Are we lacking in the front row ?

[maxta]

Firstly I say NO.... Manly has very good Big boppers to dominate that middle....including young bulls on the up !!
Then I look down and hard to argue with many of these blokes rated higher than our 8 and 10....
But....our entire front row selection are probably as a group, better than most teams across the NRL, which in actual fact, is the most important thing to getting it done.
Some will argue our boy's could have slotted in somewhere, but here is the TOP 10 rated front rowers by...some judge who has appeared pretty fair and had Manly players up high in many positions apart from centre, where we clearly don't have a Top 10 centre.
Anyways - what's the thoughts on the Top 10 here....and our Manly front rowers for 2022 ??

 

[Woodsie]

Agree.. short answer is No.

No Marty .. no surprise.

We have 2 props I believe could be in the top 10 by the end of the year

1) Keppie .. all hail keppie.. have been an outspoken fan since his debut.. and still am.

2) Paseka .. only lacks that competitive attitude.. desire is the most important attribute needed.. and the hardest to instill if missing.. but if he gets it he will also jump into the top 10 ..

Marty, aloaia, Shipley, et al are all good 7 or 8's out of 10 and good pack members ..

Need to see more of bullywinkle in the firsts to form an opinion..

 

[40 nil]

Anyways - what's the thoughts on the Top 10 here....and our Manly front rowers for 2022 ??

It is probably a fair selection of the ten best individual front rowers in the comp. However, only two from the list were in the top four teams. Six played Origin & the two Kiwis are automatic test selections for NZ. Souths has a lot of depth in the forwards, including the front row, but none of their players are in the list.

I think Manly has sufficient front row power to win a premiership, but our forwards need to work more cohesively to match & overcome the forward packs ahead of us. The defence of the Storm, Panthers & Souths was ferocious in the last couple of finals games last year. We need to work towards that standard of intensity & ferocity.

 

[Disco]

I'd have big Papa as high as 5th

JWH lower

 

[Eagle thru 'n' thru]

Can't argue with Haas at no#1, JFH #2 is acceptable, ABF at 3 is wishful thinking, I think he has gone backwards at the Warriors to a degree. Welch should be 3, Papali should be way higher than 10, top 5 for sure. Saifiti goes ok. The rest is a "meh" for me.

Manly props.
Time for Marty to get angry and force himself into that top 10 list. He can if he wants it.
Paseka is getting close to top 10 material....a unstoppable beast at times.
Marty and Paseka starting props.

Aloiai can mix it with the best when he plays his best......where's the need for consistancy from the guy.

I'd like to think that Keppie ought to be
safe playing from the bench, adds a bit of starch & aggression. Top 10? Not yet. State of Origin? PERFECT for it. If Keppie can break into the NSW team, his game will rise to another level for Many.
Sipley does whats needed, charge and bend the line, ABF style....every team should have atleast one.

Boyle.....don't know what to say.....Blacktown need him more.....even the Dolphins need him. Might go alright playing in QLD.

Bullemor. Can't wait to see him rip 'n tear in the mighty Manly Sea Eagles jersey. QLD rep in waiting.

GO MANLY!

 

[The Indian]

Yeah I agree collectively we have a good pack who get the job done most weeks. We don't have a real elite standout leader (yet) and think that was part of our downfall in the semi's last year.

It's not gonna be Marty anymore at this stage of his career.... Keppie or Paseka has to be the one to step up to that level.

 

[winnyason]

Yeah we have plenty middle of field but nothing exceptional.
Marty best days are done, Aloiai has good go forward but injuries and suspension has slowed assessment, Paseka inconsistent but massive upside, keppie discipline issues but can play, Sipley good impact but not fit enough to play 50 minutes if needed

 

[Stewbojevic]

I agree with most of the sentiment here, hopefully Keppie gets some more consistency this year and becomes our leader up front.

I also like the potential of Bully and some of the props in our pathways program.

 

[Eagle 1]

Lots of competition in the team for forward pos, this should equate to good performances on the field you would think. Think Marty might surprise a lot of my fellow silvertails on here, he'll know he needs to lift the bar for a personal best in 2022. Paseka and Aloiai (after suspension) are my two other smokies to be our forward leaders.

 

[jbb/james]

maybe. i look at our props and they seem better runners that defenders. tall timber with limited lateral movement but on a roll are almost unstoppable

with a high percentage game, based of kicking, game management, control and discipline we have a good pack
BUT
witth a low percentage game, poor handling, poor options and a helter skelter approach to footy we have the wrong balance

fix the pack or fix the game plan and approach. the latter seems easier

i never once saw our pack really get rolling last year as we play away from that. as soon as there is a hint of dominance we just chuck it too tom

the real problem is correcting possession rates to assist our pack. we just have too many moments in games where the pack fights to gain ground and we flush there efforts on stupid options trying to score on every opportunity

packs lay platforms but never without the help of good halves and kicking, never. if we expect the pack to do the job without offering them respite than we deserve to be flogged when it matters

we talk about pack leaders and our pack needs a guy that says to the senior players. we will get you there, just dont **** it up when we do with air fairy bull****, respect our work more.. i just dont see that in our team

you could see it more in 2020 with AFB.

