The key is to slow down the Roosters' quick play the balls which are the best in the NRL. Looking at the tries they have conceded this year , there's no real recurring theme. Jake Friend used to be an unreliable defender with poor discipline...even though he's improved out of sight he did miss Beau Falloon one on one resulting in a soft try against the Titans . SKD has the worst ball security/carry in the NRL and can rush up unnecessarily in defence especially at centre . His mobility has improved since he's trimmed down and his hit-ups have been particularly good over the past few months. He often takes hit ups early in the tackle count so a one on one strip attempt mightn't be a bad option.
Test out Mortimer' defence as soon as he comes on , preferably a big bopper steaming onto a short pass from Foz or DCE after having taken the ball to the line and committed defenders. Ditto for Pearce who is also vulnerable to a good fend.
First contact with SBW has to be big otherwise it's easy to fall off the tackle .Early in the year he was playing mostly as a right centre in attack , avoiding the smash up derby in the middle of the ruck. Since them he seems to have been given a license to roam and against Manly in round 16 caused most problems on the left.
I'd like to see Jorge running off short passes around the ruck, especially off an inside ball. The inside ball to Snake at speed has been telegraphed so far, but may be worth a go.
The Roosters are good at using the full width of the field so Jorge and Wolf need to get their defensive positional play in order. The opening try by RTS in round 16 was perfectly conceived by the coach and perfectly executed by the players but could have been stopped if Jorge had not come in unnecessarily. Wolf did the same against Mansour on Sunday and on numerous occasions this year. He might get away with it with Snake sweeping behind him in cover because of Snakes anticipation , speed and positional sense but in general it's a high risk manoeuvre as Nathan Merritt discovered this year in Origin.
Test out Mortimer' defence as soon as he comes on , preferably a big bopper steaming onto a short pass from Foz or DCE after having taken the ball to the line and committed defenders. Ditto for Pearce who is also vulnerable to a good fend.
First contact with SBW has to be big otherwise it's easy to fall off the tackle .Early in the year he was playing mostly as a right centre in attack , avoiding the smash up derby in the middle of the ruck. Since them he seems to have been given a license to roam and against Manly in round 16 caused most problems on the left.
I'd like to see Jorge running off short passes around the ruck, especially off an inside ball. The inside ball to Snake at speed has been telegraphed so far, but may be worth a go.
The Roosters are good at using the full width of the field so Jorge and Wolf need to get their defensive positional play in order. The opening try by RTS in round 16 was perfectly conceived by the coach and perfectly executed by the players but could have been stopped if Jorge had not come in unnecessarily. Wolf did the same against Mansour on Sunday and on numerous occasions this year. He might get away with it with Snake sweeping behind him in cover because of Snakes anticipation , speed and positional sense but in general it's a high risk manoeuvre as Nathan Merritt discovered this year in Origin.
