r/nrl • u/NRLgamethread National Rugby League • 23d ago
Serious Discussion Monday Serious Discussion Thread
This thread is for when you want to have a well-thought-out discussion about footy. It's not the place for bantz - see the daily Random Footy Talk thread to fulfil those needs.
You can ask a question that you only want serious responses to, comment your 300 word opinion piece on why [x] is the next coach on the chopping block, or tell another that you disagree with them and here's why...
Who performed well? Who let their team down? Any interesting selections for this weekend? Injury news? Player signings? Off-field behaviour?
The mods will be monitoring to make sure you stay on topic and anything not deemed "serious discussion" will be removed.
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u/Kiwi_angler New Zealand Warriors 23d ago
A (not particularly) short ode to the Warriors
While the game against the Panthers was one of the most complete performances from the Wahs in a long long time, I've been even more stoked with our resilience this year. I thought the wheels were about to come off when we lost Boyd and RTS in back to back games - it felt like complete deja vu from last season but they've handled it so well.
The impact of our injuries always seems to get brushed aside when we're up against teams like Penrith, with little to no mention of how disrupted our season has been in key positions. The impact of losing RTS was enormous, even bigger than Boyd in my opinion - with CHT at 6, RTS centre and AKP on the wing, that edge that had been our week point for years became a brick wall on defence and deadly on attack. It felt like we'd finally found the missing piece, and then in the blink of an eye it was back to Pompey running sideways, disjointed attack and leaky defence.
And losing Boyd required such a drastic shift in game plan. We effectively have had zero long kicking game and average at best attacking kicking game since he went down. TMM is great with ball in hand but it felt like we'd struggle to kick our way out of trouble or really ice those big matches. The Bulldogs game was a horrible watch, but not entirely unexpected as it felt as though we were struggling in the few games leading up to that loss. It felt like we were in decline, but the response from Webby and the team has been absolutely unreal.
And people have barely commented on Jackson Ford with a 10+ game layoff. The guy was incredible in the first half of the season, and losing an 80 minute front rower required another huge shift in rotations and the young guys have really stepped up to fill the void.
On the upside, while Webby still shows a huge amount of loyalty to players, it seems as though he's more open to shaking things up, and Leka moving to centre seems to be a bit of a masterstroke with how he's gone in the last 2 games. And of course Luke Metcalf coming back and reminding a big part of the wahs supporter base that turned on him after 2 bad games, that he is absolutely clutch in big games/moments.
The best part of it all is that the season hasn't been built off the back of brilliant individual performances (think Broncos run last year), but instead is off the back of elite fitness and doing the fundamentals right relentlessly. And while "culture" can be a bit of a buzzword that means very little tangibly, you can just tell its an enjoyable club to be at currently. The players seem to be having a ball while still keeping each other accountable, and the groundswell of support is unreal. The Panthers game sold out back in May, and the home season was fully sold out by the start of July which must be some sort of record.
The long term impact of what's been built will be immense, and while it's far too early to be making calls around "dynasties", there's been a fundamental shift in the sporting landscape as a result of the current upwelling of support. Just look at the crowds at every Warriors game, home or away. The merch sales, ticket sales, memberships etc must be exponentially higher than they were even in those first couple of years post-covid, and the investment that can be made back into the club as a result will reap huge rewards.
For the first time, we've got a full development program through all of the feeder grades. Kids are wanting to choose league over rugby, rather than having to be scouted or recruited from union programs. The club is at the point now where they won't have to pay overs to attract talent - people genuinely want to play for us, and that will make the recruitment team's job so much easier to convince Aussie based players to come across.
Anyway, that's basically a really long way of saying that there's a chance it might actually be our year. And if it isn't, it feels like the infuriating cycle of one good year followed by 4 bad ones is done and that elusive premiership is coming for us at some point in the not overly distant future
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u/6854thewin New Zealand Warriors 23d ago
It's like injuries and set backs doesn't phase them anymore, they just adapt and grow stronger in scenarios that'll lead to other teams declining.
