Harper's been so bad he needs to go

[BOZO]

The centres were ordinary last night, more so Mr Harper....but I wouldn't write him off just yet. No doubt Bellamy had Storm go at them often, but truth be known, the crumbling defence around the middle was where the rot started...I mean the crash ball plays were soft finals tries and there's NO team in the history of rugby league where the outside backs will shine if the middle is dominated and that includes the supposed shutdown of Tom T....he was limited by his own forwards not being allowed into the contest, more so than any Amazing Storm defensive structure.

The fact is and it is not just a one of

The fact is when Tom does not fire our out side backs have not been capable of stepping up .

We have been known as a one man team and was proven big time last night

Last night we could only score at the back of Saabs pace off two kicks and that didnt stop Saab do his job when our forwards were dominated

 

[Karshy]

Im not sure Suli is the answer either given what the Roosters did to him in Round 1 and we are probably playing the Roosters again next week. Given Des has been pretty loyal to other blokes this year (See Garrick, Saab and Croker rounds 1-4) I think you give Harper another chance. If thats not to be, then Walker is the next best option there.

 

[eaglebuzz]

I think he just had the finals yips, hopefully he'll be better for the flogging. Hopefully they all will be.

Maybe not this year, but time will tell.

 

[Technical Coach]

As are many other stars of the game TC. The game these days is all about entertainment and the stars shine as they have advantages to do so. Watching last night I was at a point where I thought “this is not the sport I grew up loving” zero advantage for great legs tackles in fact legs tackles are penalized by quick play the balls. So many times I saw us put in effort to make great tackles, yet there’s no reward as players voice to their feet like touch footy.

I'm only talking in relation to the hype surrounding Tom here and in the media, yes it is justified but it is overly made out that Tom's abilities would generate these same numbers under any era.

The games depth and speed of the game is reflecting Toyota Cup standard, show and goes generating way too many line breaks are boring to watch.

 

[maxta]

The fact is and it is not just a one of

The fact is when Tom does not fire our out side backs have not been capable of stepping up .

We have been known as a one man team and was proven big time last night

Last night we could only score at the back of Saabs pace off two kicks and that didnt stop Saab do his job when our forwards were dominated

I hope your kidding Bozo
Credit to Saab for chasing hard and also catching a neat DCE kick....but who did he beat in either try - no one right!!
ANY successful team needs the engine room working first and foremost....I will challenge your thinking by adding the great Jamie Lyon, Mick O'Connor, Mal Meninga and even your man Bob Fulton had quiet days...
When ????
When the forward pack was dominated...which unfortunately was the case last night.
Tom T was limited due to the Exact same factor...

 

[BOZO]

I hope your kidding Bozo
Credit to Saab for chasing hard and also catching a neat DCE kick....but who did he beat in either try - no one right!!
ANY successful team needs the engine room working first and foremost....I will challenge your thinking by adding the great Jamie Lyon, Mick O'Connor, Mal Meninga and even your man Bob Fulton had quiet days...
When ????
When the forward pack was dominated...which unfortunately was the case last night.
Tom T was limited due to the Exact same factor...

I am not kidding I am giving credit to were it is due

In order for Saab to score that try he used his Killer pace to put pressure on the storm winger and be there on the spot to score the try .

The fact is it has been proven time and time again that
With out Turbo firing our back line is dormant .

Comparing Harper and Parker minus Turbo holding their hand with Big Mal Meninga, Mick Occonor , Lyon and Bozo is ridiculous my feathered friend.

It is like comparing Thomas the Tanker with a Locomotive

 

[John Nicholson]

Too much hype has made our backline believe they are unbreakable. Think of it - that came about after easy journeys against non top 4 teams.

Welcome to the real world when suddenly you are facing the hardest and the best, possessing a questionable defensive line? You will get found out every time.

Scary part is that all other finalists know how to do it now after Bellamy's masterclass.

