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James Maloney may very well turn out to be a great investment for the Sydney Roosters, but statistics say that he is not a second receiver. The Warriors number six has signed to play with the Sydney Roosters in 2013, and it remains to be seen if he actually turns up earlier.
Maloney is only 25 and has that rare acceleration off a standing start – he is as fast as most NRL backs.
He rates number three behind Benji Marshall and Gareth Widdop in line breaks and number two for tackle busts (Marshall first) for 5/8ths.
There is no argument that he is a wonderful individualist that would worry any defence, but is that what a 5/8th’s job is and importantly what the Roosters need?
If Maloney is going to play on the Roosters left side and be the go to man, the stats suggest he will have to do it on his own as from his 24 games for the Warriors in 2011 he only set up four line breaks for his players.
This figure is not what you want from your playmaker. Benji Marshall accounted for 27 assists and Darren Lockyer 16. Jarryd Hayne only played eight games in the pivot position and he surpassed Maloney’s figure with five.
Also concerning is that Maloney only finished seventh for all 5/8ths in try assists with 14 (Lockyer 26). Even the Raiders Josh McCrone beat him with 16.
Creating second phase play is also not strength as Maloney finished 17th with only seven off loads from all the players who carried the number six during the year.
If you are not concerned by now then the worst is yet to come.
Every opposition coach will know that James Maloney misses almost five tackles each games. He is the stand out winner for the most missed tackles for 5/8ths on 110, which is the second worst in the NRL for any player. The Dragon’s Jamie Soward, a noted bad defender, only made 57.
The good news for the Roosters is that they will be in the market for a top class fullback in 2013 and Maloney looks the ideal type to make a break and run the length of the field, something not seen at Moore Park for many years.
Sometimes stats can send you crazy, but Maloney had the opportunity to stand up and be counted in the grand final against the Sea Eagles and he was not sighted in the first half. The big occasion got to him and he looked very uncomfortable trying to run his team, as opposed to Daly Cherry-Evans and Kieron Foran who lapped up the atmosphere.
Roosters coach Brian Smith knows that he has a talent turning up in 11 months, but his challenge will be what to do with him. If Smith was prepared to play the slow Braith Anasta at fullback then you would think Maloney would be a fair chance.
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