NRL 2026 Round 5 Discussion

[Brocko]

You must have missed my first post.
Point is the ref could have found multiple offences identical to what he pinched the fins for but chose not to.
End of the day they didn't deserve to be in the game it's just a frustrating watch when one sides offences get overlooked.

They definitely got what they deserved.

Im not sure there was much to argue on some of the penalties though? Dolphins were getting contact wrong regularly, as seen by 3 on reports for high contact, and set restarts were 4-3, so close.

The throwing the boot away penalty was meh, but it was also fkn dumb.

If ref missed high shots against Manly then I didn't see them.

 

[Battler]

I wonder if Herbie reckons he’s playing better footy in a team getting 50 put on them by a horrendous manly outfit?

 

[Broncapz]

Kodi Nikorima has to be one of the biggest defensive liabilities.

 

[Big Pete]

Tell me what he does in creating chances for anybody? Why is he caught out of position consistently. Why does he drop bombs as fullback in the 90th percentile? Why does he get dominated in contact when he carries the ball when he is a massive man.

Well done, you've largely just described Billy Slater at the same age.

Every fullback in the competition has strengths and weaknesses. Nobody is claiming he's perfect but he's easily their best option and to try and pin the result on him tonight is ridiculous.

 

[Morkel]

Well done, you've largely just described Billy Slater at the same age.

Every fullback in the competition has strengths and weaknesses. Nobody is claiming he's perfect but he's easily their best option and to try and pin the result on him tonight is ridiculous.

I'd probably pin it on the dude that had given away 4 penalties and been sin-binned in the first 25 minutes.

 

[Dexter]

They definitely got what they deserved.

Im not sure there was much to argue on some of the penalties though? Dolphins were getting contact wrong regularly, as seen by 3 on reports for high contact, and set restarts were 4-3, so close.

The throwing the boot away penalty was meh, but it was also fkn dumb.

If ref missed high shots against Manly then I didn't see them.

I didn't see any high shots either.
When refs Hammer one side it creates a momentum that's very hard to turn around. The fins were given no leeway, I thought Manly were in the ruck.
But that's the frustration of 6 agains when tackles look the same and 1 is pinged the other not.
Once a team is on the back foot the mistakes come with fatigue , in defense and attack, and there's virtually no turning it around unless you get a good whistle for a bit or the other team turns to shit.
Blow-outs are a here to stay.

 

[Big Pete]

You must have missed my first post.
Point is the ref could have found multiple offences identical to what he pinched the fins for but chose not to.
End of the day they didn't deserve to be in the game it's just a frustrating watch when one sides offences get overlooked.

Yeah nobody is blaming Atkins for the result and there were some calls like the Lemuelu head high that was taken out of his hands. However he certainly had an influence on the scoreboard and it was all in favour of Manly right up until the junk minutes.

What's jarring is that usually the refs tend to favour the team that's losing and suddenly the 50/50s go the other way. Not tonight. Maybe Atkins got it right, but last time I checked you can't just grab a player in the air even if they've fumbled the ball ala Fualalo on Cobbo.

I'll give Atkins credit where it's due if that dog breakfast of a six again Manly got late where they toed it ahead ended up being right. To the naked eye, that just seemed like one of those 'too complicated, give it to the losing team'.

 

[JayPee]

Well done, you've largely just described Billy Slater at the same age.

Every fullback in the competition has strengths and weaknesses. Nobody is claiming he's perfect but he's easily their best option and to try and pin the result on him tonight is ridiculous.

Where did I pin tonights result on him? Im talking in a general sentiment about the guys entire game.

There best option is Fuller at fullback with him at center. It strengthens 2 positions and gets their best players on the field. He is a gun center and tightens up one of their rubbish edge defenses.

I just dont think he is an elite fullback

 

[Big Pete]

Where did I pin tonights result on him? Im talking in a general sentiment about the guys entire game.

There best option is Fuller at fullback with him at center. It strengthens 2 positions and gets their best players on the field. He is a gun center and tightens up one of their rubbish edge defenses.

Gee I don't know, maybe when you decided to use this game to call out the spine. Everyone bar Katoa, which evidently was a bad take.

Fuller is no where near as co-ordinated or threatening as Tabuai-Fidow. At best it's a short term option when the coach is desperate. He's a poor man's version of Tabuai-Fidow if anything, so again, I don't see the point in moving on their best option.

 

[JayPee]

Gee I don't know, maybe when you decided to use this game to call out the spine. Everyone bar Katoa, which evidently was a bad take.

Fuller is no where near as co-ordinated or threatening as Tabuai-Fidow. At best it's a short term option when the coach is desperate. He's a poor man's version of Tabuai-Fidow if anything, so again, I don't see the point in moving on their best option.

