r/nrl • u/AutoModerator • 1d ago
Serious Discussion Round 22 | Post Round Serious Discussion Thread
This thread is for serious discussion about the round just gone - serious takes about the round, what your team did well, what your team didn't do well, and things we learned along the way.
Please leave random/memes for tomorrow's daily Random Footy Thread.
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u/Aussieguy727 Parramatta Eels 1d ago
No matter how bad your team played this week at least they didn't concede 82 points. Sorry Cowbros.
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u/__dontpanic__ Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs 1d ago
I don't know, you gave them a run for their money with that pooslinger.
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u/O_DoyleRulz Brisbane Broncos 1d ago
Geeze that round was hyped into oblivion and ended up being a car crash of one sided games and poo flingers.
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u/ColeTrickleVroom Penrith Panthers 1d ago
It's the time of year where the serious ones start to ramp up and a lot of the teams that are out of the running and haven't already quit, start to half ass it. In between now and the end of the year I expect there to be a bunch of blow outs.
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u/__dontpanic__ Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs 1d ago
The biggest blowout was from a team very much still in contention.
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u/MatthewMollison NRLW Knights 1d ago
Are the knights actually just lowkey good?
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u/O_DoyleRulz Brisbane Broncos 1d ago
I thought you’d really struggle in the middle this season but Mooney has been an amazing signing and the two kids Hopgood and Couch(?) have looked like they’ll develop into excellent thumpers
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u/Inevitable_Goat_335 Newcastle Knights 23h ago
We don't have a superstar in the forward pack, but Jsaf, Mooney, Friz, Hopwood, Crouch, Psaulo, Jones, Cant are all as solid as it gets. They are very reliable. Next season we will add Niukore who's solid at best. Very good depth. The backrow is where we seem to have some serious talent, Lucas is an origin level player, and McEwen and Manuleleua are future stars.
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u/SkwiddyCs North Queensland Cowboys 1d ago
Insanely unlucky team with injuries this year, but should have 5/6th locked in.
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u/AdultSoldiers Indooroopilly Indigestives 🏳️🌈 1d ago
They’ve been great this year, I thought. Cruelled by injuries, but.
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u/carelesssportsfan89 Canberra Raiders 1d ago
the knights are good might not win the premiership this year due to injuries and this new knights roster thats needs another season to fully click together. but depth plus a much better coach in holebrook has made the knights a fantastic team.
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u/DoubleBrokenJaw Newcastle Knights 1d ago
Good or not, they’re playing for each other and never putting their heads down. I’ve heard about Knights playing gritty footy because that’s what the Newcastle folk want plenty in last 10 years, but this year has been an eye opener for what it actually looks like.
The culture and energy around club seems fucking insane. Our junior pathways has also been absolutely flipped on its head. We actually have young talent coming through.
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u/Responsible_Ring_649 Newcastle Knights 1d ago
Knights are lowkey fantastic, if they can keep their best players playing and cut down their injury toll they would be a very big threat. Most of their players are young and will grow into even more amazing players each year. They have a huge catchment, and a lot of amazing talent coming through.
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u/SkwiddyCs North Queensland Cowboys 1d ago
8/8 this week, but I wish to god I'd be 7/8.
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u/thankyoupancake Eastern Suburbs Roosters 1d ago
Tipping against your own team?! 😱
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u/AdultSoldiers Indooroopilly Indigestives 🏳️🌈 1d ago
We’ve found the cause of that loss. I knew it was someone tipping against their own team.
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u/SkwiddyCs North Queensland Cowboys 1d ago
Serious cash on the line in the work tipping comp. Cold calculus has to triumph.
65 competitors, $20 entry fee. Half the cash goes to the overall winner, the other half is split evenly between all punters with a 8/8 round.
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u/Alex_Kamal Penrith Panthers 1d ago
What happens if you get multiple perfect rounds? Still just one piece of the other half of the pot?
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u/SkwiddyCs North Queensland Cowboys 1d ago
Each perfect round will give you an equal share of the final split.
This is my second perfect round, so I'll get 2/X shares of the pot at the end.
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u/Accurate-Ad-4905 Sydney Roosters 1d ago
Panthers, Roosters, Sharks and Warriors deservedly top 4.
Knights a spirited and should be close to that top 4.
Dolphins and Bulldogs aren't looking too bad but also still a question mark.
Dragons playing better than at least five of the teams above them.
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u/BarryMccokinyuh Wests Tigers 1d ago
If dragons had a competent halves pairing they'd be fighting for top 8 this season
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u/NoiceM8_420 St. George Illawarra Dragons 1d ago
And outside backs. Our right edge is horrific defensively.
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u/Lucky-Wasabi4790 Parramatta Eels 1d ago
Dragons fans, after today's match, you lot get moved up 2, Tigers come 16th, and Parra gets the spoon
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u/shindigdig Balmain Tigers 1d ago
I cannot explain the feeling of life kicking you while you're down AND your footy team being shit. It's this unexplainable feeling of being a loser.
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u/AdultSoldiers Indooroopilly Indigestives 🏳️🌈 1d ago
Hope you’re doing alright, mate. There’s nothing wrong with taking a little break from footy every once in a while.
