**Official** NRL 2009 Thread

[Blewy]

Craigs Tips given to me over Facebook...


Broncos
Sharks
Dragons
Melbourne
Manly
Bulldogs
Tigers
Titans

 

[Prince EWS]

Broncos v Eels
Rabbitohs v Sharks
Roosters v Dragons
Storm v Warriors
Cowboys v Sea Eagles
Raiders v Bulldogs
Tigers v Knights
Panthersv Titans

 

[Simon]

Souths cant make the finals with this defence. Sure looks like they'll beat the Sharks but theres no way they can stop good teams from putting lots of points on them reguarly.

 

[99*]

Cade Snowden hands them the game.

Good effort from the Sharks to score 26, sadly that's their limit for the next two games gone.

 

[Ausage]

That drop from Simmonds was hilarious. Only thing that could have made it funnier is if he fell feet up onto his back with one of those noises they use for a stack on Funniest Home Videos.

Broncos looked ominous tonight. Played well despite it only being Parra.

 

[Blewy]

Tigers vs Storm last night was pretty close to the worst match ive ever seen in my life.

Surely in last nights game we have a new winner...

Are Soufs fans still saying they can win the comp??? Seriously, please stop, your making fools of yourself.

 

[Simon]

Surely in last nights game we have a new winner...

Are Soufs fans still saying they can win the comp??? Seriously, please stop, your making fools of yourself.

Naa last night's game wasnt that bad, got a bit shocking during the middle part of the match but it 10 times better than last Mondays game.

 

[Blewy]

Naa last night's game wasnt that bad, got a bit shocking during the middle part of the match but it 10 times better than last Mondays game.

I disagree, both teams last night were totally inept and had it not been for the piss poor defence then it would have been 0-0...
Last monday's game was hard, and made look much worse due to the conditions, last night was perfect conditions, just ******** players..

I am seriously wondering 1, how i tipped the sharks to challenge for the title this year and 2 how a certain sydney sports radio personality is tipping Soufs to win the competition.. If those 2 teams dont make up 2 of the bottom 3 this year then there is something very wrong with the competition..

 

[dontcloseyoureyes]

I disagree

*Looks at avatar* Of course you do.

I am seriously wondering 1, how i tipped the sharks to challenge for the title this year

Bought into media hype.

 

[Mister Wright]

Had some money on Brisbane by 30+. Shame it was only $5.

 

[Blewy]

*Looks at avatar* Of course you do.

No actually it was quite obvious that the conditions in that game last monday were not helpful to good rugby league, the win was blowing harder than Monika Lewinksi and the rain was pissing down.. You get any teams in those conditions and it would be no different, It was footy played for the conditions.

Bought into media hype.

No actually Looking at their side pre-season apart from Kimmorley they hadnt lost anyone of note, and to cover him they picked up Barrett, Maitua, and Tupou so there was every right to think they would be up their again this season.

 

[Johnners]

They basically lost their 2 most important players in Kimmorley and Bird, they were never going to be as good a team afaic, especially considering the fact that neither Barrett or Seymour can play the role that Kimmorley did. Reckon people are also underestimating the loss of Isaac De Gois, who is quite comfortably a better hooker than Corey Hughes (IMO).

 

[chaminda_00]

If those 2 teams dont make up 2 of the bottom 3 this year then there is something very wrong with the competition..

With West Tigers being one of the other three bottom sides? Souths might be average but they are a lot better then Parramatta, Penrith. West Tigers and Sharks. I doubt they will even make the eight. But every win they have the Sydney media will blow up their tyres, so not sure why people use the media as any guide to who is any good. Most the Sydney league media are just some former dumb league players or guys that have never played league before and don't have a clue.

 

[dontcloseyoureyes]

No actually Looking at their side pre-season apart from Kimmorley they hadnt lost anyone of note, and to cover him they picked up Barrett, Maitua, and Tupou so there was every right to think they would be up their again this season.

I've said this countless time before, but let's look at the facts:

The Sharks side lost:
a) Their halfback, leader and one of the best players in the comp at leading a side around the park with no fuss.
b) Their Lock, who was undoubtedly one of the best locks in the NRL and so versatile it was like having an extra half on the park who alongside making 120m and making 25 tackles, could end games with 2 or even 3 try assists and good kick metres.
c) The most underrated hooker in the game in De Gois, who's creative and hardworking.