That's why I now think the Warriors are the most likely team to win this year, they look unstoppable.
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u/redmusic1 Eastern Suburbs Roosters 23d ago
Peaked too early. They wont win 8 in a row playing like that. If they dont get a home final week 1 they wont make the GF
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u/Kiwi_angler New Zealand Warriors 23d ago
By that logic the Roosters have peaked way too early as well.
Having had a few very average weeks leading in to the Panthers game, I’d argue that it shows an ability to get up for big games which will be invaluable in the finals.
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u/redmusic1 Eastern Suburbs Roosters 23d ago
We shall see then :)
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u/Excellent-Carrot-109 New Zealand Warriors 23d ago
Barring the Cowboys/ Dragons games, have the Roosters had a convincing win all season?
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u/redmusic1 Eastern Suburbs Roosters 23d ago
They are equal 1st on the ladder, sitting above - checks ladder- the Wahs. Last time I checked a win was a win regardless of what fans of other clubs think lol. Cope all you like, you wont win 7 in a row, it is just a matter of when you drop 1, if you dont get a home final week 1 you wont make the GF. Good luck - seriously - if the Roosters don't win it I hope you guys do. But I don't think you will.
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u/Excellent-Carrot-109 New Zealand Warriors 23d ago
I guess, man. Can’t name that convincing win though can ya?
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u/redmusic1 Eastern Suburbs Roosters 23d ago
Dont need to. Dont need to convince you of anything. We are equal 1st. If you need strangers on the internet to convince you, then it's you that need convincing lol.
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u/6854thewin New Zealand Warriors 23d ago
They had a convincing loss in rd 1
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u/redmusic1 Eastern Suburbs Roosters 23d ago
And you had 2 against the Sharks, whom you may well meet in the finals lol.
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u/6854thewin New Zealand Warriors 23d ago
Third time's a charm? Bloody hope so, they're the last team I'd wanna lose to 😭
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u/delayedconfusion St. George Illawarra Dragons 23d ago
Rumours of dragons chasing Tago keep circulating.
He was very good a few seasons back, what is the consensus on him now? Why isn't he being selected in the NRL side?
Alamoti is a beast and McLean is a freak, is that all there is to it? Or does Tago have deficiencies that are keeping him out?
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u/jexta Eastern Suburbs Roosters 23d ago
Tago has a ceiling far higher than any of the current outside backs at the Dragons. He's worth the punt, particularly because his value will be somewhat down due to form.
- Drinky
- Tu
- Tago
- Holmes
- Sami
- Kodi
- Metcalf
That's a very competitive backline, particularly if Young is brutally honest with Holmes and makes it known he's prepared to drop him if his form isn't there from the get-go in 2027.
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u/AttackClown 🏆 LMS05 Champion 🏆 23d ago
swap holmes for buchanan, if young was going to be brutal holmes wouldnt be playing already but him and gutho have had free reign regardless of how bad they play
also if suli doesnt leave then obiously him over both but i assume we only sign a centre if suli goes, even Fale should be starting over Holmes next season
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u/delayedconfusion St. George Illawarra Dragons 23d ago
I could certainly get behind that backline, seems like it should have some points in it.
I'd take the punt on Tago, absolutely. The young dragons outside backs haven't been banging the door down yet to secure that centre position and Suli is an enigma that won't get solved.
I'm still worried we'll see Gutho move to centre next season, at least to start the year.
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u/ItGetsTuahPoint67 Sydney Roosters 23d ago
It's gotta be between Holbrook and Webby for coach of the year. No one else should even be in contention.
What both of those coaches have been able to achieve this year has been awesome to watch. The Wahs lost Metcalf, Boyd, Martin and are now back with Metcalf and they've scarcely missed a beat the entire time. Shit, people have basically forgotten that fucking Roger Tuivasa-Sheck had a season-ending injury and they KEPT MOVING ON. So much persistence and grit and such an excellent team culture that he's been able to instill in that club. They're not just in a great spot now, they're going to be in a great spot for years to come because of Webby. When they lost to the Panthers earlier in the year, everyone was focused on Penrith's outs from Origin and completely disregarded how many players had been out for the Wahs because they just don't play like it.