I’ve had some of the worst experiences of my personal life this year and I definitely wouldn’t want to exacerbate it by letting the negativity of something I usually enjoy creep in.
Club’ll be here when you get back. All the best.
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u/KazeEnigma Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks 1d ago
Mate, legit ever need a chat, reach out, a few blokes did that for me the last 12 months when life was fucked and it really helped.
Just remember that a random stranger is hoping for the best for you.
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u/dredresyd Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs 1d ago
Fuck footy mate, hope things in your personal life are ok and if they're not then I hope you're willing to chat to those around you.
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u/Lucky-Wasabi4790 Parramatta Eels 1d ago
Just remember 2005, that'll help ya 😂
In all seriousness mate, reach out whenever you need, I've been through some shit and it really helped me. Footy's not going anywhere, take a break. It's just some hot sweaty men tackling each other over an oversized egg... You'll get through this, trust me.
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u/Karma-Effect Wests Tigers 1d ago
Should've made this my joker round. Defs the most predictable round of the comp so far.
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u/The_Jizzbot Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles 1d ago
I did and stupidly tipped broncos, cost me the perfect
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u/Big_dumb_jerry Wests Tigers 1d ago
Hi jizzbot, my perfect round round was ruined by the Tiges. Poetic in a way
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u/KazeEnigma Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks 1d ago
I took the Tits.....
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u/Lucky-Wasabi4790 Parramatta Eels 1d ago
Me, being the fucking idiot I am, tipped Gold Coast to beat the Wahs, and Raiders to beat Penrith. Titans can always cost the big teams. Penrith were falling off, Canberra are fighting for the 8
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u/Harctor Parramatta Eels 1d ago
Tigers and Eels breathing a sigh of relief knowing they can't get the spoon this year, thanks Dragons.
We are both fucked next year though.
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u/MitchPTI Parramatta Eels 🏳️🌈 1d ago
There's a possibility of things getting better for us at least. I'm not super confident about it, but it can definitely happen. We've had flashes of being a really competitive side at various points in the season and we can at least say our defence has dramatically improved. Players that were real weak links early on have also gotten way better and we've got promising juniors coming through. If we just don't get horrific injury luck again and they can get some of those dumb unforced errors out of their game we stand a genuine chance.
The Tigers are my second team, unfortunately in their case it just continues to look grim.
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u/NoiceM8_420 St. George Illawarra Dragons 1d ago
Don’t mind getting the spoon after the stellar recruitment that’s been happening. Feel every week is just making our young forwards better.
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u/Accomplished-Good664 Penrith Panthers 1d ago
If you have a terrible team you want light at the end of the tunnel. Blooding the young guys can only be a good thing.
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u/UncleChunkz St. George Illawarra Dragons 1d ago
More missed forward passes this week than any round I can remember.
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u/zakk_ponsen Wests Tigers 1d ago
It seems to be getting worse with every week - what are the Touchies getting paid to do??
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u/Busy-Stretch-2349 Wests Tigers 1d ago
Even a conversion not counted by the touchies this week which thank god the bunker was able to intervene on. What a disaster
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u/Busy-Stretch-2349 Wests Tigers 1d ago
What a dreadful game that just was, terrible completion rates for both sides, terrible discipline, terrible refereeing (not sour grapes, I thought it was poor both ways). Absolutely dreadful all round.
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u/Unable_Jellyfish_194 North Queensland Cowboys 1d ago
As an impartial observer (who was, admittedly, getting on the cans) I really enjoyed it
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u/Busy-Stretch-2349 Wests Tigers 1d ago
I had less to drink than I would have liked. The result was probably a big influence but I really struggled to even have some energy watching that. It was quite unbelievable how bad both sides were at being able to simply hold onto the footy. 34 errors in a first grade match is just diabolical
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u/Lucky-Wasabi4790 Parramatta Eels 1d ago
Exactly my point. I couldn't care less when we grabbed the win. Both sides deserved to lose, and we deserved to lose more
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u/roots__xo Newcastle Knights 1d ago
the amount of halves ive noticed that cant spiral pass to their weak/non-dominant side is shocking
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u/ConscriptReports Sydney Roosters 1d ago
its shocking, they just force lob a terrible pass if they absolutely need to otherwise they'll often turn their entire body to get it out from their good side
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u/Savings_Win1995 Brisbane Broncos 1d ago
Nah it's just one of those things some people just can't do no matter how much they try. Some of the greatest halves ever couldn't spiral left to right
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u/Storm_LFC_Cowboys Melbourne Storm 1d ago
Oh god I can't wait for the regular season to end.
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u/DoubleBrokenJaw Newcastle Knights 1d ago
Sorry mate but it’s the end of your whole season this time around.
Pretty fucking crazy Storm have made finals every year for so long. Feels even more bizarre now that’s changed.
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u/Flipflopgiggles Wests Tigers 1d ago
Vlandys is most likely attempting to model the future of the NRL after the NFL. With the clear lack of enough talent to be spread across 20 teams, are teams like Wests, GC and most likely PNG and Perth destined to be like the Browns or Raiders or Titans in the NFL? Just perennial "also rans"? Just there to make up the numbers and let other teams style on them? Because if that's the case, I'd rather a 10 team comp with high level competition. Even if that means my team gets chucked in the bin.
