The Book of Albert

[SeaEagleRock8]

Parker Suli Tafua Garrick have scored 9 between them.

Our three-quarters are getting rubbished (and not just by you) but I recall the current Australian coach picked Parker and Garrick in the PM's side just last year. Suli too was catching the eye by season's end. Not suggesting they are future immortals but they can play.
I suggest the lack of tries they score shows deficiencies in the team rather than necessarily in the individuals. Not that surprising, our halves have been disrupted all year and the loss of Fainu simply cannot be overstated, as I think you'd agree.
Or maybe Blake Ferguson's a dud too, who can't play anymore? He hasn't scored a try all year!

 

[Terry Zarsoff]

Phil Gould made a very valid point today that it will probably take a full off season for all clubs to adapt to the Six Again rule.

All things considered, Manly are not too badly positioned. Mid-placing in the competition despite key injuries, a great new facility about to be built at Brookvale, a great coach and support team and I believe a very good CEO. Things could be worse.

Plus there are far more serious things going on right now than the on-field fortunes of our favourite football team.

A little bit of perspective goes a long way.

 

[Bearfax]

Phil Gould made a very valid point today that it will probably take a full off season for all clubs to adapt to the Six Again rule.

All things considered, Manly are not too badly placed. Mid placing in the competition despite key injuries, a great new facility about to be built at Brookvale, a great coach and support team and I believe a very good CEO. Things could be worse.

Plus there are far more serious things going on right now than the on-field fortunes of our favourite football team.

A little bit of perspective goes a long way.

I want my pie, and I want it now.

 

[XV-1]

Our three-quarters are getting rubbished (and not just by you) but I recall the current Australian coach picked Parker and Garrick in the PM's side just last year. Suli too was catching the eye by season's end. Not suggesting they are future immortals but they can play.
I suggest the lack of tries they score shows deficiencies in the team rather than necessarily in the individuals. Not that surprising, our halves have been disrupted all year and the loss of Fainu simply cannot be overstated, as I think you'd agree.
Or maybe Blake Ferguson's a dud too, who can't play anymore? He hasn't scored a try all year!

Blake Ferguson can't score a try because he is outside a super hog called Waqa Blake who never passes the ball to him.

Siva has 11, Jennings 7, Gutho 5.

More than double our super slow backline.

Cronulla have triple the number of tries compared to our back 5. And that is with the maligned Johnson in the half's. Both these teams have speedy backs.

 

[frank stokes]

Des the master coach—you post this with an air of mockery. He’s been in five grand finals and won two... Would love to see big brave Frankie boy wander into the sheds and tell the coach what he is and isn’t doing right.

Haha you'd be surprised what I would and have done kevvie... shouldn't you be off praying to your sky fairy on the sabbath?
Could you ask him for a decent Manly team? Oh, and if he could make some milk appear in my fridge that would be handy... I'm out...

 

[frank stokes]

Wow lots of angry people.

Ever think maybe we dont want to end up like the broncos with a load of very talented juniors in a side with no form. The kid Tesi nue (apologies for the spelling) was supposed to be the great hope and what? Lasted 3 games and back to bench.

Thing is no matter how good hoppa is he's unlikely to win us games on his own back like turbo does. So perhaps instead of putting him and Schuster into a struggling side it makes more sense to play guys that you know are expendable. They might not be as good as the young superstars but do do a job.

How would this forum be if we dropped all these kids into FG and were loosing by 40 or 50 most matches? The place would burn down.

I'd prefer that to lending them to another team...

 

[frank stokes]

Our three-quarters are getting rubbished (and not just by you) but I recall the current Australian coach picked Parker and Garrick in the PM's side just last year. Suli too was catching the eye by season's end. Not suggesting they are future immortals but they can play.
I suggest the lack of tries they score shows deficiencies in the team rather than necessarily in the individuals. Not that surprising, our halves have been disrupted all year and the loss of Fainu simply cannot be overstated, as I think you'd agree.
Or maybe Blake Ferguson's a dud too, who can't play anymore? He hasn't scored a try all year!

