He did however the impact of year in first grade on an adapting body is massive
The No-Look News (Schuster Chronicles)
- Thread starter The better Robbo
- Start date
Brisbane Tragic
Bencher
Agreed - he has immense talent... absolutely. But not being fit enough and carry extra kg's is all on him! Yes he missed the pre-season but hundreds of players have missed the pre-season... there are training plans at every club for every injured player to follow to get them back to peak fitness. It is up to the player to do the work.. eat right and then do any extra work to get back to peak fitness. The fact that he has not done the work is a huge concern. Des certainly is being hard on him by having him on the bench. He simply does not deserve his spot and certainly he shouldn't be given a spot to get fit! Davey is showing him how to be the professionals professional. Davey has one/tenth of Schu's talent but effort and heart plus a heap of dedication goes a long way. Davey has shown that coming back from his injury. Remember he missed a lot of the pre-season because of that knee injury and yet he was ready to roll - fit as... he did the work! Now Schu might turn out to be a super 5/8 but gee he hasn't convinced me yet. For his management to be agitating to get rid of Foran also doesn't sit will will me. Now he would have known that his management were playing those cards and let it happen. That smacks of being entitled and kicking up a stink to get your way. Traits that are not great in a team sport. Just something else that makes me wonder if he is all about the team ... seems to be very much all about him. He played great in the backrow last year....but yes the lack of commitment this year... the drama over ousting Foran and his so so efforts when on the field.. especially at 5/8 certainly raise some red flags for me. Certainly at the moment not a hope in hell of him getting a spot in front of Davey in the backrow that is for sure. What happens next year who knows but gee he hasn't filled me with confidence ... yet!
Bearfax
Grizzly old fart
Thing is you cant carry the same weight as a second rower as you require as a five eighth. Last year I suspect he was adding weight to deal with the 80 minute games he was required to play as a second rower, with defensive requirements almost double he would expect as a five eighth and then perform five eighth like skills in attack. The accusation of being overweight and unfit last year was sheer rubbish given he had to bulk up to take on the second row responsibilities. And he, Jake and Croker were the only forwards who consistently played 80 minute games, so suggesting he was unfit was ridiculous. I suspect he was burning out and losing confidence. This was a kid who was being identified as the next big thing in League by many, and I suspect he was getting disenchanted because he knew his skill was at 5/8. I said and thought this long ago when Manly brought in Foran, and don't get me wrong, I've been very impressed by Foran's performances. But Schuster was always destined to be 5/8 from his junior days. Benji remarked after his initial first grade showing that it was the most impressive display he had seen by someone playing his first game. It was as at 5/8. The kid needs to be supported by the fans, if he is to achieve what I suspect he is destined to be.
I'm not sure what Schuster has done wrong on the footy field other than be unlucky with injuries. He played a long stint in the second row and was outstanding with consistently high tackle counts. He is not the first player to struggle to get back into shape without game time but he looked really good on the weekend. Des held him back initially and is now again is holding him back. Its lookin like a personality issue between coach and player. Its looking like another Barret genius decision. In 2 years without Schuster we will be without a five eight and a DCE will be 36. Our future planning is IMO being undermined by whatever it is that is going on between the coach and the player. Another one will be lost.
Bearfax
Grizzly old fart
I dont think Des is to blame here. Shu hasnt been anything like he was after coming back from injury and he was noticeably struggling with a little extra weight and fitness issues. Maybe the problems with his manager have caused something of a rift, maybe even with one or two of the players. For example its been reported that DCE and Foran are pretty close, but that's just conjecture. Des wouldnt have him in first grade if he didnt think he should be there. and with Manly now starting to look good with the players he's got, Des is well known for sticking with the same side and who he feels are performing. Time will tell. Des wants to win. Unlike Barrett I dont think he'll risk losing the more skillful players
Technical Coach
Bencher
I don't buy the "putting on weight to play second row" line that is always bandied about unless it is meant in a more chiselled harder toned form.
