it is the ultimate excuse for midweek beers. And even without the biff, the standard of league is pretty amazing. Even in a one-sided affair, the shit that Latrell and Tommy Turbo served up last year was incredible to watch.
And it can so often turn up a shock performance or result.
I an see why it's hard to watch in NZ, with how late it always kicks off i would be asleep by then!
@mariner4life some footy on a Wednesday night, I’ll take that any week! Will finish playing bball at about 8:30 come home, turn on the recording and fast forward all the breaks and eventually catch up to the live footage.
It may have declined in terms of what the actual game brings and it’s not really as hyped by media types and the rivalry is largely sanitised, but I always look forward to it because I follow league.
@ACT-Crusader said in Origin 2022:
@mariner4life some footy on a Wednesday night, I’ll take that any week! Will finish playing bball at about 8:30 come home, turn on the recording and fast forward all the breaks and eventually catch up to the live footage.
It may have declined in terms of what the actual game brings and it’s not really as hyped by media types and the rivalry is largely sanitised, but I always look forward to it because I follow league.
yep, i heartily agree
but i have openly said what a Neanderthal i am. i miss the biff.
It’s depressing when you switch on the radio and hear that a guy seven years your junior ( Billy Slater ) is a coach.
Carn the Blues !!!!
These games still have great intensity, even if we don't have any biff. Although I suspect if Latrell was playing he would be doing a couple of dirty things.
Still looking forward to this one, hopefully I have finished work by kick off
and quality code (any code) midweek is always appreciated
@bayimports said in Origin 2022:
Latrell was playing he would be doing a couple of dirty things
class A grub.
@mariner4life said in Origin 2022:
@Nepia said in Origin 2022:
@ACT-Crusader said in Origin 2022:
@Nepia said in Origin 2022:
@mariner4life said in Origin 2022:
Origin fucking needs an edge or it will die.
Here's hoping. Nah, I think it's fine for you blokes who want to watch, I just wish that it would get reevaluated and viewed below test footy.
Origin's footprint has been vanishing though even just since I've been living here. There's no marketing for it in Sydney at a time when the place is full with people due to Vivid. There used to be banners and I'd see promotions with Hindy and Fletch out and about. I haven't even seen an advertisement about it this year.
Origin likely gets more viewers around the world than some test match so would be challenging to place it below it or elevate tests.
Other than World Cups (and again they are a bit of a laugh), league tests don’t really mean much given it has been a club based focused sport for generations.
That has coincided with the rise of origin and the NRL being all powerful. Test league used to be hugely popular.
maybe the much vaunted "kangaroo tour" but all of my memories are the very few stirring NZ victories in between getting fucking pumped by Aus.
Now test league is an absolute joke, with every single team bar the poms being made up of Aussies who can find a link to the other nation somehow. And NZ losing guys who would once play for the kiwis, so we're shit too.
Origin started a decline with the rise of the QLd team that won every year, coinciding with the crackdown on the biff
At it's best, Origin was brutal football played with real passion. it was big hits, the softening up period, and the ever present chance of a stink
Now? it's basically like the Grand Final. Far more sanitised, far more corporate. Far more analytical. And the players probably didn't even grow up in the "hate" era. And look, it's lost some appeal.
I loved those Kangaroo tour games and still loved seeing the Kiwis play (yeah probably more enjoyable against Great Britain than Oz as we were in with a shot in those games).
What's most annoying is that we're in an era when we can compete with the Kangaroos regularly and we barely get to play them.
Like I said, all good for you guys who enjoy watching it - but is the biff a bit exaggerated or is my memory faulty? Even from my days of intensely watching it I only really remember Geyer and Lewis. But I remember most of the big stuff from that era as it had a bunch of my favourite players - essentially all from NSW (Daley, Clyde, Lyons etc) and Steve Renouf.
@Nepia said in Origin 2022:
What's most annoying is that we're in an era when we can compete with the Kangaroos regularly and we barely get to play them
we really are not. We are not even close.
