The Elephant in the room

[manly al]

The elephants are in the pack...slow, cumbersome, friendly giants that are ineffective. It's been pretty obvious for a few years now that the speed of the game requires a mobile pack that are quick over the advantage line...so we go and re-sign Paseka, Aloiai, Sipley, Lodge, Brown, and pick up TKO. Well done Manly!

Can see the general premise of your post but Paseka at his best in the past couple of seasons has been in consideration as a fringe N S W , S O O forward or most likely bench option
Main problem with a couple of the others mentioned , can be good at times , other times quite ordinary and way too inconsistent for a range of reasons

 

[manlyfan76]

The elephants are in the pack...slow, cumbersome, friendly giants that are ineffective. It's been pretty obvious for a few years now that the speed of the game requires a mobile pack that are quick over the advantage line...so we go and re-sign Paseka, Aloiai, Sipley, Lodge, Brown, and pick up TKO. Well done Manly!

We need forward with footwork and speed. Bully the example.

 

[Chunkytuna]

Well if that happens , the only way then is up.

Or sideways - like our Tigers cousins.

 

[Chunkytuna]

I believe that Seibold for all his failings is doing this job with one hand tied behind his back.

There are some obvious changes that need to be made to our first team.

We have DCE, Jurbo and Turbo taking up a huge slice of our salary cap. We know DCE is moving on, what should also happen is that both Turbos should be on lesser wages as Turbo is missing half a season on average over the last 6 years, Jurbo is slowing down and is no longer an 80 minute player, Burbo is not first grade standard, you add in Waddell and a rank reserve grader given a 3 year deal is ridiculous!!

If Seibold dropped one of the Turbos for non performance there would be hell to pay.

You can only deal with the cards you are dealt with, the loss of Paseka is devastating for the team, Nathan Brown and Aloia are consistently injured and miss many games. Sipley has NOT developed and needs to be shifted on.

Apart from Oka, we have no fear factor in our pack. We need to invest in a lock forward who creates and helps control the middle, crying out for a dominant prop and what we need to get away from is tht its all about how big a forward it. The successful clubs have forwards who are nuggety, gritty and mobile, tough as boots. Our big fellas tend to run out of juice too easily.

Our backline has ability, Young Hoppa is already a gun. Koula has amazing potential. What we need is a centre who is imposing defensively, We need a Chricton like player who is no nonsense.

Our halves are getting squashed to our dummy half not controlling the ruck and limiting their time and space to make their plays. Simpkins is decent at 9 and we need a game manager in that role to take the heat of the halves.

Ive said it more than once now, the DCE announcement has crushed any momentum we had for this season. The club need to arrest this and get their sucession play into play, we need a captain who is invested in our cause for this season and beyond. This non decision is festering, DCEs form is in the trash since the announcement and its impacting on the team, Mestrov needs to fix this pronto!!

I think that Seibold needs to assert himself or he will perish. We are 7 rounds done for this season, this is a major crossroad, we either make these changes or rapidly the season will slip away!

What changes do you suggest he makes? We don’t have a conga line of brilliant young forwards ready to slot right in?? Navale is about the most interesting and his limited times in first grade didn’t blow anyone’s socks off?? I’d be interested to hear your ideas on what Seibold should do with HIS roster he’s assembled over 3 years.

 

[Chunkytuna]

There’s no time from procrastinating from here. Seibold shows some gonads and makes the calls that must be made or the spoon awaits us and his career as Manly coach will be at an end. He can’t survive our first wooden spoon.

He would definitely not survive that.

 

[Chunkytuna]

I have been one of DCE's harshest critics on here - I wouldn't even say he's downed tools or anything like that. He's trying as hard as he ever has, evidence by the time he was the only Manly player chasing back a Dragons kick and pulled off a great try saver ( his best play of the game ). His effort to me is always first class.

I think his announcement has taken the air out of everyone in the club and that's been the real turning point. Hope has gone and we are playing like a team who knows it's all a bit pointless. DCE has always had awful games where he makes error after error and is on full tilt ( mixed in with brilliant games yes ) that hasnt changed for me.

We've just lost a few players and lost a lot of hope and the whole mood has been taken down by the Captains announcement and I fear its only going to get worse sadly.

Agree with this. DCE is trying very hard. Probably too hard at the moment.

 

[sheridanstand78]

What changes do you suggest he makes? We don’t have a conga line of brilliant young forwards ready to slot right in?? Navale is about the most interesting and his limited times in first grade didn’t blow anyone’s socks off?? I’d be interested to hear your ideas on what Seibold should do with HIS roster he’s assembled over 3 years.

For starters Bullemor needs to start, he has a big engine and runs hard and straight, id play him instead of Burbo. Jake should be a front rower for 60 minutes a game, id be looking at mobile lock, Jacob Arthur could potentially play there, one thing we all know is this has to change!

 

[LeonardCohen]

Can see the general premise of your post but Paseka at his best in the past couple of seasons has been in consideration as a fringe N S W , S O O forward or most likely bench option
Main problem with a couple of the others mentioned , can be good at times , other times quite ordinary and way too inconsistent for a range of reasons

I don’t rate Paseka. I thought he was decent in Seibs first season at the club but regressed last year and this year is injured. When your best middle by a long way is only in consideration (not evidenced I might add) for SOO, the pack can’t be that strong. I’m OK with Paseka as an option somewhere down the rung, but if he is our blue chip prop, we have a big problem.

 

[Chunkytuna]

For starters Bullemor needs to start, he has a big engine and runs hard and straight, id play him instead of Burbo. Jake should be a front rower for 60 minutes a game, id be looking at mobile lock, Jacob Arthur could potentially play there, one thing we all know is this has to change!

Yeah I agree with those changes. Can’t understand coach’s ideas on Bully. But those changes are not really that earth shattering - feels a bit like shuffling the deck chairs. I just can’t see how we get out of this rut with what we have available.

 

[BirdMan4ever]

he will pick the same team again, ala DES

 

[Buck]

Not sure it’s an Elephant but we can blame injuries , short turnarounds, whatever you like for our recent form but let’s face it , this all started after the “ big announcement “.

Yes the first game after , we won, but it was the Eels and you could see on the day the Dollar Chaser was going to put in big time.

Since then he , and we , have been dismal and in a downward spiral.

A captain isn’t only about talking to the press or the referee, their biggest role is motivating the team , especially when they are down & out , 12-0 down after 15 minutes.

Imagine how the players must feel knowing their captain doesn’t want to be there and they can see him “ dogging it “.

Now yes this maybe because of a back injury , but it’s more likely he’s just given up.

There are three courses this can take

1) we just accept it for what it is and know this year is shot already.
2) we appoint new , joint captains ( as one is hardly on the field these days anyway) and if the Dollar Chaser spits the dummy we really aren’t any worse off.
3) we send the Dollar Chaser to NSW cup , which means he’ll spit the dummy and demand an immediate release. So be it , if some club is prepared to stump up $600k ( or whatever it is ) all good , and we use those funds to forward pay some players so that if frees up that amount in 26. If no other club has the funds , that’s how he’ll complete his long history with the club , playing Reggie’s.

Above & beyond anything, these questions have to be asked. The decline has been dreadful & our captain appears more of a passenger as opposed to the steering force he has been in the past. At the moment our season appears to be in freefall with no visible signs of recovery. The players heads would make for an interesting read!

 

[globaleagle]

Elephants can run at 40kph.

Not slow at all!

#elephantsrule

 

[manlyfan76]

Elephants can run at 40kph.

Not slow at all!

#elephantsrule

Yes but hands like feet.