POST GAME Round 2 - Titans vs Broncos

[McHunt]

The conundrum is - who out of the current squad should be captain? Not that i dont agree with your point, but its a shocking siutation to be in right now.

None of us have the answer there. The Brisbane captain is not just a leader on the field, he's a public figure. More than any other club.

So the first requirement is not looking like a bumbling fool in front of a camera. That rules out most.

The next requirement is either looking like you have respect or a clue. Whether through seniority, on field menace (Tallis) or you look like the man with the plan.

You don't want it to be someone the fans are calling to be dropped to fix up problems. That rules out Milford, Glenn, Croft, Isaako, Carrigan, Flegler and maybe Lodge.

Dearden looks like he has a plan, but he can't even make the team and he's 12 years old.
Carrigan is perfect off the field, but isn't a leader on it.
Haas has blotted his copybook badly and hasn't come across as particularly bright, even for a prop.
Lodge has respect of the players (apparently), but is unpalatable as a face of the club. And many think the game has overtaken him.
TPJ has too much baggage, bumbles in front of the cameras, isn't a great face for the club, but might lift to the position. Not a great option.
Ben Te'o is articulate, senior, and wise, but is playing off the bench, and hasn't earned the right to be captain. Is probably the best candidate otherwise.

I see only one choice for captain, and you're going to laugh: Jake Turpin. No-one is calling for him to be dumped. He's playing 80 minutes (though shouldn't be). Is reasonably articulate, and clean off the field, a likeable (though somewhat undeserved) face for the club. And, if he pulls his finger out, could be the man with the plan.

If Lexy were injured or retires, I'd grit my teeth and make Turpin captain. Cue laughter track, 3, 2, 1.

 

[winslow_wong]

I saw up until Fifita’s first try. Do I put myself through the rest?

We did win the 2nd half as others observed and for me that does count for something, which is a positive I can take away from this game.

As well, Herbie's running is beautiful to watch, what we see of it, and Tesi's elusiveness is actually really good. I reckon he has a bright future, as does Herbie.

When TPJ injected some real passion into his game, we lifted. Need more of that from him to inspire the rest.

It was just the opposite of usual proceedings. We got smoked in the first half instead of the second. It wasn’t even because the titans put on incredible plays to score their tries either. Same old softness once something goes wrong.

 

[porouian]

No, and believe it or not the "captain" played a full 80 minutes. His captaincy is non existent.

I read this and thought "this couldn't possibly be true" based on my eyeballs and my brain, but sure enough he played the full 80. 8 runs and 30 tackles per nrl.com. I literally don't remember anywhere near half of those. Not sure if this says more about me or more about him but...

I can't really add much that hasn't already been covered in detail here, it's just too depressing. I really haven't missed having my weekend soured by Friday night over summer lol. Thought Niu deserved some wraps not just for his general play, but also for his effort to stay in for his try. Other than that as an odd positive I thought our away kit was quite smart, definitely better in reality than in static images. Gold socks should be a staple of our kit every year for mine.

Anyway.

 

[vertigo]

Walters had that Seibold look in his eye during the press conference. Things are getting worse before they get better.

 

[Wolfie]

We don't have a single player out of the younger guys who is ready for the captaincy. It drags players down when they are in a losing side, it's a pressure they don't need. Walsh for example has shown no more leadership that any of our other contenders. Carrigan is still the logical option based on what he has done coming through the ranks, but I've been saying it for a long time, he just doesn't have the runs on the board and we don't need to add more pressure to some of these players.

Until one of them is ready, or we sign a decent captain, the best option is sadly leave it with Lexie because he can handle what comes with the job better. Doesn't mean I think he is the best captain, just the one who would handle the current situation better.

At the moment, I think unless we got Cam Smith in, no captain in the NRL would make a great deal of difference. Our confidence is just shot.

 

[McHunt]

I read this and thought "this couldn't possibly be true" based on my eyeballs and my brain, but sure enough he played the full 80. 8 runs and 30 tackles per nrl.com. I literally don't remember anywhere near half of those. Not sure if this says more about me or more about him but...

I can't really add much that hasn't already been covered in detail here, it's just too depressing. I really haven't missed having my weekend soured by Friday night over summer lol. Thought Niu deserved some wraps not just for his general play, but also for his effort to stay in for his try. Other than that as an odd positive I thought our away kit was quite smart, definitely better in reality than in static images. Gold socks should be a staple of our kit every year for mine.

