3 - King. 33 tackles zero missed, zero ineffective, was the key to locking up the middle of the field, and the #1 reason we didn't concede 4+. The only player in the team to average 10+m per run. 0 errors 1 pen. Good to see a player who has been with us for the last 2 seasons has clearly put the disappointments behind him for the new season.
2 - Curran. Came as a tackling workhorse and did 40 tackles 3 missed, 3 ineffective, but also ran for almost 100m with close to 50 post contact. 0 errors 0 pens. Sprinted for the 20m restart late in the game, and was also the only player chasing hard for the last conceded try. Fantastic addition to the team, but needs to start IMO.
1 - Mann. Played a big role in defense in the middle of the field, 35 tackles, 0 missed, 2 ineffective. Decent line break, too bad no one in support. Hit the ball up willingly and though he doesn't the PCM has a nice quick PTB. 0 errors 1 pen. He is going to be a very useful #14.
Honourable mentions to most of the new players:
Crichton - made some great tackles in defense and got the try
Hutch - didn't get much chance in attack because of our errors, but he was a big body in defense (25 tackles, 1 miss), made 0 errors 0 pens, and with the limited chances he got looked to asked questions, unfortunately he had very little support play to work with, or when they were there they ran lines that limited his space
Farmersilly - Only played 20 minutes, but completed 13 tackles with 0 missed, and had 0 errors 0 pens. We rarely had the ball for 20 mins he was on so he didn't get a chance to run.
Salmon - was good defending in the middle in the first half, contributed well in a defensive effort from the team that was a clear improvement on last season, but he had a poor 2nd half, although he was out of position. Also made an error and gave 2 pens. Tough game for him, he is there for our attack, and we didn't have any attack in the first half. Played 80 minutes.
Taffe - made an early error, but also earned a penalty 10 mins later with a good attacking kick return, chimed in nicely to give the last pass for our first try. Was ok, but still isn't good enough to be our long term FB.
The other 9 players accounted for 11 out of our 13 errors. Errors were what lost us the game.