Speaker 1: If you love the West Tigers as much as we do,
Speaker 1: and that's in a powerful light, you're welcome to come
Speaker 1: and join us in our discussions on the West Tigers
Speaker 1: Podcast forum. Our forum is the number one forum for
Speaker 1: West Tigers fans to talk everything West Tigers. West Tigers
Speaker 1: podcast dot com dot au slash forum. We hope to
Speaker 1: see it there soon. Gary Watson, you're off your deathbed
Speaker 1: from COVID. Good to see you. How did you go
Speaker 1: last night being sick and watching the West Tigers?
Speaker 2: Watching that first half, I wished I was dead. We so, yeah,
Speaker 2: I was happy for COVID to take me at that point.
Speaker 2: But yeah, it wasn't a great game. Yeah, yeah, I
Speaker 2: wish I was dead.
Speaker 1: That's it, Steve, there almost wasn't a West Tigers podcast. Like,
Speaker 1: if you ask me, after fifty five minutes of that game,
Speaker 1: I'm like, I don't know if we're going to be
Speaker 1: able to do a podcast. I was sort of over
Speaker 1: the whole the whole situation.
Speaker 3: Well, Jil, it's going to be a pretty ad limb podcast.
Speaker 3: Because I couldn't watch the game back today. There's just
Speaker 3: no way I went through the I went through the
Speaker 3: play by play stats that you get online, and that
Speaker 3: was the most I could do in preparation for tonight.
Speaker 1: And Nick's here and in good health by the look
Speaker 1: of it, but has been torturing himself reading the socials,
Speaker 1: watching back highlight clips, watching the game again. What you are, massachist,
Speaker 1: I'd just like.
Speaker 4: To soak myself and you know ingest everything that is
Speaker 4: West Tigers. Look, you boys know, I was out last night,
Speaker 4: so I watched most of the first half and missed
Speaker 4: a lot of the second half. So I watched the
Speaker 4: full replay today just to try and prep as I
Speaker 4: do as a professional for this podcast. But as you've
Speaker 4: boys sort of alluded to the first you know, sixty
Speaker 4: odd minutes were pretty ordinary, weren't they, Like I was,
Speaker 4: I'm glad I knew the result before I watched the
Speaker 4: replay today, because you know, it was looking like it
Speaker 4: was going to get really ugly at one point midway
Speaker 4: through that second half last night. So yeah, I'm glad
Speaker 4: we came back. We did show a lot of spirit
Speaker 4: to come back into that game, but for the majority
Speaker 4: it was it was horrible.
Speaker 1: I've got three or four one words. We'll go to
Speaker 1: you guys in a moment for your one word contribution,
Speaker 1: but from the West Tigers podcast forum, Tiger Tragic's word
Speaker 1: is frustration, especially over the ref and the bunker. We'll
Speaker 1: talk about that shortly. Teddy S's word was reffed out,
Speaker 1: and because I always have a few one words, Teddy
Speaker 1: s says they're also going to throw in body language
Speaker 1: and saying that the body language shows that maybe some
Speaker 1: of our players have had enough. Cambra Tiger's word is
Speaker 1: dead wood. We still have a lot to shed now
Speaker 1: if we shed, if we fire up the shred or
Speaker 1: anymore Cambra Tiger and without adding some people in Gary
Speaker 1: and Steve are going to get a run soon. Nat
Speaker 1: Mak seventy eight's word is momentum. We finally had it,
Speaker 1: but run out of time. Walgot Tiger's word is frustrated.
Speaker 1: There's a team in there, if Benji can just unlock it.
Speaker 1: Peter Ay's word, this is out of left field. Actually
Speaker 1: I'm going to leave. I'll leave Peter A's to last,
Speaker 1: and then we'll go from there because that will open
Speaker 1: a little conversation. I think Yarnie's word is backwards. We're
Speaker 1: going backwards and Benji needs to go. Mac Tiger kicking.
Speaker 1: We need a fifth tackle option and also referees was
Speaker 1: a word for Mac Tiger. I presume in negative sense
Speaker 1: Mike's words wooden spoon. Eddie's word was along those lines.
Speaker 1: What did eddies wood was wood the spoon race, spoon race,
Speaker 1: race to the bottom. Snake's word is dumb. There's just
Speaker 1: not enough smarts in our team. Tiger town sfs's word
Speaker 1: is cooked. Our season is cooked and dirty Red's discipline
Speaker 1: that's what cost us tonight, Peter A. Gary said Brad Arthur.
Speaker 1: Now that is out of left field. What do we
Speaker 1: think about, you know, a big shake up in the
Speaker 1: coaching ranks.
Speaker 2: I do think questions are going to start being asked
Speaker 2: around Andy Marshall's performance. I really think that if there
Speaker 2: isn't significant signs of improvement soon, that noise around his
Speaker 2: coaching is going to get fairly loud. So I think
Speaker 2: the next this second half of the season that we're
Speaker 2: just about coming into, is going to be really crucial
Speaker 2: on whether he has a career as a coach or not.
Speaker 2: So he's got some work to put in over the
Speaker 2: next months.
Speaker 1: Steve, It's an interesting one, isn't it, Because we don't
Speaker 1: know exactly where Benji is in his progress as a coach.
Speaker 1: We knew last year that he was green. We don't
Speaker 1: know if he's going to take three years, two years,
Speaker 1: five years, eight years. Like It's just hard to sort
Speaker 1: of tell how coached we are because I'd suggest the
Speaker 1: Cowboys look like they had a game plan, they were
Speaker 1: on the advantage line, they quick play the balls, they
Speaker 1: looked like they were ready to sort of take it
Speaker 1: to us, and we don't seem to have that variation.
Speaker 1: So I don't know, do we It's going to be
Speaker 1: so long as we keep losing games, that'll continue to
Speaker 1: be something that people raise the coaching issue.
Speaker 3: J I think we mentioned this last part or a
Speaker 3: couple of ponds ago, and I made the point I
Speaker 3: said that Benji Marshall has proven himself through his playing
Speaker 3: career that he's a champion. He's got a champion a
Speaker 3: champion's mindset and mentality, and from what I've seen the
Speaker 3: beginning of the year, the beginning of this season, he
Speaker 3: seems to be bringing that mindset to his coaching. He's
Speaker 3: definitely toughened up. I think with his coaching he gives
Speaker 3: that persona anyway. But I also made the point that
Speaker 3: I said, I think he's going to make it, and
Speaker 3: let's hope it's sooner rather than later, which is what
Speaker 3: you're saying, Joel. We don't know how long it's going
Speaker 3: to take. He's not the finished product, you know, And
Speaker 3: I don't know how long we've got before we have
Speaker 3: to start thinking about that, because it's just been so long.
Speaker 3: It's just been so long since we've tasted any success,
Speaker 3: and maybe we just can't wait for another three years
Speaker 3: for Benji to mature into the coach that he will become.