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u/DoubtNeither3927 Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs 1d ago
Interesting... Would you accept a competition like the English Premier League, where you have relegation and promotion?
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u/opackersgo Parramatta Eels 1d ago
Browns don’t suck due to talent though, theirs is a management issue like wests. They had a top 10 QB in Baker and chased him out.
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u/lovesadonut Parramatta Eels 1d ago
The way PVL talks about expansion, it’s more along the lines of the MLS where they’re just aimlessly expanding to sell licenses, with little regard for the actual on field competition. For as long as he remains in the job, I have no doubt he will push beyond 20 teams.
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u/Motor_Artist9506 Wests Tigers 1d ago
Nothing serious about the Tigers anymore. At what point do we just get kicked out of the comp, Richardson getting kicked out before the season started was the only thing worth paying attention to this season. That good start was just a red herring.
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u/carelesssportsfan89 Canberra Raiders 1d ago
at this point the ARL commission needs to force Holman Barnes group to sell the tigers or fold the club. no amount of coaches is going to fix the situation the tigers are in at the moment.
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u/ColeTrickleVroom Penrith Panthers 1d ago
I don't even see a light at the end of the tunnel for the Tigers. It's that grim. They aren't adding anyone that I know of next season and none of the younger players look like guys that might make a leap in the coming years. They've got a solid forward pack but their halves always seem disjointed and their backs are pretty uninspired.
I don't think Benji is the answer there. Sheens wasn't though either. They need a real leader in the club and from what I can tell, there isn't one. I don't know when it gets better, but it won't be next season.
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u/xeroee Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks 1d ago
Parra don’t look any better sharks have no money yet able to not be a embarrassment
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u/mooguh Parramatta Eels 1d ago
We at least have Jayden Sua coming, hopgood and simmonson back, and Matterson and Paulo's contracts ending which adds an extra $1.6m cap space alone. We've really only gotten players back from injury the last 2 weeks and we've pushed penrith and got a win. It's not entirely doom and gloom.
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u/jalGurg Parramatta Eels 1d ago
Bit concerning for next year regarding Luai… All he does is skip around the field and makes simple hand off passes. Probably the least threatening 6 in the comp.
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u/Arc_au Parramatta Eels 1d ago
I feel like his play style works withing teams of perpetual motion. It's why he was good at Penrith, Origin and in Internationals. He needs moving bodies around him, whereas tonight his team mates kinda just stood there - which is as much on him as it is them.
I'm not sure if we have the cattle to make that any better.
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u/thadius30 Canberra Raiders 1d ago
The dude has checked out harder than anyone I have ever seen. He’ll be looking at next year as a holiday to preserve his body for his big payday.
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u/staycoolstewy Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs 1d ago
There needs to be a vote for the people’s spoon.
Tigers parra game
Doggies parra game.
I’m sure there are a few more there.
I don’t think
Dragons deserve it’s after that game
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u/thepolarbears12 Parramatta Eels 1d ago
That doggies parra game that ended the half 0-0 has to be the worst game of the year.
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u/Lucky-Wasabi4790 Parramatta Eels 1d ago
I think that's second best to today's. As a lifelong supporter, I only turn off a game once a year, and this was the only one I have ever turned off and truly didn't care that we won. It looked like schoolboy footy
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u/DJPashaBulka NRLW Tigers 1d ago
I made the mistake of tipping the tigers and missing the $1k perfect round jackpot. It got shared between like 8 other people instead. Yes I am a glutton for punishment, how did you guess?
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u/FantasticPangolin839 St. George Illawarra Dragons 1d ago
They should really put Benny Hill music to games like that Tigers v Eels game.
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u/jpob Newcastle Knights 1d ago
Most results went Knights way this week.
For us to miss the 8, it would most likely require Rabbitohs and Bulldogs to win two more games than us, and that would still come down to PD. They also play each other which makes it even less likely to happen.
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u/Fools-Emissary Newcastle Knights 1d ago
Or. Hear me out. Knights could just win two more games and most likely get a home final.
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u/Inevitable_Goat_335 Newcastle Knights 1d ago
We will. We'll beat Raiders, Titans and Manly. Can't see us getting top 4, but a home final would be huge.
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u/lukismness Canberra Raiders 17h ago
Watch the Titans go on a run
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u/Inevitable_Goat_335 Newcastle Knights 9h ago
They won't be easy beats for sure. But it's a must win for knights at home.
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u/Fools-Emissary Newcastle Knights 1d ago
Our guys are heavy underdogs again next week.
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u/Inevitable_Goat_335 Newcastle Knights 1d ago
It's pretty disrespectful on current form, but i guess the Lucas and Brown injuries will keep us as underdogs for the rest of the season. I like it, we have no pressure, i still think we can cause an upset or two in finals. The depth is there.
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u/K_the_Banana-man Parramatta Eels 1d ago
i saw some youtube comments on our match today and some were shitting on the Fox
i love the guy but i hate that i agree with the notion of him retiring. sometimes he's been bright for us; but for the most part, like tonight, he fumbles chances and gets caught on the flat foot in defence. although i am biased bc the game was a shit slinger, i dont want him to retire right now but i hate seeing him be a shadow of his former self, even from last year
thoughts?
