Round 4 - Storm Vs Bulldogs

[KingHoweofIsrael]

Sisa on report was a joke - though I'm surprised they didn't hit Billy with a shoulder charge. .. charge - I have no idea what he was thinking when that happened...

It was definitely a disappointing performance after the first 20 or so minutes. The good news is that it's round four

[Chip]

Have watched the game a couple of times now and what I think was lacking was not so much having Cam's playing skills gone for the game (which would have helped no doubt about it) but his direction. They showed they could play in the first 20 but after that there was no-one talking, no-one focusing them etc which is what Cam does, right to the final whistle. Where were the senior leaders of the team? None of them stepped up imo. Cronk doesn't offer what Cam does in that department, and when he directs play & he's off in his own game, there's no-one taking charge, no plan B as someone put it. But most of all there was no leader rallying the troops - it stuck out a mile.
Make someone else captain - a talker who can gee them up! Hell, if the older guys can't/ won't/ aren't allowed to, give Ben permission to talk, he's cheeky enough to & he's direct - seen him do it in U20s - maybe not yet, but someone! (shame Matty McGahan wasn't still here, he was a natural director - one for you Michael, lol)

We have a group of young guys (some more inexperienced than others) who needed that direction & talking in this game & they were let down horribly. After a horrific week, a short turn-around, and a badly refereed game, I'm not surprised at the result.
Bellamy was livid that they gave up, says its not the Storm way (and it isn't) but if ever there needed to be someone to personify the Storm way it was painfully obvious they weren't playing in that game. So, we rely on Cam (and there's none better) but should we be?

Anyway, only game 4, some real deep issues to get right if Storm is going to develop quicker than what they are and still hope to be there at the business end in a handy position.
Felt sorry for them in this game, heaps of potential but lost their way big time.

[Storm Spirit]

Just the way League rolls sometimes.

95% above the shoulders.

Not switched on enough and for long enough.

Move on...nothing to see here.

Bellamy will belt the living suitcases out of them this week on the track.

They'll know better than us that they stuffed up...

[storm77]

Not saying we didn't play like crap but I think the scheduling is being way underplayed.
It is a joke.
No team in the modern era should have to play on anything less then a six day turn around especially when the opponent has two full days of rest before the other team even plays.
Every film session and every day of preparation matters now and this kind of scheduling is ridiculous.

[Mattpoet]

Your absolutely right Storm77, no team has backed up from a Monday game and won yet this year.

[glennb]

I much as I hate to compare AFL to NRL, give a team a 5 day break with long travel would not happen in the AFL. I realize doing the scheduling for a season, taking in want everyone wants and do not want is hard. But when the TV deal was done why do the agree to channel nine having a say in the scheduling. The AFL do not give channel seven the right to pick the Friday games, because nine have this right the Broncos get so many Friday night games and the other games have to fit in around that. The NRL needs to get some guts tell channel nine next time we pick the games to FTA television, not you. If they go not like it someone else can have the rights. Channel Ten put in a bid last time give them a go.

[Mattpoet]

just had this exact conversation with my mate, he could not believe nine get to pick the games!

[glennb]

Another thing that really annoys me is this "duty of care" for players the NRL always goes on about. In the last two weeks (the McKinnon tackle and the Gold Coast match being played in 40 degrees), we heard a lot about this subject and the "player welfare" line. Both these things are very important and should be taken into account all times. But when it comes to scheduling the matches the do not seem to look at this at all. Some teams have to play three matches in 15 days, as Storm did at the start at the start of last year, and I sure other teams do to. But the Broncos get to play three matches in 21 days. How is this showing the duty of care line?

[blazza18]

I to think having to back up from a Monday night game in Perth 5 days later is ridiculous. The NRL are pathetic when it comes to scheduling. Remember the run we had at the start off last year ? They take nothing into consideration.

[absentee]

I find it funny that after all the hysteria and venom directed our way after the tackle on McKinnon last week, Bryan Norrie comes very close to being dumped on his head in a tackle that looked worse and it barely gets a mention.

Absentee not sure if you are talking about the commentary during the game or after the game. Warren and Brandy spoke about it for almost two minutes after the tackle. I thought that was ample commentary. Can't believe it wasn't a penalty.

Sorry, I meant online in general.

[Bullucked]

Something I thought was interesting was Sisa got penalised for a high shot on Perrett. Then minutes later Reynolds put on a "good shot" on Young which I thought was high. But Young didn't lie down. Sisa was put on report too. Unbelievable.

I didn't see the game but your answer is right there, Sam Perrett. Cheating dog. (Still remembers his involvement in the 2012 GF)

[Bullucked]

...Harris (surprise packet as a goal kicker and great with the ball in hand), J. Bromwich (my tip for Storm’s Player of the Year this year) and Hampton (this kid’s gonna be a superstar) were the only ones that stood out.

Cronk looks absolutely clueless as captain and his kicking game was terrible tonight.

Seriously??? We must be watching different games in regards to Hampton - for me, he's been either non-existent or mediocre at best for the majority, with maybe 2 or 3 high moments so far this year. Currently I'm giving him the benefit of the doubt due to his inexperience, but I have very little confidence in our halves if Smith is not in the team.

I do agree that Cronk surprisingly seems to lack the same qualities of captain that Smith possesses.

Should we start a Ben Hampton forum of his own, he certainly comes in for a fair amount of scrutiny. I've only seen him at home games this year and it seems that he's not given any freedom, all the plays are Cronk-centric. It's a large shadow that Cooper casts, remember Widdop wasn't always fantastic.

[Bullucked]

Billy's been really quiet this season and even more so tonight (apart from a very soft try he scored early in the game), and I get the feeling that his current contract (end of 2015) might be his last just with what his body has gone through over the years.

Hoffman and Norrie are about up to their use by date. Seriously, loyalty aside it’s almost time to move on from them.

Harris (surprise packet as a goal kicker and great with the ball in hand), J. Bromwich (my tip for Storm’s Player of the Year this year) and Hampton (this kid’s gonna be a superstar) were the only ones that stood out.

Is it time for Billy to do a Lockyer and move in to the halves?

Didn't see the game but did watch last weeks closely. Hoffman, whatever his age still runs and hits the holes better than anybody else in our team. Proctor is a close second and has taken him a couple of years to be a very damaging ball runner / receiver at the line. On the field Harris seems like a nice bloke without any mongrel in him. Last weeks wrap around play was great but he doesn't use his size and as yet have the smarts of the other two mentioned.

Norrie, why's everybody got it in for him. I'd much rather have him bashing regularly into the line than big George Rose's occasional hit ups.

[Mattpoet]

I think the Slater to the halves ship has sailed, when Lockyer did it he was in his mid twenties, not his thirties.

Harris was close to our best last night, he will get there, it will just take him time to move from solid contributor to first grade star. He's got all the tools and from what I hear he puts in the work too.

Our side is very young at the moment when you take the four veterans out of it anyway, there's a lot of upside in our future when you consider that Fonua, Tonumaipeia, Hampton, Harris, Kenny Bromwich, McLean, Garbutt and Glasby have all played under 30 games.

[blazza18]

I thought Slater was one of the best last night. He was in everything again like he usually is, I just think he's lost a bit of pace and his knee(s) are bothering him which is turning what used to be Slater turning a half chance into a chance to Slater sometimes not creating something out of nothing consistently anymore.

Mattpoet is right. We're an extremely young team outside of the Ryan's and the big 3. Everyone one of them are going to have their ups and downs in some way.