Speaker 3: And I don't like saying that because I have a
Speaker 3: lot of respect and time for Benji, as I think
Speaker 3: most of us doing in some respect, at least.
Speaker 2: Steve. I don't think it's a sooner or later thing. Though.
Speaker 2: If he doesn't start to get results soon and the
Speaker 2: pressure builds and it gets to the point where he's
Speaker 2: no longer West Tiger's coach in the next twelve months
Speaker 2: or so, then that's his coaching career in my opinion.
Speaker 2: If he doesn't make good of this shot, then I
Speaker 2: don't think he gets another opportunity. So while I do
Speaker 2: think there is a good coach there because he's come
Speaker 2: in in the manner that he's come in with not
Speaker 2: a lot of experience, with not a lot of a
Speaker 2: history in coaching. I think if this doesn't work, he
Speaker 2: ends up back in the media. I don't see him
Speaker 2: going to another club and serving an apprenticeship for the
Speaker 2: next five years as an assistant coach somewhere looking for
Speaker 2: that next chance to come up. We're in a position
Speaker 2: now that's make or break for Benji. Marshall and I
Speaker 2: spoke last week. I said that the players need to
Speaker 2: stand up boring that. They say all the right things,
Speaker 2: they talk about being behind Benji one hundred percent, but
Speaker 2: they need to show that on the field and if
Speaker 2: they want him as a coach moving forward, they've got
Speaker 2: a couple of months to really turn this around and
Speaker 2: stand up for him out on the field. There's been
Speaker 2: enough talk about how they support him as a coach,
Speaker 2: how they think he's a great coach. They need to
Speaker 2: show it on the field and our senior leaders need
Speaker 2: to show that on the field very very soon, otherwise
Speaker 2: there's going to be massive questions asked about Benji as
Speaker 2: a West Tigers coach. And as I said, I don't
Speaker 2: think he gets another shot after this The.
Speaker 1: Trouble is how much can you squeeze out of the lemon?
Speaker 1: How much ability is really there? I mean, how playing
Speaker 1: to potential. There's a lot of guys in that team
Speaker 1: still that are probably playing just about that potential.
Speaker 2: I think. I think the last couple of weeks he's
Speaker 2: been let down by some of the senior guys. Those
Speaker 2: two sin innings yesterday. Yeah, Like, my one word for
Speaker 2: this week was ill disciplined because we won. Outside of
Speaker 2: playing with twelve men, we won that game twenty eight
Speaker 2: to six. It's the twenty minutes where we had twelve
Speaker 2: men on the field that really hurt us. I know,
Speaker 2: we'll pour in that first half, but the Cowboys weren't
Speaker 2: anything flash Eiver. We lost that game in that twenty
Speaker 2: minutes that we had those players off the field.
Speaker 3: Well, it wasn't It wasn't just that that twenty minutes here,
Speaker 3: that's that's where they scored their points.
Speaker 5: You can't you can't argue that.
Speaker 3: But I've got a few stats here because my word
Speaker 3: was discipline as well. That was my one word for tonight.
Speaker 3: And he's the first twenty minutes for you. In the
Speaker 3: first twenty minutes, we made four errors we had three
Speaker 3: rock infringements, two penalties against US, one player put on report,
Speaker 3: and one player put in the SimBin. And the score
Speaker 3: after the first twenty minutes was fourteen nil. As Gary said,
Speaker 3: those fourteen points were scored with that one player in
Speaker 3: the symbim. That was our first twenty minutes. You cannot
Speaker 3: come back from that start at an R level. You're
Speaker 3: giving a team an absolute leg up. Any advantage that
Speaker 3: we may have had by coming off the by and
Speaker 3: being freshened up and two weeks to prepare and all
Speaker 3: that sort of talk, all that's gone when you're put
Speaker 3: in our first twenty minutes like that, with that ill
Speaker 3: disciplined performance. And this is what concerns me most about.
Speaker 3: If we want to talk, Benji, if you want, we
Speaker 3: may be going too far into a job because we're
Speaker 3: just talking one words at the moment. But this is
Speaker 3: what concerns me most is that we started the season
Speaker 3: we had we had half a dozen games where we
Speaker 3: looked like we were turning a corner. But now the
Speaker 3: last three games that we've played, we've just seen an
Speaker 3: absolute repetition of the type of football we've played last year,
Speaker 3: the year before, the year before, that and that is
Speaker 3: just this ill disciplined brand of football where we just
Speaker 3: shoot ourselves in the foot and yeah, we might do
Speaker 3: some good things and we all walk away. As I've
Speaker 3: read online at Norse in the last twenty four hours,
Speaker 3: Oh we were so close, great comeback. Oh we almost
Speaker 3: got there. The ref ruined it. No, none of that,
Speaker 3: None of that. It was our lack of discipline on
Speaker 3: the football field that didn't give us a chance to
Speaker 3: contest in that game when it mattered. We only contested
Speaker 3: in that game at the back end of the game,
Speaker 3: when when the Cowboys took their foot off the pedal.
Speaker 3: And that's a real worry, real worry all around.
Speaker 2: Our first twenty minutes was poor. Yesterday, the first half
Speaker 2: was poor all round. The thing is, even while being poor,
Speaker 2: we're competing with the Cowboys up until that first inbining,
Speaker 2: up until that first inventing. We'll ride in that game,
Speaker 2: and it had our chances Tower almost went through not
Speaker 2: long before that first inviny, So we were really competing
Speaker 2: in that game despite those errors. For me and those errors,
Speaker 2: we've been a slow starting side all season. The whole season.
Speaker 2: That first twenty minutes we've been incredibly poor. We struggled
Speaker 2: to get up the field, and we struggled to create
Speaker 2: chances in that first twenty minutes, and that was again
Speaker 2: quite evident yesterday. But our senior players let us down yesterday.
Speaker 2: It wasn't the young players. It was the senior players
Speaker 2: who let us down through poor disionline, through poor errors.
Speaker 2: And from I know, Benji Marshall and a lot of
Speaker 2: people come out and said the sin binnings were harsh,
Speaker 2: and they were hard. They were hard sin bins. But
Speaker 2: there's no doubt that Jerome lou I held down two
Speaker 2: tackles in a row. I don't think that can can
Speaker 2: even be questioned. He held on for too long. And
Speaker 2: while I thought the sin binning was harsh, him holding
Speaker 2: down put him in that position to be bin Adam Dewey,
Speaker 2: who I thought was trying to turn around and put
Speaker 2: himself in a bad position, but he put himself in
Speaker 2: a bad position to be sindied. They're the two crucial
Speaker 2: errors that cost us yesterday. But I do agree with
Speaker 2: Steve the discipline was pour across across the game right
Speaker 2: up and probably including that last twenty minutes where we
Speaker 2: did fight back.
