[Resurrected] DCE is the worst halfback in the NRL

[brad]

Dce is a great player.

 

[Damien2812]

What I want to know has post match press conferences changed this year? I only see Hasler but no DCE?

 

[Waz13]

There were plenty of times when DCE made Thurston look like a Muppet. If the forwards don't win the yardage and the ruck, and the hooker gives crap service, the halfback can't do a lot.

Totally agree. Keary had so much time on most all plays especially on his attacking kicks. With the exception of the 2nd half last night the Last two weeks dce has had a lot of pressure on him and has struggled.

 

[Cioran]

DCE can be a great attacking player but he’s no organiser and an organiser is what we desperately need. Luke Brooks is a better half than DCE. Not because he’s smarter, or a better runner, or a better kicker but because he knows when and how to slow the game and how to kick for position and how to get a repeat set and when to play it tight through the forwards and when to spin it wide through the backs. If DCE is being rushed why doesn’t he stand deeper or change his position. Why no little chips behind the attacking line to make them hold back. Too often last night Cherry was at dummy half and just passed the ball. As Smith shows time and again its a great spot to kick from. DCE could be a great centre or 5/8 but someone else needs to run the show.

 

[eagle66]

Totally agree. Keary had so much time on most all plays especially on his attacking kicks. With the exception of the 2nd half last night the Last two weeks dce has had a lot of pressure on him and has struggled.

This is why more has to go to Elgey, there IS so much pressure heaped on DCE. We have seen it for a few years as he is the guy who gets the ball on 5th for a kick and every set move involves him. If this armchair coach can see it and premiership winning coaches can see it and oppsotion coaches can see it, we are in for a long season if we don't change our ways.

 

[Simonmyers11]

He is being forced to do too much again and defence are rushing him. No half looks good with 3 defenders up in your face with no time.

Elgey needs to be another go to option, otherwise defence will continue to rush him.

All the good sides have more than one option, including an organising hooker like cam smith or farah.

Dce looked better with faniu, will look even better when elgey gets more confident and runs a few plays

 

[EOL now nesting on the GC]

OMG!

Please get some perspective here people.

So the plan is to BOOT DCE is it? Sure go for it... let's take Ben Hunt who's on the same sort of money. He goes well yeah? Or how about Morgan who's the next QLD 7 according to JT. He played well the other night behind a monstered pack. Mitchel Moses is a keeper yeah? I know you want that proven game breaker, go to man and NSW legend Mitch Pierce? I know then Adam Reynolds yes? A few years back he went through such a bad patch he would have been luck to play park footy.

Please. Yes DCE has struggled over past 3 years. Yes he probably hasn5 been value for money. But it's all been under TB who changed the manly attack and gameplan completely.
He has a premiership, churchill medal, Qld and Australian honours. He's a good player who hasn't always stood up in a poor side.

Some of these comments are funny as ****.
Cant kick a 40/20 - has probably kicked more 40/20's than most in the game.
Cant dropkick - has made some massive clutch plays

Have some patience people. He will come good. And when he does we will fly again.

 

[Fluffy]

is Api's crap passing the problem?

Fainu comes on and DCE suddenly has time and space and looks top notch again.

 

[Fluffy]

Yes we are all waiting for the planets to align so DCE can show us what fantastic skills he has. In the meantime we are 2 and 0 and have been outplayed both weeks quite comprehensively, and he has been poor both weeks. Keary schooled him tonight without Friend and Cronk holding his hand. They had Mitchell at 5/8 who did 3/10 of FA and then Lam (a rookie). But Keary managed to shoulder the burden of chief playmaker without too much trouble.

I'll admit it's impressive when the planets do align and he turns it on, not many better running halves on the back of go forward than DCE. But at the moment we need to work with what we have and he needs to step up and starting owning this team. He's our second most experienced player, only just behind Thommo, and he is now a senior player at the club and the team is built around him, there's no Stewarts, Lyons, etc to help him out. He IS the marquee player, and the Captain. He needs to get some consistency into his game.

if only we had a supercoach who could have come up with a game plan of targetting Keary like the others do to DCE we might have looked better

 

[bob dylan]

Yes we are all waiting for the planets to align so DCE can show us what fantastic skills he has. In the meantime we are 2 and 0

0 and 2 mate.

 

[Chip and Chase]

Every team targets every other teams playmaker - it's Rugby League 101. It's how that playmaker reacts to that is the difference.