You are putting words in my mouth. I said their spine is underwhelming apart from Katoa and he was also bad tonight.

At no point did I say that the spine was the reason they were losing tonights specific game. They were smashed in every aspect. I actually agreed with you when you said it tonight but here you are saying shit I did not say. That annoys the **** out of me. You in particular do it all the time.

But the spine is underwhelming if Katoa is off his game. They can't do anything without his creation and that is going to hurt them unless they make changes and get healthy in those positions.

Heavy is the head that wears the crown when you are being paid to be the man which he is. You dont just get to float through games.

 

[JayPee]

Nikorima had a renaissance for a while but it is probably time to be looking for your next 6. You could overlook the defence when he was creating chances for his outside men but they are not even on the same page on that edge on both sides.

 

[Big Pete]

You are putting words in my mouth. I said their spine is underwhelming apart from Katoa and he was also bad tonight.

At no point did I say that the spine was the reason they were losing tonights specific game. They were smashed in every aspect. I actually agreed with you when you said it tonight but here you are saying shit I did not say. That annoys the **** out of me. You in particular do it all the time.

But the spine is underwhelming if Katoa is off his game. They can't do anything without his creation and that is going to hurt them unless they make changes and get healthy in those positions.

Heavy is the head that wears the crown when you are being paid to be the man which he is. You dont just get to float through games.

Firstly, it doesn't matter what you said specifically. The fact you used tonight to make a dig at the Hammer like he was the problem was stupid.

Second you called the spine dogshit and proceeded to double down on the Hammer. When I called out the dummy half because I'm watching Donoghoe throw some of the slowest passes I've ever seen, you were quick to point out they had a 'decent' player coming through. That's the bar we're working with here, 'decent'.

I would have figured your biggest pet peeve would be timing tbh.

 

[JayPee]

Firstly, it doesn't matter what you said specifically. The fact you used tonight to make a dig at the Hammer like he was the problem was stupid.

Second you called the spine dogshit and proceeded to double down on the Hammer. When I called out the dummy half because I'm watching Donoghoe throw some of the slowest passes I've ever seen, you were quick to point out they had a 'decent' player coming through. That's the bar we're working with here, 'decent'.

I would have figured your biggest pet peeve would be timing tbh.

It absolutely ****ing does matter what I said specifically. You dont get to put your own spin on what I said.

I never said they "had a decent player coming through". Yet again you making up shit. You do know there is posts from 2 hours ago that can be re-read. They don't just disappear into the universe. Go back and have a read of the whole conversatio and then come back with what I actually said because you are continuing to just lie.

On the 9 situation JMK is their normal dummy half. He isnt coming through. He is established and is very good. His problem is he is not healthy right now.

If they had him their spine would be much better but it still doesnt negate the fact that for the most part of the year..... so far the current spine has been dogshit. That doesnt mean tonight said spine was the reason they lost. I acknowledged it wasnt. It was simply saying at the time they have been dogshit. Its called a live thread. I comment on what I see.

You interpreted it to mean something it actually didn't. It was a live reaction in a live game thread to a period of play in which they actually had the ball and looked clunky and not on the same page.

 

[BroncosFever]

Geez, what's going on at Dolphins?

You couldn't put enough on them to beat Manly (who have been shocking themselves). I thought Dolphins were actually quite good against us, made us really work hard for the win. Tonight they just deadset folded at Kayo.

 

[JayPee]

Geez, what's going on at Dolphins?

You couldn't put enough on them to beat Manly (who have been shocking themselves). I thought Dolphins were actually quite good against us, made us really work hard for the win. Tonight they just deadset folded at Kayo.

Like someone said earlier if its not Penrith you don't have any idea what each team is going to throw up week to week. No consistency.

So many upsets.

 

[BroncosFever]

Like someone said earlier if its not Penrith you don't have any idea what each team is going to throw up week to week. No consistency.

So many upsets.

Teams just can't get momentum back it seems, once a team gets a bit of fatigue going and is on the end of set restarts, there's no stopping it.

 

[JayPee]

Teams just can't get momentum back it seems, once a team gets a bit of fatigue going and is on the end of set restarts, there's no stopping it.

Its definitely tough. Tonights game was really weird.

It looked like the Dolphins just expected to win and even when they got down even 16 and you expected to them to turn it on and fight back it just never came. All over the place on both sides of the ball.

Manly were good. I dont think they were 52-0 good.

 

[Harry Sack]

Manly would have been absolutely peaking with emotion, they rode the **** out of that for 60mins and the Phins just couldn't match them. That's no excuse for 52 ****ing points though.