Speaker 1: I'm going to channel my inner Garry here and say
Speaker 1: not just two things can be right at the same time,
Speaker 1: but three things can be right at the same time.
Speaker 1: So I am one hundred percent on board with the
Speaker 1: West Tigers being an organization that's never really had discipline,
Speaker 1: Like discipline is not our well, it's not our master.
Speaker 1: We can't do it at any levels. On discipline on
Speaker 1: any level over more than two decades. I think talking
Speaker 1: about the first twenty minutes, I don't think that it's
Speaker 1: necessarily discipline. I thought we were just hanging in there.
Speaker 1: I thought the Cowboys were smashing us. And we'll get
Speaker 1: around to my one words in a moment, and one
Speaker 1: of those one words relate to that, and I think
Speaker 1: we were just hanging in and hanging in and trying
Speaker 1: to slow their play the ball. So not discounting their
Speaker 1: discipline is poor.
Speaker 2: But I think that the way which has been going
Speaker 2: has been the trade all season. That's what I meant
Speaker 2: in that opening twenty minutes exactly.
Speaker 1: And I think the refereeing also, you know, it felt
Speaker 1: to me like there was more onus, on us getting
Speaker 1: off the tackle player than the Cowboys. They were able
Speaker 1: to slow us down, but they're play the ball the
Speaker 1: way They're able to get to their feet very similar
Speaker 1: to some of the other really good teams we are.
Speaker 1: We are, you know, like slugs getting to our feet,
Speaker 1: and the way that they wrestle, the way that the
Speaker 1: way they get to their feet, the way that they
Speaker 1: keep moving even when they're tackled is very impressive.
Speaker 2: Steve.
Speaker 1: And then Nick, I've got a question for.
Speaker 2: You like that.
Speaker 3: You're talking about the refereeing, and I think that comes
Speaker 3: back to what we talked about earlier about Benji and
Speaker 3: the game plan and the cheap sheet and the preparation
Speaker 3: sheet that they go through before a game in the week.
Speaker 3: In the prep in the week leading up to the game,
Speaker 3: we knew we had Klimb in the bunker, and we
Speaker 3: knew we had Sutton on the field. That's true, two
Speaker 3: of the most pedantic referees, very good at their craft.
Speaker 3: They officiate the rules exceptionally well. I think they referee
Speaker 3: a football game terribly. That's just my personal opinion, but
Speaker 3: they officiate the rules exceptionally well, especially Sutton. He can
Speaker 3: blow the pee out of a whistle now. But the
Speaker 3: point is we knew he was the referee, so therefore,
Speaker 3: in preparation, surely over and over and over again. It
Speaker 3: had to be drummed into the team. And back to
Speaker 3: Gary's point earlier about our senior players led by our
Speaker 3: senior players, that we need to be absolutely on our
Speaker 3: game because we will get penalized at the slightest thing. Right,
Speaker 3: And despite the fact that everyone wanted to get up
Speaker 3: Bateman and show him how tough we were, the ill
Speaker 3: discipline that that created, the brawn over brain that that created,
Speaker 3: meant that we've had up with two blokes spent ten
Speaker 3: minutes in the sympneach. It was dumb, dumb, dumb football,
Speaker 3: and we did not think about who was refereeing and
Speaker 3: the way we had to play because.
Speaker 1: Of that, Steve, you and I had a conversation one
Speaker 1: on one last week and we spoke about I said
Speaker 1: to you, now, you made a mistake there, Steve, because
Speaker 1: you were talking about our wonderful club that we all love.
Speaker 1: But you started the sentence with surely that's always a
Speaker 1: big mistake, because I would say something like, surely we
Speaker 1: could see Royce Hunt is not a starting prop and
Speaker 1: he's better off on the bench, and we should start
Speaker 1: see only Fainer instead, because our bench was, you know,
Speaker 1: pretty ineffective and Rose Hunt was really ineffective. Anyway, Nick,
Speaker 1: two of my words are unorthodox and touch footing. This
Speaker 1: teams are often representations of the way that their coach has,
Speaker 1: their philosophy, their personality. I see a mirror of Benji
Speaker 1: marsh in a lot of our team on the field.
Speaker 4: I was going to jump in and say that too,
Speaker 4: like Gary was talking about. You've all talked about how messy,
Speaker 4: especially the opening twenty minutes was, and it's not just
Speaker 4: the ill discipline efforts around holding players down too long,
Speaker 4: you know, but a lot of the force passes and
Speaker 4: I made a mention of that in our group chat
Speaker 4: last night, is you know, even on the second and
Speaker 4: third tackle. I know the plan looked like to go
Speaker 4: wide early, but the silly tap on is like Samuel
Speaker 4: la Faye who tried to tap on and the second
Speaker 4: tackle and went behind Charlie Sains I think in over
Speaker 4: the sideline. But that's not warranted in the first twenty minutes.
Speaker 4: You need to you need to grind your way into
Speaker 4: the game, and you need to be neck and neck.
Speaker 4: And I know Gary made a point that we were
Speaker 4: running neck and neck until the first synby and then
Speaker 4: we were or their Jole. As you said, the Cowboys
Speaker 4: were looking pretty sharp and we're probably all over the
Speaker 4: top of us. But you've got to earn your way
Speaker 4: into a match, and I don't think we're doing that.
Speaker 4: I think, like you just suggested, Joel or sort of
Speaker 4: spoke towards, we are sort of playing an expansive brand early,
Speaker 4: which is very attacking wise, and that is how Benji
Speaker 4: plays it. I wonder there's still a lot of talk
Speaker 4: that you know in the training field. Benji jumps in
Speaker 4: and does a lot of the moves himself and runs
Speaker 4: a lot of the players. But I just wonder whether
Speaker 4: the players are watching that and trying to emulate him
Speaker 4: a bit too much. Well, maybe they need to know
Speaker 4: to roll a bit more.
Speaker 1: I leave that such a being such an apprentice of
Speaker 1: Marshall and the way that he played like sometimes that
Speaker 1: eggs into his game, and I'm sure Pendrith fans would
Speaker 1: say that's probably one of his weaker points, is when
Speaker 1: he does play too unstructured. Gary had his hand.
Speaker 2: On Yeah, that opening twenty minutes. I think I said
Speaker 2: after round one that that opening twenty minutes is going
Speaker 2: to be an issue for us all year, and I
Speaker 2: won't step away from that that opening twenty minutes, and
Speaker 2: every game is going to be a time in a
Speaker 2: game where we have to hang on. And I think
Speaker 2: that a little bit more expands that we play with
Speaker 2: is kind of it's there to counter our inability to
Speaker 2: get down the field for our forwards in that opening
Speaker 2: twenty Even a guy like Terrelle May, who's having a
Speaker 2: wonderful season, he struggles in that opening twenty minutes against
Speaker 2: fresh forwards. He gets better the longer he's out on
Speaker 2: the field, and his other forwards tire because he's not
Speaker 2: that tall. He's a decent size, but he's not that tall.
