POST GAME Round 1 - Cowboys vs Broncos

[Unbreakable]

Glad we had farnworth on the bench given all the cramping

May actually have to give Seibold credit for that one..

He would've known it was going to be hot and humid, so severe cramping was going to be likely.

Turned out to be a genius move.

 

[Accept]

The guys came out with plenty of energy and enthusiasm and looked fucking dangerous with ball in hand even coming out of their own end. The Cowboys looked vulnerable from the get go and the seven point margin probably flattered them.

And as long as you have a guy named Fifita in the squad, the Broncos are capable of scoring from anywhere in any situation. Shaky at times defensively but that is commonplace in a young side. I could see this team involved in a few shootouts.

Pleasantly surprised tonight and it is a good base to work from. They are still a borderline playoff side but it's probably all irrelevant anyways as the comp is about to shut down and unlikely to return till 2021. Good job tonight, boys.

 

[I bleed Maroon]

1. Isaako - Considering his very late callup, he can hold his head high. Yes he cramped up and cost us a try, it didn't cost us winning, so what. He deserves credit for what was a very solid performance. 6
2. Oates - Very poor start for old Corey. Took the lazy option every time and it cost us every time. The Cows started targeting him intentionally at one point or another because they knew how shaky he was under the ball. Might need a stint in reserves to fully get over this infection he's had but might wanna be looking over his shoulder a bit. 4
3. Staggs - Had a few nice touches plus a try, can't recall any errors from him off the top either. Would still like to see a bit more communication between our backs though and he is top of that list. 6
4. Boyd - Wasn't close to best on ground, but considering most of us were expecting airswings for days, he did pretty okay for himself. Made a crucial tackle late to help stop a try, still looks as slow as a crab laterally sadly, and still can't see a full strength world with him in it. 5
5. Arthars - Was our best backliner tonight. As stated there needs to be more line communication between them but Arthars seems to work well enough under the current arrangement to persist with. Good on him. 8
6. Milford - We're only one game in and I'm already loving what I'm seeing. he chose to go himself far more often than usual and picked the right option 90% of the time. So glad to see he is more free to play how he likes rather than being the puppet master. 8
7. Croft - He is my personal MOTM. Everything he did was exactly what we needed from him in the moment: every kick, every pass and every tackle. He is worth having there just for the pressure he takes off Milf. He might not be DCE, but he's good enough to win games with the pack he's behind. 9
8. Flegler - Another one who under the circumstances really lifted when we needed him to. Can't recall one lazy penalty he gave away and at one point led the game in power rankings. We will need more of it from him until Lodge returns, but I'm more than happy to leave him be to find his groove in the game. 7
9. Turpin - He gets my 2 points. His service from dummy half and ruck speed is a breath of fresh air after a gargle of Listerine. Should feel pretty safe as first option hooker. 8
10. Haas - To be honest, I struggle to see who can stop him taking the Dally M. Perhaps RTS if the Warriors can get into some sort of gear, but man oh man. This boy is a T-800. He will continue to gobble up metres and tackles all year provided he keeps injury free (oh god please), and his combination with the next man can be the best front row in the comp. 9
11. Fifita - Bow to the king. Pay him what he wants. All of those one liners, just find a way to make this boy stay put. He is the future of the club along with Haas. That try is just extraordinary for a player that is supposed to be a second rower. 8
12. TPJ - He loses points for once again wiping himself out of the game with a stupid act, but I would very much like to persist with his aggressive style and try and find a balance that works, because he really does intimidate the opposition and works them over in defence. The penalty was soft as **** to begin with and in the better days of the game used to be a fucking good hit. 7
13. Carrigan - He is clearly up there in the pecking order in terms of the leadership group and is heir apparent to Glenn for the captaincy. Imagine those idiots in the media having a crack at us for running out with such a young captain, I guarantee you that Carrigan is 2nd only to Fifita as a hot property on the player market. 8

14. McCullough - He did just about as much as we needed from him, which admittedly isn't much. Came on late to relieve a tired Turpin and made some good tackles. However one thing I did notice is how....unfit he looked. He has definitely put on a couple of kegs since the off season, and to be honest I think he looks like a player who realizes he is being transitioned out sooner or later. 5
15. Kennedy - Can't recall much from his contributions except a few good tackles which you know was enough to do the job, but he will be in a scramble to retain his spot with Hopoate once all of our regular forwards are back. he clearly has plenty of time to stake his claim though. 5
16. Hopoate - I liked what I saw, hit hard in tackles and took the tough runs when we needed it. As stated will be in the mix over the course of the season....If there is one lol 6
17. Farnworth - Did a swell job. Absolutely looks like the heir to Boyd's centre spot, and probably should already be there by rights. If Oates continues his downward trend, he will surely be in soon enough. Maybe Oates to the 2nd row has come and Farnworth straight in. 7

 

[Locky’s Left Boot]

surely Green needs a decent start to the season to keep his job ... a 13th then 14th place finish would be the death knell for most coaches jobs

He is the epitome of a coach being overrated based on the luxury of having a certain Jonathon Thurston running the show. **** me we missed a bullet when somehow we were linked with him when the media acted like he was some kind of coaching genius.