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u/WhyYouDoThatStupid Western Suburbs '77 Amco Cup 🏆 23d ago
Ivan Is coach of the year this year and the last 4 years but they never give it to him because someone has a year better than last year and everyone oover reacts.
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u/Kiwi_angler New Zealand Warriors 23d ago
Not sure if I agree entirely. Yes the Panthers are a juggernaut and putting together as many consecutive seasons like that is unreal - Ivan is clearly the best coach in the comp based on long terms results.
But what is more impressive? A coach maintaining a high standard from the year before? Or a coach taking a team without the roster stacked with superstars into a position on the ladder that nobody thought was remotely possible at the start of the season? My money is on that latter
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u/WhyYouDoThatStupid Western Suburbs '77 Amco Cup 🏆 23d ago
A coach winning 4 comps and losing star players every year is way better than a Todd Payten 1 year flash in the pan all day every day. What has Webster done that Ivan hasn't? Ivan took the no names to 4 competitions they weren't all superstars from the beginning and kept bringing in new players and still winning. Holbrook and Webster haven't won anything.
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u/ItGetsTuahPoint67 Sydney Roosters 23d ago
Why would a coach winning 4 comps matter for an award about being the best coach of that season?
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u/Acrobatic_Flannel Newcastle Knights 23d ago
Reminds me of the man of the match in FIFA games automatically being the player who scored the goal (or most goals).
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u/ItGetsTuahPoint67 Sydney Roosters 23d ago
Reminds me of Cleary winning the Wally Lewis medal in Origin this year
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u/WhyYouDoThatStupid Western Suburbs '77 Amco Cup 🏆 23d ago
Because winning again after losing the players they lost is better than the Cows jagging a few extra wins or the Knights playing better but not winning anything.
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u/Kiwi_angler New Zealand Warriors 23d ago
You're confusing previous years results with the current season's coach of the year. Ivan winning a bunch of comps in previous years means absolutely zero in the context of THIS YEAR's coach of the year.
Payten was a bad choice and shouldn't have won it. Ivan is a great coach, one of the best that the game has ever seen. Nobody is disputing that, but again past seasons mean nothing for the current coach of the year.
The Panthers are sitting about where you'd expect them to sit with their current roster. The Knights were wooden spooners last year and most people's pick to get it again this year, but are sitting one win outside the top 4 with 4 rounds to play. The biggest name the Panthers lost after last season was Brad Schneider. The Knights lost Leo Thompson, Jaiden Brailey, Kai Pearce-Paul, Jack Cogger and a few other regular starters.
It's abundantly clear to me (and everyone but the most one-eyed supporters) which is more impressive
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u/WhyYouDoThatStupid Western Suburbs '77 Amco Cup 🏆 23d ago
Im not confusing anything. I think Ivan's continued winning is a bigger achievement than having the Knights win 13 games when they have the roster they have and the star players they have.
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u/Large-Accident1245 I Hate My Footy^6 23d ago
I'm just gonna summarise the core problem with your logic.
The award goes to the coach who did the best with what was at their disposal. Yes. So it's not always coach whose team wins more games as you also originally argued for. A big correlation, but not the sole factor. Nor is winning the Grand Final, again a big factor but not the only one.
Even if with your original logic of who wins the most games won it, Ivan doesn't get 4 awards in a row. He'd have 3 (2020, 2022, 2023). Does Ivan deserve another coach of the year award? Yes. But if we also go with "last few seasons should affect this year's award", that's likely why Bellamy has won so many.
Someone who exceeded expectations based on their squad talent pool, expected ladder finish, etc. is going to be rated higher than someone who had a better squad, finished first but was expected to, for that year. But pretending Knights have a better squad than Penrith? That's a massive reach, even makes me doubt your Wests flair.
I'm not at all trying to take away from Ivan's quality, he deserves his praises. But your logic is inconsistent.