Speaker 2: I don't think he has the size and to still
Speaker 2: want a Joles with the physicality to really dent the line.
Speaker 2: So he gets better as a game, and you'll see
Speaker 2: if you watch him in the first twenty minutes of
Speaker 2: most games, he will often go the ball, go to
Speaker 2: the line and pass early in the game, pass to
Speaker 2: another forward, And all that to me is a strategy
Speaker 2: to overcome our lack of punch in that opening twenty minutes. Now,
Speaker 2: what I was hoping is that once we had Hunts starting,
Speaker 2: that would get a little bit of that punch. But
Speaker 2: when you have his stats from last night of one
Speaker 2: run for seven meters, quite obvious that that we did
Speaker 2: not get that from him last night. So I do
Speaker 2: agree that I think we need to be starting with
Speaker 2: the only moving forward. But that's not going to fix
Speaker 2: that issue either. That twenty minutes is going to have
Speaker 2: to be a period of the game where we're hanging
Speaker 2: on into the game. I don't see that changing, and
Speaker 2: that's why ill disciplined mistakes like after getting towards the
Speaker 2: end of that twenty minute, like part way through that
Speaker 2: twenty minutes and getting a guy simmed in, we can't
Speaker 2: afford because that's the toughest part of the game for us.
Speaker 2: I think you'll see us come back over the top
Speaker 2: of teams late in games like we did last night,
Speaker 2: but we've got to we've really got to be really
Speaker 2: disciplined in that first twenty minutes.
Speaker 1: Low percentage play is trying to score on every play.
Speaker 1: Attention to detail, Steve, And also, like I'm going to say,
Speaker 1: I agree with you in terms of like not just discipline,
Speaker 1: in terms of playing to the rules and making sure
Speaker 1: that you're dotting guys and crossing t's and not giving
Speaker 1: away six agains and things like that. But discipline is
Speaker 1: something that we lack. Just it's not just this squad.
Speaker 1: It's something that we've traditionally or we've lacked quite often.
Speaker 1: And that's the discipline of building a game, building a game,
Speaker 1: moving yourself around the field, playing where you want to play,
Speaker 1: your kicking game, you're setting things up. We just look
Speaker 1: like we consistently just have to do something every time
Speaker 1: we get the ball, and it's just not the way
Speaker 1: that you win games.
Speaker 3: Yeah, we're definitely struggling at the moment, not having an
Speaker 3: established organizing seven. You know, no matter how you want
Speaker 3: to paint it, we are struggling with that. I mentioned
Speaker 3: in the group chat the South. I was watching the
Speaker 3: Penrith game today and I just watched Cleary bring that
Speaker 3: game home for Penrith, and like, I know, they haven't
Speaker 3: set the wad on fire this season, but he started
Speaker 3: off by doing what clearly does. He kicked a forty
Speaker 3: twenty to take all the press off and change the momentum.
Speaker 3: But from that point on he just pretty much single
Speaker 3: handedly kept paramatter, you know, on their own twenty with
Speaker 3: deep kicking, pinpoint kicking into the corners and just didn't
Speaker 3: allow them out and didn't give them an opportunity to
Speaker 3: come back and win that game. And we haven't done
Speaker 3: that forever. I can't remember the last time that we
Speaker 3: were actually able to manage a game. I actually said that.
Speaker 3: You know, we've had some good wins this year, but
Speaker 3: every time we win a football game, it always seems
Speaker 3: to be a frantic top win where we've scrambled really well,
Speaker 3: or we've come from behind, or we kick a field goal,
Speaker 3: or we do something exceptional. We never seem to just
Speaker 3: manage our way through a game where we come off
Speaker 3: the field and our heart rate is not at one
Speaker 3: hundred and eighty, you know what I mean, We actually
Speaker 3: have the game in control, we've managed it, we've bought
Speaker 3: at home, and we think job well done. Right, let's
Speaker 3: pack up and come back next week and do the
Speaker 3: job again. We haven't done that forever. That's not Lawa's
Speaker 3: natural game. And I have never said that the bloke
Speaker 3: is not a good footballer. I think he's a fantastic
Speaker 3: footballer and a great asset, but it's not his go
Speaker 3: I don't know whether he can teach it to himself,
Speaker 3: whether he can learn it, whether he can become that player.
Speaker 3: I'm starting to really doubt that he can. And I think,
Speaker 3: you know, we would be best served at this point
Speaker 3: in time in looking at a player like Adam Reynolds
Speaker 3: to be our seven. I don't think that's going to happen.
Speaker 3: But a player like that, let Luis push back out
Speaker 3: to six.
Speaker 5: I don't know what that does to Feinhu.
Speaker 3: That's another conversation I suppose, or Mason for that matter,
Speaker 3: But that's where we're at.
Speaker 1: We hope you're enjoying this edition of the West Tigers Podcast.
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Speaker 2: So would you be looking at a guy like Toby
Speaker 2: Sexton who looks like he's on the outer at the Bulldogs?
Speaker 2: All right?
Speaker 3: To be honest, Garrett, I'd have to. I'd have to
Speaker 3: have a closer look at him. Does he fit the
Speaker 3: skill set that we're looking for? I personally, you want utopia,
Speaker 3: don't you my personally, we need someone with more with
Speaker 3: more experience and a track record than what Toby Sexton brings.
Speaker 3: You know, the skill set is one. Having the skill
Speaker 3: set to manage the game is one. The experience that
Speaker 3: you've done it on the on the big stage is
Speaker 3: the other thing that I think we need as well.
Speaker 3: But I don't know if that's a possibility or not.
Speaker 2: There's three or four of those guys, really, Steve, that's
Speaker 2: probably the hard thing. Like you're you're looking at a
Speaker 2: at Adam Reynolds, You're looking at a Nathan Clear who's
Speaker 2: probably the best player in the game.
Speaker 3: And well, the Roosters are getting one. They've managed to
Speaker 3: do it.
Speaker 2: Yeah, that is That is a very good point, but
Speaker 2: it's really difficult because I don't know who we're going
Speaker 2: to go out and get. If we could go out
Speaker 2: and get Adam Reynolds to come across the one to
Speaker 2: two years, I would be all over that. But the
Speaker 2: difficult thing is I don't know that you can. Like
Speaker 2: I think if he leaves Brisbane we're in with a
Speaker 2: really good chance of that. But it sounds like Brisbane
Speaker 2: have moved parts around, but there's still a lot of
Speaker 2: disharmoning at Brisbane if you have all good how they
Speaker 2: are playing, so I'm sure that there's a lot going on.
Speaker 2: They've got a lot of off contract players, so I
Speaker 2: don't think that Adam Reynolds one is dead in the
Speaker 2: water yet that there's not a lot out like you're
Speaker 2: looking at daily Cherry Evans who who is possibly still available.
