POST GAME Round 19 - Knights vs Broncos

[pagey]

122 meters and 25 tackles, no missed tackles from 40 minutes. Looked solid and should definitely hold his spot. Maybe starting to mature and reach his potential.

Nice ! Cheers mate

 

[ivanhungryjak]

Why are people (Knights fans and the foxsports headline writers) so upset about it?

Classic Newy tweet in response to Steve Mascord asking why they were all so upset.

 

[Taylor1921]

I knows it's the knights but the refs let them get away with everything out there, i was so close to turning the TV off.

 

[Taylor1921]

Best thing about that game is Milford looked very vocal, and Benji when he came on was very vocal aswell. They should be our starting halves.

 

[Murphda]

Glenn was awesome..seriously even though hunt had 1 kick **** he is a shithouse player now. Benji has to be picked before that muppet or kodi..he offers nothing exect confusion. Hunt has as much attack as pack of girl guides..

 

[Mightybroncs2k17]

Let's just hope that arrow hasn't signed yet with the titans and Brisbane ramp up efforts to keep him. I think now we've lost Herman it's important we retain jai, he seems really solid.

Also I know Wayne has a huge opinion of Sua especially given he's still eligible for under 20's but I haven't seen anything special from him yet. I guess he does his job and that's all that's required.

 

[Sproj]

Melbourne have lost Cronk, Harris and McLean for next season. They've probably got the best production line in the competition bar none, but even they're not immune to the demands of the cap.

Looking at Arrow specifically, the original plan may have been to play him as lock but that all changed when Bennett brought in Pangai Jr. Most fans would agree Pangai Jr is the better talent, so you either stick with the rookies or you bring in a talent when you can.

Which is what Bellamy did when he brought Finucane into the club or Addo-Carr. If the talent is available, why not take it?

Melbourne have two advantages.

They've kept the same coach since 2003. That means they haven't had to go in different directions to appease the new coach. Brisbane on the other had have had to change tact on three occasions since then, so that's a lot of long term planning down the tubes.

The other area where they've got Brisbane beat is they've got a great foundation. In Smith, Cronk and Slater they've got all the direction they need, they just need to find the right cogs around them. Which is why Bellamy casts players in roles he has. Whether it's the Steve Turner speedster, Matt King giant winger or even the Ben Cross clones he seems to love, he just backs his ability to mould these players into that vision.

Brisbane don't have that core identity yet, so they tend to stay loyal to these 'cogs' meaning the players of the future have to look elsewhere.

I think you've hit a lot of nails on the head here as usual, BP. Even if that talent is available though, you still need to provide pathways for kids, something that has not been happening for us in the backs. Case in point is Jack Bird. Is he one of the best young players in the game? Yes, undoubtedly. Do we need him? Absolutely not. We have young guys who are all capable coming through our ears but they just aren't getting a shot. I mean look at Pearson, he looks to have something special but he has to bide his time while David Mead has been stinking it up. How is that encouraging players to stay?

In the forwards, TPJ is something special and so is Haas but they are different styles of players to Arrow. Arrow is your Corey Parker, the workhorse with a bit of second phase play in him that you can build a forward pack around. Is it a mistake to let him go, particularly when McGuire can very well play prop and do exactly what he is doing now in the 13 anyway. Additionally, we have not had anyone nail down that other (non-Blair) starting prop spot anyway.

 

[Mr Fourex]

With our full side we are very competitive but we need significantly more from our 7 & 9.
Macca is the same as Peats solid but hardly scaring anyone not even engaging the markers.

.....and he never will. We have to look for another 9 for at least 2019 and onwards. A.Mc doesn't offer us enough.

 

[JayPee]

Do you like any player from the team you apparently support?

I like him for what he is offering for the wage he is on. Value no doubt. Doesn't mean he isn't an absolute pea heart that has major character flaws when things get tough. Easy to be a big man when you are running around with the big dogs. Where was he when he was meant to be the leader and was on decent coin. Never liked him when he wasn't here and I still don't like him now. Just don't think he is very good. But if he is on 100k like people supposedly reckon he is on he can stay.

 

[JayPee]

The keyboard warrior who can't read nrl.com and get his 'facts' right...

Whats this about? If you are alluding to Sims 100m stats, if you can't detect sarcasm on the Sims call that is not my fault. He is still a cat

 

[Big Pete]

I think you've hit a lot of nails on the head here as usual, BP. Even if that talent is available though, you still need to provide pathways for kids, something that has not been happening for us in the backs. Case in point is Jack Bird. Is he one of the best young players in the game? Yes, undoubtedly. Do we need him? Absolutely not. We have young guys who are all capable coming through our ears but they just aren't getting a shot. I mean look at Pearson, he looks to have something special but he has to bide his time while David Mead has been stinking it up. How is that encouraging players to stay?

In the forwards, TPJ is something special and so is Haas but they are different styles of players to Arrow. Arrow is your Corey Parker, the workhorse with a bit of second phase play in him that you can build a forward pack around. Is it a mistake to let him go, particularly when McGuire can very well play prop and do exactly what he is doing now in the 13 anyway. Additionally, we have not had anyone nail down that other (non-Blair) starting prop spot anyway.

With David Mead, I can't help but feel his signing and selection was motivated by the presence of James Roberts. A lot was said about his friendship with Roberts and that may have given him the inside running. Regardless, Pearson has his opportunity now and he's got to prove himself.

The other factor here is the amount of players the Broncos had off-contract and the salary cap dramas. It's difficult to commit to a plan when there's so many scenarios up in the air. Until the Broncos can sign some of their marquee talent like Boyd and Roberts, it's difficult to negotiate with these fringe players who are looking for a pay day.

