With almost an entire team’s worth of players currently on the sidelines, one might be forgiven for thinking that this is the time for keeping as much continuity as possible at Canterbury.
Not Cameron Ciraldo. The rookie coach has swapped his halves for their crunch clash with Cronulla at Homebush, with Matt Burton set to wear the 7 jumper for the first time in two years – and only the second time ever – instead of Kyle Flanagan, who will sport the 6.
While it might look like a purely semantic change, Ciro insisted that it was not, and that Burton would be playing halfback and Flanagan as a five eighth.
“It’s just a slight change, we thought we’d tinker with it a little bit,” he said.
“Matt’s been growing over the last few years in that playmaker role and I think it’s time for him to step up and take more ownership of the team and he’s really excited by that.
“Also, it just allows Kyle to focus on a few simple things in his game and we’re excited about what that can do as well.
“In training this week, he’s shown that there’s a weight off his shoulders and he can concentrate on himself a little bit more. Hopefully we see that come out tomorrow.”
The changing of the numbers was intended as a message to Burton.
“It’s a symbol of your team and where Matt sits in our team,” said Ciraldo. “We could have made some slight changes behind the scenes but we wanted to be open and transparent about it, we want Matt to step up and take ownership of the team.
“We think he’s ready for that. A while back he probably wasn’t ready for it, but he’s really grown into the leadership role, he’s one of our on-field captains and the change of jerseys is a little bit symbolic of where he can go with his footy.”
The decision, Ciraldo said, was based on the progress of Burton as a leader, as exemplified by the recent victory over the Cowboys.
“I think you saw at the end of the Cowboys game, he owned the back end of it,” explained the coach.
“We think by giving Matt more ownership we can get that out of him more often. It’s what the team needs right now from Matt, but he’s also matured over the last two years. From when I last saw him at Penrith to where he is now, he’s a lot more mature and comfortable in his own skin.
“He’s ready to take the next step in terms of leadership on the field and owning parts of the game plan.
“Matt’s a pretty quiet sort of guy and we just want him to be himself. There’s also that presence around the group where when he says something, the boys listen and they believe in what he’s doing.
“It took him by surprise to start with, but he agrees that there are some things that we can improve. There’s things that he can help us improve with his standing and position in the team and what his strengths are.
(Photo by Jason McCawley/Getty Images)
“We’ve been talking to Matt about evolving his game over the first seven rounds, and I think we’ve seen signs of that. Definitely, when he gets more involved and takes ownership we’re a better team so we just want to see that more often.”
Many interpreted the decision as one that might see Flanagan sidelined in the near future with gun rookie Karl Oloapu, who has impressed in NSW Cup, come into the side late, though Ciraldo squashed those rumours.
There will be a return for youngster Declan Casey, who gets a chance on an edge with Josh Addo-Carr and Jacob Kiraz both injured and Braidon Burns on day-to-day with a foot problem.
Despite the horror luck with injuries, the coach insisted that the group were as strong as ever.
“I’m confident in the guys we’ve got coming in,” he said.
“Declan is one of those guys who’s got incredible talent. He’s had a couple of injury things hold him back to this point, but him and Braidon Burns are talented players and they get an opportunity to show everyone what they can do.
“I see them embracing the challenge. Yesterday was one of the best days at training that we’ve had.
“No one was thinking about who was missing, they’ve just got on with it. No one is talking about it within our four walls and that’s what I’m most proud of. We embrace the guys that come into the team and want to celebrate them.”
If people can lose their job, and clubs can face massive payouts, due to the behaviour of coaches, it will drastically change the way sporting teams in Australia will be run.
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