Bloke on the hill
Reserve Grader
Imagine if the top 30 players contract money was pooled, and players were paid at the end of the year, all on performance based contracts.
Spot on MaxtaThis Manly team plays with no intensity or desire....apart from DCE and Jake.
If we could bottle the enthusiasm of that Storm game every week, would be near top of table today, which is even sadder as it shows though we have an "unbalanced" roster, the team when switched on can beat "Most" teams in this comp, showing the reason we are playing so poorly is based on effort or lack of.
Really think there is no "quick fix" in bringing in a few younger, Hungrier players as will take time to adjust to NRL standards....but this is certainly a way to show players who underperform, will be punted back to Blacktown and also add players who will fight hard to retain a top spot, which is a far better spectacle than a bunch of blokes in Manly jerseys running around with this lack lustre attitude.
To be honest, Sharks were there to be beaten yesterday and were fairly ordinary....Manly were sadly so flat they could not cash in.
That's if they weren't crying at where this once proud club has fallen to. It's now 12 years since our last premiership and our next one is nowhere in sight. This is the longest drought we've ever had since winning our first one in the 70s. It's time things change.because no one apart from DCE gives a ****
they just turn up to get a pay check and that’s it
no heart, no pride, no desire
the old boys would have been laughing at this mob of pea hearts yesterday
I agree that our recruitment has been underwhelming, but that doesn't explain how we can turn in a performance like we did against Melbourne. If we're such a **** team then how did we beat a pretty good storm team and basically beat the comp leaders the bunnies - if we weren't robbed by the refs?At the end of the day we are running 12th and ahead of three of the four teams we beat, and level in points with the team we drew with.
Perhaps we simply do not have the cattle this year and are exactly where we should be.
I don’t have the energy to criticise the team for their effort yesterday. Sharks line speed killed us, attacking speed killed us. We held the ball for 9 of the first 10 sets yet were still getting trampled on. We were completely fresh after a full 8 days between games yet looked gassed after 10 minutes.
Where to from here?
NYEagle
Yes this where the real footballers shine. Players like Jake Turbo, Munster, John Bateman etc. they don’t look like muscleIt's easy to strut around all week like alpha male wanna-be's measuring your biceps in the weight room, but unfortunately the weekend rolls around and you have to get out on the field and do some work.
And when has Manly EVER been good at slowing down the ruck! I mentioned in another post how we consistently have a tackler left on the ground and out of the following play. It happens regularly and it is a sign we are not applying strategic ruck management, IMO.We arent trained well in slowing down the ruck, cronulla was light years ahead in the play the ball.
You my friend have nailed it !And when has Manly EVER been good at slowing down the ruck! I mentioned in another post how we consistently have a tackler left on the ground and out of the following play. It happens regularly and it is a sign we are not applying strategic ruck management, IMO.
Even if we are not matching line speed with the opposition, we should still be getting three to the tackle and controlling it with well-drilled wrestling and peeling off technique... I understand those times where we are literally running back after a break and the technique breaks down, but just because the opposition is getting over the advantage line should not stop us from applying technique in tackles.You my friend have nailed it !
This is the most vital part of the game and if you have no energy in the ruck.....give yourself little chance of competing.
Controlled thr ruck vs Storm and this was a combination of solid initial contact and numbers in tackles.
This happened also in our game vs Souths, both our best 2 performances of 2023 and the only 2 games where we had control in the middle by winning the ruck.....
Spot on mate they also play like they don’t know each others game and for a team that’s had minimal changes over the last 2 yrs you have to wonder4 wins in our last 17 games (with relatively the same squad to last year). 27 points on average against in that span (only Tuilagi / Johns being the new players).
That's what happens when you lack quality recruitment. As I said pre-season - worst roster in the entire NRL.
Can't turn a beat up Datsun 120-B (players) into a Porsche Cayenne regardless of the fuel (coaches) being injected.
In the last few years, these lumps have had Randall, Cartwright, Flannagan, Hasler, Monaghan, Dymock, Barrett, Hayles, Siebold & others (all different qualities and types - take your pick) all trying to motivate and improve them, and nothing has worked - hence it's not the coaches.
They are just garbage.
What's happening in the players shed 15min before kick off, why aren't we pumped and reeved up for the game, especially at Brookie. Last 3 defeats have all resulted in bad first half's and then fight back in the 2nd half's. Only problem is, we concede to many points in the first half's to ever catch them on the scoreboard.In keeping with this thread....it was never more apparent how flat we are than yesterday when Keppie absolutely ironed out the Sharks ball runner, at least twice in quick succession.
There was no back slapping from the 2nd marker, no using the moment to fire everyone else up, no nothing.
That said it all really.
Team | P | W | L | PD | Pts |
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0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |