POST GAME Round 1 - Dragons vs Broncos

[bingale16]

Been saying it all along, our halves are the problem... First we let Ash Taylor, then Hunt...even Marshall is a more dominate 7 then both! No game management whatsoever and our attack is the same! No variation! Only TPJ looks to be offloading, everything else is just so readable and rely on individual brilliance than good team structure.
Yes its Round 1 but no excuse, we still look the same predictable team. Spend 900k on Bird to play Centre? That wont help.
TPG played well, ran hard but needs better endurance, Isaako looked good and Lodge did well considering all the drama he had the week. Cowboys will flog us next week.

 

[Mightybroncs2k17]

I might he overreacting simply becuase i hate losing but this is a good example of the difference between us and someone like the storm. Our players and coach put this poor performance simply down to the old "its just round one" excuse where other teams will simply say its not good enough regardles of what round it is.

Just because your expected to be shit and off the mark in round one doenst mean its acceptable to be shit and off the mark.its still a premiership game worth 2 points. Still 25 rounds to go but so bring it on!

 

[1910]

ISC was a pretty good form line, Lodge threw a pass that wasn't needed, Isaako make some good dirty carries and went between defenders and Pangai didn't get back a few times.

Still thought they were the Broncos' best. Lodge was in hospital this week too, not stress related but sick so he did pretty well.

 

[roo-ted]

The main problem and made the most difference was our halves.. They had no idea or plan, they didn't work together or organise at all, our kicking game is grubber or kick high and hope for the best. Kahu looked like a fish out of water and was targeted in defence. Sammy's glory days are well and truly gone along with Boyd. We aren't going to win many games with these people not firing

 

[BroncsFan]

He did it twice and I yelled both times, he just handed the ball back the dragons and destroyed any chance of us trying to get some field position or gain some momentum.

This is one of the major issues I have with Macca. He is very premeditated and will go through with something before checking if it is actually on.

He needs to have a plan a, b and c in his head and pick the right one when it is on offer... he looks to only ever have a plan a

 

[Nashy]

What's wrong with Roberts? He was buggered just seeing the ball. And this fucking Oates not being on the wing thing can **** right off.

Darius Boyd. I'm going to call it now. He needs to not be our captain, and I'm almost prepared to say he shouldn't be in our spine.

 

[Thelmus]

Missed a chunk of the game in the middle and at the start (picking up kids Uhhh!). From what i did see, there appeared to be a few obvious flaws in our game: The fitness of our starting forwards (hooker included), the defence of kahu, and the inability to find a second kicker when under pressure. Things like drop balls and bad kicks can happen in these rounds, so I wasn't so worried about them, but when milford decided to test the defence and run, he put the whole team was flat against the defensive line and we had maguire punting it. You need someone deep as a safety valve so he can do that. Our forwards in general were unorganised.
I'd be pushing for opacic in the centres (though he's no magic bullet), and giving sua more game time (his defence was great). For those saying offa was bad, I must have missed his missed tackles or whatever, because from what I did see, his carries were best for yardage.
I'll eat my words for tevita though. He caused major disruption for st george with his offloads at the start. It's just a shame they weren't really capitalised on. If we are using him that way, someone fast has to trail him to make the most of it. Either that, or just tell him to bullock it up, as there is no point to him offloading to a standing still front rower. It makes their defence work, but the real payoff would for knik or milf, with fast feet and hands to do something with it. His defence at the end of stints is a worry though.
All in all the team looked rusty. Kahu looked out of place in the centres (though he might grow into the role). Knick had little involvement. Our structure was ordinary (typical this time of year, unfortunately).

 

[BroncsFan]

Lodge did more ball playing than Nikorima, which says a bit about both of them I think.

I think it says more about the tactics they keep trying to employ I.e. the middles passing to the halves.

It worked for one year at the dogs (2015) and we decided to try and implement it. From 2016 onwards we have been doing it Blair has just been substituted by Lodge.

It is so telegraphed that Hunt was able to recognise it from his years of training with it.

Anyone blaming kodi for that need only look to last year's footage of milf getting rushed and hammered because of the slow inside service from the middles

 

[Danoz Direct]

What did he do that was great? Nobody out there was great, Maranta was ok but never anything better that ok. Isaako dropped a bomb and then backed it up by not falling on the ball as well. Great is a massive exaggeration

Yes he dropped one bomb, but everything else he did was fantastic with great energy.