Anyway.

Yes, Niu beginning to show us what the hype was about was probably my highlight of the match. His defence needs a lot of work, but bear in mind with these kids starting out, they're usually nervous and they're always easily fooled by more experienced players, especially in the backs where there's more room to move. I like what I saw from him. Let's hope he continues on this trajectory and learns to read play better. You're not born with that skill.

 

[McHunt]

We don't have a single player out of the younger guys who is ready for the captaincy. It drags players down when they are in a losing side, it's a pressure they don't need. Walsh for example has shown no more leadership that any of our other contenders. Carrigan is still the logical option based on what he has done coming through the ranks, but I've been saying it for a long time, he just doesn't have the runs on the board and we don't need to add more pressure to some of these players.

Until one of them is ready, or we sign a decent captain, the best option is sadly leave it with Lexie because he can handle what comes with the job better. Doesn't mean I think he is the best captain, just the one who would handle the current situation better.

At the moment, I think unless we got Cam Smith in, no captain in the NRL would make a great deal of difference. Our confidence is just shot.

If I didn't watch last night's game, I'd agree with you in a flash. But it's clear Alex did nothing as a captain last night. And believe it or not, this is his second year in the role. Carrigan is another sleepwalker.

 

[Tristan1990]

We don't have a single player out of the younger guys who is ready for the captaincy. It drags players down when they are in a losing side, it's a pressure they don't need. Walsh for example has shown no more leadership that any of our other contenders. Carrigan is still the logical option based on what he has done coming through the ranks, but I've been saying it for a long time, he just doesn't have the runs on the board and we don't need to add more pressure to some of these players.

Until one of them is ready, or we sign a decent captain, the best option is sadly leave it with Lexie because he can handle what comes with the job better. Doesn't mean I think he is the best captain, just the one who would handle the current situation better.

At the moment, I think unless we got Cam Smith in, no captain in the NRL would make a great deal of difference. Our confidence is just shot.

James Tamou maybe

 

[rnabokov]

The other thing I am still pondering is that last week, Milford, Turpin and Isaako were pretty good compared to this week where they were pretty awful. And all key spine players. What happened?

As for Milford who is so disappointing, I think more and more that he is at his best only when he can play with a dominant half and I don't see Croft as being that. Dearden maybe. I still keep coming back to my view that Milford and Dearden should be our halves. When they played together they worked well. I don't think Croft is in any way a dominant half who can organise. The last time Milford was consistently good was when he paired with Hunt, and before that, when he played his natural game at FB.

Asiata to captain for starters would make a difference.

Haas ought to hang his head further in shame for letting his side down. We need his authority up front.

 

[broncoscope]

* The rot starts at the top, Alex Glenn is not a leader nor is he a top 17 player anymore...back to q cup.

* Milford had completely lost the plot and must be dropped to qcup.

* Croft was by no means perfect but least he had a go, so he and Dearden are our halves moving forward unless Gamble is ready for 5/8 which i doubt

* TPJ was good in the second half when he woke up from his slumber.

*Bullemor must get more time and he and Riki ( who was enormous ) should be our starting 2nd row.

* I still am not sold on Farnsworth as a cetre yet but with our slim pickings for centre options he might have to stay there.

* Isaako , well what do we do with him is the golden question, just doesn't instill confidence and is totally ineffective.

* I'm on the signing Adam Reynolds train just so he can work with Dearden for a couple of years and show him how to run a team around the park.

* Signing Nico Hynes from the Storm seems like another move we need to make. He is a big body with good running game and ball skills and should get him for a fair price .

* Sorry for the long winded post but my two bobs worth.

 

[HarryAllan7]

None of us have the answer there. The Brisbane captain is not just a leader on the field, he's a public figure. More than any other club.

So the first requirement is not looking like a bumbling fool in front of a camera. That rules out most.

The next requirement is either looking like you have respect or a clue. Whether through seniority, on field menace (Tallis) or you look like the man with the plan.

You don't want it to be someone the fans are calling to be dropped to fix up problems. That rules out Milford, Glenn, Croft, Isaako, Carrigan, Flegler and maybe Lodge.

