Season preview: Life after JT begins for the Cowboys

I'll beg to differ here Rob I hope that comment gets back to him . The young bloke doesn't need much of an excuse to find the tryline and this is the thing that he hasn't shown in the nrl .He's a very strong canny ballrunner without being fast but lethal on defensive misreads . Those trys came in groups mostly so he did do the match winning thing . And I'd liken him more to Alfie than ricky with his short kicking and his ability to find the tryline inside the 20, well demonstrated by his all most re-creation of Langers famous reverse layup origin try, last year. And i believe Carrigan captained qld u20s .

excellent comment, spot on

Yeah you’re right he did poke a couple of kicks in behind. I should have said he averaged 10m a game with the boot. Martin put a couple of kicks in that resulted in try’s but both these blokes have very good running games. On Clifford I don’t think you will ever see him starring as an individual with the ball because he’s not that sort of player. He’s very consistent and accurate with his passing and kicking with the vision and football smarts to know where the attack needs to go and when they need to get the ball. He’s a bigger version of Ricky Stuart able to stop a back rower in his tracks. He played 16 games for the Pride scoring 10 tries, kicking 46 goals (73%),6 try assists and 22 forced drop outs. He kicked for 401m in the Pride’s win over the Blackhawks and averaged 201m a game playing inside Todd Carney. The Pride won 63% of games when he played and only 50% when he left for Cowboys. I believe he was leading the most valuable points in the QCup at that stage. He Captained QLD 20 to victory (MOM) lead junior Kangaroos victory (MOM). Won Intrust super rookie of the year.

I stand corected thanx Rob but I'm sure I recall he at least kicked twice last year so I'll say he doesn't kick long or or short but grubber flat . But he does make a fair amount of meters with his passes from dummy half to his credit .

Granville kicked zero metres.

Granville doesnt kick long or much Don exepting a very few short grubbers a season. I am one of Cliffords fans and have been on his bus for a longer time than most. How ever he will not be in the side as stated by green on numerous occasions but he should be there in my opinion .At least For the fact he out performed Martin in his short go and Martin's stats are juiced up by a couple of good attacking games at fullback, otherwise he had a ineffectual year and he doesn't kick very well, regardless Green has said TTM will be the 6. Kahu will probably be the second kicker in greens side (i don't recall him coming to Brisbanes aid in tactical kicking when Hunt left) but Clifford would be better with his all round game which is what I was inferring to above without stating it .However good people think Clifford is by seeing a couple of rep and NRL games they have not seen him really dominate Q cup games he is a very good half with all the skills on both sides of the field and if he leaves the club for opportunity i dont think Green would actually survive the up roar.

Yep Kahu at 1. Martin or Hampton on the bench. An earlier commenter had Morgan doing the bulk of the kicking but with Clifford and Granville both there I don’t know why you would not expect a wider sharing of the load.

I’d like to see Green pick Clifford at 7 and play first receiver with Morgan at 6 and predominantly on the right and Martin at 4 on the left. That gets Morgan a little wider of the ruck and 2 strong kicking options with Martin’s creativity on the short side working with Cooper, McDonald and Hampton roving out the back. Goal kicking wise both Clifford and Feldt are very accomplished. My starting pack would be 8)Scott 9) Granville 10) McGuire 11) Cooper 12) Hess 13) Taumalolo 14) McLean 15) Jensen 16) Asiata 17) G.G. Mosby

I agree Jimmmy. Go the Cowboys! Bring on 2019. We’re on the same team mate.

Can’t wait for the season to start and put 2018 down as a bad dream. I think every supporter is excited to start the season. As a Cowboys fan it the dawning of a new era without JT. I’m hopeful and quitely confident the Cowboys will show like thy did in 2017 that they have enough talent in their ranks to play finals football. The talent is there IMO. it comes down to commitment and execution over the 26 round and it starts from round. Last year I feared complacency, a lack of speed, an ageing squad and Morgan not getting his hands on the ball enough. These were all known facts that worried me. I could almost see it coming which was frustrating when many of my fellow supporters were deleriously booking tickets based on the return of our headgear wearing masiah. This season is very exciting because I don’t know what’s coming. I do know we are younger, Morgan stepping up, Clifford is a better than average talent with a smart football brain, that we have enough size and strength to match an forward pack and our team have a core group of senior players and fresh faces hopefully looking forward to playing together.

We will just have to agree to differ on the causes of last years failures. One thing we can agree on though is ,thank God it’s over. I am quietly confident about this year. Not happy losing Barba but he had to go. I reckon we will challenge for a finals spot and so we should. Question? Do you think Clifford can become our long term half?. I reckon we have to give him every chance to prove himself. I want us to persist with him even if he has a couple of average games. Go the Cows.!

