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Margie McDonald From: The Australian August 27, 2011 12:00AM
REGARDLESS of the result in the Canterbury-Newcastle match tonight, Bulldogs coach Jim Dymock wants Ben Barba to study his opposite Kurt Gidley and carry that memory into 2012.
The Bulldogs' 2011 season is not over, but with the team in 10th spot on the ladder and just two rounds left, it is on life-support. A loss tonight at ANZ Stadium would be terminal.
Even if Dymock is not appointed the Bulldogs' head coach next year, he wants Barba to absorb what the Knights No 1 does over 80 minutes. "Benny can learn something from Gids because he's such a true professional," Dymock said.
"I'm not asking Ben to mimic him but he should try to match him in the sense Gids is always on the ball, follows it and puts himself in the right position. That's the goal for Ben."
Barba might have scored 17 tries to Gidley's three this year but it is the maturity in positional play that Dymock wants to add to Barba's obvious attacking skills.
"Gidley is the type of player you show young fullbacks and tell them to aspire towards and play like," he added. "Gidley has played in the halves and so has Benny. They have a few similarities there already. If Ben learns from Gids, he'll put himself in the picture a lot more often."
The Knights are a little wounded after the 26-6 loss to Brisbane last Monday night. Mat Hilder (head cut) and Junior Sa'u (ankle ligaments) are gone, while Jarrod Mullen (shoulder) and Adam MacDougall (knee) aim to pass fitness tests today.
"They've used plenty of players this year so they've certainly got plenty of depth," Dymock said, offering no sympathy for the Knights' predicament.
"Nothing changes for us. They are tough in the halves, have quality players on the edges who can score tries, and then Gidley who roams around everywhere."
Knights coach Rick Stone said the entire team felt for Sa'u, who has been given leave to go to Brisbane to support his father, who lost a cousin in the Slacks Creek house fire this week that left 11 people dead.
But Stone said the players' minds were back on the job after a closed session yesterday. Mullen did not train as he visited a shoulder specialist.
"We haven't handled the footy well in the past couple of weeks -- it has really put a lot of pressure back on us and allowed the opposition to get in good kicking range," he said.
"The Dogs have plenty of danger men -- Barba out back, (Jamal) Idris on their right side, big Frankie Pritchard on their left side, their forwards with their short passing."
Tonight's match also brings two of the game's sentimental favourites together -- MacDougall (if fit) and Andrew Ryan -- as they head to retirement.
Dymock said Ryan's 'Bobcat' nickname said it all.
"I was very fortunate to play in Bobcat's debut game, when he was with Parramatta, and now I get to coach him for his last game," he said, of next weekend's match against Canberra.
"He might not be the flashiest but he tries the hardest every minute of the game. And he plays 80 minutes every weekend."
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/new...-in-crucial-duel/story-e6frg7mf-1226123167594
REGARDLESS of the result in the Canterbury-Newcastle match tonight, Bulldogs coach Jim Dymock wants Ben Barba to study his opposite Kurt Gidley and carry that memory into 2012.
The Bulldogs' 2011 season is not over, but with the team in 10th spot on the ladder and just two rounds left, it is on life-support. A loss tonight at ANZ Stadium would be terminal.
Even if Dymock is not appointed the Bulldogs' head coach next year, he wants Barba to absorb what the Knights No 1 does over 80 minutes. "Benny can learn something from Gids because he's such a true professional," Dymock said.
"I'm not asking Ben to mimic him but he should try to match him in the sense Gids is always on the ball, follows it and puts himself in the right position. That's the goal for Ben."
Barba might have scored 17 tries to Gidley's three this year but it is the maturity in positional play that Dymock wants to add to Barba's obvious attacking skills.
"Gidley is the type of player you show young fullbacks and tell them to aspire towards and play like," he added. "Gidley has played in the halves and so has Benny. They have a few similarities there already. If Ben learns from Gids, he'll put himself in the picture a lot more often."
The Knights are a little wounded after the 26-6 loss to Brisbane last Monday night. Mat Hilder (head cut) and Junior Sa'u (ankle ligaments) are gone, while Jarrod Mullen (shoulder) and Adam MacDougall (knee) aim to pass fitness tests today.
"They've used plenty of players this year so they've certainly got plenty of depth," Dymock said, offering no sympathy for the Knights' predicament.
"Nothing changes for us. They are tough in the halves, have quality players on the edges who can score tries, and then Gidley who roams around everywhere."
Knights coach Rick Stone said the entire team felt for Sa'u, who has been given leave to go to Brisbane to support his father, who lost a cousin in the Slacks Creek house fire this week that left 11 people dead.
But Stone said the players' minds were back on the job after a closed session yesterday. Mullen did not train as he visited a shoulder specialist.
"We haven't handled the footy well in the past couple of weeks -- it has really put a lot of pressure back on us and allowed the opposition to get in good kicking range," he said.
"The Dogs have plenty of danger men -- Barba out back, (Jamal) Idris on their right side, big Frankie Pritchard on their left side, their forwards with their short passing."
Tonight's match also brings two of the game's sentimental favourites together -- MacDougall (if fit) and Andrew Ryan -- as they head to retirement.
Dymock said Ryan's 'Bobcat' nickname said it all.
"I was very fortunate to play in Bobcat's debut game, when he was with Parramatta, and now I get to coach him for his last game," he said, of next weekend's match against Canberra.
"He might not be the flashiest but he tries the hardest every minute of the game. And he plays 80 minutes every weekend."
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/new...-in-crucial-duel/story-e6frg7mf-1226123167594