The Sharks side gained:
a) Trent Barrett. The biggest myth in Rugby League. 1 amazing game among 4 games you didn't even notice he played. Barrett is and can be a very good player, and will probably win the Sharks 3 or 4 games off his own back this season. But the rest of those games he'll contribute poorly. You're replacing Mr. Consistency with Mr. Inconsistency in the halves, and let's not forget how good Seymour was last season because he was allowed to be his own player and grow into the role of the 6 alongside a consistent performer. "Oh guess what Brett, you're back in 7, here's all the pressure and we expect you to be Brett Kimmorely for Trent Barrett now." Good job. What they conveniently forgot is that Brett was an absolute leader with experience and creative vision.
b) Anthony Topou and Reni Maitua. Great back-rowers, impact players, consistent. Creativity? Nope. Topou is a great impact player, hits the line hard, makes yardage, does the hard work. Same with Maitua. But Greg Bird did all that, and more. Neither Reni or Toops are leaders, Bird was. Neither Reni or Toops can win games by themselves and worry the opposition, Bird could. I didn't like Bird but he was a top class NRL level footballer. They may have replaced his yardage and tackles but they've neglected his leadership and creativity. Notice a pattern yet?
c) Corey Hughes. Good hard player, does the hard work. Was a good player half a decade ago. He's winding down and we can all see it, except for Ricky Stuart I guess. Hughes is a fierce competitor, tackles hard, shovels the ball well and has a decent kicking game. He lacks the spark that made him dangerous with the dogs early this century and losing De Gois's little bit of flair has hurt them as much as anyone. Credit where credit is due, he is a leader and has compensated for the above losses in that respect.



Alright, so basically. A side that struggled to score more than 20 points a game last season and had one of the best defence's going around in the competition lost 3 of their attacking weapons and replaced them with strong defensive players with little flair, and a wrong-side-of-30 player who's just as inconsistent as he was when he was 21. Top notch offy.

 

[Blewy]

With West Tigers being one of the other three bottom sides?

Call it biased or whatever but the Tigers will not finish in the bottom 3, I dont think we'll make the 8 (We can, but i dont think we will). We score way to many points to be a bottom 3 side, And i'd be happy to take any odds from someone who says the opposite.. The fact that you've left Manly out of that is just as funny, they've already shown without Stewart they have nothing in attack and will not be far off that bottom 3..

Souths might be average but they are a lot better then Parramatta, Penrith. West Tigers and Sharks. I doubt they will even make the eight. But every win they have the Sydney media will blow up their tyres, so not sure why people use the media as any guide to who is any good.

Please if you believe the hype on Soufs you must believe in the tooth fairy. Yes they have a couple of decent players, but their halves are popgun at best, 1 good game then 5 bad ones.. Their defence last night showed they dont like to tackle and i still have money that by end of the season Sandow will be playing NSW Cup..

Most the Sydney league media are just some former dumb league players or guys that have never played league before and don't have a clue.

As opposed to?? All media are the same, how do you think they get the job?? I mean anyone who has any brains has a proper job..

 

[Johnners]

Please if you believe the hype on Soufs you must believe in the tooth fairy. Yes they have a couple of decent players, but their halves are popgun at best, 1 good game then 5 bad ones.. Their defence last night showed they dont like to tackle and i still have money that by end of the season Sandow will be playing NSW Cup...

Lol'n, you've basically described the Tigers.

Sandow may be an arrogant ****, but he's a pretty handy footballer. Personally would rate he and Sutton as one of the better halves combinations in the competition.

 

[dontcloseyoureyes]

Yes they have a couple of decent players, but their halves are popgun at best, 1 good game then 5 bad ones.. Their defence last night showed they dont like to tackle

I was going to post a picture of your #6 but I have absolutely no idea who it is. In my defence, does anyone?

 

[chaminda_00]

The fact that you've left Manly out of that is just as funny, they've already shown without Stewart they have nothing in attack and will not be far off that bottom 3..

There is no doubt we got no hope of making the eight without Stewart, but the bottom three are a fair way behind. Yeah I know we lost to the Panthers without him. But once David Williams moves to fullback, our attack would look a lot better. Tony Williams/Bani/Neumann will probably still leak try galore on one wing. But attack will look better.

 

[Ausage]

Can't believe we're being mentioned in the same breath as teams like Parra and the Sharks. Our forwards have been equal or on top in every game I've seen this year, and while our halves are our achillies heel, they're improving imo.

We were within a whisker of beating the Bulldogs and Storm, and we're only really put away late against the Broncos (who are the best team in the comp atm). Reckon we're a good shout against the Titans on Monday too. About the only real blot on our record is being beaten by the Sharks. The fact that that's embarrassing should tell you we're a class above them this year.

There's about 8 other teams at a similar level as as us this year imo.

 

[Johnners]

Thing with Cronulla, they are a reasonable enough team imo, but they have been a little unlucky injury wise early on this season. Reckon we'll see them string a few wins together as the season goes on, and wouldn't be surprised if they pushed their way out of the bottom 3. That being said, I wouldn't be surprised if they do finish in the bottom 3 either. Eels are probably the only team I'd right off as saying they have no chance of making out of the bottom 3.

EDIT: Decent effort from Soward today!