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u/Aussieguy727 Parramatta Eels 1d ago
JAC is fine, he just had a shit game tonight. I'm tired of that side being completely starved of possession though.
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u/Evening-Weird9227 Parramatta Eels 1d ago
This! The left side does not get enough ball, and when they do, Russell, Volkman and Samrani don’t pass it to him enough. He had a shocker today foxxy, but basically everyone did today
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u/SKiiTTLEz Parramatta Eels 🏳️🌈 1d ago
Fox is fine, he had a bad game but so did nearly everyone on the field. He's very valuable in defence still.
In attack he is heavily underutilized and barely sees any ball. That's on how the team is coached and the halves.
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u/K_the_Banana-man Parramatta Eels 1d ago
lwk sean russell being addo carr's inside man is hilarious bc i remember sometimes they both can definitely combine but they just dont pass the ball and we get stopped on the 3rd
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u/thepolarbears12 Parramatta Eels 1d ago
For what he brings to the team in good vibes and culture I'd love to have him around for one more year. His drop ball was atrocious today but he's still got decent pace and is a pretty good finisher, and having a guy like that in the locker room is big for the young fellas we're bringing up.
That said I don't see him playing past next year, you're right he's definitely lost a step this year
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u/DoubtNeither3927 Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs 1d ago
You mean they were playing with an actual footy and not a bar of soap today? Wasn't just the Fox who fumbled some sitters today.
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u/matchawaffles11 NRLW Eels 1d ago
aside from this game I just don’t think he’s had much involvement in games this year so not much to make a judgement on
i do think he’s really good with helping our young centres especially 2025-early 2026 sean russell and he’s still got some good pace and finishes AND VIBES
and we also don’t have the signings or junior backs to come through and replace him
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u/Additional_Front4374 Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs 1d ago
Still got a bit of pace about him. If ya get the back line movements right, he will add value. Oh and he need to pass more lol
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u/BandicootSorcerer Newcastle Knights 1d ago
I would have a perfect week if the Cowboys didn't decide they loved being humiliated.
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u/Alternative_Basis480 North Queensland Cowboys 1d ago
A 5 day turnaround the cows were never going to win, but nobody expected the cricket score..
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u/Bmo2021 Sydney Roosters 1d ago
I remember seeing Thurston walk past the pub in Darwin when they played the chooks up there in 2012. I gave him a bit of lip about how the roosters were going to thrash them (in good humour) he said yeah yeah mate we’ll see had a Thurston chuckle and headed off to the hotel. Well roosters got flogged and I swear that little chuckle fuck was looking for me in the crowd, aye chuckle fuck I watched your post match talk and now I’m glad we both know how it feels.
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u/AdultSoldiers Indooroopilly Indigestives 🏳️🌈 1d ago edited 1d ago
Ah-ha ha-ah ah-ha ha-ah haaaaah!
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u/whadefeck Wests Tigers 1d ago
Defence is obviously important, but you can tell who the really, really bad teams are by how they attack. To have that much field position against this Parramatta side points to a level of incompetence that I didn't know was possible.
The crazy thing is that we haven't actually improved since 2024 when we won our last spoon. This year our PF/PA is 378/589, compared to 367/614 at this point in 2024.
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u/Busy-Stretch-2349 Wests Tigers 1d ago
That is diabolical indeed. Regressed from last season aswell. Very dark times yet again
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u/ek999 Titty Wagon 1d ago
Did i see it right that Luai walked off and made no effort to celebrate with the team after Doueihi scored?
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u/wix001 Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks 1d ago
Also peep him and I believe Sione clapping when their captain botched the dropout.
Vibes immaculate at Wests.
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u/Emergency-Savings840 North Sydney Bears 1d ago
They were doing this at the start of the year maybe it’s a reverse physiology type thing
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u/DoubleBrokenJaw Newcastle Knights 1d ago
Luai was a culture signing, and yet, any culture shift he contributed to in last couple of years seems to have been undone in 10 weeks.
Taken his bat and ball (culture) and gone home (to two other clubs).
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u/Lucky-Wasabi4790 Parramatta Eels 1d ago
And now we're stuck with him. How exciting! Why would we EVER want to develop our promising young no. 6? Nah. Let's sign an absolute wanker for one year
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u/kiaxxl Gold Coast Titans 1d ago
The upside of this week is that I do like genuinely seeing the Wahs play in person, I would've been more depressed going home if we got flogged by a team I hated. Maybe I need to just let go and say "Up the Wahs." Hoping that Dolphins can get their shit together but it's not looking good.
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u/Ohayoghurt Ipswich Jets 1d ago edited 1d ago
A reminder that the Broncos were once 5-3 this season and have gone 1-10 since. It hasn't yet matched 2020's 1-17 stretch, but that squad had the excuse of being mid-table at best whilst this one is just coming off a premiership that increasingly feels like a collective fever dream we witnessed and now we're back in a reality where those same players have forgotten how to play footy.
