It's a rap...2017 Review

[broncsgoat]

All the media experts had us missing the 8 this year so shows what they fucking know.

Rothfield is a bottom feeder

 

[Horseheadsup]

All the media experts had us missing the 8 this year so shows what they fucking know.

Rothfield is a bottom feeder

Pretty confident Bennett can deliver us a Prem before he retires.

Shall personally send Rothfield a crate of the finest bottled oceanic sea salt to celebrate.

 

[Morkel]

The problem is that opposition fans lap it up and believe it. If you've ever seen an argument with an opposition fan, you'll see these arguments are brought up as established fact. Playing every Friday night, third party deals, one-town team. People want to hate us that much that they'll believe anything. And these journos are happy to oblige, as it gets the clicks.

 

[Mister Wright]

He raises a point about Bennett and it's a question you do have to ask.

Is he losing touch with the modern game? His game plan works when the team is on, but when they're not, it doesn't and it doesn't seem like we have a plan B.

We go all out on plan A and have to rely on individual brilliance or the opposition stuffing up if it doesn't work.

The same was being said when he first left and two years later had a premiership then took the Knights within 1 game of a GF and since returning to the Broncos has got us to a GF, For + against away from the top 4 and 1 game from the GF. That's not a bad record.

 

[Lockysillegitimatechild]

Rothfield is a hack. If we lost the gf he'd be saying the same thing. What advantages do Brisbane have? We don't get to stay in our home city for 80% of the season (Sydney teams), we don't play on our preferred day (Sunday), we don't get the most 7 day turnarounds (cowboys and several other clubs get more), Melbourne/New Zealand is a bigger city/market then Brisbane wih more businesses: more tpa's (yes it isn't a rugby league city/country but they both allow an avenue into that city PLUS nsw/qld, Brisbane isn't a business gateway like them. The two best squads money-wise are obviously Melbourne and nz so the tpa argument is rubbish)...

Last but not least... we keep the nrl afloat via tv ratings and crowds so IF we did get an advantage SO WE SHOULD!!!!! Sick of these "it's unfair because we are small and shit so you better bring them down to our level" arguments. I am starting to realise super league was anything but a mistake...

 

[Number6]

Rothfield is a hack. If we lost the gf he'd be saying the same thing. What advantages do Brisbane have? We don't get to stay in our home city for 80% of the season (Sydney teams), we don't play on our preferred day (Sunday), we don't get the most 7 day turnarounds (cowboys and several other clubs get more), Melbourne/New Zealand is a bigger city/market then Brisbane wih more businesses: more tpa's (yes it isn't a rugby league city/country but they both allow an avenue into that city PLUS nsw/qld, Brisbane isn't a business gateway like them. The two best squads money-wise are obviously Melbourne and nz so the tpa argument is rubbish)...

Last but not least... we keep the nrl afloat via tv ratings and crowds so IF we did get an advantage SO WE SHOULD!!!!! Sick of these "it's unfair because we are small and shit so you better bring them down to our level" arguments. I am starting to realise super league was anything but a mistake...

And this is the problem with the salary cap. It's based on communist theory and we know how well that works...

Last time I checked we are in a social capitalist society. Why should the club with the most fans who bring in the most revenue not be allowed to capitalise on that (within reason with checks and balances)? Instead like good Aussies we cut down the tall poppy and shit where we eat. The biggest problem with the super league war is that super league caved. ARL would have folded within a few years and we would now have a true national competition that would be flourishing after the initial turmoil. Set the game back at least 25 years. Imagine if Packer caved with cricket.

There is no incentive for any club to be excellent in any way under this system. Can't get fans that's ok NRL will pay your salary cap. Can't manage your books that's ok NRL will bail you out. Develop the best players, don't bother crap clubs will pay overs funded by NRL. Win a premiership then good luck getting another one because system will level you out. Winning a game, don't lead by too much otherwise refs will try to even things up.