Will we win another game with this team? Maybe next week, but not after that, unless our middle defence is strengthened.

 

[pjayz]

It is pretty obvious his biggest problem is that he needs a hair cut. His damn locks hang down over his eyes, he can't see properly and always has to flick his hair back. Des should take the electric clippers to him and we will see a better Harper next week with no dropped balls or missed tackles.

You can all thank me in advance.

 

[maxta]

I am not kidding I am giving credit to were it is due

In order for Saab to score that try he used his Killer pace to put pressure on the storm winger and be there on the spot to score the try .

The fact is it has been proven time and time again that
With out Turbo firing our back line is dormant .

Comparing Harper and Parker minus Turbo holding their hand with Big Mal Meninga, Mick Occonor , Lyon and Bozo is ridiculous my feathered friend.

It is like comparing Thomas the Tanker with a Locomotive

You obviously missed the point
I'm comparing ANY back looking ordinary behind a well beaten forward pack....and I include ALL backs and will add John's , Lockyer
Watch next week- our pack will fire and these outside backs who looked ordinary will look like superstars
As for Saab being fast, we all knew that ....but his tries were not on the back of line breaks as the middle for Manly did Not match up

 

[BOZO]

You obviously missed the point
I'm comparing ANY back looking ordinary behind a well beaten forward pack....and I include ALL backs and will add John's , Lockyer
Watch next week- our pack will fire and these outside backs who looked ordinary will look like superstars
As for Saab being fast, we all knew that ....but his tries were not on the back of line breaks as the middle for Manly did Not match up

I am not missing the point

The point is when Tom does not fire we fire blanks

 

[zfinkels]

There is no question Parker and Harper have performed beyond expectations and their pay grade, and i can understand the loyalty, but the last 5-6 weeks they've been poor. Errors, mis tackles and bad reads have been more common than you think and hidden somewhat by the high scores. In our premiership winning years we have always had great centres, and it will be a necessity going forward. It's make or break next week and I would be playing Walker at centre (instead of Harper). He is in good form and it's his natural position. The cash from Suli needs to be used to find a centre/fullback and help solve the centre issue and give cover for Turbo. Koula needs more time. Garrick stays on the wing.

 

[BOZO]

There is no question Parker and Harper have performed beyond expectations and their pay grade, and i can understand the loyalty, but the last 5-6 weeks they've been poor. Errors, mis tackles and bad reads have been more common than you think and hidden somewhat by the high scores. In our premiership winning years we have always had great centres, and it will be a necessity going forward. It's make or break next week and I would be playing Walker at centre (instead of Harper). He is in good form and it's his natural position. The cash from Suli needs to be used to find a centre/fullback and help solve the centre issue and give cover for Turbo. Koula needs more time. Garrick stays on the wing.

Great perception feathered friend @zfinkels

It is all about fielding the most competent players that are able to step up to a premiership winning class level

 

[Jay Eagle]

The fact is and it is not just a one of

The fact is when Tom does not fire our out side backs have not been capable of stepping up .

We have been known as a one man team and was proven big time last night

Last night we could only score at the back of Saabs pace off two kicks and that didnt stop Saab do his job when our forwards were dominated

Bozo our effort let us down big time last night, I just went back and watched the highlights and we went in mentaly unprepared.

The players bought into the media hype that "Manly are the team that will cause the upset... The big threat to a Melbourne v Penrith GF... and they simply did not TURN UP and play FOR EACH OTHER..

There was no effort in defence... and it all went to pieces after 9 minutes and two tries down they were deers in the headlights and stopped believing.

Souths played as a team tonight, they played for each other and did all the 1% plays with desperation and grit.

If you watch our game back in particular the tries you will see our players get beaten on the outside and theres no second effort to make up the ground and go again.