Speaker 2: I don't know what's going on there. It's a really
Speaker 2: tough one to kind of feel because if you're not
Speaker 2: getting one of those experienced guys who there's only a
Speaker 2: few of, you're probably looking at a young guy to
Speaker 2: come and try and try and fill that role. And
Speaker 2: then what is that, as you said, what does that
Speaker 2: say to la Tufeinu and Heath Mason. It's pretty much
Speaker 2: putting a line through them. You're making your mind up
Speaker 2: about them right now?
Speaker 3: Or the the other question, sorry sorry Nick dominating that.
Speaker 3: But the other question then is because that is the reality, is,
Speaker 3: then are we going to persist with Leui? And if
Speaker 3: that is the case, because he's an exceptional footballer and
Speaker 3: he has switched on football and he just seems to
Speaker 3: be a smart bloke, so given the correct coaching, maybe
Speaker 3: he can transform into that player.
Speaker 5: So then you go back to the question, do.
Speaker 3: We have the right people in the right positions coaching
Speaker 3: the team that's going to allow that to happen.
Speaker 2: For me, the really important thing is, and I said
Speaker 2: it on the pod last week, is Leui needs to
Speaker 2: start playing straighter. When he plays straight, I think he
Speaker 2: does a really good job in that half back role.
Speaker 2: I think he does well to create space for his
Speaker 2: players outside him and creates room for them to do well.
Speaker 2: And he did it a few times last night on
Speaker 2: the Buller Try. It was Louie that created that space
Speaker 2: for him. Now, you're not going to get the big
Speaker 2: all the credit for that because it's a simple play.
Speaker 2: But the simple plays are what you want from that
Speaker 2: organizing half. You want them creating space so those players
Speaker 2: outside them are playing better. And he did that a
Speaker 2: couple of times last night. For me, the game he
Speaker 2: did that really well was the Dragons game. He needs
Speaker 2: to play director, He needs to play straighter. He needs
Speaker 2: to play deep into the line like he can and
Speaker 2: then he can play as a halfback. But at the
Speaker 2: moment he's going across field more than he's going direct,
Speaker 2: and that's what he needs to sort out. If he
Speaker 2: can sort that out, I think he can make a
Speaker 2: fist of that half back role. But he has to
Speaker 2: sort that out. And I'm not sure whether whether he's
Speaker 2: getting the right advice or he can has the discipline
Speaker 2: to do that consistently. I think that's still to be seen.
Speaker 1: Well, he needs more, he needs more momentum from his
Speaker 1: back rowers as well from and look look at the
Speaker 1: different does fifteen meter runs and they get that momentum
Speaker 1: and then you're already playing straight because the team's going straight,
Speaker 1: but he's getting the ball because we're going sideways because
Speaker 1: we keep getting smashed because of physicality. And I'll just
Speaker 1: have to keep saying it every week until something changes.
Speaker 2: It's very hard to play straight when you're not playing
Speaker 2: against a retruding defense. Correct. It's incredibly hard. And we've
Speaker 2: spoken about that a number of times over the years
Speaker 2: and will eventually let Nick speak. I just know Nick
Speaker 2: spoke the other night on the MIDWEK pod and spoke
Speaker 2: for about thirty five minutes and kind of just did
Speaker 2: the whole game preview for us has been beautiful.
Speaker 4: Nick the floor a sures just a couple of things
Speaker 4: on that whole last twenty five minute conversation, i'd have
Speaker 4: been out of.
Speaker 5: I just add to that Gary that I think.
Speaker 4: I actually think and I know we'll get to Heath Mason,
Speaker 4: but he I thought he complimented.
Speaker 2: Jerome quite well.
Speaker 4: He did straighten up the attack on several occasions and
Speaker 4: looked very dangerous doing that, and we did talk about it.
Speaker 2: He had a great game last night, Nick.
Speaker 4: Yeah, we did talk about that a couple of days
Speaker 4: ago on the pod, what potentially would look like with him.
Speaker 2: Playing in the halves.
Speaker 4: And he was very quick and he's very evasive on
Speaker 4: his feet, and we got to see that just on
Speaker 4: what you said, Steve about twenty eight minutes ago on
Speaker 4: Jerome whether he can retrain himself as a halfback. So
Speaker 4: Benji had to retrain himself as he got older, and
Speaker 4: in the last few years he became more of a
Speaker 4: game manager.
Speaker 2: He took him a long time to do it though, Nick.
Speaker 4: It did take him a long time. But Jerome's got
Speaker 4: a lot of time now, He's got a lot of
Speaker 4: time left. He's young enough.
Speaker 3: We don't I don't think. I don't think Benji ever
Speaker 3: did that overly successfully. I really don't. I don't think
Speaker 3: he was ever I don't think you'd ever say he
Speaker 3: was an outstanding organizing half. He was always a run
Speaker 3: in six no matter what Numery had in his back.
Speaker 5: I reckon.
Speaker 2: I think he made a bit of a fist of
Speaker 2: it in the last probably two or three years. That
Speaker 2: year at CIT he had at South, I think he
Speaker 2: did a reasonable job of it.
Speaker 4: I guess my point is, though, if we're going to
Speaker 4: have Jerome, if we're going to have Jerome locked in
Speaker 4: as a seven for long term, if he's going to
Speaker 4: be around the next four and a half years, and
Speaker 4: if we're going to have someone like Latu Fio next
Speaker 4: to him or Heath Mason, then I think Jerome has
Speaker 4: to play a little bit differently. He can't be hopping
Speaker 4: and skipping across the across the field because so it
Speaker 4: comes back, like I just said, with Heath Mason, it
Speaker 4: did compliment well because he straightened it up. And actually
Speaker 4: one comment that Scott Drinkwater made after the game in
Speaker 4: his interview on the field was how dangerous the Tigers
Speaker 4: looks and how unpredictable they are in that last twenty
Speaker 4: when we scored all those points. But he was talking
Speaker 4: about Luai, how he dances all across the middle of
Speaker 4: the field and you never know what he's going to do.
Speaker 4: That's an asset. That's something we've got to learn to use.
Speaker 4: But I think he needs to pull it back a
Speaker 4: little bit now. I don't know whether he's just trying
Speaker 4: too hard because we're struggling, we're not getting the wins,
Speaker 4: but we do need to change it up. Something needs
Speaker 4: to change.
Speaker 3: But it's not just attacking structures like I'm managing halfback. Yeah,
Speaker 3: a lot of the attack comes comes off well no,
Speaker 3: not all the attack has to come off the half back.
Speaker 3: The management of who the attack comes off has to
Speaker 3: be managed, usually by the seven. But it's not just
Speaker 3: him putting someone through a gap. It's not just him
Speaker 3: straight in, don't I don't disagree with any of that.