The salary cap is restriction of trade justified on the assumed premise that equal competition protects the league and enhances the bottom line. However there is no evidence that this is true and the arguement is absurd when you think about it. I know I want to pay my money to see the most average movie or go to the most average university because it is so close to the competition. Everyone hates paying to see Bolt run because he is so good right. And it's not as if Manchester United and Real Madrid don't bring more fans to their sport...

You could argue for a soft cap so not to be too unbalanced. Rich pay their share for their excesses if they want to spend overs. Deductions for self developed players to reflect cost of investments. Clubs should also get a more weighted share of tv revenue based on their fan participation rather than equal spread. Not all of it but like the progressive tax system reasonable to share some of the wealth for the common good but not communism where the illusion of equality actually just leads to everyone losing through systemic inefficiency and corruption.

Fans deserve excellence as well as reward for their support. But most of all they deserve NRL to show integrity and accountability.

 

[Lockysillegitimatechild]

And this is the problem with the salary cap. It's based on communist theory and we know how well that works...

Last time I checked we are in a social capitalist society. Why should the club with the most fans who bring in the most revenue not be allowed to capitalise on that (within reason with checks and balances)? Instead like good Aussies we cut down the tall poppy and shit where we eat. The biggest problem with the super league war is that super league caved. ARL would have folded within a few years and we would now have a true national competition that would be flourishing after the initial turmoil. Set the game back at least 25 years. Imagine if Packer caved with cricket.

There is no incentive for any club to be excellent in any way under this system. Can't get fans that's ok NRL will pay your salary cap. Can't manage your books that's ok NRL will bail you out. Develop the best players, don't bother crap clubs will pay overs funded by NRL. Win a premiership then good luck getting another one because system will level you out. Winning a game, don't lead by too much otherwise refs will try to even things up.

The salary cap is restriction of trade justified on the assumed premise that equal competition protects the league and enhances the bottom line. However there is no evidence that this is true and the arguement is absurd when you think about it. I know I want to pay my money to see the most average movie or go to the most average university because it is so close to the competition. Everyone hates paying to see Bolt run because he is so good right. And it's not as if Manchester United and Real Madrid don't bring more fans to their sport...

You could argue for a soft cap so not to be too unbalanced. Rich pay their share for their excesses if they want to spend overs. Deductions for self developed players to reflect cost of investments. Clubs should also get a more weighted share of tv revenue based on their fan participation rather than equal spread. Not all of it but like the progressive tax system reasonable to share some of the wealth for the common good but not communism where the illusion of equality actually just leads to everyone losing through systemic inefficiency and corruption.

Fans deserve excellence as well as reward for their support. But most of all they deserve NRL to show integrity and accountability.

That 3rd paragraph was literally better then all rothfields best combined. Exactly my frustrations...

 

[heartly87]

That 3rd paragraph was literally better then all rothfields best combined. Exactly my frustrations...

Exactly my frustration also. We just have to look around. Fans are frustrated all round. Teams should be able to build dynasties but this is all but strangled out of the game to the point where the most successful team of the NRl era is a cap cheat. For me Melbourne is the tainted darling of the NRL. The rules have been bent to breaking point to allow their success because they couldn't do it under the cap. Cam is a Legend for his Qld efforts but i hate his involvement in the destruction of our game. The league is a farce when guys like thaiday can't ride pine for a few years as an 18th man or in reserve grade exempt from the cap. So many clubs have these players that could be still in the game not being forced into rugby or superleague. Hold a player for x amount of time and they should be cap exempt.

 

[winslow_wong]

On reflection of this year now that the dust has settled, In some ways it was already a start of a rebuild. we were more a team that should have finished 7 or 8 but on pure raw talent we made it to 3rd. Where as the cowboys are actually a top 4 side but finished way lower due to injuries. This all came to a head in the final few rounds and the finals as we got flogged by the real contenders and struggled to put away teams like the panthers.

So perhaps with some new faces, moving on veterans and getting rid of some dead wood (moga) the future can only be bright. Having more continuity with the spine will help also. It is sad but we have to let go of 2015.

 

[Waynesaurus]

I think ultimately what has undone us this year has been the chopping and changing in the halves. Sure injuries have played a part and forced some shuffling but the musical chairs at 7 went on all season between Hunt/Niko/Benji, it just killed any chance for a combination to build and I think that was evident in our attack against the Storm.

