Fullback

[maroondog72]

He was very good in the conditions yesterday and the try saver on best was excellent just needs to return the ball with a little more aggression and i think he will be a great fullback for us, Avo needs to partner foran in the halves for mine

 

[DT]

No he got the bucks they wanted so we can do what we like with him but I'm just saying he doesn't want to be considered a winger only and loves the fullback spot.
I've never seen him play anywhere other than wing so i don't know.

I'll throw another spanner....is his player/manager Dad gonna get upset

Who else does he manage with us?

 

[BEAST MODE]

I will throw a spanner in the works here, Cotric signed with a eye on fullback, i assure you.

The guy who needs to lift is Smith, he is the guy we are looking at deciding if we should keep him or set him free.
Meaney will be 1 winger & DWZ the other if not Cotric.
I like Smith but he ain't a centre and has been disappointing mostly for a while now

I'm not even going to bother wasting my time watching us if Cotric is our starting fullback lol

 

[wendog33]

No he got the bucks they wanted so we can do what we like with him but I'm just saying he doesn't want to be considered a winger only and loves the fullback spot.
I've never seen him play anywhere other than wing so i don't know.

I was referring to the Smith part of your post

 

[maroondog72]

Meaney is the only real option as FB at present. He has speed, can take the high balls and has good kick returns.
Some people say he is to small. So was Les Johns, Barba, Silva, Bowen., etc.
Its not how big you are, its how good you are.

very true besides alan langer mango was the smallest bloke I have seen play in the NRL

 

[Malla]

Yeah he should stay there for now and he's doing a good job short term. Dallin was a disaster there and should never play fullback again.

But looking forward, Meaney won't ever be a top 10 fullback in the comp and we need to have more impact at fullback than what he can offer to be a top four team again..

Agree with that. Averillo might be that guy..

 

[oldpuppy]

If Averillo is going to go to fullback (I think the club is guilty of having no idea with what to do with him). Then he needs game time there. If it is meany short term (atleast until end of 2021 to see if any comes up) then let him play out the year there and learn and develop.

I hope we don't over think where to play averillo and have a moses mbye scenario. You're right, the coaching staff need to be decisive about fullback and 5/8.

 

[Malla]

Montoya definitely wasnt gaining ground he was running full speed and I think he was near the 20m line by the time Foran was tackled (a good 60 meters away)

Meaney is a solid fullback. By no means a superstar, but better natural fullback then DWZ. Zelezniak has strong carries. But his hands and his lack of passing is a hindrance. Also his defence wasnt great. Meaney will make lots of rookie errors (like that grubber that knights almost scored off). He hasnt had the game time in top grade to develop properly. He came in as a winger, played a handful of games at fullback, went back to the wing when Zelezniak arrived, was injured for a few games, then came back on the wing and went back to fullback after Zelezniaks 2nd failed attempt at the back.

His cover tackle on Best was great. But because he never gets time to develop and learn it wouldnt surprise me if his next time he drops off the tackle or something. Young players need consistency. If it is averillo or meaney that is the fullback for next season they need game time now, in a season that wont count for much. Let them learn through mistakes. You can train the house down and practice every day. But you learn more in a half of NRL then you do in a week of training.

If Averillo is going to go to fullback (I think the club is guilty of having no idea with what to do with him). Then he needs game time there. If it is meany short term (atleast until end of 2021 to see if any comes up) then let him play out the year there and learn and develop.

Montoya was still rattled from dropping the ball cold and face planting the turf lol

True about young players. They need the confidence early in their careers from their coaches that they are going to make some mistakes, but the position is theres. I just love the way Meaney has carried himself, did not kick stones when he was moved out of first grade, then onto the wing. Put his head down and got the job done. Now he is back at the back where he is more comfortable and look at the difference he has made. Says a lot about his attitude.

 

[mr j]

No for me, he doesn’t have the attacking game required for a modern day fullback. Depth player only

 

[boggie23]

I hope we don't over think where to play averillo and have a moses mbye scenario. You're right, the coaching staff need to be decisive about fullback and 5/8.