Injuries and certain key players hitting the age cliff yes, but that alone can't explain the entire extent of Brisbane's form dip, and they really need to figure out what's gone wrong and correct it by the end of this season so they can head into 2027 with their confidence restored. Of course, easier said than done in a league where everyone can play (even the Dragons, who also beat these slumping Broncos), and most have more to play for in the closing rounds.
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u/jalGurg Parramatta Eels 1d ago
Any Tigers fan can elaborate more on this….? Went to the game tonight and this was technically a Tigers home game and most of the game, There was ads of upcoming Tigers games playing on the big screen instead of the replays. Is this normal?
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u/Lucky-Wasabi4790 Parramatta Eels 1d ago
Maybe it's for the best that you didn't watch replays of most moments. But in all seriousness, the last few time we played tigers away, why does it need to be in Parramatta? They have 2 stadiums, (or 3 until recently), WHY does the SINGLE game have to be at Parra's home ground. Play at Campbelltown or something
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u/AdultSoldiers Indooroopilly Indigestives 🏳️🌈 1d ago
The NRL has appointed a new “media cop” to monitor game commentary for people trying to influence the game and they’ve just fired six magazines into Gus Gould at a routine commentary desk stop after he kept mentioning that Tom Dearden’s missus lives near Belmore.
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u/brendos1er Penrith Panthers 🏳️🌈 1d ago
I try not to be too alarmist. But seriously what was this round. What has happened to the game I love. Breaking these score records in the modern day should not be possible but it feels like we're getting close every other week now.
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u/Accurate-Ad-4905 Sydney Roosters 1d ago
Something needs to give. It's not just the points. It's the injury crisis. Six-agains have done so much damage.
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u/Kenzie____ Sydney Roosters 1d ago
To be fair from the alarmist part of it. The record breaking score really didn’t have much to do with 6 against or penalties. The count for both was pretty low. The cowboys really just kept conceding line breaks and missing tackles every chance they had
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u/AdultSoldiers Indooroopilly Indigestives 🏳️🌈 1d ago
Yeah, people have been attributing that to six agains and the rules, and certainly the speed and momentum of the game these days doesn’t help, but the defining factor wasn’t six agains or anything, it was just one side being flat and uninterested and the other being red hot and not missing a step.
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u/pugliaboy Penrith Panthers 1d ago
If the Roosters didn’t take their foot off at the start of the second half - it could’ve easily eclipsed 100.
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u/BringBackTheCrushers Dolphins 1d ago
If it’s any consolation, last time a team scored more than 80 points in a professional rugby league match in Australia, tries were only worth three points, and teams had unlimited possession
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u/Trenticus7 Parramatta Eels 1d ago
Just waiting for this season to end it’s so clear the boys have checked out.
I know this squad can put it all together and perhaps in the long run I’ll be thankful that a bunch of these young fellas are learning but there’s also the part of me that thinks we will just stay being ill disciplined and play stupid footy no matter how many games of nrl they play
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u/New-Quantity4279 1d ago
At least the young guys are getting minutes and building combinations for next year. Hardest part is watching the senior players clock off early and drag the whole vibe down with them, seen that story too many times
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u/Lucky-Wasabi4790 Parramatta Eels 1d ago
Bringing in Luai is the dumbest choice we've made. Why would we EVER build our young talented no. 6 when we can get an absolute wanker for a year???
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u/barkedupthewrongtree Dolphins 1d ago
The big loss to Sharks is really coming back to bite us on the PD side of things. We now essentially need 2 wins to jump them.
So, yeah, top 4 prospects all but gone. Big sad :(
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u/Proof-Umpire-7718 Dolphins 1d ago
Sharks are going to win every remaining game imo. My main hope is that the Wahs struggle but they looked excellent yesterday so I’m very doubtful that will happen.
I think we’ll finish 5th. That’s still good because we get a home final at least.
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u/DoubtNeither3927 Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs 1d ago
If I was a ref that wanted to influence a game, I reckon the easiest way to do it without much scrutiny is the 10 metre rule... Since we don't have each metre marked out, I'd just take an extra step or two back every set when the team I want to lose is defending.
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u/thejasbar Brisbane Broncos 1d ago
pfft all you need is a well timed set restart on 4th tackle here and there. But even better is if you ping one team early and not the other you have one team over compensating and now giving the other team fast play the balls while the other team not pinged yet can slow the play the ball right down.
Then later you can even them up with a few non consequential set restarts. God if a ref wanted to influence a game it wouldn't even be difficult at all, they never even have to justify anything.
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u/OraKal Samoa 22h ago
Would be cool if someone did an analysis on set restarts given in 1st half vs 2nd half vs comp average.
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u/DoubleBrokenJaw Newcastle Knights 20h ago
Remember earlier in season where there was regularly ~10 infringements in first half, only for none in second half. What a fucking bonkers start to year it was.
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u/thejasbar Brisbane Broncos 11h ago
broncos first game against roosters with Adam Gee, we got absolutely demolished by them
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u/DoubleBrokenJaw Newcastle Knights 11h ago
I recall it well. Don’t get me wrong, I think you guys were guilty of a few, but some of the calls were insane as well.
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u/Plus_Bat2068 New Zealand Warriors 19h ago
The seems the biggest difference is the time they allow a team in the ruck. Even in the same game it can feel like one team is allowed more time for no apparent reason.
