VOTE 2020 Captain: make your prediction.

Foordy · Jan 20, 2020

Sirlee oldman said:
And yet the one opinion that is universal is that Boyd is cooked. He trains like a champion but when faced with 17 desperate professionals trying to take him out he caves.
A year ago I was defending him and predicting a big year for him but he spiraled into the abyss. That Seibold continues to count his training performances more highly than his actual form against opposition in games is a legitimate concern. Even more concerning for me was the quote from Seibold when he said that “Boyd has performances in the bank”. That suggests that the other 6 contenders for that last backline spot have to seriously outperform Boyd at training to get game time. And conversely Boyd has to **** up seriously and consecutively during games this year and hurt our premiership chances to be dropped.

actually, i think the universal opinion is that Boyd is cooked in the spine ... but that's not even the point ...

and besides, we have zero idea of what Seibold will do this year, we are only halfway through the pre-season and we haven't even played a single trial yet.

Boyd has been training in a couple of positions (none of them in the spine) ... and positions where we have our likely regular starters in the rehab group due to injuries/illness

Sirlee oldman · Jan 21, 2020

Foordy said:
actually, i think the universal opinion is that Boyd is cooked in the spine ... but that's not even the point ...

and besides, we have zero idea of what Seibold will do this year, we are only halfway through the pre-season and we haven't even played a single trial yet.

Boyd has been training in a couple of positions (none of them in the spine) ... and positions where we have our likely regular starters in the rehab group due to injuries/illness

You’re right. I’m a bit jumpy today because I read some shit that had Boyd definitely playing in the centres. All I really want is for the trials to be taken seriously. If Boyd mans up and shows he’s over his yips then great but I hope it’s an even playing field because I rate a couple of the guys stuck behind him.

bronx_ttdid · Jan 21, 2020

Supposedly triple m reported Glenn and Darius co captains?

Bigbucky · Jan 21, 2020

Kyall said:
I would like to see Haas made captain. He's so mature and professional a real leader on the field.

Mate same here. If he wasn't so young. Some of the cover tackles and try savers I remember him making after pumping out so many metres is inspirational. That's the sort of thing you want from your leaders. That's the sort of bloke I would look up to and want to play for.

Kooly87 · Jan 21, 2020

Where is the Co-Captain option?

I reckon it's very, very likely we'll have Co-Captains in 2020, so that would get my vote. Probably Glenn and Boyd, with a Leadership group forming under them including Lodge, Croft, Carrigan etc.

simplythebest · Jan 21, 2020

Dobbo reporting on Triple M that Boyd and Glenn will be co-captains, but he sees it as an 'insurance policy'.

Also interesting is that he mentioned Turpin is in line for the starting 9, even though McCullough is winning all the drills.

NRL INSIDER | Leadership Shake-Ups, Line-Up Changes & Why They've Changed Their Training Schedules - Triple M Breakfast with Marto, Margaux & Dan

omny.fm

McHunt · Jan 21, 2020

jamesbrandy said:
Dobbo reporting on Triple M that Boyd and Glenn will be co-captains, but he sees it as an 'insurance policy'.

Also interesting is that he mentioned Turpin is in line for the starting 9, even though McCullough is winning all the drills.

NRL INSIDER | Leadership Shake-Ups, Line-Up Changes & Why They've Changed Their Training Schedules - Triple M Breakfast with Marto, Margaux & Dan

omny.fm

Weak, if true. All this will say is neither candidate is strong enough to be captain.

Better to retain Boyd at captain and make Glenn vice. By the time Boyd is dropped, or hopefully retires, maybe Croft will have shown enough to be elevated to interim captain, with Glenn retained as vice.

That said, if Boyd is relegated to the wing, he'll have to **** up pretty consistently to get dropped. It'll be easier for him to hide out there.

Kooly87 · Jan 21, 2020

McHunt said:
Weak, if true. All this will say is neither candidate is strong enough to be captain.

Better to retain Boyd at captain and make Glenn vice. By the time Boyd is dropped, or hopefully retires, maybe Croft will have shown enough to be elevated to interim captain, with Glenn retained as vice.

That said, if Boyd is relegated to the wing, he'll have to **** up pretty consistently to get dropped. It'll be easier for him to hide out there.

Realistically, neither player has a lock on their positions for the entire 2020 season. It may appear to be hedging our bets, but realistically that's exactly what it is and we may as well make peace with that. Stable leadership is probably more important right now than outside perceptions.

We have some excellent young candidates on the horizon, but realistically it's just a little premature to promote Lodge (needs more time to change the wider perceptions of him) or Carrigan/Fifita (still rookies realistically) or even Croft (brand new to the club).

