Technical Coach
Bencher
We are playing so poorly(worse than last year) that any genuine hooker who comes in will make some difference "this year", any hooker who has spark and can engage the ruck defenders will make a difference because we are playing so poorly it can't get any worse.
But seeing a difference with one positional improvement does not address the overall lack of explosiveness and heads up footwork at the line we lack,(forwards and backs) or the old school scripted second man plays that get easily read because they are done in autopilot mode without prior tackle leadup work to give the play half a chance.
Having wingers and centres who can offer spark in the early play the balls coming out of our own half, back rowers who can play like centres and a little mongrel and attitude in our front row stocks will help also---we just go through the motions and it is a yawn fest.
Is there anything more pathetic than the high fives after causing a dropped ball, sometimes it comes across more like "thank f89K we don't have to tackle the entire set", then after all that energy in high fiving and back slapping each other we come back with the lamest most lacklustre set of six you will ever see as if the energy was all used up in the backslapping orgy.
Attack overly reliant on the fullback chiming in, falling behind in tries scored from kicks, a lack of subtle ballwork through the forwards off the hip or through the line with any confidence and numbers around the ball.(not the high risk hope for the best offloads Marty does)
It always feels like Manly play with nerves and a lack of self belief until they put on two tries in the early stages and generate a points margin, once we do that some self belief will come in and the enthusiasm to defend and grind out a win comes back.
I would still prefer a fullback that is more energy based and can change their lines or chime in all over the place supporting plays like Paps and Dufty, offering more attacking heads up options than the way Turbo plays for example.
As the game gets faster and more 6 again sets are in play you need more up tempo heads up players with footwork with a turn of speed to keep up with the high points scoring environment, when the game is slower and more like a game of chess you need more structure and scripted plays.
But seeing a difference with one positional improvement does not address the overall lack of explosiveness and heads up footwork at the line we lack,(forwards and backs) or the old school scripted second man plays that get easily read because they are done in autopilot mode without prior tackle leadup work to give the play half a chance.
Having wingers and centres who can offer spark in the early play the balls coming out of our own half, back rowers who can play like centres and a little mongrel and attitude in our front row stocks will help also---we just go through the motions and it is a yawn fest.
Is there anything more pathetic than the high fives after causing a dropped ball, sometimes it comes across more like "thank f89K we don't have to tackle the entire set", then after all that energy in high fiving and back slapping each other we come back with the lamest most lacklustre set of six you will ever see as if the energy was all used up in the backslapping orgy.
Attack overly reliant on the fullback chiming in, falling behind in tries scored from kicks, a lack of subtle ballwork through the forwards off the hip or through the line with any confidence and numbers around the ball.(not the high risk hope for the best offloads Marty does)
It always feels like Manly play with nerves and a lack of self belief until they put on two tries in the early stages and generate a points margin, once we do that some self belief will come in and the enthusiasm to defend and grind out a win comes back.
I would still prefer a fullback that is more energy based and can change their lines or chime in all over the place supporting plays like Paps and Dufty, offering more attacking heads up options than the way Turbo plays for example.
As the game gets faster and more 6 again sets are in play you need more up tempo heads up players with footwork with a turn of speed to keep up with the high points scoring environment, when the game is slower and more like a game of chess you need more structure and scripted plays.