I think the cows are a prime example of this, they lost Thurston pretty early and Morgan struggled with his new roll and halves partner, but they stuck with it and week after week the Morgan/Martin combination has just gradually improved and learnt how to play their roles. Now in the finals the investment in that consistency is paying off at the right time.

Right up to finals we were still shuffling those halves around and I think moving Niko from halfback to fill in at fullback was probably the wrong thing to do in my opinion, it threw away a lot of the work that he and Milf had done.

We should have stuck with Niko at 7 through the good and the bad and gone with either Mead, Kahu or possibly even Isaako at the back to replace Boyd.

I think we were probably short a big metre eating forward as well, Blair and Sims just don't cut it as starting props. Blair has been particularly disappointing for me this year and I think that is why Wayne is letting him go to pursue a payday somewhere else.

 

[johnny plath]

He raises a point about Bennett and it's a question you do have to ask.

Is he losing touch with the modern game? His game plan works when the team is on, but when they're not, it doesn't and it doesn't seem like we have a plan B.

We go all out on plan A and have to rely on individual brilliance or the opposition stuffing up if it doesn't work.

I also agree with him about Bennett, but just as an aside... Bellamy is in his fifteenth season as head coach at the storm and has one premiership for all of his teams dominance but somehow his actual record flies under the radar. Rothfield and Kent are so transparent in their agendas its a wonder you can see them on tv.

 

[Taylor1921]

We may as well have missed th eight...

Grow up would ya.

 

[johnny plath]

I think we need to have more faith in depth players, especially for long term injuries, otherwise whats the real point of depth. Kahu brought nothing to the team for the last five or so rounds with his groin strain.. couldn't run, couldn't kick. We needed to bite the bullet and give Pearson or Mead time in the role while Kahu healed properly and actually brought value to the team when he came back. Similarly with Macca out we should have brought Waddell back in so we didn't have to **** with the halves and interchange so much. He did a solid job last year, he didn't stink it up any where near as much as some on here chose to believe. Isaako or another full back should have filled for Boyd as well.. ffs, we used injured kahu to cover for injured Boyd. I'm a big believer in players playing in their regular position, not filling a gap for a few weeks, especially specialist positions like the spine. Players need time and exposure to develop, and depth players just can't get that without NRL time. I think in 2015 we had a system of bringing bench forwards up for a few rounds for experience, then send them back to cup for fitness and game time. I think Willie O benefited from that kind of exposure. That seems to have disappeared and we only consider a depth player as a last resort.

 

[papabear]

Rothfield is a hack. If we lost the gf he'd be saying the same thing. What advantages do Brisbane have? We don't get to stay in our home city for 80% of the season (Sydney teams), we don't play on our preferred day (Sunday), we don't get the most 7 day turnarounds (cowboys and several other clubs get more), Melbourne/New Zealand is a bigger city/market then Brisbane wih more businesses: more tpa's (yes it isn't a rugby league city/country but they both allow an avenue into that city PLUS nsw/qld, Brisbane isn't a business gateway like them. The two best squads money-wise are obviously Melbourne and nz so the tpa argument is rubbish)...

Last but not least... we keep the nrl afloat via tv ratings and crowds so IF we did get an advantage SO WE SHOULD!!!!! Sick of these "it's unfair because we are small and shit so you better bring them down to our level" arguments. I am starting to realise super league was anything but a mistake...

After a post like that I am not sure you should be criticizing Rothfield.

Every side has its advantages and disadvantages.

The TV viewings is circular, the more you are on tv, the more fans you will get, the higher your ratings will be. Canberra would be one of the lowest rating sides on tv now, but that wasnt the case in the early 90s, its just what happens after you get left of tv schedules for 20 years.

The NRL should always show the best product (best game) on TV to attract people to the game, not go for short term ratings, which is what the channel nine does. I am sure this will start to change a little bit as the NRL takes more control of the tv schedule.

