Much has been made of the spending spree undertaken at the Bulldogs under the watchful eye of Phil Gould. Whilst plenty of reputed names have been brought into the squad, the club looks to have also picked up a player that some would suggest is the most over-rated in the game.
Viliame Kikau made his name in the youthful Penrith side that has now grown into a machine.
He is an enormous man, can run like a gazelle when in full flight and possesses a physical presence that puts edge defenders into a state of sheer terror, if and when he decides to impact the contest.
However, the infrequency with which Kikau actually does take the bull by the horns and impose himself on a game of rugby league, as well as his statistical normality compared to others across the competition, suggests he is far more bark than bite.
It is potentially why the Panthers did not mount a massive fight to retain his services for the 2023 season.
In six years at the foot of the mountains, Kikau played in a Panther unit that won 91 of 123 matches, participated in three consecutive grand finals from 2020 to 2022, and claimed the title in the latter two of those years.
Viliame Kikau built a reputation at the Panthers that the Bulldogs looked to capitalise on. (Photo by Matt King/Getty Images)
Kikau left. The Panthers won again in 2023 and frankly, lost nothing with his absence. Some might even argue there was more balance across the attacking line.
Yet the Bulldogs believed the hype and invested $3.2 million dollars over four years for the back-rower.
Whatever your thoughts around Kikau and his play, there is not a person on the planet who could justify that price tag based on what he is producing for the Bulldogs in 2024. If Kikau was an investment property, I would be cutting my losses ASAP!
Most dangerous as a fringe ball runner close to the line, Kikau’s ability to break tackles, offload and draw numbers into contact should be his greatest assets.
Yet he is ranked 43rd in the competition with just three line breaks and while his six offloads see him ranked 27th in the NRL, the combined data falls well short of the wrecking ball reputation he curiously developed without any real substance behind it.
Kikau sits outside the top 50 in post-contact metres, with forward teammate Josh Curran setting the engine room standard and has four backline teammates ahead of him and inside the top 50 when it comes to tackle breaks.
Surely the Bulldogs wanted more out of Viliame Kikau? (Photo by Mark Metcalfe/Getty Images)
There are five Bulldogs inside the top 50 when it comes to half-breaks, with Kikau nowhere in sight, and the only metrics where the 29-year-old is potentially pulling his weight are try assists and line-break assists, where he has a collective total of six.
However, it is defensively where the alarm bells should be ringing around Canterbury’s reputational recruit.
Kikau has missed 22 tackles in five matches and ranks an embarrassing fourth worst in the NRL. His tackle efficiency is poor at 81.97%, almost five per cent lower than his worst year at the Panthers. Historically, he has been around the 90% mark.
Kikau has made just 100 tackles this season, despite the Dogs being forced to do plenty and only a sparkling and barnstorming set of attacking statistics could excuse such defensive numbers.
However, as pointed out earlier, his red zone production has not matched his pay grade.
Throw in an equal fourth-ranked NRL performance thus far in conceding penalties and moderate average run metres at 112 and it is difficult to see Kikau as anything more than a run of the mill first-grader and not the star many Bulldogs fans thought they were employing.
Cameron Ciraldo saw Kikau’s potential at the Panthers, yet it remains unfulfilled. (Photo by Matt King/Getty Images)
It is a damning set of numbers for the 116kg Fijian and ones that coach Cameron Ciraldo may be forced to act upon in the near future, with the season soon to be a quarter done and Kikau failing to produce after a healthy off-season and great promise for 2024.
Rather oddly, Kikau currently sits equal sixth in Dally M voting with 11 points, an astonishing situation that highlights the ridiculous nature of the award and the fact that so-called good judges must be watching different games of football to me.
Kikau can be a weapon on his day, but the numbers prove he is currently not worth the blue and white money that bought him and those who cited the same at Penrith before his departure may have been correct.
Based on salary and production, Viliame Kikau is competing very well for the title of the most overrated player in the game.
