Rumours locky may retire - Is this al BS? any1 has info???

[GCBRONCO]

This article tends to support your view that Prince really was brought in to cover for Lockyer, as well as providing more detailed info about Lockyer's injury.

http://nrl.com/News/Latest/tabid/10244/ ... x?id=51412


In any case, as many of us have posted over the last few months, Locky should have stayed out out of all footy for at least half this season.

Quite the opposite actually if anything it supports the Johnathan Thurston arguement, it doesn't even make mention of Lockyer in it.

Scott Prince has been called in to the Queensland rugby league State of Origin camp following an injury scare to Johnathan Thurston.

News Ltd websites report Test halfback Thurston may have a groin strain suffered at training on Thursday night but is expected to be fit to play when Queensland attempts to level the series in the second Origin match at Brisbane's Suncorp Stadium on Wednesday.

 

[rnabokov]

This article tends to support your view that Prince really was brought in to cover for Lockyer, as well as providing more detailed info about Lockyer's injury.

http://nrl.com/News/Latest/tabid/10244/ ... x?id=51412


In any case, as many of us have posted over the last few months, Locky should have stayed out out of all footy for at least half this season.

Quite the opposite actually if anything it supports the Johnathan Thurston arguement, it doesn't even make mention of Lockyer in it.

Scott Prince has been called in to the Queensland rugby league State of Origin camp following an injury scare to Johnathan Thurston.

News Ltd websites report Test halfback Thurston may have a groin strain suffered at training on Thursday night but is expected to be fit to play when Queensland attempts to level the series in the second Origin match at Brisbane's Suncorp Stadium on Wednesday.

For some reason, the article link to which I was referring leads one not to where I wanted to go!

The relevant bit is underlined.

Here is a copy/paste of the article to which I was referring:

Lockyer ruled out of Origin II
AAP

Champion five-eighth Darren Lockyer refused to concede he had played his last representative rugby league match after another failed comeback attempt on his troublesome reconstructed right knee.

Lockyer rocked the Maroons camp today by pulling out of Wednesday night's crucial second State of Origin against NSW with knee soreness.

Titans halfback Scott Prince - initially overlooked for the two games - will play halfback while Australian No.7 Johnathan Thurston will wear the No.6 jumper.

It's a halves combination Queensland selectors doubted would work before Origin I, but they've now been forced to pin the series on.

"I trained this morning with the team and it's just not ready," said a disappointed Lockyer who has played 27 Origins since 1998.

"It's disappointing ... I can't change it.

"I'm just not up to 80 minutes of Origin at the moment."

Concerns are mounting that Lockyer may have jeopardised the rest of 2008 by pushing his comeback following a second bout of knee surgery last month.

Asked if he feared his knee issues could be "career threatening" Lockyer said he needed to give his knee ample time to fully heal.

He virtually ruled himself out of next month's third Origin in Sydney, which would decide the series should Queensland win Wednesday night, but remained optimistic about playing again this season.

"I have to be patient with it and let it heal," he said.

"Unless it heals completely, it's just going to go backwards again.

"I have to make sure aI learn my lesson and give it plenty of time to recover."

The Broncos captain today admitted the lure of playing in the Centenary Test earlier this year and also the second Origin, had forced him to "roll the dice" and come up empty on both occasions.

However he said neither the Broncos or Queensland put pressure on him play on Wednesday night, revealing Brisbane had advised him against playing last Friday night against Parramatta which has set him back again.

Lockyer had three tears in his cartilage stitched and sealed when he had his knee reconstructed last year.

But the tiny tear in his articulate cartilage is causing him pain and needs prolonged rest.

While Lockyer will be a huge loss he said Prince would serve Queensland well and not carry any baggage into the match despite being controversially omitted in game one.

"When I knew I was in strife last Wednesday the coaching staff brought in Princey and he's got his head around the plays and our game plan and we haven't been disadvantaged in that regard," said Lockyer.

"He's been playing great all year. He's played Origin before and he knows what it's all about so I've got all the confidence in the world in Scott."

Prince played well in his only three previous Origin appearances in the 2004 series - which included being Queensland's player-of-the-match in his debut.
Posted:
Sun, 08 Jun 2008 19:38:54

 

[GCBRONCO]

He has stood up and been a great captain, putting the state first by pulling out of origin and by giving them advanced warning that all wasn't right. He told them early enough so that Prince could get in and be prepared.

No he hasn't this season and there wasn't an advance warning that something wasn't right, it only came after he was in camp.......Prince was called in late to cover Thurston and Queensland hasn't been given the opportunity to have their halves combination together long enough during camp, will this help Queensland's cause? I think not. Combine that with the problem's his been having off and on this season that has seen him in one week and out the next it doesn't take a rocket scientist to know the position he has been putting the Broncos and the state in, I'm sorry but if he was a real captain he would have aimed for a return for the third match after the Parramatta game, his not above criticism as a player and a captain, I respect him as a player but I can't help be disappointed.

He could have been selfish and waited far longer before he decided to pull out, but he thought it would be best for the team to call Prince in early just incase he had to pull out. I don't believe Prince was called in to replace Thurston at all. As the week went on, Locky knew in the back of his mind that he was 50/50, and he's done the right thing by stepping over.

He had been selfish from the word go, putting himself in a position that he has been in numerous times this season that hasn't helped the side his played for especially after the comeback matches to make rep sides and has ended in more time in the sideline which is EXACTLY whats happened again, in fact how many games this season has he actually played for the full 80 minutes? He could have done as captain at the very least was stand down for this match and aim for origin 3 for his return, allow Queensland to have prince and thurston in the halves from the word go instead of later on which is more then capable of producing the goods needed to win, but instead its become more disruptive then it needs to be.

