The NRL Season of 2016

Slow starts and shit fifth tackle options meant the Roos were always going to break away in the home straight.

Some thoughts:

• Fly me over to Perth and I can give the Kiwis the winning formula. If you have a great forward pack and a weak playmaking unit, don't try and play structured football like you have a great playmaking unit. Power running up the middle of the park, with runners following closely for the offload. Little guys (SJ, Leuluai, Luke, Brown, Kahu, Nightingale, Kata) dummyhalf run every second & fourth. Aussie forwards won't be able to stop it.

• I don't get the point in JWH. Makes dumb mistakes (although that was a fun closeline of JT which Boyd Cordner followed up with the people's elbow). Mannering comes into the secondrow, Blair to prop and Harris to the bench.

• Speaking of the bench, Brown/Taupau/Mau'u/Blair really got things going for the Kiwis after a slow start.

• SKD was rusty the commentators said. I'll let that pass for now.

• I get it is a warm-up game but was odd that both Luke and Taumalolo spent long stints on the sideline.

• Shaun Johnson has regressed as a player. Doesn't want to run, doesn't want to kick, doesn't want to take command. If Foran gets things right again in 2017 the Warriors should throw all the money at him and trade SJ to a Sydney club.

• Reffing was suss in this game and the bunker was worse, but finally they're making players be held responsible for dropping the pill intently whenever a defender's hand is on it.

• Best defender in the game was Thomas Leuluai - for both sides. Dude was shutting down Dugan and Ferguson like they were the ones who were 5'8. He would have made a great safety in the NFL.

• Rapana and Kata had good debuts. So did Valentine Holmes for Aussie. I really hate Valentine Holmes. Dunno why, but every time he plays I hope he snaps a leg or contracts something from the Shire. The latter is a real possibility.

• To beat Aussie you need to harrass Cam Smith. Have a crack at JT, for sure, and maybe Cronk (but he's the Maurice Gibb of the trio).

How many times did we see Tupou looking for an offload and there was none there running off him. This just shows how clueless the coaching is. When you have a beast of a player like him, instruct your support players to stick with him. And what's the deal with not playing your most destructive forward in Taumalolo for the first 20 minutes of the 2nd half? Kidwell really seems to be out of his depth..

@akan004 no shit he's out of his depth. What's his experience? Mal just won 25 origins in a row with the best players ever, most of who played tonight.

If we step back, even with our enormous talent on offer, we're still actually quite a way behind

That was so tutae. Had to wait until 10pm to watch because stupid FTA TV have the rights - kind of wish one of my mates had spoiled it for me.

Agree with most of what Sneak says.

The reffing is dodgy, no influence on the outcome of the game but one play highlights how messed up it is, the one where Holmes lost the ball into Johnson and Oz got the put in. WTF?

Luke, Taumalolo and Bromwich were off the field way too long. Can't agree on Brown getting things going though, he looked ponderous, especially in comparison with Luke - but then again he isn't really a hooker.

I wonder if it's time for Johnson to re-invent himself as a ball playing loose forward in the way Hasler did at the end of his career and like a Dymock. In league he's actually big enough and he has become a much better defender this year. He's only a good 7 if his pack are rolling over the opposition and unlike Thurston he doesn't have the ability to ensure his pack runs over the opposition.

NZRL and the Warriors should only be allowed to sign up schoolboy rugby players who can punt a ball for the next 12 months. I saw better kicking in schoolboy rugby on tv than from this lot. Aaron Cruden gets shit for not being the biggest kicker around and he'd kick better than anyone the Kiwis could put out there. Hell, these schoolboy players don't even have to be that good at anything else as long as they can kick and tackle.

Kahu was bloody good again at the back. I know that some people are advocating for Fusitua but Kahu is safer, he makes his tackles, catches the ball and tidies stuff up.

Kata had a good game, but still, he shouldn't be playing for us ....

Their playmaking ability is too good when we don't run over their pack. There's an alternate universe (Earth 2 for you Flash fans out there) where Jonathan Thurston declared for the Kiwis - in that universe we steam role the Roos 3 out of 4 games - I wish I was in that universe (although the Wallabies might dominate the ABs in that one so it might be safer to stay here).

Bah.

Johnson is the enigma. There is no better runner of the football in the comp. But he's a shit kicker, a non-existent game manager, and therefore a terrible halfback.

Which any warrior supporter knows. And yet we hope for more in a different black jersey

@mariner4life said in The NRL Season of 2016:

Johnson is the enigma. There is no better runner of the football in the comp. But he's a shit kicker, a non-existent game manager, and therefore a terrible halfback.

Which any warrior supporter knows. And yet we hope for more in a different black jersey

I think last years ANZAC test put lofty aspirations about him in our head, but we were on fire so much in that match that even Hiku looked good.

I'm hoping that Te Maire Martin grows into a player with Penrith and Foran pulls his life back together. Really lost faith in SJ.

"Kata had a good game, but still, he shouldn't be playing for us ...."

Neither should Fekitoa for the ABs if we take that line, but that's a different thread discussion about schoolboy rugby "scholarships" in NZ.