 

[Lebbo73]

To think that WB once said that MILF was another Locky.

He isn’t even the great mans arsehole!

 

[Lebbo73]

There is no structure or organization around the heart of the team: the halves.

Widdop looks and plays like a 5/8, Milf didn't.

There's the key to the utter lack of combinations.

Bird when fit to 5/8th (as I said in the off season)
Milf to fullback
Boyd to the centres
Kahu to the wing
Thaiday to finish his career in Q Cup (as I said in the off season)

 

[roo-ted]

Bird when fit to 5/8th (as I said in the off season)
Milf to fullback
Boyd to the centres
Kahu to the wing
Thaiday to finish his career in Q Cup (as I said in the off season)

On that note when is Bird going to be fit to play? Looks like we are going to need him

 

[heartly87]

Look if we won the first game of the season no one would be able to say we will be premiership contenders. Lose the game and we are done. Go figure. It was shit no doubt about it, but we have a season to build. Hopefully we do that like 15.

 

[Lebbo73]

because unlike the great smith who does it when he senses forwards are tired etc, macca just reads from a script.

I’ve never been a Macca fan. He isn’t fit enough or doesn’t have the stamina to last 80 minutes even when fully fit. God help us if Smith retires from rep footy and he’s Queensland’s hooker this year!

 

[Brotherdu]

For mine, a lot of the problems we saw come down to the fact that we couldn't hold the ball, meaning we hardly ever strung multiple sets together without an error. It's the first game of the year and the team needs to get into the grind and work the rust out. Most of our few forays into their end of the field led to points, could have been more if Boyd didn't throw the ball forward.

Thaiday was poor, some of his passes were shocking, but then he's not a hooker, so not sure it's his fault really. Maybe Moose should have played there for the first 20.

I thought I forwards looked promising without being great, remember the Dragons pack is one of the best in the comp. TPJ was offloading at will and looked a handful at times, but he needs to calms down a bit sometimes. Lodge was great for his first game back, he always seemed to land on his front for a quick play the ball which is something we've lacked for ages. He probably needs to focus on his hitups a bit more instead off ball playing as he looks ot be out main metre eating forward. Sims/Offa were pretty quiet, but I think that is mainly because we were already outgunned when they came on.

Jimmy and Isaako were pretty good, I can see them causing some trouble for teams down the track if Kahu isn't pushed back to that wing.

Milf and Nico were pretty invisible, but again, we never had the ball and when we did we dropped it. However, there were some really bad ends to sets, were it looked like neither of them wanted the ball and there was no plan. Someone, I guess Milf needs to step up. Looked like there was a lack of talk. Moose kicking on last tackle, Milf kicking for only Moose to chase etc. I'm not sure an organising half would have solved our problems tonight, so this is probably a good game for them to be this disorganised. I'd be really shitty if we played well as a whole and lost it because our halves couldn't put the game to bed.

All in all, I can shrug this one off to preseason rust, 2 players back from injury without a preseason game, 3 others playing out of position and Bird to come into the side still. Hopefully this is a once off, it would be hard for them to play much worse, but far out, we have the Cows next week, I can't see us getting up at this stage.

Oh and our defence was absolute crap.

 

[holdzy]

The most annoying thing out of that shit is that it looks like we are in for more of the same from the last two years: no structure to what we do.

I haven't commented on this too much, and I know it's only the first round (potential/probable season derailing injuries aside) - but this is starting to look like a Wayne problem to me.

He is not getting what we need out of the team, as a whole, or the individuals. I'm obviously not giving up on the team or the year, but like I said a few weeks ago, I have a funny feeling about this year, and it's not good.

 

[Lebbo73]

Similar comments to this thread. Lol

https://broncoshq.com/threads/round-1-broncos-vs-rabbitohs.25178/page-11

I was at that game. It was humid, mid 30’s and putrid. Perfect hometown advantage and we still got flogged.

 

[broncsgoat]

I was at that game. It was humid, mid 30’s and putrid. Perfect hometown advantage and we still got flogged.

Souffs were on fire though... I remember there were people talking about them going through undefeated after a few rounds. Didn’t turn out that way