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This one finished 24-12 over the Bulldogs, who were blown away early on and struggled to make a meaningful dent in the Warriors’ line despite sustained second half pressure.
For the Bulldogs, however, this was exactly the sort of game that they needed to win to stand a chance. Had they won, they would have moved to five wins, with a home game against the Titans next week before their own bye kicks in. Now, things look far less rosy.
“The three tries we gave up in the first half are just not what we want to be about but it is what we are at the moment,” said Ciraldo.
“I thought we responded in the second half, we played better in the second half but it was way too late. We can’t come in and play like that in the first half and then wait for a spray at half-time and respond in the second half.”
Canterbury need to sort out their spine
The Warriors excel at manipulating field position, with a fairly simplistic, yet effective style designed to move the bulk of the footy away from their goalline. It’s rarely scintillating stuff, but it can be very effective.
The Dogs are a lot more adventurous, and with good reason: when they get within striking distance, they look terrible at the moment.
In the era of the short dropout, being able to accumulate pressure over time is fast going out of fashion. The Dogs were able to camp in Warriors territory at times, especially in the second half, and rarely threatened, then lost the ball after forcing the repeat.
Occam’s Razor in these circumstances would be to look at the spine, and with the Bulldogs, that passes the sniff test.
Matt Burton is a run-first five eighth being asked to play halfback. Hayze Perham, as displayed twice in the opening stages, can’t pass. Josh Reynolds is a guy who wasn’t good enough for a team that finished fourth bottom of the Super League last year.
The Dogs have been battered with injuries this year, but the four men running out now are their first choice. They are choosing to leave Kyle Flanagan out and choosing to limit Karl Oloapu’s minutes and give some of them to Reynolds. It’s not working, clearly.
They could make changes. Jake Averillo, currently at centre, showed far more creativity from fullback in his time there last year than Perham has.
It’s not that Perham isn’t good enough for this level, but in a side that lacks any guile, he is the most guileless. Straight swapping the pair and letting Perham play as a centre would be a start.
His best moments come with running the footy, and Averillo offers that plus ball-playing. It’s a straight fix that Ciraldo could bring in tomorrow.
Beyond that, he really has to decide what the halves are going to be for this year and, indeed, into the future. If that is Karl Oloapu as a halfback, then play him as a halfback.
There’s plenty of teams in the NRL who effectively balance their halves in terms of possessions. Melbourne do it, with a halfback who loves to run and a five eighth who is partial to a kick.
Souths did it for most of last year too, before handing the keys to Lachlan Ilias full time. It’s more than doable, if there’s the will.
At the moment, it’s half-pregnant. Reynolds is nobodies’ long-term solution and, at best, is a bench spark plug. The time has come to make the hard calls. The status quo is not working.
For the Bulldogs, however, this was exactly the sort of game that they needed to win to stand a chance. Had they won, they would have moved to five wins, with a home game against the Titans next week before their own bye kicks in. Now, things look far less rosy.
“The three tries we gave up in the first half are just not what we want to be about but it is what we are at the moment,” said Ciraldo.
“I thought we responded in the second half, we played better in the second half but it was way too late. We can’t come in and play like that in the first half and then wait for a spray at half-time and respond in the second half.”
Canterbury need to sort out their spine
The Warriors excel at manipulating field position, with a fairly simplistic, yet effective style designed to move the bulk of the footy away from their goalline. It’s rarely scintillating stuff, but it can be very effective.
The Dogs are a lot more adventurous, and with good reason: when they get within striking distance, they look terrible at the moment.
In the era of the short dropout, being able to accumulate pressure over time is fast going out of fashion. The Dogs were able to camp in Warriors territory at times, especially in the second half, and rarely threatened, then lost the ball after forcing the repeat.
Occam’s Razor in these circumstances would be to look at the spine, and with the Bulldogs, that passes the sniff test.
Matt Burton is a run-first five eighth being asked to play halfback. Hayze Perham, as displayed twice in the opening stages, can’t pass. Josh Reynolds is a guy who wasn’t good enough for a team that finished fourth bottom of the Super League last year.
The Dogs have been battered with injuries this year, but the four men running out now are their first choice. They are choosing to leave Kyle Flanagan out and choosing to limit Karl Oloapu’s minutes and give some of them to Reynolds. It’s not working, clearly.
They could make changes. Jake Averillo, currently at centre, showed far more creativity from fullback in his time there last year than Perham has.
It’s not that Perham isn’t good enough for this level, but in a side that lacks any guile, he is the most guileless. Straight swapping the pair and letting Perham play as a centre would be a start.
His best moments come with running the footy, and Averillo offers that plus ball-playing. It’s a straight fix that Ciraldo could bring in tomorrow.
Beyond that, he really has to decide what the halves are going to be for this year and, indeed, into the future. If that is Karl Oloapu as a halfback, then play him as a halfback.
There’s plenty of teams in the NRL who effectively balance their halves in terms of possessions. Melbourne do it, with a halfback who loves to run and a five eighth who is partial to a kick.
Souths did it for most of last year too, before handing the keys to Lachlan Ilias full time. It’s more than doable, if there’s the will.
At the moment, it’s half-pregnant. Reynolds is nobodies’ long-term solution and, at best, is a bench spark plug. The time has come to make the hard calls. The status quo is not working.