Poor kid will have 3 head coaches in 6 months, having played as a utility, half and centre in his first dozen games. So we are definitely not helping his development.

Upside will be he is 19 and will have NRL game time which will only help him heading into the offseason and 2021. Grabbing a handful of tries wont hurt either.

 

[Brendan7]

I'm not even going to bother wasting my time watching us if Cotric is our starting fullback lol

Will be as bad as Anasta was at fullback for the Roosters lol

 

[Brendan7]

No he got the bucks they wanted so we can do what we like with him but I'm just saying he doesn't want to be considered a winger only and loves the fullback spot.
I've never seen him play anywhere other than wing so i don't know.

He has played centre both for Canberra and for NSW

Should start in the centre position next year

 

[BEAST MODE]

Will be as bad as Anasta was at fullback for the Roosters lol

Lol not that bad, but it won't be good. We need a creative outlet at fullback and Cotric just isn't going to be it. The move to centre is already a big risk, fullback is just stupid and shows the club hasn't learnt after the DWZ fuck up.

 

[Brendan7]

Lol not that bad, but it won't be good. We need a creative outlet at fullback and Cotric just isn't going to be it. The move to centre is already a big risk, fullback is just stupid and shows the club hasn't learnt after the DWZ fuck up.

How is Cotric at centre a risk? He's played Origin there! He's played there for Canberra too, just not regularly as they have had a few centres and he's just as good on the wing.

 

[oldpuppy]

Speaking of support play, watching the game live I wondered where was averillo and Montoya when foran busted the line in the first half?
Replay shows Montoya jogging with no intent in following the play.

 

[Bazildog]

Speaking of support play, watching the game live I wondered where was averillo and Montoya when foran busted the line in the first half?
Replay shows Montoya jogging with no intent in following the play.

This is something about us that has gone missing in recent years. Blokes like Averillo, Meaney, JMK, etc. should always be shadowing the ball carrier.

 

[ASSASSIN]

I think it comes down to where Avo wants to play, FB or 5/8th.

Even if we land a good FB, Meaney to the wing.

 

[TwinTurbo]

This is something about us that has gone missing in recent years. Blokes like Averillo, Meaney, JMK, etc. should always be shadowing the ball carrier.

We make so few line breaks in a game that "shadowing the ball carrier" waiting for one would be very frustrating.
Source https://www.foxsports.com.au/nrl/nrl-premiership/stats/teams?sortBy=lineBreaks
31 line breaks in 1806 runs, that's 1.7%, so 98.7% of the time shadowing the ball carrier would be just wasting energy.
If we had some strike players that could actually make regular line breaks then maybe we would see more willingness to back them up.
BTW that line break on Sunday was Foran's first for the season, Meaney is the highest with 7.

Go Dogs

 

[Bazildog]

We make so few line breaks in a game that "shadowing the ball carrier" waiting for one would be very frustrating.
Source https://www.foxsports.com.au/nrl/nrl-premiership/stats/teams?sortBy=lineBreaks
31 line breaks in 1806 runs, that's 1.7%, so 98.7% of the time shadowing the ball carrier would be just wasting energy.
If we had some strike players that could actually make regular line breaks then maybe we would see more willingness to back them up.
BTW that line break on Sunday was Foran's first for the season, Meaney is the highest with 7.

Go Dogs

That is true and we dont make many line breaks but its not just line breaks that ball support should be there. Its also the second phase play generated from offloads. I have seen plenty of instances where even the like of Tolman have stood in tackles and looked for someone to pass to and there is no support.

 

[finchie]

Meaney is doing a good job short term and obviously he's much safer than Dallin.. But he gets dominated physically, he doesn't have a passing game and doesn't back up the way a good fullback should. So we still need a long term fullback..

I'd like to see Averillo get a chance there at some stage but ideally we can recruit another fullback.

I think averillo would make a class fullback