I'm not sure why I wasted my time watching that test. Same old shit from the Kiwis. To make matters worse, this isn't a great Kangaroo team but there was only one team in it in the 2nd half. For once Gould was 100% correct with his criticism of the Kiwis.

Let's be optimistic and hope that the team was rusty after a long lay-off but changes in players and tactics are needed if the Kiwis want to beat England.

@Bovidae I didn't see the game and I don't think I will bother now, but what were Gould's criticisms?

@Crazy-Horse said in The NRL Season of 2016:

@Bovidae I didn't see the game and I don't think I will bother now, but what were Gould's criticisms?

I remember him saying our final play options were the worst he's seen and I'd full agree. It was like amateur hour, getting caught twice more times than not in possession on the final play and note getting a good kick away was criminal

@canefan Yep. He and Joey Johns also mentioned that the Kiwis needed to use the power game and go up the middle before the off-the-cuff football. There was a lot of confusion out there with the tactics. I read that Kidwell has owned up to the mistakes made.

yeah i found the tactics confusing ,

Kearney cops a bit of flak , but I think the last few years the kiwis have played pretty smart tactically with what they have had on the field .

another thing that has impressed me in those recent games has been their ability to stay in the contest for the 80 minutes , which has been a traditional weakness of the kiwis .

I get the feeling that Kidwell will be relegated to assistant coach again in 2017, regardless of the results in the 4N, and Stacey Jones will take over as head coach for the RLWC (currently assistant coach at Warriors, had a good run as head coach in NSW Cup).

@Sneakdefreak said in The NRL Season of 2016:

I'm hoping that Te Maire Martin grows into a player with Penrith and Foran pulls his life back together. Really lost faith in SJ.

"Kata had a good game, but still, he shouldn't be playing for us ...."

Neither should Fekitoa for the ABs if we take that line, but that's a different thread discussion about schoolboy rugby "scholarships" in NZ.

I said the same about Fekitoa.

Wayne Bennett is coaching England in the 4N? Oh well that's us poked

in 2005 Bennett was coaching Australia and we beat them twice .

But I hear what you are saying , he could be the difference , our first game against England could decide our destiny , lose that , and it might be a bit hard .

Mannering will be a big lose for the Kiwis.

Kiwis get home 17 -16 , a bit scratchy, but the good news was Shaun Johnson was good , man of the match ,

We all know he is hot and cold ,but any chance the kiwis have in this tournament involves him hitting form

Sure it was 17-16 but I was impressed that the Kiwis took the one point lead with about 15 mins to go and shut down England the rest of the way (who have some top NRL talent, some whom I didn't know were Poms).

Good that SJ has found some form again, love it when he intercepts for the run away try.

Btw, is England fullback Jonny Lomax the son of former Kiwis prop John Lomax?

@Sneakdefreak Is he? He looks pretty white..... Good game, SJ had a great kicking game and picked Widdop's pocket for the try. I was impressed by our 1 and 5 who I'm not familiar with. Big hard running boys

Pretty sure Lomax isn't a son...

No relation.

Lomax's son was actually an U20 Australian rugby rep last year.

so, did that field goal miss?

@mariner4life

@Sneakdefreak

Of course it did. That's why the Pommie players and crowd started losing their shit ... oh hang on ...

@mariner4life No way did it miss. That's like saying Beaver's kick missed

the way the people around SJ reacted seemed to be consistant with the TJ's raising their flags....but that doesn't suit a good old conspiracy.

I reckon the Kiwis get favourable treatment cos they wear black and as such are confused with the ABs by the all mighty beings that determine who gets favourable calls in sport.

@taniwharugby Then why don't the black caps get mistaken for the ABs?

@canefan its the white they used to wear mainly and the beige...

@taniwharugby I just thought it was because we are a bit shit. Or it could be your explanation

Holy heck, Kevin Procter has left the Storm and signed a four year deal with the GC.

Oz ferners, what channel shows the kiwis roos game?

@Siam Gem

I see that Kidwell has gone the conservative route once again by selecting Beale to cover Nightingale. What's with this guy? Does he despise players with X factor? Surely players such as Fuss or DWZ would have been better selections. How can we even dream of beating Australia if we select a backline that is incapable of scoring tries. Total plum this Kidwell.

Aussie win 14-8 in a tough test match. Kiwis did alright and in terms of the tournament, appear to be setting themselves up a good run down the home straight.

Of course none of this will matter in NZ because they just lost to Ireland for the first time in about 110 years.

the good thing about this tournament for us , like in the past, we only need one big performance to win it ,

and I think it suits us even more now for the hopeful ambush , now that Australia have moved into firm favorites

Say the Poms beat Aus what's the tie breaker?

Points diff?

@booboo said in The NRL Season of 2016:

Say the Poms beat Aus what's the tie breaker?

Points diff?

i think so , what is in our favor there , Mal and Bennet are in a public feud , Bennet tried to undermine Mal and pinch his job as Aussie coach ,

Mal will have them fired up, its personal