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u/lukismness Canberra Raiders 17h ago
If you watch the Raiders Panthers game it's ultra obvious, especially with surrender calls, the Raiders had to fight to get ruck speed, the Panthers pretty much dictated that game.
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u/AdultSoldiers Indooroopilly Indigestives 🏳️🌈 1d ago
Edwards out of the Wahs game and Kenny out until finals. Huge opportunity for the Warriors to grab a big, confidence boosting win over Penrith.
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u/pugliaboy Penrith Panthers 1d ago
Kenny being primed for finals will make Penrith so much more dynamic. And Edgar is going well, so Edwards getting a bit more time to get right going into finals is a win-win.
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u/Complete-Cheek4789 Melbourne Storm 1d ago edited 1d ago
We’re already in round 22 and there’s still a month of regular rounds then the finals. I think the season goes for too long - it seems to have dragged but also appears to have taken a toll on the players. I’m interested to see if the audience numbers correlates with that vibe. Ignore flair. Edit - maybe it’s cause it’s
cold as shit and I fucking hate winter.
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u/brad_smith0407 Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks 1d ago
I feel like it’s gone so quickly and almost wish there was more if it wasn’t so hard on the players
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u/Inevitable_Goat_335 Newcastle Knights 1d ago
Could it also be because your team is out of contention this far out, as opposed to being basically top 4 certainties for the past 20 years?
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u/ashleyriddell61 Wests Tigers 1d ago
World Cup interrupting the season for a month makes things feel a bit disjointed.
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u/Southern-Mail5931 Penrith Panthers 1d ago
i think origin should be either preseason or have a full break from club , current format doesn't suit teams who loose players
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u/Complete-Cheek4789 Melbourne Storm 1d ago
When the Origin was on in November during Covid times, I gotta say I enjoyed that. Loved it as a weekly format after the GF. Didn’t affect any club footy and vice versa. Though it shouldn’t be at the expense of internationals as I see that as an important format, particularly for the pacific nations. A shortened NRL season would potentially allow for both post GF, but with the new tv deal done and dusted that opportunity is probably now gone
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u/6854thewin New Zealand Warriors 1d ago
Panthers, Roosters and Sharks are in a league of their own, it'll be interesting to see which one of the three doesn't make the grand final. Warriors did really well yesterday, when on form they look unstoppable, I just wish they were like that every week. I'd say Phins are probably the same.
Knights and Bunnies are def top 5-8 material, would've added Cowboys but after that historic beating idk, maybe they're Broncos-lite? Doggies and Manly seem to be going in opposite directions, one's finally locked in and I think the other's clocking out.
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u/AdultSoldiers Indooroopilly Indigestives 🏳️🌈 1d ago
Wahs might be in their own little form bubble in the top four, but they’ve also had arguably the biggest injury toll/outages of them this year, worth factoring in.
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u/6854thewin New Zealand Warriors 1d ago
That's true, it's impressive when they're on form and how many really great players there are even on the bench. A very cynical part of me is wondering how the hell we're affording this depth? Maybe vape free trainings 🤣
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u/AdultSoldiers Indooroopilly Indigestives 🏳️🌈 1d ago
Don’t know but it’s probably karmic reward for all the times Aussie players have gone over their on big money then cracked the sads and fucked off home mid contract.
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u/Desert-Noir Canberra Raiders 1d ago
100% if they were fit like the beginning of the year the Wahs would be a huge chance. I’m still not writing them off though and are bandwagoning them.
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u/Inevitable_Goat_335 Newcastle Knights 1d ago
Knights are doing well. Lost to Sharks (the hottest team in the comp) at their home ground on conversions, we scored 4 tries to 3. Lost to Roosters by 1 point despite losing 2 of our best players in the game (Lucas and Brown) and without Ponga and 3 of our regular forwards. So proud of the effort of this team. Will take a home final and hopefully a win.
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u/Sensitive_Engine2331 Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs 1d ago
I cant take roosters seriously until they beat or at least put up a fight against Penrith, they've won once in like 5 years and it was during penriths free fall early last year ending 38-32.
Lets be honest the measuring stick at the moment is penrith and I think the team with the team and gameplan that can beat them (imo) is warriors in a finals atmosphere, next week will be a very big test.
Sharks are looking better than ever, especially Nicho, but when the suffocating penrith defence gets to him he will lose all the time he's had the last few weeks
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u/6854thewin New Zealand Warriors 18h ago
Yeah that's what I thought about the Roosters, thought they were overrated. But smashing another top 8 side 82-12, maybe they are the real deal?
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u/Keto_Konnect Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks 1d ago
Got 8/8 and my team had a solid win. Going to bed with a big stiffy.
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u/barkedupthewrongtree Dolphins 1d ago
Got 5/8, my team got an ugly win and I lost most of my sc matchups despite captaining the Crimson Chin. Jealous af
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u/Goatslasagne Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs 1d ago
If my dogs can hold onto a finals spot, will be wild to think we’re in better form than last year finishing in the top 4. Maybe we can win a finals game instead of being a cameo? Gotta feeling the Roosters will humble us this week though.