To compare yourself to melbourne is farcical, in an AFL city competing with 10 odd other AFL franchises to an NRL city which has one other garbage AFL franchise.

Ask any businessman where would you prefer to open a new RL franchise melbourne or brisbane 9/10 would tell you brisbane.

I agree brisbane do more travelling then Sydney sides, but so does every outside of sydney side.

NZ squad isnt better then brisbanes. Brisbane has a very very good squad (imo like canberra) and imo like canberra this year they fell short on coaching. Atleast they didnt fall as far short as canberra did.

 

[pagey]

After a post like that I am not sure you should be criticizing Rothfield.

Every side has its advantages and disadvantages.

The TV viewings is circular, the more you are on tv, the more fans you will get, the higher your ratings will be. Canberra would be one of the lowest rating sides on tv now, but that wasnt the case in the early 90s, its just what happens after you get left of tv schedules for 20 years.

The NRL should always show the best product (best game) on TV to attract people to the game, not go for short term ratings, which is what the channel nine does. I am sure this will start to change a little bit as the NRL takes more control of the tv schedule.

To compare yourself to melbourne is farcical, in an AFL city competing with 10 odd other AFL franchises to an NRL city which has one other garbage AFL franchise.

Ask any businessman where would you prefer to open a new RL franchise melbourne or brisbane 9/10 would tell you brisbane.

I agree brisbane do more travelling then Sydney sides, but so does every outside of sydney side.

NZ squad isnt better then brisbanes. Brisbane has a very very good squad (imo like canberra) and imo like canberra this year they fell short on coaching. Atleast they didnt fall as far short as canberra did.

We were 1 win from the GF ! Up against a team that will be regarded as one of the best. How can you say we fell short?? You guys were regarded as favourites and yet couldn't make the 8 , that's falling short.

 

[Super Freak]

Broncos 2017 season review

September 26, 2017

The Brisbane Broncos' 11-year premiership drought will extend into another season, but their fans can have hope for the future after a year in which the club performed above expectations.

A premiership victory may have eluded coach Wayne Bennett, but he knows the team that ended their season – the Melbourne Storm – are going to go down as one of the most dominant NRL sides in history.

With Cooper Cronk departing the Storm and Billy Slater yet to decide on his future, there is an opening for the Broncos in the coming years to bridge the gap, but some of their star players must improve.

The pressure will be on Anthony Milford in 2018 to live up to his price tag after an up-and-down season, while young forwards Tevita Pangai Junior, Joe Ofahengaue and George Fai will be looking to continue in their development.

A man like Bennett will always be judged on premierships, but it would be unfair to call Brisbane's 2017 season a failure.

Injuries hurt the Broncos in key positions and this instability would have derailed a lot of sides, but not Brisbane, who showed plenty of heart to make it to the preliminary finals.

Where they excelled: For a relatively small team, the Broncos did well to make the metres they did. Brisbane finished the year with the most run metres in the competition and a lot of the credit for that can go to centres Tautau Moga and James Roberts. Both averaged over 120 metres per game, with Roberts's elusiveness and amazing speed helping him break 107 tackles – the eighth highest across the competition. Credit must go to lock Josh McGuire for leading the pack for the second year in a row, running for nearly 800 more than any other forward. In fact, the only player to run for more metres than McGuire at the Broncos was Moga, with the departing centre's 3910 run metres the sixth highest across the NRL in 2017.

Where they struggled: Brisbane had a slow start to the year and it cost them in the long run, missing out on a top-two finish by just one victory. After five rounds the Broncos sat ninth with two wins and three losses, with all of those defeats coming by three points or less. Their 10-7 loss to the struggling Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs in Round 5 came as a shock to just about everyone except the Bulldogs faithful, and it will be one Brisbane look back on as a missed opportunity. It was always going to be tough to start well in 2017 with Brisbane facing 2016's top four in the first four rounds, and that imposing challenge proved to be a defining period of their season.

