Australia VS New Zealand

[Battler]

Yeah, Hunt was terrible, but I guess they had no choice in how to use him. The original plan probably wasn't him replacing Keary.

Isn’t he meant to be a halfback? He gets picked in rep teams because he can play hooker (he needs to get on his knees and thank Wayne for playing him there for 60 mins for a few games to create that illusion), but he’s a 1.2 million dollar hb...

 

[Dexter]

Exactly that. He rode his way to glory on the back of those mainstays. The greatest qld team ever assembled all happened to come together in the same era and mal took full advantage of it to boost his profile. Let’s see how he goes without them.

I really don't understand this. What's he supposed to do? Announce that he is selecting second best players so he can prove what a great coach he is?
Plenty have said the same about Bennett over the years.

 

[Foordy]

Yeah, Hunt was terrible, but I guess they had no choice in how to use him. The original plan probably wasn't him replacing Keary.

my guess is that plan was to use him as a 1-2 punch with Cook at hooker, a position that we've seen him play quite well.

 

[Broncs_Fan]

How did Woods get a run in front of Campbell-Gillard? Baffling selection by Mal. I also don't really understand why Mal likes picking people to play centre out of position. He used to like picking Dugan at centre. Now it's Tom Trbojevic. How would a guy like James Roberts not be better at right centre which is his natural position.

The team is mostly ok but Mal always is good for some infuriating selections.

 

[Cult]

I know it's fun but was Ben Hunt even the worst on the field? Our forwards did nothing, Mitchell let in a few tries, Tedesco was nowhere to be seen defensively when the Kiwis scored, Cook was invisible. So many others deserve criticism more than an interchange hooker who got thrown on early. It might sound like I'm sticking up for him, but my point over the last few years is that others escape criticism when Hunt is on the field because he's the easy target. And yes he was shit too.

 

[Unbreakable]

I know it's fun but was Ben Hunt even the worst on the field? Our forwards did nothing, Mitchell let in a few tries, Tedesco was nowhere to be seen defensively when the Kiwis scored, Cook was invisible. So many others deserve criticism more than an interchange hooker who got thrown on early. It might sound like I'm sticking up for him, but my point over the last few years is that others escape criticism when Hunt is on the field because he's the easy target. And yes he was shit too.

Worst on the field? Nah, probably not. Worst in the most important moments of the game when the playmakers are supposed to stand up and take control? Absofuckinglutely. And that goes for every game in his career that he's been criticised in, it's seldom for his overall performance.

 

[Big Pete]

How did Woods get a run in front of Campbell-Gillard?

After Campbell-Gillard broke his jaw against the Roosters, he struggled to assert himself and became a liability in the middle. Penrith constantly found themselves on the back-foot because Merrin and Campbell-Gillard were constantly exposed around the ruck.

On the other hand, Woods turned around a slow start to become one of the form front rows in the game. I don't think I've ever seen an instance where a player could be considered the best and worst buy all in one year.

I wouldn't be surprised if Campbell-Gillard is given a shot this week against Tonga. Either for McLean who seemed well short of a gallop or McGuire so the Kangaroos can capitilise more on Trbojevic's combination with Cherry-Evans & Tom Trbojevic.

 

[Big Pete]

As for Hunt, I wrote this over on LU and still feel strongly about it.

It was disappointing to hear about Ben Hunt's struggles.

There is no mystery or magic on or off switch when it comes to Hunt, what you see is what you get. An instinctive player with a quality running game and passable skill-set. When Hunt plays eyes-up football, he's one of the best players in the competition and his instincts are usually correct. The problem is he doesn't possess the passing nor the kicking game to pull off what he wants to do on a consistent basis.

So often when you watch Ben Hunt, you can see what type of game you're going to get based on his body language. If Hunt's energetic and in the moment, he's bound to have a good game. If he begins to react to his bad-plays and starts rocking his head back, it's the exact opposite. That's when he begins to doubt himself and suddenly he'll begin having second thoughts and it'll show in his play. Suddenly his kicks are being ricocheted because he took too long to make the kick. Or he'll decide to run the football because he doesn't trust his kicking game enough to get a desired result.

What annoys me about the media is that they built him up just to tear him down. Ben Hunt in 2018 wasn't playing better than we saw in Ben Hunt in 2017. He just happened to have a better halves partner and one of the best forward packs in the game, so his faults weren't so readily obvious. When the Dragons began to struggle, Hunt's flaws started becoming obvious and he couldn't inspire his team mates.

Ordinarily after a 30-point demolition and an inspiring 1-point loss, I'd say the Dragons finished the year with a ton of class. However, all of that was over-shadowed by that one play from Hunt. It exposed a moment of weakness that every fan in the back of their mind knew Ben Hunt possessed and may have spelled the end to whatever premiership plans the Dragons had in the next 5 years.

In that situation, I feel for Hunt because it's easy to see what was running through his mind. If he puts in a clearing kick, the Souths back three likely race it out to their 40m line and ensure Reynolds will get a shot. On the other hand, if Hunt does the unexpected, plays the numbers, they could either score or turn the ball over deeper inside the South Sydney half. The logic was there, it was just the decision to hit the flat-runner that ruined the play.

I hope for Hunt's sake he can recover from this.

 

[Dexter]

As for Hunt, I wrote this over on LU and still feel strongly about it.

I reckon he can BP. He has finally decided to get rid of all social media ( or so he says ) that is a big start IMO.
If he can get back to enjoying the game, which some players only learn as they get older, I think he will come into his own in the next few years.

 

[Alec]

I reckon he can BP. He has finally decided to get rid of all social media ( or so he says ) that is a big start IMO.
If he can get back to enjoying the game, which some players only learn as they get older, I think he will come into his own in the next few years.

He'll probably be close to retiring in the next few years, so you might be onto something.

 

[Morkel]