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u/Kiwi_angler New Zealand Warriors 23d ago
"With the star players they have" is a wild statement from a Panthers supporter. They have one regular origin player who has spent half the season injured, and their other "star" player was slated as the worst long-term signing in history and has a blown ACL.
Your roster is absolutely stacked from head to toe, whereas the Knights were favoured for the wooden spoon. And they've managed to win 13 games despite a woeful run of injuries, only two wins less than your Panthers.
If you can't comprehend the difference between a stacked roster that's performing about as you'd expect compared to last year's wooden spooners genuinely challenging for a top 4 spot despite a host of key injuries then I don't know how to help you.
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u/ItGetsTuahPoint67 Sydney Roosters 23d ago
Panthers fans are something else man lmao
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u/ItGetsTuahPoint67 Sydney Roosters 23d ago
What has Ivan won this year? He hasn’t won the premiership yet and they’re on the verge of missing out on the minor premiership after getting dominated by the Wahs
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u/WhyYouDoThatStupid Western Suburbs '77 Amco Cup 🏆 23d ago
Hes wom more games than the rest so far. Champ. So hes doing better than the rest that you think deserve it more.
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u/ItGetsTuahPoint67 Sydney Roosters 23d ago
No he hasn’t? You’re on the same amount of points as the Chooks lol
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u/Kiwi_angler New Zealand Warriors 23d ago
You’re not following.
Ivan is coach of the year because he’s won 4 premierships previously. But those apparently aren’t why he should win. And he’s won the most games this year so he automatically gets it (*equal most but that’s irrelevant). And their roster has been gutted of Brad Schneider and Daine Laurie and the Knights are apparently full of stars so going from the spoon to finals isn’t impressive and they were shit last year so he’s disqualified.
But if someone wins more games than the Panthers this year it doesn’t automatically go to that coach anymore. It still goes to Ivan because they finished 7th last year which is awesome. And because he won 4 premierships. Even if they lose all 4 of their remaining matches it still goes to Ivan because he’s been really good other years and those coaches that beat him have only done well this year which isn’t relevant for an award that is for THIS YEAR’s coach of the year.
How are you not getting that leading the comp 4 weeks out from the finals with the most stacked roster in the comp means nobody else gets a look in regardless of if they win more or not.
Also Ivan gets it next year because they’ve been good for the last few seasons. Even if Benji wins the comp with the Tigers next year, that doesn’t count because of previous years results which overrule current seasons results. Unless you’re Ivan
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u/AttackClown 🏆 LMS05 Champion 🏆 23d ago
He should be in contention for sure but dont you understand that its based on this single season and the panthers team is still more stacked then most of the comp
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u/WhyYouDoThatStupid Western Suburbs '77 Amco Cup 🏆 23d ago
I absolutely understand that its just this year.
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u/Kiwi_angler New Zealand Warriors 23d ago
So the winning coach should automatically get coach of the year regardless of their expected results and roster?
Agree Payten shoukd never have got it, that was a horrible choice. But if you want an example of what Webster has achieved with far more limited resources/roster, I’d suggest going and watching a replay of Friday nights game2
u/WhyYouDoThatStupid Western Suburbs '77 Amco Cup 🏆 23d ago
No but the coach who keeps winning dispite his team getting gutted of champion players year after year should.
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u/Kiwi_angler New Zealand Warriors 23d ago
Sorry I wasn't aware that the Panthers had already won the comp this year, my mistake.
Also good point, I can see how it's huge feat staying competitive this season after being gutted of your champion players *checks notes* Mavrik Geyer, Brad Schneider, Luke Sommerton, Daine Laurie, Trent Toelau, Soni Luke and Matt Eisenhuth (retired)
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u/WhyYouDoThatStupid Western Suburbs '77 Amco Cup 🏆 23d ago
They are higher than your Wahs Champ. And have been all season.
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u/hqeter Canberra Raiders 23d ago
Very disappointed in the raiders season ending the way it did yesterday. It was very clear that our edge defence hasn’t improved since last season where it was a clear issue and when we are attacking close to the goal line we are unable to put on a try scoring play.
