I hope Bird plays at 6 and C Smith has an off day... cos that sneaky bastard will find any weakness in birds game and exploit the crap out of it.... but if the forward aim up again this week...Bird and Milf click some more and C Oates is fit we may just pull off a great win..... I hope... praise the lord and pass the moonshine.
I wish I could be confident for this game. I really do. But I've been hurt too many times by this fucking Melbourne side to believe. Even when it looked like we would win, they just find a way. They always do at Suncorp. Surely we are due for a win, though? Surely. It's been 9 years since our last win against them. 9 years.
He publicly backed him to show support and try and give him confidence. Which ever way Bennett goes it won’t show anything about him.
I would like to think that, but then I saw how easily they dominated the Knights. If Croft was still in the team, I would be more confident. But they dropped him. Then they brought in Jacks and boom. Melbourne were back to their 2017 form.
I haven't looked at the stats, so I could be off the mark here, but I think a lot comes down to the defensive capabilities of Bird and Nico which made a difference last week, not necessarily the attack. Nico puts the defenders on either side of him under pressure because he can't hold his own in 1 on 1 tackles against the big men and it's not his fault, it's just physics. Due to this, there are more gaps because other players are trying to cover for him. That lack of confidence causes uncertainty and leads to poor decision making. Bird didn't have a blinder in attack last week, he just wasn't a liability in defence and our whole defensive unit looked better even though the Warriors forwards started on fire. I'm not saying this is the sole reason for the win, we obviously went over there with the right attitude, but Nico lining up with Sua (new and still learning) has a whole different feel to it that of Bird and Sua. I know who I'd prefer to be facing the Storm pack who are still pretty huge. To my uneducated eyes, let Bird keep it simple, defend well, play direct when he has the ball, feed Jimmy the ball early and let Milf chime in at the end of sets and be creative/kick. Bird seems like a a bigger personality than Nico and Milf and is in his element demanding the ball and bossing people around. It doesn't seem to be natural for either Milf or Nico, so let Milf do his thing and over-ride calls when he sees an off the cuff play pop up. I don't mind Nico on the bench either, i think he offers more that Sims. I know Macca is an 80 minute player, but is it an option for him to cover Moose when he goes off for a short breather and Nico comes on for a burst at dummy half at the end of the half? You then have backs cover in that if push comes to shove, Bird can move to Centre/Wing/FB and Nico can go back to Half.
Like it all and think your call for Macca to lock while McGuire is off is a good one. That 4th bench player is getting 10-20 mins a game and is barely recognizable whereas Niko could score a try in that same time whilst macca holds his own in the middle
Good News On Lodge Injury Author broncos.com.au Timestamp Tue 17 Apr 2018, 09:22 AM THE Broncos have received some positive news on the rib injury Matt Lodge suffered against the Warriors on the weekend. As was first diagnosed by Broncos' medical staff, scans taken yesterday have confirmed he does not have any fractures in his ribs, and it is indeed a rib cartiliage injury. It means discomfort will be the biggest issue for Lodge, who is judged a chance of playing against the Melbourne Storm at Suncorp Stadium this Friday night. “It is a cartiliage injury, so he has damaged the cartiliage where the ribs join,” said Broncos’ High Performance Manager Jeremy Hickmans. “He will not be able to train much this week, so we will manage him through some sessions and just see how it goes. “If he can handle the discomfort, he is a good chance of playing against the Storm.” Kodi Nikorima is expected to return to the Broncos’ squad when it is named this afternoon after overcoming the effects of a corked thigh suffered against the Titans in round four. Source: https://www.broncos.com.au/news/2018/04/17/good-news-on-lodge-injury/
Rib cartilage injuries hurt like a motherfuck. He'll need to be needled up if he's going to play. He'll be in agony for a few days after (as he likely has been this week), but the way he came back on against the Warriors makes me think he can tough it out.
Yeah I'll say. See Sims should look at that and feel ashamed. Lodge goes back out with an extremely painful injury and still bends the line left, right and centre. Sims goes back out and drops off tackles, walks back into the defensive line and drops like a sack of potatoes when hit.
Sims is under-rated here. He's not elite but he does a good job. Bennett has many other options if he felt that Sims didn't offer anything. Don't forget too how his season ended last year. He fucked himself up royally (can't remember exactly what bit I think it was a shoulder or collar-bone or something?), knew that he was playing his last game for the season, so stayed out on the park to bash the fuck out of the opposition. Gutsy move that people respected at the time but seems to be forgotten.
So what you are saying is, he broke his arm and then put in (for one tackle I think)? So he decided not to put in before that? Don't get me wrong, anyone who can play on for any amount of time after breaking something is worthy of respect. And you are right, he is serviceable but given what he can produce, it is pretty disappointing he doesn't do it more. He is definitely not irreplaceable.
Bird is a must. His defense is great and he is not afraid to move around the field. At six he can roam and get involved. He is much better with high involvement. Reminds me a lot of Hodges.
Nah. A lot of people wanted him to do well but he is consistently underwhelming with a decent game every now and then. It's not enough.
I think he does better than people realise. He ususally attracts 3 defenders where as someone like Mcguire seems to get taken down by the smallest bloke on the field... Not to mention Mcguire is earning 3 or 4 times the amount... Sims isn't the best forward going around but he does a fine job and makes a lot of the extra effort plays that blair used to. If you're going to slam anyone, let it be Mcguire or Thaiday because their pay packet should demand a whole lot more than they put out...