Wouldn’t be surprised if Bellamy suffers the same fate post Cameron Smith.

 

[rnabokov]

I really like Croft. For a young bloke playing his first match for a new club he was in control and composed and directed traffic really well. Fantastic debut for us. We looked organized, and his presence out there allowed Milf and Turp's games to lift a notch or three. We had Fifita and TPJ working the edges better than I have seen. For mine, this is all down to Croft's influence. Shows exactly what's been wrong with this side since Hunt left, and it now looks fixed, with a great result.

The other standouts for me were Carrigan and Arthars. Carrigan's work rate is huge. His runs are ferocious and his defence strong. What a player. He's a star.

Arthars is all class. Fast, agile, good defence. I wish he was in the centres. I sense big things for this side. Can't wait .. if it happens that is.

 

[broncsgoat]

Great showing, I thought Croft and Arthars were two of our best. Just suggest tempering the excitement a little bit. We looked fucking good in round two last year against the cowboys as well. Getting up to play them has never been an issue. encouraging signs though!

 

[Locky’s Left Boot]

One thing that flies under the radar a bit with Milford is he has a fucking dangerous late offload which we saw a bit of last night.

It’s not as clean as Corey Parker’s were but when he decides to run and attracts multiple defenders and he somehow pops it out when he has no right too, it’s going to become a dangerous play if we can utilise it. Hope to see more of it and I too reckon we definitely saw a more care free Milford with the ball last night.

At least if the season gets canned, we will remember 2020 for being an undefeated season and at least if TPJ gets suspended, he will only miss the trial games next season.

 

[winslow_wong]

One thing that flies under the radar a bit with Milford is he has a fucking dangerous late offload which we saw a bit of last night.

It’s not as clean as Corey Parker’s were but when he decides to run and attracts multiple defenders and he somehow pops it out when he has no right too, it’s going to become a dangerous play if we can utilise it. Hope to see more of it and I too reckon we definitely saw a more care free Milford with the ball last night.

At least if the season gets canned, we will remember 2020 for being an undefeated season and at least if TPJ gets suspended, he will only miss the trial games next season.

Noticed a few times Milford passed to haas who then punched through the advantage line except Milford didn’t follow up with support play. Milford needs to be haas’ shadow because those offloads will come and then we’ll see 2015 Milford again.

 

[Wolfie]

Great showing, I thought Croft and Arthars were two of our best. Just suggest tempering the excitement a little bit. We looked fucking good in round two last year against the cowboys as well. Getting up to play them has never been an issue. encouraging signs though!

Next week will be much more of a test i would think. Still think some of the defence for their tries was way too sloppy. We had 20 points put on us by a pretty poor footy team which is a bit worrying, but you can only beat whats in front of you, and we did comfortably.

 

[winslow_wong]

Next week will be much more of a test i would think. Still think some of the defence for their tries was way too sloppy. We had 20 points put on us by a pretty poor footy team which is a bit worrying, but you can only beat whats in front of you, and we did comfortably.

I do believe one of their tries only happened because isaako cramped. Otherwise I don’t think he would have dropped it cold the way he did.

 

[Wolfie]

I do believe one of their tries only happened because isaako cramped. Otherwise I don’t think he would have dropped it cold the way he did.

Their first try was terrible defending, and the Feldt try when Oates did his usual trick of flying in off the wing.

 

[Locky’s Left Boot]

Next week will be much more of a test i would think. Still think some of the defence for their tries was way too sloppy. We had 20 points put on us by a pretty poor footy team which is a bit worrying, but you can only beat whats in front of you, and we did comfortably.

Next weeks going to be made even harder when the boys rock up with no one in the crowd. Going to feel like they are playing in Sydney at ANZ.

 

[HarryAllan7]

I agree with most sentiments people are sharing here, but I don’t understand people raving about Milford...
He did look free and unshackled but didn’t really do anything with it. He tried to have a few runs but was always easily contained.. a few offloads but certainly nothing special.
Not trying to be a downer.. they are positive signs and I hope they continue but I don’t see what some people are describing as a ‘transformed player’

 

[Sproj]

It’s been done but thus might be my only chance all year:

