In defence of Steve Michaels

[mjc]

He is getting constant crtisicism on here. I think a lot of it is unfair.

Stats don't lie (this is just his attack, I havent had time to do defence):

Steve - Metres Run - 700
Folau has 781. All other backs have run less than Michaels.

Errors - 6
On par with the other backs besides Folau who has made 2

Line Breaks - 5
Folau and Winterstein have less, Hodges and Hunt have 5.

Offloads - 4
Winterstein, Hunt, Folau have less, Hodges has one more

Tries
3 tries, Hodges has 3 too.

 

[Nashy]

Oh thank God for stats!

 

[mjc]

Awesome reply mate.

 

[Coxy]

He is getting constant crtisicism on here. I think a lot of it is unfair.

Stats don't lie (this is just his attack, I havent had time to do defence):

Steve - Metres Run - 700
Folau has 781. All other backs have run less than Michaels.

How many runs?

Errors - 6
On par with the other backs besides Folau who has made 2

See above.

Line Breaks - 5
Folau and Winterstein have less, Hodges and Hunt have 5.

Of which 3 were tries, as I recall all were due to excellent lead up work (Wallace's bullet pass against Warriors, Taylor's cut out pass vs Roosters, can't recall his third try).

Offloads - 4
Winterstein, Hunt, Folau have less, Hodges has one more

Offloads isn't just passes though, and there's no denying he could've drawn and passed to Winterstein in space several times.

Tries
3 tries, Hodges has 3 too.

Again, how many runs (ie, how many opportunities has he had to score)? Probably less than Hodges, but generally he hasn't been as well marked. And in the case of the try vs the Roosters he was part of a 5-on-1 overlap or something! LOLZ

 

[Nashy]

I know. Just like looking at stats to prove a players worth right?

Stats show part of the picture, looking at how he plays on the field plays a big part too. 700M, big deal. Lets look at the times he's run instead of passing which could have led to a try.

Stats don't show that.

Offloads. So those guys have less? They also play a lot harder, faster and basically better than him.

 

[Coxy]

Yep. Stats ARE useful, they have their place, but they can't be used to judge how well a player is going.

Just look at Fitzgibbon. He's probably made 100000 tackles in his NRL career, and probably 2 or 3 he was the first man in, the rest flops!

 

[OXY-351]

He is getting constant crtisicism on here. I think a lot of it is unfair.

Stats don't lie (this is just his attack, I havent had time to do defence):

Steve - Metres Run - 700
Folau has 781. All other backs have run less than Michaels.

Errors - 6
On par with the other backs besides Folau who has made 2

Line Breaks - 5
Folau and Winterstein have less, Hodges and Hunt have 5.

Offloads - 4
Winterstein, Hunt, Folau have less, Hodges has one more

Tries
3 tries, Hodges has 3 too.

Kicks - 1

 

[Coxy]

Tsk tsk, he hasn't made a 40-20 either. And no goals or field goals. Shit. Drop him :P

 

[mjc]

The Broncos are 6-1 to start the season and his stats measure up to those around him. He is in the Origin squad and is obviously thought of highly by the Broncos... but everyone on here knows better.

 

[Coxy]

Thank you, finally you get it.

 

[OXY-351]

I think Michaels would walk in to any starting backline in the NRL. He's not as bad as everyone around here makes out. I think it's just that he's not a superstar, and broncos fans can't accept anything less given the players they have been blessed with in the past and currently

 

[mjc]

Glad i see the light now.

 

[mjc]

I think Michaels would walk in to any starting backline in the NRL. He's not as bad as everyone around here makes out. I think it's just that he's not a superstar, and broncos fans can't accept anything less given the players they have been blessed with in the past and currently

Amen.

 

[Nashy]

The Broncos are 6-1 to start the season and his stats measure up to those around him. He is in the Origin squad and is obviously thought of highly by the Broncos... but everyone on here knows better.

Ahh right. Of course, because we best not have an opinion on a player that differs from the all mighty Rugby League Gods.

 

[Coxy]

I think Michaels would walk in to any starting backline in the NRL. He's not as bad as everyone around here makes out. I think it's just that he's not a superstar, and broncos fans can't accept anything less given the players they have been blessed with in the past and currently

Yep, we've never successfully replaced the superstars of our backline like Casey McGuire, Stu Kelly, Scott Minto...Michaels just isn't in that pedigree.

 

[rnabokov]

Look - I am a fan of Michaels.

Last year, I argued against a bit of opposition, that Michaels should be left centre & Folau on the wing.

This year, I reckon Michaels has been ok, but a bit short of what he was like last year.

IMO - he runs too much one-out & just gets tackled, gives Winterstein too little room to move, and doesn't give W. enough ball.

Yeah he makes metres, but metres schmetres - there's more to a centre's game than just making metres. For mine, metres gained is a more significant indicator (amongst others - like off loads) of a forward's mettle.

As a fan of Michaels, I hope he keeps improving.

As last year showed, he has heaps of talent.

 

[OXY-351]

I think Michaels would walk in to any starting backline in the NRL. He's not as bad as everyone around here makes out. I think it's just that he's not a superstar, and broncos fans can't accept anything less given the players they have been blessed with in the past and currently

Yep, we've never successfully replaced the superstars of our backline like Casey McGuire, Stu Kelly, Scott Minto...Michaels just isn't in that pedigree.

I think you just proved my point

 

[mrslong]

I was always a fan of Stevie Michaels, he's had a slow start to the season and if he started setting up Winterstein more he'd probably have a few more BHQ folks on his bandwagon. I do however think on this years form he's lucky to be in the Origin Squad, but he wouldn't be there if Tate wasn't injured. I reckon he's going to really blossom with the confidence the Origin selectors have shown and will have a good game this week against Maddog or whoever he's playing.

I hope he improves, he was always the better prospect out of him and Darius, it's just a shame about the injuries.