 

[GCBRONCO]

This article tends to support your view that Prince really was brought in to cover for Lockyer, as well as providing more detailed info about Lockyer's injury.

http://nrl.com/News/Latest/tabid/10244/ ... x?id=51412


In any case, as many of us have posted over the last few months, Locky should have stayed out out of all footy for at least half this season.

Quite the opposite actually if anything it supports the Johnathan Thurston arguement, it doesn't even make mention of Lockyer in it.

Scott Prince has been called in to the Queensland rugby league State of Origin camp following an injury scare to Johnathan Thurston.

News Ltd websites report Test halfback Thurston may have a groin strain suffered at training on Thursday night but is expected to be fit to play when Queensland attempts to level the series in the second Origin match at Brisbane's Suncorp Stadium on Wednesday.

For some reason, the article link to which I was referring leads one not to where I wanted to go!

The relevant bit is underlined.

Here is a copy/paste of the article to which I was referring:

Lockyer ruled out of Origin II
AAP

Champion five-eighth Darren Lockyer refused to concede he had played his last representative rugby league match after another failed comeback attempt on his troublesome reconstructed right knee.

Lockyer rocked the Maroons camp today by pulling out of Wednesday night's crucial second State of Origin against NSW with knee soreness.

Titans halfback Scott Prince - initially overlooked for the two games - will play halfback while Australian No.7 Johnathan Thurston will wear the No.6 jumper.

It's a halves combination Queensland selectors doubted would work before Origin I, but they've now been forced to pin the series on.

"I trained this morning with the team and it's just not ready," said a disappointed Lockyer who has played 27 Origins since 1998.

"It's disappointing ... I can't change it.

"I'm just not up to 80 minutes of Origin at the moment."

Concerns are mounting that Lockyer may have jeopardised the rest of 2008 by pushing his comeback following a second bout of knee surgery last month.

Asked if he feared his knee issues could be "career threatening" Lockyer said he needed to give his knee ample time to fully heal.

He virtually ruled himself out of next month's third Origin in Sydney, which would decide the series should Queensland win Wednesday night, but remained optimistic about playing again this season.

"I have to be patient with it and let it heal," he said.

"Unless it heals completely, it's just going to go backwards again.

"I have to make sure aI learn my lesson and give it plenty of time to recover."

The Broncos captain today admitted the lure of playing in the Centenary Test earlier this year and also the second Origin, had forced him to "roll the dice" and come up empty on both occasions.

However he said neither the Broncos or Queensland put pressure on him play on Wednesday night, revealing Brisbane had advised him against playing last Friday night against Parramatta which has set him back again.

Lockyer had three tears in his cartilage stitched and sealed when he had his knee reconstructed last year.

But the tiny tear in his articulate cartilage is causing him pain and needs prolonged rest.

While Lockyer will be a huge loss he said Prince would serve Queensland well and not carry any baggage into the match despite being controversially omitted in game one.

"When I knew I was in strife last Wednesday the coaching staff brought in Princey and he's got his head around the plays and our game plan and we haven't been disadvantaged in that regard," said Lockyer.

"He's been playing great all year. He's played Origin before and he knows what it's all about so I've got all the confidence in the world in Scott."

Prince played well in his only three previous Origin appearances in the 2004 series - which included being Queensland's player-of-the-match in his debut.
Posted:
Sun, 08 Jun 2008 19:38:54

So lets get this straight, his barely maanged to put any real amount of games together in first grade where his gone the full 80 minutes, his last match he didn't play the full 80 minutes and its only after going into camp and on the wednesday he doesn't think his upto 80 minutes of SOO which is regarded to be more intense then club level?

 

[rnabokov]

GCB - all I am saying is that I reckon that Prince was really brought in for Lockyer on the basis that Locky, the medical and coaching staff knew full well that he had bugger-all chance of playing. Mind games if you like.

As I have been consistently posting, IMO, Lockyer should have put his fitness and club first and stayed out of ALL footy until at least half this season was over - preferably until after Origin 3.

 

[GCBRONCO]

GCB - all I am saying is that I reckon that Prince was really brought in for Lockyer on the basis that Locky, the medical and coaching staff knew full well that he had bugger-all chance of playing. Mind games if you like.

As I have been consistently posting, IMO, Lockyer should have put his fitness and club first and stayed out of ALL footy until at least half this season was over - preferably until after Origin 3.

Fair enough rnabokov though I don't buy into the mindgames thing, its happened too many times this season at different levels of the game IMO for it to be, I'm just disappointed in Lockyer not just as a fan but really for Lockyer himself because his risking a lot and really not gaining much from it, his much better delaying his return for the short term and giving himself the best opportunity for a successful return then just returning early and undoing the progress you were making towards a proper recovery.

 

[rnabokov]

GCB - all I am saying is that I reckon that Prince was really brought in for Lockyer on the basis that Locky, the medical and coaching staff knew full well that he had bugger-all chance of playing. Mind games if you like.

As I have been consistently posting, IMO, Lockyer should have put his fitness and club first and stayed out of ALL footy until at least half this season was over - preferably until after Origin 3.

Fair enough rnabokov though I don't buy into the mindgames thing, its happened too many times this season at different levels of the game IMO for it to be, I'm just disappointed in Lockyer not just as a fan but really for Lockyer himself because his risking a lot and really not gaining much from it, his much better delaying his return for the short term and giving himself the best opportunity for a successful return then just returning early and undoing the progress you were making towards a proper recovery.

Agreed.