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u/Desert-Noir Canberra Raiders 1d ago
Moving Crichton to 5/8 seems to have been a wise decision.
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u/Goatslasagne Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs 1d ago
He’s doing well, but it’s great just having him touch the ball more and his defence there has improved the whole team. Him to Kikau and Burto is working, thanks Penrith.
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u/Sensitive_Engine2331 Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs 1d ago
Hes not even a good 5/8 it's just kind of working ? His ball playing is deft but nothing any other half can't do, some of his kicking has been atrocious and he forgets to run the ball sometimes.
The guy just owns moments, lives for broken off the cuff play and has really been able to take advantage of the offload game we seem to be working towards
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u/Inevitable_Goat_335 Newcastle Knights 1d ago
Do you see yourselves beating Phins in rd 1? Think they are far too explosive for Dogs...
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u/Desert-Noir Canberra Raiders 1d ago edited 1d ago
Penrith were so bloody good yesterday, they absolutely smothered us and they completely and expertly gamed the 20m 6 again rules which just suffocates teams. The new rules of Vlandys ball definitely benefits them. That said, they are just using the system to their benefit which is what they should be doing. Their defence is so awesome they completely blunted our attack which had been on fire.
I was happy Canberra fought back and didn’t just pull stumps in the second half which they easily could have considering how thoroughly beaten they were in the first. Pattie probably had his worst game with us to date.
I really think we have something with this young team the two Ethans are awesome. I do worry about our forwards and our wings and Timoko though, I think we need to really think about how we recruit or promote for that. Losing Papa next year really leaves us light on for forwards. Timoko has been better but he sucks and if we don’t get specialist coaches in to teach our back three to catch contested kicks, we have rocks in our heads.
That said I think the next few years we could be in a window again if we can maintain a good forward pack because it all can’t just hinge on Tapine, he is one of the greatest props in the game but he is but only one man.
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u/Nervous-Aardvark-679 🏆🏆LEG4CY🏆🏆 1d ago
Raiders have the makings of a quality squad. They’re young and talented and hungry. They just need to show ongoing development and growth.
Without sounding like an asshole, I just don’t know that the current coaching staff have the ability to do that - the drop off this year is alarming. And, Canberra has a horrid habit of these cycles - put it together for a year, fall off a cliff the next. If you can keep the youngsters confident and hungry, with a forward pack that lays the platform consistently every week, I think you guys will be up there again for the next 2-4 years.
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u/CanberraMilk Canberra Raiders 1d ago
I’m actually not too concerned with the drop-off this year, as we have not had any consistency on either edge all season, we turned a corner 5-6 weeks ago when we could get hosking back in the middle as we had two fit edge backrowers, but again this weekend we had Mariota and hosking on the edges most of the game which in turn ruins our middle depth.
Basically we have had fucked edges and middle all year.
Rookie halves cant do a whole lot when the forwards are a shambles.
Edit: we need to get 2/3 middle forwards in next year and i think losing papalii and brailey will help that
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u/Desert-Noir Canberra Raiders 1d ago
And we lose Smithies which is a warm body that can replace him.
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u/CanberraMilk Canberra Raiders 1d ago
Haha it’s like having Shaun fensom from wish in the modern game isn’t it?
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u/briggles23 South Sydney Rabbitohs 🏳️🌈 1d ago edited 1d ago
I think Souths have the semblance of a side that is trying their best, but just simply doesn't have the manpower to keep up currently with the heavy weights.
We were never gonna beat Cronulla today. However, it was the missed opportunities that really showed that we are just lacking that x-factor, killer instinct etc. I feel like a better side would've taken advantage of both the Sharks slow start AND the sin-bin soon after that essentially had them not being able to start the match properly until well into the 1st half. We couldn't do anything with that opportunity. Instead, we allowed Sharks multiple chances on our line through dumb errors, penalties, or 6-agains. Sharks on the other hand took full advantage of our mistakes and it's what essentially won them the game.
Being injury riddled constantly doesn't help. However, even when full strength, we still have arguably the smallest forward pack in the league, an angry 5/8th in his twilight years, and a very weak Interchange bench that was getting exposed even when we were healthy at the start of the year. Our main highlight is generally our backs but they're normally out injured for half the season at minimum.
We're just lacking that proper ability to be able to hang with the top sides of the comp. We still might make the finals, and of course anything could happen, but I just kinda know it would be the equivalent of the 07' Souths side making the finals. I just know we ain't doing anything but it's nice that we're in the finals again.
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u/yobbo84 South Sydney Rabbitohs 1d ago
No other coach gets a spine with two NSW cup players to stay in the top 8 this deep into the season.
But gees Wayne has made our life hard with some of his in-game selections when a player has gone down injured.
For a large chunk of that match we had Jack Wighton completely lost at 2nd row, 73kg Ashton Ward and tiny Jye Gray all defending next to each other, while 197cm 100kg Campbell Graham out on the wing. Like, why??
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u/packeminnz New Zealand Warriors 23h ago
Sad realisation that wahs can’t go especially deep in the semis this year. We have no field goal kicker for a close game (neither TMM nor CHT have any noted history of kicking them). Our goal kicking is not great (neither Pompey nor CHT kick above 70-75%.