Missing in action: Injuries are unavoidable and it was unfortunate for Brisbane that key players went down during important stages of the season. The Broncos lost captain Darius Boyd for majority of the finals series, with his return in the preliminary final a move that backfired with the inspirational skipper failing to play out the match. Brisbane also lost Korbin Sims to a season-ending arm fracture in Round 25, while hooker Andrew McCullough missed the last eight games with a serious knee injury. Throw in stints on the sideline for Ben Hunt, Jordan Kahu, Anthony Milford and Corey Oates and it is easy to see why the Broncos may have felt like 2017 was never going to be their year.

Turning point: Many believe hooker Andrew McCullough is Brisbane's most valuable player so when he went down in Round 21 it put a significant dint in the Broncos' premiership aspirations. The victim of friendly fire, McCullough injured both his ACL and MCL when teammate Adam Blair collided with him late in Brisbane's loss to the Parramatta Eels. McCullough averaged almost 50 tackles a game in 2017 and the Broncos missed that defensive starch at the back-end of their season. To make matters worse, the loss of McCullough meant first-choice halfback Ben Hunt had to move to hooker, with utility Kodi Nikorima shifting to No.7 to partner Anthony Milford in the halves. As hard as he tried, Nikorima could not replicate the class of Hunt on a regular basis, with Bennett at times using veteran Benji Marshall at halfback in a desperate bid to try and spark some creativity in attack. It often did not work, with Brisbane's 30-0 preliminary final loss to the Melbourne Storm an accurate depiction of the Broncos' struggles in attack with a makeshift spine that could not match it with the best.

Hold your head high: Josh McGuire. There is life at the Broncos without Corey Parker and a lot of that is to do with McGuire's stellar transition to lock. McGuire is a serious contender for Dally M Lock of the Year and an Australian Kangaroos World Cup jersey after becoming Brisbane's most reliable forward. McGuire consistently topped the Broncos for run metres, as he became the enforcer so many clubs would love to have on their side.

2018 crystal ball: With Ben Hunt, Tautau Moga, Benji Marshall, Jai Arrow, Herman Ese'ese and possibly Adam Blair leaving the club at season's end, it becomes hard to predict what lies in store in 2018. It will be a new-look Broncos side and Wayne Bennett will have plenty of tough decisions to make. The inclusion of Jack Bird from the Cronulla Sharks is a huge signing and he will be sure to have a big workload in 2018. Question marks remain around the halves pairing of Anthony Milford and Kodi Nikorima, but if fullback Darius Boyd and hooker Andrew McCullough can make an impact then there is enough talent there for a top-four finish.

Conclusion: Many 'experts' wrote the Broncos off at the start of the year, with a top-eight finish looking like a stretch if you had believed everything being said in the papers. The Broncos defied those expectations, finishing third to be a serious premiership contender – falling one game short of a grand final appearance. In the end it was injuries that cruelled any chance of a premiership. Not many teams can win a competition without their hooker and starting prop, and the Broncos are no different.

Season stats:

Wins: 17
Losses: 10
Position: 3rd
Home Record: 10-3
Away Record: 7-7
Longest Winning Streak: Six Games (Rd 6-11)
Longest Losing Streak: Two Games (Rd 2-3, Rd 12-13)
Players Used: 26
Tries Scored: 109
Tries Conceded: 85

Source: NRL.com

 

[Big Pete]

Did anyone actually believe the Broncos could win the premiership this season?

I can't think of one major publication who believed we could go all the way. In fact, a few were going out on a limb to say the side would miss the 8 altogether.

Brisbane lived up to expectations, especially when you consider the disruptions right at the death.

Conclusion: Many 'experts' wrote the Broncos off at the start of the year, with a top-eight finish looking like a stretch if you had believed everything being said in the papers. The Broncos defied those expectations, finishing third to be a serious premiership contender – falling one game short of a grand final appearance. In the end it was injuries that cruelled any chance of a premiership. Not many teams can win a competition without their hooker and starting prop, and the Broncos are no different

Good to see I'm not alone.

 

[Taylor1921]

Coming from you, that's rich.

We were one game away from the grand final, finished the season at 3rd. Have had disruptions in the spine all year long. We haven't had a chance to field our best team all year long. So yes grow up you sook. The boys did well give them a break.