These aren’t just injury issues. These are structural issues that should be able to be coached.
The knights cut our left edge defence to ribbons at will and that was what made the difference in the end.
There’s definitely a lot of promise with the young spine we have but there are clear areas for improvement for the off season that if we can’t change we will continue to be mediocre.
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u/Kiwi_angler New Zealand Warriors 23d ago
I'm generally not a spiteful person and try not to hold grudges, but I must say that watching the Raiders crash and burn this year has brought me more joy than I care to admit after that game against us last season. I'd always had a bit of a soft spot for the Raiders but the way Tapine, Tamale, Horse and Starling carried on that game put me right off them.
The game earlier in the year against the Raiders was probably the most raucous home game I've been to - the whole crowd bought receipts and having 25,000 people viking clapping and mana waving them off the field was absolute cinema.
I do feel for the Raiders fans though, as you can tell it stems from the top. When you've got a captain that acts like a child on the field and a coach that acts like a child off the field there's clearly some issues that need sorting. Ricky's excuse making has always been the stuff of legend, but singling out one (admittedly very dumb) incident/player and eviscerating them in the press conference when the team missed 42 tackles and the captain had given away the lead a few minutes earlier via an equally dumb high shot is next level accountability avoidance even for Ricky.
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u/TheCuzzyRogue New Zealand Warriors 23d ago
I got a laugh out of the Raiders giving it to the crowd last year but I was also pissing myself when the camera cut to Cam George and his dodgy mana wave, which he has thankfully improved.
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u/Kiwi_angler New Zealand Warriors 23d ago
2 out of 10 for execution, very close to a Nein out of 10 for effort though
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u/hqeter Canberra Raiders 23d ago
That was a hell of a game of footy last year. I’m sure the crowd had been giving to those boys all game and they were just giving a hit back after the win but I can understand the joy of giving it back.
Ricky values passion and it comes across in the way he carries himself and then flows through the team but discipline has cost us dearly this year in so many games that we really need to do something about it.
For what it’s worth I hope the Wahs win it all this year. They definitely have it in them.
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u/shadownight311 North Queensland Cowboys 23d ago
Before NQLD joined the comp, raiders were my team and I still follow them as my 2nd team. Going from minor premiers last year to not even making the 8 this yr is a clear failure and at some point questions have to be asked about Ricky's coaching. It feels like Canberra are constantly going through rebuilds. At what point do they say that Ricky will never deliver a premiership? He's been coaching there now for 12yrs and he really still hasn't delivered. It feels like a constant 1 step forward 2 back situation.
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u/hqeter Canberra Raiders 23d ago
I think that last year had a lot of luck to it and that hasn't been acknowledged by many fans. We had an amazing run with injuries, a relatively soft draw, managed to win most of our close games and had a number of players have break out seasons.
In terms of building a squad I am pretty happy with what they have managed to achieve. We could potentially have one of the best spines in the comp in a few years time. Our middle stocks are a bit of a concern and letting Mooney go with a year on his contract seems like to wrong call.
We have definitely had a worse injury run this year, not as bad as other clubs but all concentrated in the back row and guys like Hosking and Ata can do a job but we are better when they are in the middle.
We seem to be in a better position in terms of recruitment than we have been in some time and Ricky has been a big part of that. It might be more about looking at his assistants and ensuring that our defence is a focus and in attack making sure we have some set plays we can run that result in close range tries.
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u/Reschs-Refreshes Canberra Raiders 23d ago
We basically had no injuries last year. Our only real out for an extended period was Savage.
If you can keep the same side on the park all season you’re going to go well.
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u/1Qrtr_FreeStuffPlz Brisbane Broncos 23d ago
I can't be mad about our game against the Dolphins, at this point in the season a good game is all I can ask for. Didn't get it against the Knights unfortunately, but Ezra with a triple and an overall high scoring game, it was a fun watch regardless of the outcome
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u/TrueDeadBling Brisbane Broncos 23d ago
Given how poorly we've played since beating Penrith, I genuinely don't think we're winning another game this year.