First try, Harper drops the ball and the storm players ( two in fact) rush to pick up the ball when SAAB was closer to the ball and there is ZERO desperation

Welchs try he come from the back fence, surely Marty, Jake and Turbo have clear vision of this yet Turbo is standing 2m inside the ingoal ( what hes doing there that far back at that play the ball I don't know because even if he makes a tackle the player is already in goal) and even when the attempted tackle by Jake / Marty is made Tommy is still in the ingoal. There needed to be EFFORT there from all three of those players to stop Welch, Tommy had to push up hard into the online defence

Pantyhoses try there is no communication, DCE come out of the line but Gauc is on his heels and "plodding" across providing an even bigger gap to get through, again no second effort to push up hard and get into the line

Pantyhoses second try again its Guac, just "jogging" across field because he thinks the play is going to the outside but Olam steps back inside pushes off Harper and theres a massive hole to run through, Guac then is close enough to attempt an anckles tackle but if he pushed across hard in the first place that try doesn't happen.

theres 4 BIG effort plays that were required from our boys and they didnt execute .. and ultimately they paid the price. Go watch the highlight ( Lowlights really) and see for yourself.

I didn't think the storm were that good, they were just a lot hungrier than us in ever aspect of the game.

Oldest motto in the game PLAY FOR EACH OTHER... attitude in defence is what wins matches... Souths showed that tonight

 

[BOZO]

Bozo our effort let us down big time last night, I just went back and watched the highlights and we went in mentaly unprepared.

The players bought into the media hype that "Manly are the team that will cause the upset... The big threat to a Melbourne v Penrith GF... and they simply did not TURN UP and play FOR EACH OTHER..

There was no effort in defence... and it all went to pieces after 9 minutes and two tries down they were deers in the headlights and stopped believing.

Souths played as a team tonight, they played for each other and did all the 1% plays with desperation and grit.

If you watch our game back in particular the tries you will see our players get beaten on the outside and theres no second effort to make up the ground and go again.

First try, Harper drops the ball and the storm players ( two in fact) rush to pick up the ball when SAAB was closer to the ball and there is ZERO desperation

Welchs try he come from the back fence, surely Marty, Jake and Turbo have clear vision of this yet Turbo is standing 2m inside the ingoal ( what hes doing there that far back at that play the ball I don't know because even if he makes a tackle the player is already in goal) and even when the attempted tackle by Jake / Marty is made Tommy is still in the ingoal. There needed to be EFFORT there from all three of those players to stop Welch, Tommy had to push up hard into the online defence

Pantyhoses try there is no communication, DCE come out of the line but Gauc is on his heels and "plodding" across providing an even bigger gap to get through, again no second effort to push up hard and get into the line

Pantyhoses second try again its Guac, just "jogging" across field because he thinks the play is going to the outside but Olam steps back inside pushes off Harper and theres a massive hole to run through, Guac then is close enough to attempt an anckles tackle but if he pushed across hard in the first place that try doesn't happen.

theres 4 BIG effort plays that were required from our boys and they didnt execute .. and ultimately they paid the price. Go watch the highlight ( Lowlights really) and see for yourself.

I didn't think the storm were that good, they were just a lot hungrier than us in ever aspect of the game.

Oldest motto in the game PLAY FOR EACH OTHER... attitude in defence is what wins matches... Souths showed that tonight

I get all that mate but it was proven once more that if you shut down Tom and you shut down Manly .
When they shut down Tom we were only capable of scoring just 2 tries of kicks

This was a big opportunity for us to make the most of our opportunity of all the hard work that we put in this season and make a statement and make progress into our premiership wining quest and if that is not enough to be mentally psyched up then I do no not know what is . IMO we were simply out classed when the storm closed down the class of Tom

 

[zfinkels]

The quality of the top 3 sides (and coaching) is too good, and left side attacks devastating. Harper will be targeted again and both centres required to do more in attack with Turbo less effective - they don't have the natural talent to do that. As much as I love Harper and Parker for their efforts, they aren't a premiership winning combination. We haven't beaten any of the top 3 sides this season (nor the Roosters) and need to try something new. Be thankful to the Storm for exposing us and giving Des a chance to switch Harper for Walker.

