Are we getting enough metres from our back 5?

[Kalvin]

I guess it comes down to what you value more in a winger, pure speed or someone who has some pace but also can play as a second forward.

Saab can finish a try if Turbo gives it to him with no body in front of him, but other than that is no reliable under the high ball and no good enough with yardage carries.

Look at T'oo last years best winger. Was a wrecking ball and is more valuable than raw speed.

Ado Carr has speed, but without a dog's team to put him in space cannot do much.

I believe Saab's strengths are under utilised.... for example, we rarely kick high to his wing on attack to leverage his height (and when we do it rarely lands on the goal line)...
Secondly should dce's kick on tackle 3 in our own 20 last week been further down the field as opposed to cross field, we would have easily had a meat pie (a tactic/strength we could utilise more)

 

[jbb/james]

I believe Saab's strengths are under utilised.... for example, we rarely kick high to his wing on attack to leverage his height (and when we do it rarely lands on the goal line)...
Secondly should dce's kick on tackle 3 in our own 20 last week been further down the field as opposed to cross field, we would have easily had a meat pie (a tactic/strength we could utilise more)

and the dude could do with some confidence of a few meat pies right now,

 

[Woodsie]

The winger is yet to be borne that can catch a ball flat footed or in the air, and then make ground from a standing start as 3 100kg plus footballers hit him in unison and dive him backwards ..

You are all bat shiite window licking looney ... it is a new tactic and it is working well against every team.

 

[The Who]

I guess it comes down to what you value more in a winger, pure speed or someone who has some pace but also can play as a second forward.

Remember a few seasons back when we were bemoaning the fact that our backline was the slowest in the comp and we needed a tall winger to catch attacking bombs?
Saab has fulfilled both criteria.
Now, if you want a bullocking winger then why is Tafua in reserve grade?
I'm prepared to give Saab more opportunities. If his ball control and defence continue to cause alarm then we have options.

 

[maxta]

Probably not.....but if we weigh up the "ugly" positions our back 5 were coming out from, particularly those first 2 rounds and To'o and Manu would look ordinary.
Garrick has actually been real good considering coming out of the furnace, but Harper and Saab have struggled like "most would" with the bulls at a red flag pressure situations, but special mention to Tuipulotu, who showed is definately far better in traffic than most and will only improve with game time, even when made minimal gains, showed energy to play the ball quickly....as did Koula with limited opportunity.
The more our middle defence wins the contacts and controls that tempo not allowing that kicker all day latitude, they will look far better and not be sitting ducks.

 

[Simonmyers11]

I actually think Garrick has pretty much most of the qualities you want from a winger, pretty quick, solid enough with his finishes, fairly good under the high ball and has improved his kick returns and yardage. Not brilliant at anyone of the above but pretty good actually at most of the attributes you want from a winger.

Will be interesting as the season goes on and if we still see the sides who has backs that are strong carrier's of the ball, particularly from their own end doing well.

Saab has raw pace, but the other areas of his game hopefully can improve as he is being targeted at the moment and sides kick to him deliberately so they can pin us down in a corner. He is still vulnerable under the hill ball, and offers very little with kick returns.

 

[Pete W]

The winger is yet to be borne that can catch a ball flat footed or in the air, and then make ground from a standing start as 3 100kg plus footballers hit him in unison and dive him backwards ..

You are all bat shiite window licking looney ... it is a new tactic and it is working well against every team.

I think there's a misunderstanding re Saab's inability to make good yardage out of our red zone. Obviously a pin point accurate bomb directly to him where he lands and is instantly set upon by the defence is not the issue here. It is taking hit ups on tackle 2 and 3, and kick returns when he has some time. He has a lot to learn. The Fox is tiny in comparison yet has developed well in this sense under Bellamy, making excellent yardage with acceleration off the mark , correct body stance , and more importantly GREAT FOOTWORK, often aggressively scooting from marker etc. Tupou runs it back like a man possessed. Wingers of all shapes and sizes offer real value to their team in this critical aspect of the game. A winger's job isn't pretty any more. These days they must get in the wars like everybody else, and learn to win the ruck. There are no excuses, Saab must evolve

 

[Woodsie]

I think there's a misunderstanding re Saab's inability to make good yardage out of our red zone. Obviously a pin point accurate bomb directly to him where he lands and is instantly set upon by the defence is not the issue here. It is taking hit ups on tackle 2 and 3, and kick returns when he has some time. He has a lot to learn. The Fox is tiny in comparison yet has developed well in this sense under Bellamy, making excellent yardage with acceleration off the mark , correct body stance , and more importantly GREAT FOOTWORK, often aggressively scooting from marker etc. Tupou runs it back like a man possessed. Wingers of all shapes and sizes offer real value to their team in this critical aspect of the game. A winger's job isn't pretty any more. These days they must get in the wars like everybody else, and learn to win the ruck. There are no excuses, Saab must evolve

Saab's main problem is his weight to height ratio .. he has a high centre of gravity and if he is upright he is going to get driven backwards .. this may/will improve if he puts on some muscle ...

Before he put on some weight, Another tall skinny fella Parker had the same problem, so he learnt to get down low and drive .. unfortunately this resulted in him leading with his head and getting concussed.

Either way, the increased importance placed on a long hang time kick and swarming defence to get a good start to the defensive set is no picnic for wingers.

 

[Graham Eadie]

Saab's main problem is his weight to height ratio .. he has a high centre of gravity and if he is upright he is going to get driven backwards .. this may/will improve if he puts on some muscle ...

Before he put on some weight, Another tall skinny fella Parker had the same problem, so he learnt to get down low and drive .. unfortunately this resulted in him leading with his head and getting concussed.

Either way, the increased importance placed on a long hang time kick and swarming defence to get a good start to the defensive set is no picnic for wingers.

Needs to watch how Daniel Tupou does it. Similar size and build, but Tupou always makes yards.

 

[Shoe1]

Good call - there were actually some sets where it was only the back 5 of the Panthers and Sharks that took the hit ups out of deep in their halves and then they went to the kick.

Crazy to think that their forwards get a full set of 6 to catch their breath in prep for the

Who were they playing against? Dogs and tigers. Basically free metres in attack, and many sets were started in excellent field position.