Speaker 3: I agree with it one hundred percent. But it's just
Speaker 3: managing the game. It's putting in the right kick at
Speaker 3: the right time, at the right spot, with everyone else
Speaker 3: on the field knowing that that's what's happening, and everyone's
Speaker 3: in sync because he's got He's got everyone in sync.
Speaker 3: And I'm not seeing that from him. And I'll go
Speaker 3: back to Luke Brooks. We never ever saw it from
Speaker 3: Luke Brooks, and we're seeing it again at Manned with
Speaker 3: Loue Brooks. He just can't do it right. You need
Speaker 3: someone who can do that. And you know with Melbourne
Speaker 3: it used to be well it was a couple of players,
Speaker 3: but Kevin Smith was so good at just calm and
Speaker 3: everyone down and managing the team home. I know he
Speaker 3: did it from nine now had the help of someone
Speaker 3: like Kronk. You know they're at seven. But we don't
Speaker 3: have that.
Speaker 5: We look.
Speaker 3: You know, you mentioned how off the cuff we are, Nick,
Speaker 3: and that is an asset, But it's also us looking
Speaker 3: like we're chucks with our heads cut off and no
Speaker 3: one really knows where we're heading, where we're going, And
Speaker 3: it comes down to some piece of individual brilliance or
Speaker 3: the occasional good attacking structured play which usually involves Buller.
Speaker 3: You know, if I'm honest, that's what we're missing.
Speaker 5: Yeah, it is.
Speaker 3: It's absolutely his passing game and straight and he's running game.
Speaker 5: So much more than that.
Speaker 1: Something also that is reminiscent of our darker days. That
Speaker 1: happened in that game, and it's happened in all of
Speaker 1: our poorer our poorer plays, our poorer games, this year,
Speaker 1: probably in some of our wins too, but it hasn't
Speaker 1: been quite as noticeable. But we've spoken about it a
Speaker 1: fair bit on the pod through the years. But compounding mistakes,
Speaker 1: so you know, we drop a ball, hand the ball
Speaker 1: back to the opposition to a giveaway six again, and
Speaker 1: then something else happens, and something else happens. It's sort
Speaker 1: of multiple things going wrong and not being able to
Speaker 1: sort of stem that flows. That's what makes me worried
Speaker 1: about where we might be heading this year. I was
Speaker 1: pretty optimistic that we're going to be a little more competitive,
Speaker 1: and there's those moments of brilliance that you see Tower
Speaker 1: for example, you know, to roover Buller, you see it
Speaker 1: every now and then, But in terms of playing like
Speaker 1: a team and playing like most of the other teams
Speaker 1: in the competition, and we still seem a little bit
Speaker 1: off the pace, which is frustrating because theoretically, Gary, you
Speaker 1: would say that building a team to play in the
Speaker 1: NRL's I don't want to use the term easy, because
Speaker 1: nothing in the NRL, because it's so competitive, is easy.
Speaker 1: But you would think the more attainable goal would be
Speaker 1: to build a good, solid team that defends well and
Speaker 1: makes meters but may not have the razzle dazzle to
Speaker 1: score a lot of points. But we're topsy turvy on that,
Speaker 1: which is sort of frustrating.
Speaker 2: Yeah, well, I think a lot of it, and even
Speaker 2: a lot of what Steve was talking about still does
Speaker 2: come down to a lack of quality across the squad.
Speaker 2: I still think there's too many players in our top
Speaker 2: seventeen who aren't up the NRL standard. And what that
Speaker 2: results in is you go out there and you you're
Speaker 2: playing on tilt a little bit, so you know that
Speaker 2: you've got weaknesses in your squad, so you try and
Speaker 2: that trying to score off like every set of six
Speaker 2: and stuff comes about because you know, we've got a
Speaker 2: guy in the side, he's likely to put a ball down.
Speaker 2: You know you've got a guy on the side, he's
Speaker 2: likely to give away a silly penalty, these sort of things.
Speaker 2: And I'm not talking about for any individual, but across
Speaker 2: the squad. It makes it hard to play that really
Speaker 2: structured and really disciplined sort of football when when you've
Speaker 2: got those sort of people still in your team and
Speaker 2: players players know that they have that. And and you
Speaker 2: said something a little bit ago, Joel about our lack
Speaker 2: of a lack of push from those second rowers. That
Speaker 2: makes a massive difference on across the park on what
Speaker 2: you're able to do with the ball, and it affects
Speaker 2: your shape and structure so much when you when you
Speaker 2: have those weaknesses. And for me, the biggest thing that
Speaker 2: the biggest issue we have is I think we're at
Speaker 2: least three players short of where we need to be
Speaker 2: to be a really competitive squad. To be it's a
Speaker 2: side that you would think, yeah, they're going to make
Speaker 2: the top eight. I think we're still at least three
Speaker 2: players short and to be a genuine contender. We're probably
Speaker 2: four or five players that I think we need to
Speaker 2: upgrade on over the next couple of years. But I
Speaker 2: think we need strong upgrades on at least three players
Speaker 2: going into next season, possibly four.
Speaker 3: I think it's interesting talking about the back row, as
Speaker 3: you know, we always tend to go back to see
Speaker 3: Fath and say, look, the guy's probably not the ideal
Speaker 3: man to have out there on the right edge, and
Speaker 3: we need to strengthen that. And you know, possibly with
Speaker 3: the rooms going around and getting that guy from Newcastle,
Speaker 3: maybe we are. But I just want to mention Sam Fay,
Speaker 3: who has really flying under the radar a little bit
Speaker 3: this year. I think he's been injured, right, He's had
Speaker 3: he's had some injuries, and I think he's still not
Speaker 3: right because he's not nearly as impactful.
Speaker 5: As he has been.
Speaker 3: And I don't know whether that's that's because he's not
Speaker 3: getting the opportunity that they're not running that ball to
Speaker 3: him like.
Speaker 5: We have previously.
Speaker 3: But you know, having Sea Fuss on the right, who
Speaker 3: is not an attacking weapon, and then you go to
Speaker 3: the left and you go to Feinu who is either
Speaker 3: playing injured or not getting opportunity, and it's sort of
Speaker 3: like it means both edges of you know, we're shooting blanks.
Speaker 2: Well, I think I think feyn Who is probably at
Speaker 2: that point where sides have watched a lot more football
Speaker 2: lining than they'd seen. They know how he likes to play,
Speaker 2: they know how he likes to receive the ball, and
Speaker 2: it gets called second year syndrome quite often. But once
Speaker 2: there's a little bit more vision out there about players
Speaker 2: and teams get to game plan around him a little bit,
Speaker 2: better players find that second year a lot harder, and
Speaker 2: the really good players they come through that and they
Speaker 2: adapt their game. So I think he's at that point now,
Speaker 2: and I do agree at times he struggled, but there
Speaker 2: was a couple of nice runs from him last night.