 

[The Who]

Bozo our effort let us down big time last night, I just went back and watched the highlights and we went in mentaly unprepared.

The players bought into the media hype that "Manly are the team that will cause the upset... The big threat to a Melbourne v Penrith GF... and they simply did not TURN UP and play FOR EACH OTHER..

There was no effort in defence... and it all went to pieces after 9 minutes and two tries down they were deers in the headlights and stopped believing.

Souths played as a team tonight, they played for each other and did all the 1% plays with desperation and grit.

If you watch our game back in particular the tries you will see our players get beaten on the outside and theres no second effort to make up the ground and go again.

First try, Harper drops the ball and the storm players ( two in fact) rush to pick up the ball when SAAB was closer to the ball and there is ZERO desperation

Welchs try he come from the back fence, surely Marty, Jake and Turbo have clear vision of this yet Turbo is standing 2m inside the ingoal ( what hes doing there that far back at that play the ball I don't know because even if he makes a tackle the player is already in goal) and even when the attempted tackle by Jake / Marty is made Tommy is still in the ingoal. There needed to be EFFORT there from all three of those players to stop Welch, Tommy had to push up hard into the online defence

Pantyhoses try there is no communication, DCE come out of the line but Gauc is on his heels and "plodding" across providing an even bigger gap to get through, again no second effort to push up hard and get into the line

Pantyhoses second try again its Guac, just "jogging" across field because he thinks the play is going to the outside but Olam steps back inside pushes off Harper and theres a massive hole to run through, Guac then is close enough to attempt an anckles tackle but if he pushed across hard in the first place that try doesn't happen.

theres 4 BIG effort plays that were required from our boys and they didnt execute .. and ultimately they paid the price. Go watch the highlight ( Lowlights really) and see for yourself.

I didn't think the storm were that good, they were just a lot hungrier than us in ever aspect of the game.

Oldest motto in the game PLAY FOR EACH OTHER... attitude in defence is what wins matches... Souths showed that tonight

Well constructed post.
Do you place any blame on the coach for not having us motivated?
I know people keep blaming Madge for his team's performance.

 

[Tragic Eagle]

I am concerned about our mind set last Friday. I was shocked how quickly we were shot to bits. When the going gets tough you need inspirational leaders and they were absent. We lacked steel, resilience and grit. We looked loose and didn’t play for each other. Des needs to inspire this group and pull them back together.

 

[davohan123]

I am concerned about our mind set last Friday. I was shocked how quickly we were shot to bits. When the going gets tough you need inspirational leaders and they were absent. We lacked steel, resilience and grit. We looked loose and didn’t play for each other. Des needs to inspire this group and pull them back together.

For me that's the one thing over the off season we need to fix badly our defence and actually learn how to play for each other defending like there lives depend upon it.

That's why I loved souths effort last night it was proper finals footy and they played like we use to play tough hard grinding the opposition down type of defence. Once we get that type of mind set that is when we will start to compete with the big boys.

 

[SeaEagleRock8]

Comparing Harper and Parker minus Turbo holding their hand with Big Mal Meninga, Mick Occonor , Lyon and Bozo is ridiculous my feathered friend.
It is like comparing Thomas the Tanker with a Locomotive

Thomas is a locomotive, so I guess you just argued against yourself

 

[Jay Eagle]

Well constructed post.
Do you place any blame on the coach for not having us motivated?
I know people keep blaming Madge for his team's performance.

No... I think the players started to believe their own press regardless of what was said in the dressing room.. they bought into the media hype and then the reality of finals football hit them hard..
Look at the players we are mostly talking about and they are all young and very inexperienced.
I actually think Des was blindsided by this.. if he’s in the wrong for anything it’s not realising that the younger guys may get ahead of themselves.. he will have them switched on mentally from here on in