Size wise Schu naturally is bigger already than many in the NRL who play back row, it is not like Schu plays up the middle anyway.
Take for example Tony Williams, if he kept his slim down toned look of a large winger he would of been more effective in the forwards,(he was devastating enough at that size) there is a point of diminishing returns when it comes to putting on the kg's.
Schu along with Tony Williams and others will naturally put on the weight fast requiring little effort, that is the worrying part.
Size wise Schu naturally is bigger already than many in the NRL who play back row, it is not like Schu plays up the middle anyway.
Take for example Tony Williams, if he kept his slim down toned look of a large winger he would of been more effective in the forwards,(he was devastating enough at that size) there is a point of diminishing returns when it comes to putting on the kg's.
Schu along with Tony Williams and others will naturally put on the weight fast requiring little effort, that is the worrying part.
Snake
Snake's Alive!
He didn't have to bulk up at all; he's already in the body of a back-rower to begin with. He was gassing heaps last year and made some poor misses that led to tries in big games.
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Snake
Snake's Alive!
I reckon coming back 6-10kg too heavy and playing lazy and looking for easy outs has nothing to do with bad luck and injury. His offside penalty from the kickoff was very disappointing. He has been underwhelming and that's why he got 11 minutes on the weekend.
This debate keeps raging and excuses are made left, right and centre. You can still be a massive fan and acknowledge that there are concerns. Bearfax is as big a fan as any of this kid, but is willing to concede that all is not well.
As for Des, it's not a personality issue. It's a lack of fitness. Schu didn't come back underdone after a long lay off. He came back fat. Massive difference between needing a bit match of fitness after an injury, and visibly looking like a different human being altogether (which he did against Souths in Gosford).
In saying all that, it's not the end of the world. He'll come good, but let's not stretch the truth of what is glaringly obvious right now.
He looked in pretty good nick against Newcastle. What the truth is subject of conjecture and I’m not stretching anything thank you. If you can affirmatively tell us what the issue is from a reliable inside source I would be grateful but at present aren’t you doing the same as me but labelling it inaccurately as being glaringly obvious.
It's so damn frustrating with Schuster, you know we've got a real good heads up player here, has undoubted skills, mostly it's all about when to pull the trigger or when to roll with an attacking team play. Getting injured before the Seasons kick off was huge in regards to prep for the season ahead. Got injured, was supposed to be a 2 or 3 week out but dragged on for another 4 weeks. With more games comes more maturity, exciting times ahead.
Looks like he’ll get an opportunity to play more than 11 minutes this week.
Bearfax
Grizzly old fart
The Indian
Bencher
Indeed he'll get as many minutes as he can handle this week...... and then some.
manly al
First Grader
Will be interesting how Des will manage Josh and Walker from the bench . Both won"t be expected to play a full game but most likely both big minutes . Just recall how well Josh went against the Dragons second encounter last season , great if he can get even somewhere near that form again but if used properly , could still do O K and did look in better shape last Saturday . Guess that the Dragons can be expected to be up for the game and Manly definitely have to be with the obvious high playing stakes now and will certainly need whole hearted efforts from the likes of Dylan and Josh .
Heckenberg
Reserve Grader
I think des rewards good consistent footy. Ola has been absolutely spectacular and davey has been very solid too. You can’t really take either of these guys off the field for schuster who is overweight and makes some poor decisions at times. I think at the moment it seems to be a story of too many cooks in the kitchen when you involve walks coming off the bench as the utility then schuster doesn’t really have much of a role to play. I think it’ll all change dramatically with Lawton back next year as he will probably fill schuster or walkers spot on the bench. We seem to have a more balanced roster next year as far as utilisation of our 1-17 goes. Obviously with that comes less depth though.
Good thoughts. The pack animals have deserved there spot and offer a better balance to our pack And game overall
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