BroncosFever
State of Origin Rep
- Jun 6, 2014
- 6,037
- 10,831
Alright, updated head-to-head:
1. Ponga (Knights) (purely based on reputation and that once every two months great game and you know he'll pull it out tonight)
2. Oates (Broncos) (he's in origin form, good luck Edrick)
3. Staggs (Broncos) (let's be honest, Gags is a gun but he is showing serious signs of wear and tear and might be underdone and Staggs is in ominous form)
4. Best (Knights) (I'm trying to be as unbiased as possible, personally I think Herbie is neck-a-neck here but Best is also a gun - the centre battles will be great out there tonight, four really, really good ones)
5. Cobbo (Broncos) (I don't know here because obviously Cobbo is a freak but although far less plaudited, so too is Young, I really, really, really rate both kids and hey, with Young and Farnworth, England are starting to have two amazingly gifted young backs to call on)
6. Milford (Knights) (again I'm trying to be unbiased because the reality is, Milford is a FAR better player than Gamble based on talent but Gamble is a FAR better player than Milford based on effort and I feel putting Milf over Gamble is a bit unfair but it is what it is)
7. Reynolds (Broncos) (it isn't even close)
8. Klemmer (Knights) (Jensen is having a wow of a season but Klemmer is proven and is still pulling out consistent strong games, no idea why he isn't getting a look in for NSW either, he is a great player but this is closer than you would have thought at the start of the season)
9. Walters (Broncos) (this is a toss of the coin really, neither of them are much to write home about but I really like how Billson has been growing into the role)
10. Haas (Broncos) (Saifiti is good of course but Haas is on another level to almost every other middle in the game)
11. Capewell (I am putting up again Fitzgibbon but again, both backrows are solid and Capes has the runs on the board)
12. Frizell (Knights) (Frizell at his best is on another level to every other second rower on the field including Capes but how close to his best is he coming back from injury?)
13. Carrigan (Broncos) (he is in career best form and has a Qld jersey with his name on it, having an amazing return from injury)
14. Paix (Broncos) (he is impressing more and more each game and offers spark off the bench we haven't really had since Segeyaro or even Berrigan years ago)
15. Flegler (Broncos) (it isn't even close when you have a Qld level forward on the bench in great form)
16. Hetherington (Broncos) (this kid's trajectory is great and he has been hurting blokes all season long, highlighted by his work over of Murray a couple of weeks back)
17. Saifiti (Knight) (just trying to be unbiased because I think Palasia is better but trying to be fair here and Saifiti is ok)
Broncos take it 10-7 but some of those are a real roll of the dice.
So clearly, the exciting battles are in the centres, Cobbo and Young plus the backrowers. In the middles and bench, we have a distinct advantage and on the back of that, it should be enough for Reynolds to once again capitalise but will complacency be a factor?
Interesting thoughts, I couldn't come into your reasoning for Milford though.
His talent has hit it's ceiling and now he needs to work hard to get to the next level and with us, he proved that he's not prepared to do that. If you loaded up youtube and he has just signed for your club, you'd be entitled to think you just signed a genuine match winner but we as Bronco fans all know he's not that.
He's not the kid who dazzled us with his footwork anymore, he needs to evolve into a smarter player and a harder working player. He never did that.