Rob, it is yet to be seen whether the Cowboys are an improved team. I tend to think you are correct, but time will tell. I suspect that last year the team just hadn't backed up from their over achievement late in 2017, whilst JT was also on his last legs and a few key injuries didn't help. We both agree on Clifford being a key player this year and into the future. But I'm yet to be convinced on Hess' form from last year. Stats aside, I didn't see him trouble too many teams , unlike his 2017 year. Comparing him to Cooper only shows that they both had ordinary seasons and need to turn around their form this year for the Cowboys to challenge for the finals.

Jimmmy, JT let in some soft tries also. I remember the Storm targeted him and ran riot in Melbourne. Cameron Smith ran straight out of dummy half through JT to win in the second game. The Cowboys played bash it up football and actually had the highest possession rate in the comp with JT leading the touches? JT ran the attack and kicking game and to be honest it was repetitive and slow for much of the season.

I rate the Cowboys lineup for sure Rob, I just don't know what game plan they're going to use and that's where it all comes back onto Green. I thought the side looked lost at times last year, which implies the game plan wasn't working for what ever reason and I don't think Green knew himself. Again, if the coach get's this right the cattle are there to make it work.

JT has such a competitive nature that he would always be following the ball and looking for opportunity. In attack Martin has a similar mindset and is often popping in support running into a hole. Clifford is a born game manager with a strong kicking and passing game. He doesn’t need help in the defensive line. Morgan is an X factor player who can produce a big play and create something from nothing. I’d give Taumalolo a license to off load as he usually pulls in 3 defenders. The ingredients are there in the attack. O’niel is not a dummy half ruck it up player but he and Feldt are very good finishers. McDonald is a strong returner of the ball and his first carry like Oats (Broncos)will give the Cowboys a good start to their attacking sets. Hampton is quick and safe enough at the back and he also supports well.

Albo, I think the Cowboys are an improved team. Firstly as great as JT was he required a lot of players playing well around him to cover his flaws. Firstly Cameron Smith averaged the same kick metres as Thurston 177 m. Reynolds, Cronk and Milford averaged more than double Thurston. Morgan averaged more than 350m in the 2017 and Taumalolo and Bolton were lauded for their go forward? Without Coote and Morgan’s kicking game the Cowboys pack were fighting incredible hard for field position. The success JT attained at Rep level was aided by other’s game management with the boot. The Cowboys were pedestrian and predictable in attack. Thurston touched the ball twice as much as most 7 and people talk up his try assists. Clifford has a strong kicking and passing game with game management being his prime asset. As Clifford was given a more active kicking role at the backend of 2018 the Cowboys started winning games. At 95kg Clifford is also a strong defender able to effect a dominant tackle. Coen Hess broke double the tackles made half the handling errors and ran 30 metres more a game than Cooper spending less time on the field? The fact Clifford and Morgan can play both left and right as appossed to JT /Cooper replays will bring Hess, O’niel and Feldt into the attack much more.

Good comments Albo . I respect your views on the game. Our pack were powder puffs for most of last year. Some of the soft tries we let in left me shaking my head. And yet there were people who blamed JT. ? JC himself couldn’t run a game plan on that forward performance. The plus is our pack is ‘better’ than it showed last year. Maguire is a big on for me. He never shirks it . Tough as old boots and has the niggle. Macca and Scott will be fitter this year. JT 13 will just be himself and Hess will lift. The forward rotation is a bit lacking but really there is no way this pack should be getting rolled regularly. As for our halves. We need to throw Clifford in and pray. Martin is not the answer. I like Hampton in the centres with ??.. Kahu will just have to do at FB until we snare Holmes. I have us pushing for the eight .

Whilst the Cowboys have a very good looking pack on paper, it is the same pack that dominated no-one last season ? Apart from Taumololo generally running rampant , and McLean looking good when not injured, the rest of this pack was very ordinary in 2018. Coen Hess lost his damaging form as a replacement strike force in 2017 and was turned into an 80 minute trundler last year. Gavin Cooper loses much of his impact on that left edge without his mate JT setting him up. The jury is out for mine on their pack this year. And then we get to their backs. I noticed that Jake Clifford has not even been mentioned in the halves ? He would be the first half picked if I had the say. I see him as the Cows next long term general. And I would play him with Morgan at 6 , although I could easily go with Martin at 6, and Morgan chiming in from fullback giving him more scope to inject himself into the play. But it is their outside backs that still look a worry to me. Little pace on offer there ? Feldt & Macdonald will eat some metres and be good in the air if the bombs are accurate, and perhaps Hampton can offer some spark at the back if he gets the fullback spot, but the centres look ordinary options, where I think I would run with youngsters Opacic & Tuala and hope their potential is realised.

I'd be giving Kahu a run at the back. He is underrated and his goal kicking will be a bonus. And while Martin might be the front runner,m I'd rather see Clifford partnering Morgan in the halves. He has shown a fair bit of class for a young player in his limited opportunities so far.

Yep, Morgan definitely looked to be playing busted.