When was the last time you saw Parker, Elliott, Jorge or Garrick CREATE a try? Not just finish one or draw-and-pass but actually CREATE the space?? (Suli has been a while too but at least he CAN)...
THAT is why I personally am so frustrated with Des not giving promising kids a go...
These guys are making errors in defence that are costing us games and he doesnt want to replace them with kids because they MAY make errors in defence and cost us games?? It makes no sense... at least the kids have a potential upside because our backline is limited in ability to say the least - we have all WANTED it to be different for 2 years now but it is time to just accept it for what it is - sh*te...

 

[HoldenV8]

My apologies Kiwi Eagle.

I'm doing my best to keep up with the posts whilst trying to separate my 5 and 4 year old from decapitating one another with moves they've just seen from an old WWF wrestling match between Ric Flair and Ricky Steamboat.

Okay that was from deep, deep left field.

Carry on.

Actually, that would have been the old NWA from around 1989. Steamboat and Flair never actually wrestled each other in the WWF/WWE

I'm a pro wrestling nerd. I know these things lol.

Oh, and for the record ... those matches that Steamboat and Flair had against each other back in 1989 were absolute classics and among the best I have ever seen in 35 years watching the "sport".

 

[Terry Zarsoff]

I want my pie, and I want it now.

You will have to decide. You can’t have both.

 

[manlyfan76]

For thise who are more interested in watching the kid play rather than argue about him the warriors play:
Dogs
Knights
Eels
Sharks
Raiders
MANLY

If its only four games id asume his first game would be knights ( give him time to train with the team before throwing him in), and he would be back intime for Manly v Warriors. Interesting.

 

[The Indian]

I look at it differently. Des as he always has been is conservative. He picked Hodkinson and ignored DCE. no other team either wanted DCE so he played Qld cup.
Dog rapists came up with a big offer and Hodkinson left.
DCE then came in but he was never Des's first pick.

Des has form by picking the conservative option and being WRONG.

But I really really do not know why Des keeps picking Elliott - a player who is not going to be offered a deal in 2021 over than taking a punt on a young gun.

But we are happy to have him debut for the Warriors.

No wonder Hoppa wants to leave!!

Des picked Hodkinson over DCE agree 100%. Hodkinson turned into a decent player to be fair. Also Brent Kite over Jared Wearea Hargraves. Plenty of others.

Des mojo has always been to pick the old ute over the next shiny new toy. People expecting it to change are in for disappointment.

 

[HoldenV8]

Blake Ferguson can't score a try because he is outside a super hog called Waqa Blake who never passes the ball to him.

Siva has 11, Jennings 7, Gutho 5.

More than double our super slow backline.

Cronulla have triple the number of tries compared to our back 5. And that is with the maligned Johnson in the half's. Both these teams have speedy backs.

Sounds like Garrick playing outside ball hogs Siro and Suli. This time last year he'd scored 6 tries (with another 10 to come), but for some reason this year the ball is getting to Siro or Suli on the right and most times, that's as far as its getting. As I said in another thread, this year he's been starved of so much quality possession that you'd think he would be eligible for World Vision donations. He's shown what he can do given good opportunity to do it, he's just not getting those opportunities right now because the ball is rarely getting out that far.

And he's no plodder either, he's one of the faster full time wingers in the competition. If you put today's Manly backline (1-5) in a 100 metre foot race, Reubs would win by at least 5-10. We just aren't using that pace to our advantage.

 

[Tragic Eagle]

This is really really dumb ****. Maybe he won’t extend but something is very very wrong.

 

[The Indian]

Sounds like Garrick playing outside ball hogs Siro and Suli. This time last year he'd scored 6 tries (with another 10 to come), but for some reason this year the ball is getting to Siro or Suli on the right and most times, that's as far as its getting. As I said in another thread, this year he's been starved of so much quality possession that you'd think he would be eligible for World Vision donations. He's shown what he can do given good opportunity to do it, he's just not getting those opportunities right now because the ball is rarely getting out that far.