Maxtruck
Roar Rookie
With the backs outside him on constant rotation. If its " The cheat" and JAC outside him long term it will get much better as the season progresses
qwetzen
Roar Rookie
The only criticism I’ve ever seen on Jurbo and rep teams is when he’s overlooked The same criticism that was heard whenever Mitchell Pearce wasn't picked? ie Maroon-flavoured...
qwetzen
Roar Rookie
You don't think that, "...as a Manly fan..." you can be wholly subjective on this? Anyhoo, I'm upset at all this angst and disagreement coming my way, so I have a confession to make. Stuart T was desperate to take some heat off himself for his ridiculous choice of Kikau as 'Most Over-rated' (Did he get MoM last night?) and so he offered me some coke & Thai 'masseuses' to nominate Jurbo. Well, what could one do? In truth, I actually believe Jurbo is a fine player and would have little trouble in getting picked in a Qld Cup side.
andyfnq
Roar Rookie
He was great against Melbourne on Friday night. From a Storm supporter
The Barry
Roar Guru
Kikau versus the Storm in Melbourne, Round 6 100 run metres 3 line break assists 5 tackle breaks 2.83s PTB speed 3 offloads 28 tackles 2 misses 1 error
Footy Franks
Roar Rookie
Yeah I reckon Jake is underrated. Great player does heaps for Manly. He’d be first picked for me in any team. yeah and you can’t say Teddy is up there either.
Short Memory
Roar Rookie
Sure. Cut him. Send him to the Tigers. We've got a couple of halves, a hooker and a fullback who will actually pass him the ball in the right part of the field. Doggies can have 'Bud' Sullivan. We'll throw him in for free! :laughing: :laughing: :laughing:
PJ
Roar Rookie
I didn't watch his defence closely, so just curious as to what were the nature of his missed tackles? Was he shooting out of the line and jamming in alot looking for a big hit, or was he simply a turnstyle in the defensive line? Not giving him a pass, but if it was more of the former rather than the latter I would be happier.
The Barry
Roar Guru
Haha… glad someone picked up on that Talk about cherry picking stats :laughing: :laughing:
Horses for Courses
Roar Rookie
His position in a clubs top 30 means someone has overrated him.
Ben Pobjie
Expert
But his kick returns are rubbish Barry.
Ben Pobjie
Expert
Yeah, everyone’s always raving about how great Morgan Harper is.
Ben Pobjie
Expert
You can’t be overrated if nobody thinks you’re any good.
astro
Roar Rookie
At Penrith, he played outside Nathan Cleary and Jerome Luai. At the Dogs, he plays/ed outside Hutchison, Flanagan, Sexton and a guy playing his first seasons as a 5/8th. Just a guess, but maybe this has something to do with it???
The Barry
Roar Guru
Foran’s main problem at the Dogs was injury. He just didn’t spend enough time on the field When he did he at least played some good footy. I’m not sure Napa played one good game in three seasons…
astro
Roar Rookie
Yep, as a Manly fan, trust me, you notice when he's not there! Jurbo's value is not just that he basically tackles everything in the middle third of the field, but that many of his tackles stop the progress if the attacker and slow the opposition's momentum. Statistically, his tackling numbers are bonkers - From NRL.com: "Trbojevic has a 3.1% missed tackle rate over 10 seasons. He also has made an average 38.1 tackles per game for just 1.2 missed tackles." In attack, he makes few mistakes, gives away few penalties, and does what's asked of him - namely, hit ups and being a link man in the backline. The idea that he's overrated is staggering to me...
Albo
Roar Rookie
I wouldn't have paid so much, but I guess the Dogs needed to pay more to attract some better players to their roster. And I'm sure they weren't accounting for him to be injured for so long last year ?
Busty McCracken
Roar Rookie
Wow, did you really draw his stats from the pool of all players and not just his position? That's like putting a diesel Ute up against sports car and comparing the two, they completely seperate jobs. Even then, not all players in the same position are there for the same job. I'm not a stats guy but I'd be pretty confident Nathan Brown wouldn't have been manlys best forward stats wise but geez he changed the game for us. Everything I've heard about Kikau this year is that he is improving and doing his job.
Tony
Roar Guru
I've always thought he's performed well in origin
Forty Twenty
Roar Rookie
I haven't watched Kikau closely enough in defense to comment on it but I've had a look at a couple of players in the past who were bagged for their defence and it's not all about the stats. James Maloney is one. When he signed for the Pennies , a Raor article said something like ''he won't be improving the clubs defence with his record of missed tackles'' I had a look at Maloneys impact on the previous clubs he joined and found that the defence actually improved when he played for them. Api was bagged by the sheeples on the clubs fan forum for his defence but his style was to race up and give the opponents a whole heap of curry. Of course you are going to miss tackles. Luke Brooks stats probably aren't that stellar either but I'm happy how he goes, he gets stuck in and has smashed a few blokes. Great work. I think it was him who smashed Edwards last week.