Dearden looks like he has a plan, but he can't even make the team and he's 12 years old.
Carrigan is perfect off the field, but isn't a leader on it.
Lodge has respect of the players (apparently), but is unpalatable as a face of the club. And many think the game has overtaken him.
TPJ has too much baggage, bumbles in front of the cameras, isn't a great face for the club, but might lift to the position. Not a great option.
Ben Te'o is articulate, senior, and wise, but is playing off the bench, and hasn't earned the right to be captain. Is probably the best candidate otherwise.

I see only one choice for captain, and you're going to laugh: Jake Turpin. No-one is calling for him to be dumped. He's playing 80 minutes (though shouldn't be). Is reasonably articulate, and clean off the field, a likeable (though somewhat undeserved) face for the club. And, if he pulls his finger out, could be the man with the plan.

If Lexy were injured or retires, I'd grit my teeth and make Turpin captain. Cue laughter track, 3, 2, 1.

I don’t find anything laughable about the prospect of making one of the only players who consistently looks like he wants to be out there giving everything he’s got for the team our captain.
Someone that cares and gets involved snd shows heart... all improvements on Alex ‘Instagram Superstar’ Glenn

 

[broncoscope]

* Oh yeah , Turpin is not an 80 minute hooker and needs a spell when he's gassed.

 

[Galah]

What’s doing with paix? Are they still hell bent on turning him into a dummy half?

 

[Wolfie]

If I didn't watch last night's game, I'd agree with you in a flash. But it's clear Alex did nothing as a captain last night. And believe it or not, this is his second year in the role. Carrigan is another sleepwalker.

He didn't, but we literally have nothing else right now. I don't believe it's going to benefit anyone if we drop him as skipper.

Carrigan isn't a sleepwalker. He has clearly shown coming through the ranks his ability and leadership qualities, but again, like I've said for well over 12 months, he isn't an NRL captain at the moment. A couple of games where he hasn't been at last year's level and people are getting at him doesn't say a great deal for how fickle our support is becoming. You could easily level your claims at Turpin, TPJ, Milford......actually, the whole squad.

We need to back these younger blokes. Takes a good 3 or 4 years before most hit their straps as NRL players with a few upset and downs, and lots of ours have had no ISC development. Recipe for disaster.

 

[Shane Tronc]

I’m on the 6) Asiata 7) Dearden train now. Milford honestly has to be done as a bronco. I’m sick of waiting for him to put it together. I rage quit at half time then turned it back on for the last 15, I thought Milford had gone off injured - that’s how fucking invisible he was! Inexcusable. At least Asiata and Dearden would be solid in defence and they can’t be any worse in attack.

 

[Wolfie]

James Tamou maybe

Personally, I don't think he is a great captain, but who knows. We just need a lo more experience in this side.

 

[McHunt]

The other thing I am still pondering is that last week, Milford, Turpin and Isaako were pretty good compared to this week where they were pretty awful. And all key spine players. What happened?

As for Milford who is so disappointing, I think more and more that he is at his best only when he can play with a dominant half and I don't see Croft as being that. Dearden maybe. I still keep coming back to my view that Milford and Dearden should be our halves. When they played together they worked well. I don't think Croft is in any way a dominant half who can organise. The last time Milford was consistently good was when he paired with Hunt, and before that, when he played his natural game at FB.

Asiata to captain for starters would make a difference.

Haas ought to hang his head further in shame for letting his side down. We need his authority up front.

Asiata, I hadn't thought about for captain. Haven't seen enough of him in a Broncos jersey to make that call. He's also a candidate for early retirement.

From the press conference, Kevvie has already hit the wall with his halves, but he also said if we can fix up our defence everything else will fall into place. He said they're hitting the bags hard so it's not attitude. It's skill. But the thing he mostly said was Milford had to be hidden from Fifita, and that Croft had to be choppered into his position. In other words, Milford, the most senior back, and our most highly paid player, is not up to defence and is never likely to be.

So to fix the team, we need to fix defence. Meaning he has to dump Milford, but once he does that we know he's never coming back. This is the bitter pill Kevvie has always known he'll have to swallow at some point.

 

[theshed]

Not sure I can ever recall a coach calling out a specific player (Milford) for being useless in defence and leadership like that. To my ears it sounded like the first nail in Milf's coffin. I don't see him replacing the halves in the next couple of weeks, but it was a heads up it's on the cards.

Seibole did to an extent early into the shit show. Walters is being forced into the same position. Pressured into dropping the halves for the 19 year old you said you were going to let develop.