

I think Coach Robinson ran out of ideas a couple of years ago and believes too much in his own “guru coach” status. His constant tinkering to attempt to outsmart the opposition only succeeds in outsmarting himself. Remember Toups on the bench for a final? Coach Robinson has been drinking his own Kool-aid for a while now and it could be that the players have had a gutful.

One of the best summations I’ve seen on this forum full stop. Bravo.

[Thirteen]

After Swarlehee’s defensive efforts from centre on Tuesday he’s the one that should be in reserve grade but they can’t do that cause they need to kiss his arse so he comes back.

[The Lip]

I thought Sua'ali'i in attack showed some good signs he's getting it - a few really nice touches especially the try that was called back when cheese passed off the deck.

yes admittedly defensively there are issues out there that he is partly responsible for. But **** no more than the coaches pet Hutcho who again was out of his depth. You can't tackle effectively running backwards - he always overreads comes up and has to back pedal when they put any foot work on him - and misses the tackle - he does it all game every week.

[ism22]

Judging by the comments, glad to see I'm not alone... Hutch taking up the spot of a hungry forward like Baker, Whyte or Brown or a specialist hooker deputy like Turps.

My thoughts...

1. All good in theory until somebody goes down with an injury (like Toops did on the weekend, while we had Manu playing 5/8). I think Hutcho's strength is that he can play anywhere without disrupting our flow. Heck we won the game with 12 on the field (one being Hutcho). IMO it's easy to downplay the significance of being able to fill-in as a half, back and forward. Toops went down and Rads got binned... yet we still won! IMO that's EXACTLY when you want that kinda versatility.

2. Are Baker, Whyte and Brown (heck add May and big Pappi to the list why don't you) REALLY hungry or has Robbo kept them in reggies because Hutcho makes less errors in 1st grade and can do more than replace an injured prop? Thing is... if you put one of those guys into 1st grade, you're looking to push JWH, Collins or Rads off the field for them. If you're putting Lodge on for JWH/Collins then GREAT!!! Crichton or Sitili on for one of the Butcher brothers? GREAT!!! Right now I dunno if Baker / Whyte / Brown / May / Wongie / Big Papi / Turpin...etc have proven they will match that standard. IMO right now Robbo wants JWH, Collins, Radley, Lodge, Crichton, Smiddy and the Butcher brothers to get as much gametime as possible so that we can dominate the ruck. He doesn't want us having soft spots where JWH, Collins, Radley and Cheese leave the field while Baker, Whyte, Brown and Turpin try their best.

3. Hutcho plays limited minutes and is there to replace inevitable injuries/sin-bins/HIAs (I'd say we get on average at least 1 a game). He's not there to pack a punch or razzle dazzle the opposition. Quite the opposite! He's there to fit-in as a connecting player who's gonna make no stupid errors while the player he's replacing is unavailable. The problem with a lot of our specialist reggies is that they can only play one position and they're not playing that position to the standard Robbo finds acceptable for 1st grade.

4. Cam Smith had a point the other week... why was Walker punished for his form and not Radley for getting binned & costing us games? I suspect the answer is partly because Brown would offer less punch, less ball playing skills and probably still get sin-binned in the process.

[ism22]

I thought Sua'ali'i in attack showed some good signs he's getting it - a few really nice touches especially the try that was called back when cheese passed off the deck.

yes admittedly defensively there are issues out there that he is partly responsible for. But **** no more than the coaches pet Hutcho who again was out of his depth. You can't tackle effectively running backwards - he always overreads comes up and has to back pedal when they put any foot work on him - and misses the tackle - he does it all game every week.

I appreciate there's more to his game than scoring tries off kicks, but is it just me... I'm yet to see him take ownership of the air. With his height and leap, I expect him to be more of a threat.

The Sharks game was frustrating to me as they had a stocky dude defending him and he got dominated both by the guy's running game and his defence of aerial raids.

Dunno! Is this partly why Walker has been dropped? We're struggling to score tries. With the height and talent we've got in our backline, I woulda thought that a decent half could be scoring some pretty simple tries off bombs all night without THAT much effort.

[HunchoRooster]

My thoughts...

1. All good in theory until somebody goes down with an injury (like Toops did on the weekend, while we had Manu playing 5/8). I think Hutcho's strength is that he can play anywhere without disrupting our flow. Heck we won the game with 12 on the field (one being Hutcho). IMO it's easy to downplay the significance of being able to fill-in as a half, back and forward. Toops went down and Rads got binned... yet we still won! IMO that's EXACTLY when you want that kinda versatility.

2. Are Baker, Whyte and Brown (heck add May and big Pappi to the list why don't you) REALLY hungry or has Robbo kept them in reggies because Hutcho makes less errors in 1st grade and can do more than replace an injured prop? Thing is... if you put one of those guys into 1st grade, you're looking to push JWH, Collins or Rads off the field for them. If you're putting Lodge on for JWH/Collins then GREAT!!! Crichton or Sitili on for one of the Butcher brothers? GREAT!!! Right now I dunno if Baker / Whyte / Brown / May / Wongie / Big Papi / Turpin...etc have proven they will match that standard. IMO right now Robbo wants JWH, Collins, Radley, Lodge, Crichton, Smiddy and the Butcher brothers to get as much gametime as possible so that we can dominate the ruck. He doesn't want us having soft spots where JWH, Collins, Radley and Cheese leave the field while Baker, Whyte, Brown and Turpin try their best.

3. Hutcho plays limited minutes and is there to replace inevitable injuries/sin-bins/HIAs (I'd say we get on average at least 1 a game). He's not there to pack a punch or razzle dazzle the opposition. Quite the opposite! He's there to fit-in as a connecting player who's gonna make no stupid errors while the player he's replacing is unavailable. The problem with a lot of our specialist reggies is that they can only play one position and they're not playing that position to the standard Robbo finds acceptable for 1st grade.

4. Cam Smith had a point the other week... why was Walker punished for his form and not Radley for getting binned & costing us games? I suspect the answer is partly because Brown would offer less punch, less ball playing skills and probably still get sin-binned in the process.

Noble points mate and I respect your opinion but I don't see how Hutch does any of that. He is a warm body in a position and offers no more than what Sitili or Gus would offer in the centres if they needed to go there due to an injury, no more than what Radley offers at hooker (which isn't a lot), etc. He is a slow, unathletic old school game managing half that should be used as such and nothing more.

Despite me being considered a "Hutch hater" I would actually have been less annoyed/concerned if Robbo straight replaced Walker with Hutch as a half for a little bit because Drew has a large boot, calm head and can free up others to do their thing. Anyways, I'll continue to question his role as a 14 or makeshift centre until I'm blue in the face.

[Tommy Smith]

Corey Allan and Drew Hutchison in 1st grade. Sam Walker in reserves.

I'll never understand that one.

If we lose Walker over this long term, only 5yr contract extensions each to Corey Allan and Drew Hutchison could possibly console us.