To my unskilled eye it looks to me that DCE puts a lot of that pressure on himself with poor positioning and poor set up in our plays. If your default play is to turn a flat footed forward under you to get smashed and turtled and then you stand just off the ruck in among the decoy and block players then you are putting yourself under pressure and restricting your options. I just find him a frustratingly inconsistent player of late, always tries hard but looks lost when things aren't going his way. Anyway let's see if a dry track improves him, safe to say Manly ain't no mudrunner

 

[Sue]

Every team targets every other teams playmaker - it's Rugby League 101. It's how that playmaker reacts to that is the difference.

To my unskilled eye it looks to me that DCE puts a lot of that pressure on himself with poor positioning and poor set up in our plays. If your default play is to turn a flat footed forward under you to get smashed and turtled and then you stand just off the ruck in among the decoy and block players then you are putting yourself under pressure and restricting your options. I just find him a frustratingly inconsistent player of late, always tries hard but looks lost when things aren't going his way. Anyway let's see if a dry track improves him, safe to say Manly ain't no mudrunner

Hard to disagree with that. But in the end I suppose it’s about finding a way to give him more time to make up for his issues, whether they are caused by him or those around him or more likely, a combination of both .DCE ain’t going anywhere.

One thing is obvious and that is he gets more time with Fainu... and when he’s costing 1.3 mill you can’t afford not to use the option that gets the best out of him.
DCE / Api/ average 5/8 is a 100 percent rolled gold proven failure as 2016 and 2018 proved. And guess what, we have an average 5/8 again at this stage.

They keep that combo going in 2019 and we’ll be getting the spoon or playing the dogs to avoid it.

 

[brad]

Johnny Gibbs said last nite , "take the money factor out of it , he's a great player and cannot do this on his own ." Went on to say after halftime " see how good he is when he gets help around him then drifts out wide ".

 

[Moops]

Seriously, put him in the Roosters side and he’d be ****ing epic!!

We have about 4 good players.

The rest are either inexperienced or absolute ****!!

Wasn't Ryan attacked last week for saying the exact same thing and told he had 'seemingly very little knowledge.' Maybe he is just ahead of his time...

 

[maxta]

DCE is so good when taking the ball on the run and moving direct at speed.
This is where Fainu helps as he takes out the markers and gets DCE just outside the A defenders....suddenly the shape is way better and there are options to run or pass....at the same time the defenders are forced to make a decision.

 

[winnyason]

Des is polishing a turd with current state of roster. Dce is least of our worries yes he on alot of coin so is any decent 7.
Since the cap finding end of our finals 17 campaign we have lost uate, kelly, green, lussick, lane and about to lose walker.
Been all replaced with crap - elgey does not take pressure from dce, parker enough said reserve grader.
This is going to be tough season, i hope we start recruiting now for decent centre quality 6 and winger.
Both jorge and joel great servants of nrl and club but past it. Corey wadell prettt quickly showed he a starter.

 

[tookey]

if only we had a supercoach who could have come up with a game plan of targetting Keary like the others do to DCE we might have looked better

Barrett would have come up with a plan

 

[tookey]

Des is polishing a turd with current state of roster. Dce is least of our worries yes he on alot of coin so is any decent 7.
Since the cap finding end of our finals 17 campaign we have lost uate, kelly, green, lussick, lane and about to lose walker.
Been all replaced with crap - elgey does not take pressure from dce, parker enough said reserve grader.
This is going to be tough season, i hope we start recruiting now for decent centre quality 6 and winger.
Both jorge and joel great servants of nrl and club but past it. Corey wadell prettt quickly showed he a starter.

Lts night had to be the worst backline i hjave ever seen Manly field

Parker couldn't catch a cold and Tafua has zero football instinct

 

[IQofalimabean]

You could buy 2 good centers for DCE money and put a talented rookie in the halves.

 

[yokahontas]

Every team targets every other teams playmaker - it's Rugby League 101. It's how that playmaker reacts to that is the difference.

True - but look at a lot of other teams - target their playmaker and what happens? They start going to someone else. Even the Tigers, who aren’t exactly world beaters - target Brooks, they just go to Marshall and Farah more (and you can rearrange those three names anywhere in that sentence). When the opposition is double- and triple-teaming DCE (especially on the last), what are our backup options?