So that leaves us with Glenn and Boyd, who at worst will hopefully still leave at least one of them standing by seasons end. Both are well regarded by the players, safe as houses commercially for the sponsors, and provide a bit of a safety net should either one lose their spot in the 17.

After that, 2021 may be a different story altogether, but we can worry about that in 2021.

Marty Deutschmann · Jan 21, 2020

I actually don't think Boyd is cooked. I think his issues were mental. If he can get that right.. he'll go out having made a good contribution

McHunt · Jan 21, 2020

kooly87 said:
Realistically, neither player has a lock on their positions for the entire 2020 season. It may appear to be hedging our bets, but realistically that's exactly what it is and we may as well make peace with that. Stable leadership is probably more important right now than outside perceptions.

We have some excellent young candidates on the horizon, but realistically it's just a little premature to promote Lodge (needs more time to change the wider perceptions of him) or Carrigan/Fifita (still rookies realistically) or even Croft (brand new to the club).

So that leaves us with Glenn and Boyd, who at worst will hopefully still leave at least one of them standing by seasons end. Both are well regarded by the players, safe as houses commercially for the sponsors, and provide a bit of a safety net should either one lose their spot in the 17.

After that, 2021 may be a different story altogether, but we can worry about that in 2021.

I agree about the two candidates but I'm not a fan of joint captaincy. It's weak. Make Glenn vice. Done.

Kooly87 · Jan 21, 2020

McHunt said:
I agree about the two candidates but I'm not a fan of joint captaincy. It's weak. Make Glenn vice. Done.

I'm sure they would have done if there was sufficient confidence in Boyd to see out the season, but realistically, that's a tenuous prospect at best.

If they do have to drop him at some point, the fallout will be bad, but it won't be nearly as bad as if he was the sole Captain and we had to go through the circus of promoting Glenn mid-season. It's such a potential minefield - does hat write Darius off for the year then? What happens if we have to call him back up again etc?

Far less risky if they're just both made Captains at the start of the year and if either one is dropped or then re-instated etc at any point, there is far less media circus and potential squad disruption around who has what role.

It also means Glenn is the Captain for two seasons most likely, as Boyd probably won't be playing on past 2020, so again less disruption and a smoother transition in the longer term to life after Boyd and then whoever comes after Glenn.

I'd say by the end of 2021 we'll have a clear standout candidate again, and the Co-Captain experiment will be rendered redundant.

Wolfie · Jan 21, 2020

Kyall said:
The fans is what keeps this game alive surely that has to count for something don't you think.

Nope, not when it comes to picking a team. Its a dangerous path to go down picking a team based on what fans want.

Kooly87 · Jan 21, 2020

Marty Deutschmann said:
I actually don't think Boyd is cooked. I think his issues were mental. If he can get that right.. he'll go out having made a good contribution

Personally, I think the mental problems have only exacerbated what was already a steady decline in his physical abilities. Shifting him out of the spine and into a less demanding Wing role should help, but at his age it's basically a certainty that his body will only get worse as time goes on.

Marty Deutschmann · Jan 21, 2020

kooly87 said:
I'm sure they would have done if there was sufficient confidence in Boyd to see out the season, but realistically, that's a tenuous prospect at best.

If they do have to drop him at some point, the fallout will be bad, but it won't be nearly as bad as if he was the sole Captain and we had to go through the circus of promoting Glenn mid-season. It's such a potential minefield - does hat write Darius off for the year then? What happens if we have to call him back up again etc?

Far less risky if they're just both made Captains at the start of the year and if either one is dropped or then re-instated etc at any point, there is far less media circus and potential squad disruption around who has what role.

It also means Glenn is the Captain for two seasons most likely, as Boyd probably won't be playing on past 2020, so again less disruption and a smoother transition in the longer term to life after Boyd and then whoever comes after Glenn.

I'd say by the end of 2021 we'll have a clear standout candidate again, and the Co-Captain experiment will be rendered redundant.

Completely agree. The captain is for the media. Lodge and Croft will be captains on the field

Marty Deutschmann · Jan 21, 2020

kooly87 said:
Personally, I think the mental problems have only exacerbated what was already a steady decline in his physical abilities. Shifting him out of the spine and into a less demanding Wing role should help, but at his age it's basically a certainty that his body will only get worse as time goes on.

I agree.

Though I believe he can offer far more at left centre

McHunt · Jan 21, 2020

Marty Deutschmann said:
Completely agree. The captain is for the media. Lodge and Croft will be captains on the field

Yep. Couldn't have said it better myself: