Roar Rookie
Joined November 2019
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Coaches and players are sanctioned for making legitimate points about problems that have been allowed to happen under the watch of those issuing sanctions.
All NRL finals hosted by Sydney metropolitan teams should be played at either Accor Stadium, Allianz Stadium, or CommBank Stadium.
Lopsided scores have always existed in the NRL but now their frequency has seemed to have reached a whole new level. What is the…
The NRL has labelled the number of charges being levelled at players for contact with the head as unacceptable. Several players have already been…
Players have reported they could barely breathe during NRL trials with blame being laid at new rule changes introduced for season 2021. Those complaining…
The Dally M Award is flawed. The system to determine the winner does not maximise the chances of the most deserving players wearing the…
Mitch Aubusson will become the most capped player for the Sydney Roosters this weekend. Playing in his 14th and final season, Aubusson will on…
Melbourne Storm’s clash against the Sydney Roosters will go down as one of the best for many a year. It’s just a pity such…
Hawthorn President and former Victorian Premier Jeff Kennett says he would have preferred to knit underwater than tune in to the NRL when it…
The continuing saga surrounding Sydney Roosters Latrell Mitchell’s contract situation raises questions over the NRL’s rules for player movement between clubs. In particular, the…
Criticism of referees used to be about the inaccuracy of their decisions, but during the NRL grand final the referees came under spotlight because…
You say that charge down in the 2019 Grand Final was part of “the greatest premiership heist in history”. OK…
It was revealed in the weeks after the match that then referees boss Bernard Sutton said the Roosters should have received a penalty when Luke Keary was taken out by Sia Soliola when he was attempting a charge down – the charge down which resulted in the ball hitting trainer Travis Touma on the head.
There were a couple of other overlooked decisions that incorrectly went the Raiders way.
https://www.smh.com.au/sport/nrl/roosters-were-robbed-in-grand-final-just-like-raiders-refs-boss-20191102-p536vg.html
Maybe history contains another candidate for the game’s greatest heist.
I nominate the Raiders victory over the Storm in week one of the 2019 finals series.
NRL on the money with new rules
Kyle Flanagan had not played badly but nor was he setting the world on fire. Many of those people bagging the change in halfback are the same critics claiming the Roosters are in a rut. Was the coach expected to let the rut continue? Should he have just kept picking the same guys in the same position? Well done to Robinson for making a hard call. Too many coaches just persist with underperforming players for too long. Maybe they’re scared dropping a player will prompt him to demand a release. Maybe they worry about getting heat from the CEO telling him the club has to keep a player in first grade due to the player’s substantial salary. Regardless, it leads to many players getting too comfortable because they know they won’t get dropped hence the mediocrity so many clubs dish up year after year. This decision may pay off or it may not but at least the coach is prepared to make a hard decision before it may be too late in the season. The Roosters were bagged unmercifully when they replaced Mitchell Pearce with Cooper Cronk. Critics couldn’t understand the rationale. It worked out OK but even if it hadn’t the club deserved praise for biting the bullet and looking to improve their list rather than just doing the same old. When Cronk announced his retirement last year there was never any certainty who would replace him in the Roosters’ number seven jersey. There was always Flanagan, Lachlan Lam and Sam Walker. Flanagan got the first shot but Lam also deserves an opportunity after being in the Roosters system for a few years. Looking back, if it were not for Sam Verrills suffering a season ending ACL injury Lam may never have got an opportunity this year to impress coming off the bench which no doubt played a part leading to this opportunity to start as halfback. Lam went alright on Thursday. The Roosters only had a five day turnaround to prepare for the Dragons. That together with the stack of injuries and the lack of combinations that causes meant they always going to be clunky. The Roosters understandably wanted to give Lam a game before facing the Storm. Lam is entitled to a shot to show what he can do.
Eight talking points from NRL Round 13
Brown understandably had some struggling first few years coaching the Knights. But even after assembling a strong list they still underperformed. One game in particular at Campbelltown late last year against the Tigers showed a good list performing without any application and was embarassing. Then there were the all-star Dragons lists he had in 2004-06 that played some of its worst football at the business end of the season. That none of those Dragons teams made a grand final was a golden opportunity gone begging. I still remember Brown slapping Trent Barrett in the face on the sidelines at WIN Stadium in full view of the crowd and television cameras. I bet Trent and many of the players didn’t forget either. I’m sure Brown is a nice guy and I find his commentary very insightful. However Brown, like a few other coaches, get much more lenient media coverage than others. I think his allies in the media contribute to his favourable profile giving him an advantage over other possibilities who could have got the job.
