bulldogsmyte
Kennel Enthusiast
- Joined
- Jun 14, 2009
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Agree with your 1st point 100% and some parts of your 2nd point.A few musings…
1. Josh Jackson said in the post-match presser yesterday that their attack is suffering in the attacking zone because they’re ‘trying to score off every play instead of building the sets’. I’m sorry, but this is my biggest criticism and Jackson is the worst offender. The Storm, Eels, Panthers, Roosters etc will put play after play on. They will only use a forward hit up ‘settler’ if that forward has the capacity to attract 3-4 defenders and get a quick play the ball. Jackson and others completely fizzle the momentum with Tolmanesque hit ups that are slow, attract only 2 defenders and then allow the defensive line to reset.
2. Looking at the best halves combinations in the comp, there is an organising 7 and a running 6. DCE organises and does most of the kicking. Foran runs and engages the line. Cleary and Luai, same. Hughes and Munster, same. Moses and Brown, same. Reynolds and Walker (2021), same. Burton is a running 6 and should be left to play his natural game, only being relied to put in attacking kicks, not clearing kicks. Halfway onwards and that’s it. Wakeham, Averillo, BBO - they’re all running 6’s with little to no ability to organise. With this in mind, and with the knowledge that Flanagan is average at best, his game is best suited to supporting Burton. Hell at this stage I would even take Brooks over those above.
Burton has by far the biggest boot so he should do the clearing kicks since the other "playmakers" can barely kick 30m.
Wakeham has next to no running game so he's not a running 6 and he's a shite HB as well.
I don't rate Flanno but given he's on the biggest coin out of all the "HB" players at our club and he's on contract til the end of 23 there is more incentive to use him rather than Wakeham. Wakeham is off contract at the end of this year and the club will be stupid to re-sign him again. The sooner we offload/let go of these wanna be HB the sooner we can sign a real HB.