Speaker 2: There was a really good punchy run that I saw
Speaker 2: from him that I remember seeing from him. So I'm
Speaker 2: still quite happy with how he's going. But definitely lock
Speaker 2: in a second second rower is something we're really missing
Speaker 2: this season and something we need to look at for
Speaker 2: next year. I'd want to be upgrading both of those
Speaker 2: for next.
Speaker 1: Yearn And I hate to compliment another team's player, but
Speaker 1: you know, that's the standard that we need to be
Speaker 1: aiming for it Nick, at least one guy that's as
Speaker 1: impactful as he is. I mean, that's two steps ahead
Speaker 1: of what we've got there at the moment.
Speaker 4: Yeah, he was really good. I tried to take that
Speaker 4: try off him that he'skilled, just stuff to kick off
Speaker 4: in the second half where he I thought he was
Speaker 4: half a step off side, but you're right, Gary, I
Speaker 4: slid it right down to the frame where the ball
Speaker 4: was leaving the foot, and I'll tell you what, he
Speaker 4: was a millimeter perfect, Like it was that close. But
Speaker 4: even their take, like, yeah, it's so difficult running at
Speaker 4: full speed with a ball coming from behind you or
Speaker 4: over the top of your head to actually see it,
Speaker 4: have the composure to take it and then fend off
Speaker 4: whoever's in front of you and you know, run out
Speaker 4: of twenty meters of school. But yeah, that's quality. He's
Speaker 4: a quality back row.
Speaker 2: He does that regularly. Yeah, Ever since he's come in
Speaker 2: to grade, he's made a pretty good under the high ball.
Speaker 4: Well, these are the weapons in those key positions that
Speaker 4: we need. So hopefully kuy Piers Paul comes across. I've
Speaker 4: been watching him a little bit, like you said, Steve.
Speaker 4: You know, he's been a lot of rumors that he
Speaker 4: may be coming across next next season. He's a big
Speaker 4: boy and he's pretty skillful, so hopefully we can get him.
Speaker 4: I know, Gary, we've talked about a lock. He's still
Speaker 4: looking at a censer as well.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I think we need a center as well. What
Speaker 2: about as I spoke earlier, if we could get the
Speaker 2: right half back, I'd be looking at a halfback as well.
Speaker 2: And I still think a prop I think we're still
Speaker 2: a prop short. Especially I think we're a starting prop short,
Speaker 2: someone with a bit more impact in that first twenty
Speaker 2: minutes because as I said, that's been an issue all season.
Speaker 2: I think will be an issue every single game where
Speaker 2: you play. Is that lack of impact in that first
Speaker 2: twenty minutes.
Speaker 4: Can I ask what happened with Royce Hunt last night?
Speaker 2: I can only guess that he's picked up some kind
Speaker 2: of injury. The fact that twel went off for Hia
Speaker 2: and didn't come back. I really hope that it sounds bad.
Speaker 2: I hope it was an injury. Yeah, because we needed
Speaker 2: him in that second half. We needed another stint from
Speaker 2: him because everyone else had to carry that load for him.
Speaker 1: There are some positives. I want to talk about a
Speaker 1: couple of the positives. Positives, Yeah, absolutely, But I've done
Speaker 1: some math and I've taken a hundred seventy five thousand
Speaker 1: dollars which I think is popped up in the West
Speaker 1: Tigers Bank account in the last couple of days. And
Speaker 1: I think that's what seventeen and a half ref sprays.
Speaker 1: It does. Benji, he said the sin Binnings were harsh.
Speaker 1: They scored four tries in those twenty minutes when we
Speaker 1: were down to play. But I mean, I know Eddie
Speaker 1: would be in agreement, but he's you know, does Benji
Speaker 1: need to come out, Steve and be a little bit
Speaker 1: more firm with what we're because it seems to be
Speaker 1: every single week we're not getting the rub of the
Speaker 1: green with the refs.
Speaker 3: Yeah, that's right, but my answer is no, he can't
Speaker 3: do it at the moment because it takes shifts a blame
Speaker 3: away from what's happening with our playing group. Our playing
Speaker 3: group need to take absolute responsibility for that loss this weekend.
Speaker 3: It wasn't the referee. Yeah, he was tough. He was
Speaker 3: the same as he always is. We said it during
Speaker 3: the week right the minute I saw something as a referee,
Speaker 3: I said, where toast, We're gone right now. I say
Speaker 3: it jokingly, but I mean it because I know we're
Speaker 3: not disciplined enough to handle his level of scrutiny. It's
Speaker 3: the same every single time he referees Is Klein as well.
Speaker 3: They are the two most officious referees that.
Speaker 5: There are, and where the word.
Speaker 3: I've been a little bit professional if I can, but
Speaker 3: there's a few other words that I've probably used to
Speaker 3: describe them as well. But the fact is that's the
Speaker 3: reality and we have to accept that. And as I said,
Speaker 3: you know, given away having the first twenty minutes that
Speaker 3: we had with a number of errors and penalties and
Speaker 3: symbans and rock infringentes that we had. You can't blame
Speaker 3: something for that. The team need to take responsibility and
Speaker 3: and do whatever they have to do to not give
Speaker 3: away those momentum changes and those mistakes that end up
Speaker 3: us being on our goal line fifteen minutes into a game,
Speaker 3: having set after set after set bombarded on our line,
Speaker 3: which happened to happens to us most weeks. Then we fatigue.
Speaker 3: Then the back end of the half we fall apart.
Speaker 4: See you said, you know, you looked at the referees
Speaker 4: and he knew who were gone. I looked in and
Speaker 4: saw it was dream Buller's fifty at ten or old
Speaker 4: game and one you who were gone.
Speaker 3: We just cannot win a most game, we can't.
Speaker 1: During Buller, he had a good game, one mistake which
Speaker 1: didn't end up being too costly. I was a little
Speaker 1: bit disappointed one of his defensive efforts when the Cowboys
Speaker 1: scored in the first half, But I thought, you know,
Speaker 1: he does provide such an attacking threat. But I've got
Speaker 1: a couple of guys here aside from Mason, and I
Speaker 1: want to talk about Mason and Latu Fainu in a
Speaker 1: few minutes, if that's all right. But I've got I've
Speaker 1: got a wrap on Tower. I thought he had a
Speaker 1: really good game, provided a real attacking threat. I thought
Speaker 1: Charlie Stains accounted for himself really well, and Tony Suker
Speaker 1: off the bench provided something as well. For a guy
Speaker 1: that's only played a small handful of games, he seems
Speaker 1: to be gary. He looks to me like he's not
Speaker 1: out of place in NRL.
Speaker 2: There's definitely some promise there with Soucca, and I would
Speaker 2: actually consider giving him a start soon over save Farf.