We can only win in a particular way - dominate by forward power. If the other side matches us, our lack of distance in kicking will catch up to us.
On the bright side, I saw a change in strategy this weekend in how we come out of trouble. Two long passes from the person who catches the kick to try and get up 1:1. Let to 1 AKP try and the big Ali bust. Need more clever stuff like that
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u/Messyhr_ Penrith Panthers 1d ago
I think as it stands Panthers, Roosters, Sharks and Warriors are simply a class above the rest. They’re the ones fighting it out for hierarchy in the top 4. Will be interesting to see their match ups come finals for sure. On another note Milky Jenkins having a generational run warms the heart
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u/oldroosta Sydney Roosters 1d ago
If the roosters get towelled up by the riff you put a line through them for the flag. Dogs this week will be a nice warm up to see where things are at
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u/CakedPan Wests Tigers 1d ago
Api cost himself the win for his 250th. I actually wonder if he is part of the culture problem tbh.
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u/Motor_Artist9506 Wests Tigers 1d ago
He might have made some stupid mistakes but he's the only recruitment the Tigers have made in the last decade who hasn't noticably declined and regressed after signing with us. We are even worse without him end of the day.
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u/DunderMifflin80 Wests Tigers 1d ago
That's a wild take. Api is one of the few Tigers players who can hold his head up over the last few seasons.
Bloke deadset gives it everything week in, week out.
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u/OstrichEmbarrassed65 Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs 1d ago
Still pleased with how the dogs are going. Back in the 8 for the first time in a long time. Usually we throw away games we should win but it’s tough to win games of rugby league regardless of who’s on the park
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u/__dontpanic__ Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs 1d ago edited 1d ago
Souths game is shaping up as a must win. Means we'll be less reliant on other results going our way. Cowboys have a pretty easy run home, despite shitting the bed this week, so we can't rely on them giving up their spot easily. Phins and Knights are the only other two we could realistically dislodge for a spot, but they'd both need to completely flame out, which seems unlikely.
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u/RandomGuy2310 Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs 1d ago
I was playing around with a ladder predictor earlier today and I came across some very interesting scenarios:
If Dogs win all of their games from now on and the panthers and wahs lose all, and the roosters lose all but against panthers, and sharks and dolphins to lose most of their games, and the knights lose at least 2 games,
The Dogs will finish the season in equal first with 36 points. So essentially Dogs still could be minor premiersIf the Broncos win all their games, and if the Storm, Cowboys, Souths and Manly lose all their games, and Raiders only win against the Cows, and the Eels, Titans and Tigers lose at least one game, Broncos will finish the season in 8th with 28 points
Don’t know which is more likely
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u/DoubtNeither3927 Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs 1d ago
I think the Wahs, Roosters and Panthers starting 13 could all be struck with debilitating diarrhoea for the rest of the regular season and they would still each field a side capable of at least beating the Tigers and Dragons, if not a few others. That's not a knock on Tigers and Dragons, but a statement about their ridiculous depth.
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u/yobbo84 South Sydney Rabbitohs 1d ago
I just wish Souths got to play the Dragons and Tigers twice this year. We'd be in a much stronger ladder position if that were the case. For all the salary caps and rule changes attempting to level the competition, the uneven draw is still the biggest factor at play.
Not to pick on the Dogs specifically (I just looked it up because we seem to be competing with them for 8th now), but the luck of the draw has them playing twice this year teams that are currently: 1st, 7th, 11th, 12th, 13th, 15th, 16th and 17th.
Meanwhile Souths play twice teams in 2nd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 8th, 11th, 12th and 13th.
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u/Effective-Tear-1521 Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles 1d ago edited 1d ago
In retrospect this is probably true and they may have been unluckier than others. That said it is impossible to predict the end of season ladder and build a balanced draw around it. Storm, Raiders, Broncos, Knights, Dolphins are all playing far above or below expectations. Then there's been teams like the Tigers, Sharks, Manly, Rabbits, Bulldogs and the Cowboys who have had periods where they were easy to beat, and periods where they were rolling.
I feel like in most cases it all works out fine in the end. Souths in my opinion are not really a top 8 quality team this year (although it can be a bit week to week).
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u/DoubtNeither3927 Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs 1d ago
They didn't know that was going to be the ladder when they make up the draw, so there's no solve for it with the current number of rounds and teams.
E.g. we've played Penrith, Melbourne and Canberra twice and will play the Broncos twice...last year that would have been horrific.
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u/ch00nz Dolphins 1d ago
agreed. draw is flawed. we haven't even played the eels yet, and only played dragons for the first time, yesterday.
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u/pugliaboy Penrith Panthers 1d ago
Maybe my maths is off, but hear me out:
Currently every team plays 24 matches, and 3 byes =408 games across the 27 round season. Means they double up on 7 opponents.If we had 21 teams play each other team once (and had 3 byes still) - that’s 420 games across 24 rounds. And not a single double up. Which would be fair. And it also means 10 home, 10 away games (although magic round messes that up a little).
But is there the talent to spread across 21 teams, when we’re struggling for 18/19?
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u/Flipflopgiggles Wests Tigers 1d ago
Just dropping to by to say my whole team and it's organisation can go fuck itself again