 

[Woodsie]

Lots of competition in the team for forward pos, this should equate to good performances on the field you would think. Think Marty might surprise a lot of my fellow silvertails on here, he'll know he needs to lift the bar for a personal best in 2022. Paseka and Aloiai (after suspension) are my two other smokies to be our forward leaders.

Marty knows that his opportunities for a premiership ring are shortening.

Ball is in his court .. hopefully he finally realizes that it's a team game.

 

[Woodsie]

maybe. i look at our props and they seem better runners that defenders. tall timber with limited lateral movement but on a roll are almost unstoppable

with a high percentage game, based of kicking, game management, control and discipline we have a good pack
BUT
witth a low percentage game, poor handling, poor options and a helter skelter approach to footy we have the wrong balance

fix the pack or fix the game plan and approach. the latter seems easier

i never once saw our pack really get rolling last year as we play away from that. as soon as there is a hint of dominance we just chuck it too tom

the real problem is correcting possession rates to assist our pack. we just have too many moments in games where the pack fights to gain ground and we flush there efforts on stupid options trying to score on every opportunity

packs lay platforms but never without the help of good halves and kicking, never. if we expect the pack to do the job without offering them respite than we deserve to be flogged when it matters

we talk about pack leaders and our pack needs a guy that says to the senior players. we will get you there, just dont ** it up when we do with air fairy bull**, respect our work more.. i just dont see that in our team

you could see it more in 2020 with AFB.

For mine.. fix the game plan.

We had the grunt .. but didn't use it.

 

[jbb/james]

For mine.. fix the game plan.

We had the grunt .. but didn't use it.

agree. In the games that mattered we were always chasing our tails.

our team really let itself down somewhat with not its reliance on tom , but more that they just opted out of the struggle at times taking the soft approach

marty evokes a lot of emotion on here, for a number of reasons. I do see him as a pro though and he will be playing for a contract this season which may prove very helpful. his stocks are not going up and im sure being shopped about has given him that insight

he just looks like he is chasing easy metres for his stats

 

[40 nil]

I do see him as a pro though and he will be playing for a contract this season which may prove very helpful.

I recently read speculation that he may be heading to ESL in 2023. That would seem to be a likely option at this stage of his career.

 

[Ben]

I recently read speculation that he may be heading to ESL in 2023. That would seem to be a likely option at this stage of his career.

That would free up 800k for us in 2023. That’s a SOO quality player we will be signing in return.

 

[manly al]

That would free up 800k for us in 2023. That’s a SOO quality player we will be signing in return.

That also had the back ended component and probably a reasonable portion of it to upgrade or supplement some of our younger and emerging talent [ even including Latu Fainu ] Agree with Woodsie in regard to Marty "s premiership window closing fast , Really hope that he can show more intensity and pack leader traits this season , not only for his sake of course but also his team "s title prospects

 

[SeaEagleRock8]

Really hope that he can show more intensity and pack leader traits this season , not only for his sake of course but also his team "s title prospects

I don't go along with a lot of the criticism Marty has gotten in recent years, however I do agree it would be good to see him trying to fire up the other forwards by pumping his fists or yelling 'Let's smash em' or just random roaring and bellowing or back-slapping or something. That stuff hasn't really been a big part of his game. Maybe he just prefers to conserve his energy?

 

[manly al]

Maybe Bullemor could offer some impact in a prop role although probably his best input would mostly be on the edge . Really important for Keppie and Paseka to show just that vital extra consistency and assertive prop roles . Also taking into account that jake would spend some time there when Walker does his thing as a roving 13 . Surely Alioia can have a better run with injuries and form this season and of course need Marty at his best again too . Good enough front row stocks to vie and challenge the better sides and for a premiership tilt but some improvement needed on the intensity and consistency level for sure .

 

[manly al]

I don't go along with a lot of the criticism Marty has gotten in recent years, however I do agree it would be good to see him trying to fire up the other forwards by pumping his fists or yelling 'Let's smash em' or just random roaring and bellowing or back-slapping or something. That stuff hasn't really been a big part of his game. Maybe he just prefers to conserve his energy?

Plenty of opportunity to conserve his energy level on the bench but really need him back to his vigorous and go forward best [ or authority or whatever to drive the team forward ] . No doubting his off loading ability as well but maybe a bit more conservative under Des "s coaching mode .

 

[Eagle 1]

That would free up 800k for us in 2023. That’s a SOO quality player we will be signing in return.

Thought he was on this money also, but read somewhere, forget where, that he's on 650k.