Are The Seaeagles Better in 2014??

[maxta]

Based on opinion only & prior to season kickoff, is this 2014 team equal, better or worse than 2013...
Imo it is equal, as in stronger some ways, weaker in others.
Kite is a big loss & Rose though only played in patches proved to be up with the best impact players in the game. Gower...reliable but nothing more & Joe was always reliable & lifted the tempo in attack. Fa'aso...still believe his absence in the 2013 GF was the difference in the result & was really looking foward to his zest in 2014, taking the pressure of Choc as that 1 man wrecking ball to play more of his edge running game.
Young Jake T will step up early in the season & between Starling /Lui/Andrews that aggressive edge will reappear, especially knowing positions are up for grabs.
The young halves will be even more dominant in 2014 with confidence sky high & the Lyon/Snake assault will again be 1 of the most potent attacking forces in the game, backs will again be up with the best, imo 1st.
Feel the youthful enthusiasm will equal out the prospect of the experienced players lost & overall similar standard of team....just hope to go 1 better!!

 

[ManlyArmy]

Minor Premiers
Premiers
World Champions

That is all

 

[mickqld]

Don't think Jake T , Starling, Lui can match the power & aggressive play of Kite, Fa'aoso & Big Joe.. Also Tyson Andrews not sighted in the trials is he injured or not up to it.

 

[HappilyManly]

The pain of a.GF loss will sharpen the regulars, and a good sprinkling of newbies, will have Manly Eagle Rocking in 2014 🙂

I really think that BJ's and Horo's success is an inspiration to the newbies. They may believe that Killer and Snake are naturals, whereas the rejects from Titans and Parra are Players that they can more identify with 😎

 

[Peter C]

I was very impressed with both Lui and Hodges in the Parra trial, both are very mobile with quick play the balls and off loads.
They will definitely add another dimension to our attack.

 

[Mark from Brisbane]

A new start, fresh talent, who knows at this stage.....ask me in early September

 

[Ralphie]

A new start, fresh talent, who knows at this stage.....ask me in early September

Will you be around to ask?😛

 

[Mark from Brisbane]

Yep, back in August!!

 

[The Eagle Has Landed]

Depth is the key this year and I think we have more of it, so In answer to your question YESSSSSSSSSSSS!!!!!

 

[Killer03]

Good question. I think Glenn Stewart will be significantly better, he was barely sighted until the last rounds and the semis where he really started to look sharp. Foz and DCE are only getting better. The big x-factor for me is Brett Stewart. If fit and firing then backline better than last year (with some great back up in Hiku, Blair etc).

I think Horo will get better also.

The big question is about the props (surprise surprise). Will Lawrence have just as good a season? And will King be fit?

To me Kite is a massive loss, I've always thought that when he has a good season (along with Snake) we win Premierships or at least make GF's.

 

[COMMANDER]

I worry about the muscle factor. The Roosters roughed up everyone last year and will do so again this year.

 

[mozgrame]

I am hoping that youthful enthusiasm (in the forwards) will add to our aggression and help put a stop to being manhandled. What worries me is if we can control that aggression. The loss of Kite and Joe will take away a huge calming affect on the young blokes. Kingy himself can sometimes step over the boundary of controlled aggression, and he's their leader.

I don't want a season full of penalties, suspensions and injuries due to the young forwards being too full on. It's a fine line and I hope we can find the correct mixture early. BRING IT ON!!!

 

[Chip and Chase]

Well if we are better we'll be celebrating another premiership.

 

[HappilyManly]

I worry about the muscle factor. The Roosters roughed up everyone last year and will do so again this year.

Burgess is my proxy - I decided that the Clan can have the infamy 😛 of plucking a few chooks. Manly doesn't have to do it on their own :idea:

 

[SeaEagleRock8]

I worry about the muscle factor. The Roosters roughed up everyone last year and will do so again this year.

There's plenty to worry about if you are so inclined. Roosters certainly look a daunting prospect at this stage, and Souths can be expected to steamroll many sides.

However… things can change!!

Example – one year St Merge were looking invincible to the extent some bookie paid out on the minor premiership market months out, then the wheels fell off bigtime.

Another year there was a team from somewhere down south that spent most of the season looking like it had no weakness at all, yet they ended up losing 40-nil…

Despite the imposing look of the Chooks right now I don't think they will win this year. In fact Penrith might be the team we beat in this year's GF.

 

[Ralphie]

The strength for forwards is being overplayed by most posters here. The game has changed and will change more this year. Big powerful forwards are going to be a liability late in games when they tire. The future of forwards is the mould of Brenton Lawrence, big and mobile. Our current prop stocks look an awful lot like big and mobile to me. It seems clear that this is a strategy from Tooves to evolve with the changes in the game.

 

[SeaEagleRock8]

Ralphie, Brenton Lawrence is a one-off. He had very little NRL experience but was a very strong physically mature man aged late-20's.
For younger props it will probably be harder to maintain consistency over a long tough season.
Look at the top props currently in NRL, they have all been around for a few seasons and were good when they began but definitely have improved over time. Including Scott, Tamou, Matolino, JWH, Fifita etc.

 

[niccipops]

In 2011 our halves were too young and inexperienced. We all know what happened. Maybe our young props will be the ones who surprise the competition this year. After all, once they pull on jersey, they are Manly!

 

[Ralphie]

Ralphie, Brenton Lawrence is a one-off. He had very little NRL experience but was a very strong physically mature man aged late-20's.
For younger props it will probably be harder to maintain consistency over a long tough season.
Look at the top props currently in NRL, they have all been around for a few seasons and were good when they began but definitely have improved over time. Including Scott, Tamou, Matolino, JWH, Fifita etc.

That's a fair point SER8 and I must admit that I change my mind on this week to week.

If we look at last season we really didn't have King, Joe or Fa'oso for big big chunks of the season, so saying we have lost Joe & Fa'oso is stretching it because we didn't really have them last season. Richie was out for a fair period as well. George was hit and miss depending on his fitness and Gower was just making up the numbers, which is why he had very little game time in the GF.

In my eyes we have lost Kite and half of Richie and George. To replace those two FTE's we have Kingy back, Turbo, Starling, Hasson, Lui, Andrews and Sene-Lefao and whoever we may sign in the next week or two. So we have 6-7 potentials to replace what was really only effectively 2-3 props lost from last season. Even allowing for a 50% failure rate of those 6-7 we have this covered.

 

[Fluffy]

On paper we are weaker due to the losses in the engine room but last year we lost 2 of them for the year, we cannot miss Joe from 2013 because he didn't play.

Add to that Ritchie missed over 1/3 of the season then we arn't as far off as it may seem. If one of the newbies steps up and we don't lose King or BJ for the season its close to equal.

To go far you need to have talented players stepping up - the salary cap forces this. That is you need cheapies to be playing well over their pay level. We have opened the door this year for this to occur. Starling, Lui, Sao, Turbo, Satini, Gutherson, Hiku, Hasson, Sene-Lafao, Hodges just to name a few all could be the few we need.