And he's no plodder either, he's one of the faster full time wingers in the competition. If you put today's Manly backline (1-5) in a 100 metre foot race, Reubs would win by at least 5-10. We just aren't using that pace to our advantage.

Indeed Garrick is being wasted in attack. What frustrates me to the point of exasperation is we often do elaborate moves 50m out from the try line to create overlaps ON THE OTHER SIDE to create space for Taufua who makes 10m with a 5m head start and he is closed down by 2nd rowers training across. If we are going to try and put wingers in the clear... try Garricks side

 

[manlyfan76]

Excited too see Funa in the clear today.

 

[XV-1]

Sounds like Garrick playing outside ball hogs Siro and Suli. This time last year he'd scored 6 tries (with another 10 to come), but for some reason this year the ball is getting to Siro or Suli on the right and most times, that's as far as its getting. As I said in another thread, this year he's been starved of so much quality possession that you'd think he would be eligible for World Vision donations. He's shown what he can do given good opportunity to do it, he's just not getting those opportunities right now because the ball is rarely getting out that far.

And he's no plodder either, he's one of the faster full time wingers in the competition. If you put today's Manly backline (1-5) in a 100 metre foot race, Reubs would win by at least 5-10. We just aren't using that pace to our advantage.

100% agree

If Suli and Siro pass the ball more to their outside men, it creates more doubt in the defenders minds when they actually do hog the ball. At the moment defenders know that Suli will not pass the ball to his outside winger.

 

[susan]

For thise who are more interested in watching the kid play rather than argue about him the warriors play:
Dogs
Knights
Eels
Sharks
Raiders
MANLY

If its only four games id asume his first game would be knights ( give him time to train with the team before throwing him in), and he would be back intime for Manly v Warriors. Interesting.

The weird thing for me is how would a couple of guys who are playing very well in a backline playing really good football despite unbelieveable obstacles ,which no team has ever had to endure , feel about being dumped for a loan player, even a highly hyped one like Hoppa.Their forwards have had plenty of injuries, pullouts etc so I understand the loan boys like Hethrington getting a crack straight away but this is strange.

These guys have given up families etc , play well in response ... and get tossed? Doesn’t seem like something Payton would do. As I said weird.

And if he’s just going there as cover then it’s even more weird.He can do that at Manly.

 

[manlyfan76]

The weird thing for me is how would a couple of guys who are playing very well in a backline playing really good football despite unbelieveable obstacles ,which no team has ever had to endure , feel about being dumped for a loan player.Thir forwards have had plenty of injuries so I understand the loan boys getting a crack straight away but this is strange.

These guys have given up families etc , play well in response ... and get tossed? Doesn’t seem like something Payton would do. As I said weird.

And if he’s just going there as cover then it’s even more weird.He can do that at Manly.

After four weeks Albert could have helped them overtake Manly.

 

[manly al]

Guess that there is a vexed matter with any offer to young Hoppa in that how long in the present situation should the contract consist of , one season offer , two ? surely no longer then 2 . So can see the reasoning of giving him some game time at least from Manly "s perspective and to gauge whether this mooted 250 k offer should be revised . and especially also if more then one season would be part of the equation then . Whether he should have been in the Manly back line already still continues to be a separate matter , no doubt a coaching staff 's call , just hope that it has been based on some sound judgement . Will Manly be prepared to offer him more coin if he does make the transition O K ? , Probably but not overs for sure , as for other clubs , who knows .

 

[manly al]

100% agree

If Suli and Siro pass the ball more to their outside men, it creates more doubt in the defenders minds when they actually do hog the ball. At the moment defenders know that Suli will not pass the ball to his outside winger.

Too many settlers and negative plays around the ruck area and not enough spread out wider has been the biggest problem and reason for the outside backs being staved of some decent ball