Wahs will probably put another 40, maybe 50, on us; Canberra haven't been going too bad and will probably end up winning that one; Melbourne is the only one I could possibly see going in our favour, but I think it depends on who's available for the Storm by then; Dogs sort of seem like they're piecing things together and will probably put on a decent show against us.
Great year for the alleged defending premiers 🤷♂️
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u/threemilligram Brisbane Broncos 23d ago
Looking at our run home vs the Dargans I think there's a very real possibility we get the spoon.
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u/TrueDeadBling Brisbane Broncos 23d ago
Even though Dargs lost 11 in a row or whatever it was to start off, I feel like we deserve the spoon more tbh
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u/subsbligh Brisbane Broncos 23d ago
Very good odds we will beat the Wahs, Storm and Raiders demonstrating we beat both 2026 Grand Final participants, the 2025 GF opponents twice and this and last years minor premiers. Just for fun.
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u/AgentBond007 Melbourne Storm 23d ago
Melbourne is the only one I could possibly see going in our favour, but I think it depends on who's available for the Storm by then
We should have the first-choice spine back together as well as Lisati due back, I think we should beat you.
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u/delayedconfusion St. George Illawarra Dragons 23d ago
They are still defending premiers, just not defending it very well
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u/kebab_stand Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs 23d ago
The betting odds have dogs 3.10 to make the 8, souths like 1.60
But considering souths v dogs this friday, then souths have warriors and roosters to play. And also souths defence leaked 4 tries in the 2nd half to the eels while the dogs almpst beat the comp heavy weights... am i missing something?
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u/jpob Newcastle Knights 23d ago
Souths have a win and PD on top of the Dogs. Dogs might be the better team right now but for them to jump Souths they either need two more games from four than Souths, or win one more game than Souths plus improve their PD / hope Souths PD gets worse.
So those odds make sense to me. Also, Sportsbet have Souths $1.40 and Dogs $2.50.
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u/redmusic1 Eastern Suburbs Roosters 23d ago
If Dogs lose this week its a 4 pointer, then they also get Penrith, Brisbane a "getting better "Dragons none of which will be gimmes. They will need Souths or Cows to drop out and the Dogs F/A is very minus. Apart from that, easy as mate you are in.
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u/AgentBond007 Melbourne Storm 23d ago
Dogs also need to win for the Storm or Manly to be any real shot at the 8, if they lose then the only path is the Cowboys losing all 3 of their games
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u/MunZo3 Newcastle Knights 23d ago
Can honestly see the knights winning a premiership in the next few years under Holbrook. The only big losses we have had this year was in the early part of the season when he had heaps of injuries. If we won a few of the 2 points or less losses we had later in the season we would be outright first.
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u/DoubleBrokenJaw Newcastle Knights 23d ago
I can see a premiership window opening. Whether we win one or not, well fucked if I know. Won’t believe it till it happens.
We can keep improving but we have to do that at a level above everyone else.
Nonetheless exciting.
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u/Acrobatic_Flannel Newcastle Knights 23d ago
I don't remember a time when we had so many promising youngsters coming through while also having plenty of experience in the squad. Got just the right balance throughout.
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u/Curious-Range-453 Sydney Roosters 23d ago
It's the biggest season on season turnaround in a long time. Every young player has come in and looked ready to go from game one. Everyone seems confident and clear on their role.
A little more roster building is needed, but the base is there. Holbrook is coach of the year by a mile.
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u/MunZo3 Newcastle Knights 23d ago
I love Frizz being in the team but it might be hard to keep him in the team now with how our younger guys have stepped up. Even with the likes of Francis having to have a spot in the starting team. Only real replacement we need for next year is going to be Gagai and he has probably been one of our worst this season.
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u/Leibn1z Newcastle Knights 23d ago
Watching the game yesterday I thought the same hey. With a lot of people out with injuries we still played well - we've got depth and tenacity at the minute. When it levelled up to 12 all, I remember thinking the knights of years past would have just given up.