@mariner4life maybe we were before the emergence of Tonga as a league team but not since
@bayimports said in Origin 2022:
@mariner4life maybe we were before our the emergence of Tonga as a league team but not since
most especially once Tonga and even Samoa became viable options, all those "kiwis" have chosen elsewhere.
There are still a couple of top draw kiwis, but there aren't a lot, especially in the main positions.
@mariner4life said in Origin 2022:
@Nepia said in Origin 2022:
What's most annoying is that we're in an era when we can compete with the Kangaroos regularly and we barely get to play them
we really are not. We are not even close.
I said compete, not win. You're from a bay team that doesn't win all the time like me so shouldn't need constant wins to maintain your support.
Also, isn't the Tongan thing is a bit over done. Outside of JT, Taukeiaho, and Fonua-Blake (who was basically a fairweather Kiwi anyway) who else would the Kiwis want to select this year that will run out for Tonga?
right now if we got within 30 i would be impressed
James Fisher Harris is almost the best prop in the game.
Joey Manu arguably the best centre (also the best looking)
She gets a bit bare after that. Hughes nailed on to one half spot.
@mariner4life said in Origin 2022:
@bayimports said in Origin 2022:
@mariner4life maybe we were before our the emergence of Tonga as a league team but not since
most especially once Tonga and even Samoa became viable options, all those "kiwis" have chosen elsewhere.
There are still a couple of top draw kiwis, but there aren't a lot, especially in the main positions.
The Kiwis have barely an NRL level quality spine let alone one that can compete with the best of the best from OZ.
@ACT-Crusader said in Origin 2022:
@mariner4life said in Origin 2022:
@bayimports said in Origin 2022:
@mariner4life maybe we were before our the emergence of Tonga as a league team but not since
most especially once Tonga and even Samoa became viable options, all those "kiwis" have chosen elsewhere.
There are still a couple of top draw kiwis, but there aren't a lot, especially in the main positions.
The Kiwis have barely an NRL level quality spine let alone one that can compete with the best of the best from OZ.
although we do have a good hooker who can play prop ha ha.... and I am not talking about Jazz
@mariner4life said in Origin 2022:
@bayimports said in Origin 2022:
@mariner4life maybe we were before our the emergence of Tonga as a league team but not since
most especially once Tonga and even Samoa became viable options, all those "kiwis" have chosen elsewhere.
And with so many Tongans and Samoans being brought up in Australia, those two teams are only going to get stronger.
The pool of islander players in Australia is pretty impressive - even if the Kangaroos nab a few of them, there's still so much talent left over for the islands.
Ya bloody pessimists. I'm always confident ... for the first 5 minutes at least.
Ah well, enjoy your Aussie lovefest tonight - I might watch the highlights over breakfast on that dud Kayo app so I can rejoin the thread tomorrow and pretend to have a clue what I'm talking about.
@mariner4life Australia needs to have a national conversation about starting footy games on time.
Well taken try, but goal line defence is weak by union standards. Not surprising given how much quicker this game is - players must be quite a bit smaller.
Game is way faster, but quite a lot less physical. Hits on defence aren't impressive. Kicking game is relatively poor too.
Overall, very repetitive and becomes boring pretty quickly.
Origin is no longer hard, it's fast. The pace of the game is insane
DCE still sucks.
Newbies Carrigan and Cotter are killing it. Grant adding heaps from dummy half
But NSW look the better side so far. On a different night they have 3 tries. Qld can't keep giving them field position
@mariner4life said in Origin 2022:
Origin is no longer hard, it's fast.
The game is incredibly fast. The collisions are lame, there are few offloads, and it seems extremely risk averse though. Boring.
@Gunner said in Origin 2022:
It's all very predictable.
4x one out hit ups
1x 'backline move'
kickRepeat
Just as I say that, Queensland start mixing it up, a try off a scrum, a few offloads and a wee bit of excitement....
Haha a tip tackle from one of the Blues, dumps the guy on his shoulder/head.
On report only, and a commentators call 'that's origin at it's finest'
Fuck me.
That's a red card all day every day in rugby - and there wouldn't even be any debate about it.