14. Isaako - He was good. You would never know he was second choice. Some big runs and actually broke a few tackles which for someone with his physique hasn’t really done enough of before. Cramping stifled him from scoring higher. 6
2. Oates - Absolute shocker! He did some nice carries but was the worst on the park by some distance. May be scared of coronavirus given his history of contracting infections and played like he didn’t want to be there. 3
3. Staggs - He is a deceptively strong little Berrigan nugget isn’t he. Still had defensively lapses and finished his night early, hopefully only due to cramp. Great try. 6
4. Boyd - He was solid and that’s about all you can expect from him these days. Looked like he was learning the position and fair enough, was not bad by any means and pulled out some defensive magic. 6.5
5. Arthars - Looked good on the wing, looked lethal at centre. I think we might just have a top class centre in waiting just quietly. Great speed and pretty agile. Seems to read plays well. Very impressed. 8
6. Milford - Definitely looked under instruction to run first, think later. He wasn’t at his best by any means but most importantly, looked like the spark might still be there and he’s found how to unleash it, just needs time. Love how he allowed Croft to take over organisation as the game went on and he was popping the ball out regularly. 7.5
7. Croft - Scintillating debut, absolutely stunning. The team looked like it had direction, purpose and organisation. Dream debut and he looked dangerous every single touch. 9
8. Flegler - To be honest, I wasn’t overly impressed with him early but he played safe and stayed in check. His second stint was destructive though. He was making metres for fun and cutting down players in their tracks. Given how good his front row partner went, his outstanding performance might get unfairly overshadowed. He was immense. 8.5
9. Turpin - Played like he earned his spot. Scored the first try in the stadium and the fact the team looked so slick is in large part thanks to his service because it definitely clunked a little after he went off. Still has that great stinging defense. 7
10. Haas - Best player in the comp hands down and still so young. He has absolutely everything. I’ve never seen a forward this good this early. He’s fast, he’s agile, he has a motor to match anyone and he’s mature on the field. He makes so many crucial plays on the field with and without the ball, it’s freakish. Need a big run? He’ll do it. Last man back to take an intercept late in the game when he should be out in his feet? He’s there too. Shane he dropped it, otherwise no hesitation giving perfect scores. 9.9
11. Fifita - This is the beauty of the kid. Don’t really notice him and then BANG, out of nowhere in a crucial time of the game, he pulls out one of the all-time great tries...again. It is really hard to score him because that play was worth points on its own. 7
12. TPJ - He’ll be in trouble again and given O’Neill went off and failed a HIA, it doesn’t look good for him. Outside of that, he was actually great. Menace in defense and threatened every run, scored a try and ran a great line to get another had it not bounced end over end to Indonesia. Really good game but that incident loses points. 7
14. Carrigan - He was almost as good as Haas. Totally unbelievable but true. Played like a seasoned captain and absolutely led from the front. Truly inspirational stuff. Hit everything hard and ran with purpose. Relentless. 9

15. McCullough - Paying homage to Jack Bird? He got smashed by a shoulder charge but that all got ignored in the immediate aftermath of that Fifita try. He was solid, certainly not bad by any means but that hair has to go. 6
16. Kennedy - I didn’t really notice him but he was solid. Seemed to do his job from what I did notice. Definite noticeable shift in forward dominance when he came on, Broncs lost some momentum for a little while. 5
17. Hopoate - I really liked his debut. He ran well and hit hard. Helped steady the slight momentum slide when he cane on. Impressive debut. 7
19. Farnworth - I like this kid, I think he and Oates should swap. He looked really good when he came on and continues to impress. 6

 

[big k]

With how our young outside backs are going could we see Oates on the bench round 2 as a second rower?

 

[Maroon4life]

I agree with most sentiments people are sharing here, but I don’t understand people raving about Milford...
He did look free and unshackled but didn’t really do anything with it. He tried to have a few runs but was always easily contained.. a few offloads but certainly nothing special.
Not trying to be a downer.. they are positive signs and I hope they continue but I don’t see what some people are describing as a ‘transformed player’

Yeah I saw it too, a lot of sideway running and very little thought going into his decision making on when to inject himself.

I thought we looked a lot better structurally on the back of Croft but still thought a lot of our tries came from individual efforts like in previous years

 

[Locky’s Left Boot]

Wow, the amount of bloody salt and outrage coming from Cowboys fans since they lost fair and square has been astonishing.

So far I’ve seen one ask why Staggs try wasn’t a double movement, seen one say Morgan’s captain challenge should have been overturned as he didn’t lose it, a forward pass in the lead up to Fifita’s try and then multiple comments about how we got all of the rub of the green, how cowboys were robbed like they had some divine given right to win the game, and how we could barely put away a team that finished bottom 8 the previous year.

I know they are notorious for whinging but this is taking the absolute piss. The refereeing was actually almost spot on and has actually been pretty decent for the entire opening round. This is a game where you are really stretching and are clearly butt hurt if you mention the referees in this one. At worst they probably missed one forward pass and one missed penalty in the air which would have been our penalty anyway. Absolute sooks.

How did sleeping overnight in the new stadium during the week to get a leg up prior to the game work out for you, you whinging entitled flogs?

Maybe you should concentrate on making sure you remain above the Titans as the second best team in QLD before you compete against the big boys. That was almost a B team with the outs we had and we still put them to the sword like it was a training drill.

 

[Dazza 92]

anyone else see the guys try a three man tackle then peel away to give Milf a chance at the strip..? Didnt work but id like to see us try that again with the proviso it isnt Milf who's the one trying to grab the pill. Turps for me would have the strength and tenacity to do that...

Still unsure about the bench; next game, if we play it, will be more instructive. Haas, TPJ & Fifita played the whole 80. Macca for Turps ok...if you have to....Rhys rotated through for Flegs and Paddy.

That 4th spot is a emergency type thing. Is that the best use of it though..?