Arrow is a quality talent, but whatever window he had of becoming the starting lock was going to be short lived since Pangai Jr is viewed as the long term option. If he does end up leaving, the Broncos will feel the effects of it in the short term but they've got players coming through who can fill the role. The Broncos NYC Captain Patrick Carrigan is nothing to sneeze at.

You raise a good point about Bird, and if the Broncos hadn't have signed him, they may have been able to have re-signed Ese'ese, Moga and Arrow. The way I see it though is that Bird is a better player than all three and his signing was an attempt to pivot after losing Hunt.

I'm not sure how it will pan out, but I remember the Broncos faced a similar scenario in 2012 where they had a bunch of players off-contract and focused all their efforts on keeping the family together. What ended up happening is that a few players left anyways and the Broncos entered 2013 with a weaker squad. By bringing a quality player into the system, Bennett may have made the Broncos a more formidable squad both short and long term.

 

[Super Freak]

I remember one time we went down to Newcastle. We were heavy favourites and expected to put on a big score.

We lost.

Don't take Newcastle lightly. All it takes is a little luck to go their way and they could cause some serious headaches. They have produced some big upsets before and almost produced one against the Sharks earier in the season.

However if we turn up to play, we will win. It will probably be a close affair in the first half. Knights will want to come out firing after yesterday's game. But the second half is where we will get them.

Nailed it.

 

[Super Freak]

If we lose Arrow then I would like the Broncos to lure Lachlan Fitzgibbon to the club.

I like that kid, he has a big future ahead of him.

Strong runner, workhorse in defence and knows how to find the try line as well.

 

[JayPee]

If we lose Arrow then I would like the Broncos to lure Lachlan Fitzgibbon to the club.

I like that kid, he has a big future ahead of him.

Strong runner, workhorse in defence and knows how to find the try line as well.

Yep and when he plays you can tell he really cares about what he is doing. Been a bright light for them amongst a bad team

 

[Big Del]

Moga starting to hit some form, Wayne needs to resign him. Strong and he still has wheels on him. Getting better and better each week.

I`ve been on the Moga wagon since the 1st few rnds . I think he`s as much of a weapon as the Jet . Needs some room .Benji used him better than milf with his passes . Milf runs 1st passes 2nd .

 

[Super Freak]

Bennett backs Sims after fiery clash

Brisbane coach Wayne Bennett admitted Newcastle's record in second halves gave him every confidence the Broncos could take control and fight back from a six-point deficit at half-time to beat the Knights 34-22.

The Broncos were without Australian fullback Darius Boyd and rested State of Origin pair Josh McGuire and Matt Gillett following the Maroons' victory on Wednesday night.

Others players also missing included wingers Corey Oates and David Mead, with Bennett forced to call upon young rookies Jonus Pearson and Jamayne Isaako.

Returning five-eighth Anthony Milford made a successful return after missing the past six weeks with a shoulder injury, but overall the side lacked combinations and polish with key men out.

"We didn't play badly," Bennett said post-game.

"We had some pretty good football, completed at about 85 per cent and did a lot of things right.

"We've got a number of players missing and just miss what they bring.

"To their credit they were completing pretty highly as well and challenging us in different ways."

The Broncos scored three tries inside nine minutes after half-time, and while Bennett wasn't expecting the 18-point turnaround to come that easily, the signs were there.

James Roberts looked dangerous from the start and his second-half try immediately after the break was a mirror of Moses Mbye's for the Bulldogs against the Knights a week ago.

The moment haunted Nathan Brown's side for the next eight minutes as the Broncos took complete control.

"It was probably what put the game away and the rest they were trying to catch up," Bennett said.

"We weren't anticipating to score three tries in nine minutes in the change room though, we just wanted to get back into the game and with a bit of luck the boys got a couple of opportunities and put us in a good position."

One of the biggest talking points to come out of the clash was Korbin Sims' running battle with both his former teammates and the Newcastle crowd.

While the Knights came up with some big tackles on the Fijian international, it was Sims who had the final say with a decisive four-pointer in the second half.

"The first tackle of the game they squared him up," Bennett said.

"That was Korbin's best game. He didn't want to come back tonight and not play well. He was very good."

Stand-in skipper Adam Blair was at the forefront of the confrontations as he and Sims upped the ante towards the backend of the contest.

"They were having a few yarns in the scrum there but Korbin is a big boy and they went at each other fair in the middle," Blair said.

"Anytime you come back to an old team and get a try is special.

"It's just good to see him enjoying his footy again."

Meanwhile, Bennett confirmed Milford got through the game unscathed and despite requiring surgery at the end of the season, will be better for the run.

"I thought he had a pretty good game for his first one back after six weeks since he played," Bennett said.

"He should get a lot of confidence out of it.

"I was happy he came off the field in one piece and we didn’t have to take him off."

http://www.nrl.com/bennett-backs-sims-after-fiery-clash/tabid/10874/newsid/110023/default.aspx

 

[Unbreakable]

Even Bennett thinks Sims played one of his best games, you're officially on your own on this one @Danoz Direct :pokeytongue:

 

[TonyTheJugoslav]

I`ve been on the Moga wagon since the 1st few rnds . I think he`s as much of a weapon as the Jet . Needs some room .Benji used him better than milf with his passes . Milf runs 1st passes 2nd .

Moga is gone next year "Tautau's told me he's leaving, Herman's told me he's leaving and they're coming to the Knights and that's all I know," Bennett said."

http://m.nrl.com/knights-v-broncos-five-key-points/tabid/10874/newsid/110009/default.aspx