Why I've always had a soft spot for Nathan Brown
Penrith are clearly the best team in the comp. While the backs are getting all the plaudits it is the forwards who are killing it. Like 2003 Penrith are blessed with few injuries compared to most other teams. The premiership is theirs to lose.
Panthers on track to join club royalty
The referee must not hate him. Did you see Mitchell’s hit on Fusitu’a? Not even a penalty. It was 18-6 at the time. Fusitu’a gets ruled out for the game. Tough call for the Warriors
Where are all the Latrell haters now?
“…in front of what could only be a small number of Roosters supporters who will be seated in the corporate boxes…”
Come on. I doubt the number who turn up will vary much from the numbers other clubs are getting nor will the majority will be in corporate boxes.
Parramatta face their toughest test yet against the red-hot Roosters
Hi Timbo,
Right on. 👍
The rarely discussed issue about Latrell Mitchell’s contract situation
Hi Paul,
You’re right in that there are plenty of examples of players signing with a club a year early and serving out their current contract without any fuss. But as you also say the issue with Jai Arrow is an undeserved problem for the Titans and would not have existed in the first place had he not been allowed to sign with Souths a year before his current contract expires.
The rarely discussed issue about Latrell Mitchell’s contract situation
Hi Noosa Duck,
I used to listen to “Talkin Sport” many years ago but now it clashes with work. It’s an interesting point you make about Mitchell turning down what looked to be a secure option for his future. I hope he is able to finally land a deal that offers him both similar security and money. The thing that I can’t work out is if the NRL’s player movement system is so great why can’t at least one other sporting competition in the world also allow players to sign with a rival club one year in advance.
The rarely discussed issue about Latrell Mitchell’s contract situation
Hi Mushi,
Those bullet point suggestions have some merit. I know this sounds dictatorial but sometimes I wish the NRL could implement changes to their rules and procedures without having to get the approval of “stakeholders”. If the NRL have got a good breadth of strategic thinkers on their commission and people within the administration capable of implementing the commission’s strategy I would have hoped that was all that was required to make changes to the competition they have been entrusted to run. I believe the commissioners are subject to elections so they are answerable for their decisions. Often the best organisations implement best practices without getting bogged down in compromise.
The rarely discussed issue about Latrell Mitchell’s contract situation
Hi blah blah,
I think you’re right that there may very well have had issues between the Roosters and Mitchell prior to the club withdrawing their contract. However, if there were issues festering prior to the end of the 2019 season I wonder why the club still offered Mitchell a reported contract of $800,000 a season only a couple of weeks after the grand final?
The rarely discussed issue about Latrell Mitchell’s contract situation
I think it is a stretch to say the referees cost the Raiders the 2019 premiership. Rules about trainers were in place for all matches – not just that grand final. Teams had been playing under those rules for years. Deciding not to award Canberra six again with ten minutes remaining was actually the right decision. Tedesco never touched the ball from the kick so it would have been an injustice had the Raiders been awarded a fresh set of tackles.
The NRL admitted that the Roosters were actually hard done by regarding three calls: https://www.smh.com.au/sport/nrl/roosters-were-robbed-in-grand-final-just-like-raiders-refs-boss-20191102-p536vg.html
1. Not awarding a Roosters penalty when Sia Soliola tackled Luke Keary (which incidentally caused the ball to hit the trainer)
2. Sending Cooper Cronk to the sin bin which gave the Raiders a one player advantage for ten minutes (which the Raiders never adjusted their tactics to take advantage)
3. Awarding the Raiders a six again call which lead to the Raiders only try of the game by Jack Wighton.
People tend to forget how fortunate the Raiders were with the officiating in their week one finals match of that year against the Storm at AAMI Park. It was that victory that gave the Raiders their saloon path to the grand final.
Ricky Stuart and Don Furner Jr are Canberra's best future