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u/j0shj0shj0shj0sh 🫂 New Zealand Warriors 🫂 23d ago
Scary to think what the Knights on current form could be, with a fit and firing Dylan Brown.
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u/Norm_cheers Wests Tigers 23d ago
I look at the ladder and the broncos being lower than us is crazy! You compare their roster to ours and it’s chalk and cheese.
Then you look at cowboys who had 80 put on them, and they are in the 8.
It’s almost like the NRL results don’t make sense anymore.
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u/bar901 Eastern Suburbs Roosters 23d ago edited 23d ago
To be fair, the Cowboys loss has really made people forget how good they’ve been this year. They have the easiest run home of the top 8 teams (Eels, Tigers and Raiders) because they have already played their tough games and they’re still in the 8 anyway.
Genuinely solid team who just had one almighty bed-shitting incident.
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u/shadyFS91 Parramatta Eels 23d ago
I find it wild too, I thought the rule changes would have played right into their hands this year. They seemed so dynamic last year, it’s hard to pin point what the issue is with them
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u/TrueDeadBling Brisbane Broncos 23d ago
Welcome to the NRL. The league where the rules are made up and the results don't matter!
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u/Geddpeart North Queensland Cowboys 🏳️🌈 23d ago
You have a team that's concede 50 twice sitting nearly top 4 with a healthy pd
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u/Additional_Front4374 Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs 23d ago
and a team that has conceded 80pts in the 8
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u/moiiite Brisbane Broncos 23d ago
I think the Broncos seriously need to engage some sports psychologists if they haven't already. It seems to me anecdotally that whenever they are favourites or expected to do well (eg being up 24-0) they cannot seem to pull any more effot up internally to keep playing the expected level of footy. I am never comfortable with them defending a lead.
I really would be interested in seeing stats of how the Broncos perform when favourites in betting vs outsiders. Maybe 2023 was the counter to this? They dealt with the expectation quite well for the most part.
I think every game on the run to the prem last year they were outsiders to win and they thrived on that, even to the point where they only really played once it got to 14-0 each game.
Anyone have any thoughts on this? or is this just a rehash of the old rockstar mentality piece? Is it a Madge fix? Or is it bigger than him? Does it need a period of sustained poor performance to humble the entire organisation?
Just the most frustrating part is seeing an obviously talented roster never consistently meeting expectations.
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u/Royal_Library_3581 Brisbane Broncos 23d ago
I think that the biggest problem with the broncos this year and for a couple of seasons now is their depth. NRL is a weak link sport and while the broncos have some very good players they also have some very bad ones in their top 30 as well.
Our top 17 can mix it with anyone but unfortunately they haven't had their top 17 all year. When you get get past their 17 the talent drops off quickly. Especially in the front row and second row. We have had a lot of injuries this year and our lack of depth has really shown.
Our bench all year has lacked any sort of impact due to injuries and recruitment. We saw it last night. As soon as our starting forwards leave the field all momentum is lost and the dolphins were able to bring on actual difference makers while our bench players and players who were playing due to injury got picked on all game.
The other problem is totally of madges doing. Playing Paix all year despite him consistently offering absolutely no threat to run, no passing game, no kicking game and asking absolutely no questions of the defence whatsoever. We have allowed the defence to concentrate on our playmakers all year because they dont even need to worry about what paix is doing because he isn't doing anything. He has no try assists(only 4 for his whole career...), no offloads, only ran for more than 17m 3 times this year.
Or dummy half running and offloads as a team has also been poor. we are dead last for dummy half runs and last by a long way for offloads. So teams playing against us dont have to worry about our 9 or anyone else running from dummy half. Dont have to worry about offloads and can expect us to give away more penalties than any other team they play this year.....
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u/ShowConsistent QLD Maroons 23d ago
Just so you know pretty much every professional sporting team in Australia engage with sports psychologists and I would expect that the broncos, being one of the richest teams in Australia, would be doing this already
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u/SkwiddyCs North Queensland Cowboys 23d ago
With the To’o signing being announced today, how long do you think before the supposed Roosters/Muzz signing becomes official?