Speaker 2: I think he's providing more impact than say Half is providing,
Speaker 2: so I think he can be an option there on
Speaker 2: the edge. I do really want to address Toer. I've
Speaker 2: had my doubts about Tower. He seemed to be a
Speaker 2: guy who could play one, maybe two really strong games
Speaker 2: and then would kind of disappear and have a poor
Speaker 2: game or some really bad defensive reeds in a game.
Speaker 2: His game's gone to another level this year, and I'm
Speaker 2: willing to call it now that he's This change is
Speaker 2: hopefully a permanent change. His upper body strength seems really
Speaker 2: strong at the moment. I'm really pleased when we get
Speaker 2: him early bore and it's a two and two situation.
Speaker 2: He's a chance of every time of creating space for
Speaker 2: his winger. Even the one that got intercepted last night.
Speaker 2: He got intercepted because he had drawn that center in
Speaker 2: and it was a bit of a fluky kind of intercept.
Speaker 2: So he did really well in that. His upper body
Speaker 2: strength and that left hand fend that he's got going
Speaker 2: at the moment is a real danger. And I think
Speaker 2: Taruver's going to in the back half the season. We'll
Speaker 2: get plenty more tries just through the space that he's creating,
Speaker 2: and not just that he's scoring tries on his own.
Speaker 2: He's got to last night, yeah, where one of them
Speaker 2: was really really soft. But he seems really hard to
Speaker 2: put down an attackle right now. So yeah, I'm really
Speaker 2: happy with the way he's playing. He's a very difficult
Speaker 2: to contain at the moment, so big comes up to tower.
Speaker 2: I didn't think he had this sort of play over
Speaker 2: a couple of months in him that I've seen from
Speaker 2: him so far this season. Gary, this have to do.
Speaker 4: When I was trolling through X someone actually made a
Speaker 4: comment that said, why is it every time we played
Speaker 4: the Cowboys stuff and Tower turns into Melmaninger. I thought
Speaker 4: that was a very clever comment.
Speaker 2: It was a very clever comment, but it's a little
Speaker 2: it's a comment that's a little unfair on him in
Speaker 2: my opinion this year, because he's been showing that level
Speaker 2: of play apart from when he was injured all season
Speaker 2: and that left hand fan has been causing his opposition
Speaker 2: center a lot of trouble all season. And it's not
Speaker 2: surprising that Taruvera is our leaguing try Square at the
Speaker 2: moment because it's because he's playing outside Tyer and Tower's
Speaker 2: providing him with plenty of space and plenty of good ball.
Speaker 2: So it's been really pleasing to see you. I didn't
Speaker 2: I wouldn't have picked him. I didn't really want him
Speaker 2: in the side come round one. But he's the first
Speaker 2: center picked for us right now, and I'm happy for
Speaker 2: him to go into next season as one of our
Speaker 2: starting centers. I know that I.
Speaker 4: Mentioned quite a few pods ago that listens to an
Speaker 4: interview with Benji not that long ago, and he was
Speaker 4: talking about Stafford. Was somebody asked him a question about
Speaker 4: Stafford and Benji's comment was that the last couple of
Speaker 4: seasons he's been playing with a lot of injuries and
Speaker 4: playing through injuries as well, and Benji's words were, he
Speaker 4: knew that what we're seeing with Stafford, especially with his
Speaker 4: consistency picking up now, he knew it was there. He
Speaker 4: just had to get fully fit and fully strong and
Speaker 4: ready for NL to do it consistently. And I think
Speaker 4: that's what we're starting to see. So Benji's seen it
Speaker 4: and I think we're starting to see that on the field,
Speaker 4: which is really good.
Speaker 1: He's still only twenty four and the more Wow really
Speaker 1: strings together, it feels like he's been around forever.
Speaker 2: Yeah. Yeah, because he was at Newcastle before Heel was
Speaker 2: with us.
Speaker 1: So turns twenty five this year. Yeah, so a lot
Speaker 1: of years still in him. So fingers Christ also do
Speaker 1: he I mean defensively, I think he's well from where
Speaker 1: he was twelve months ago. Gary coming back from that injury.
Speaker 1: I think he's turning into pretty decent defender. There was
Speaker 1: a couple of times last night I thought they might
Speaker 1: beat him and he managed to get there. He's obviously
Speaker 1: the center that you're saying that we need an upgrade on.
Speaker 2: Yeah. Look, I just don't. I think he's having a
Speaker 2: good year. I think he's playing much better football than
Speaker 2: I expect. I wouldn't have had him starting side at all.
Speaker 2: In fact, I wouldn't have resigned him last year. But
Speaker 2: I think he's very safe at the moment. Defensively, for
Speaker 2: the most part, the effort is still there. I did
Speaker 2: see a little bit of laziness on the chase of
Speaker 2: one of their tries last night, but I can't really
Speaker 2: fauld him for that because the effort has been there
Speaker 2: all season. I just want a little bit more, a
Speaker 2: little bit more danger out of him. He's still slow
Speaker 2: as a wet week, and I think we just need
Speaker 2: a little bit more, a little bit more threat out
Speaker 2: wide than what he can provide at the moment. But
Speaker 2: I'm very happy with how he's performed this year, and
Speaker 2: I'd be very happy to offer him a one year contract,
Speaker 2: pretty much on the knowledge that if we upgrade to
Speaker 2: another center that they probably get his spot. I think
Speaker 2: he's been good this.
Speaker 1: Year, and his goalkicking has been very good as well.
Speaker 3: Steve, when we do go into attacking structure and we
Speaker 3: have those sweeping plays that the tower is now such
Speaker 3: an important part of, and Also, bullet is a really
Speaker 3: important part of we sort of limit ourselves having do
Speaker 3: it center on the other side, because he's not that
Speaker 3: type of player. He's not a catch and pass, you know,
Speaker 3: at pace sort of player. He's more hit the line,
Speaker 3: deaf footwork at the line and try to jink his
Speaker 3: way through and maybe hold up defender and get a
Speaker 3: ball away. And that doesn't really suit the structure that
Speaker 3: we show when we are showing structure. So I agree
Speaker 3: he's improved a lot, but I still find him fairly
Speaker 3: frustrating to watch because you know, the ball comes to
Speaker 3: him and then and then we go nowhere, we sort
Speaker 3: of got to start again. He's almost playing, you know,
Speaker 3: like a settling type hit up role in the attack,
Speaker 3: and I think we, you know, we need to be
Speaker 3: able to have that sweeping play on both sides of
Speaker 3: the field.
Speaker 1: I think, yeah, No, I don't disagree, Heath Mason nick.
Speaker 1: He straightened the attack. He's got a lovely try himself.
Speaker 1: What I liked as well was that I didn't have
Speaker 1: my heart in my mouth every time the ball went
Speaker 1: out to our right, because it felt like defensively, he
Speaker 1: was a lot tighter than what we've had there previously
Speaker 1: Latsu feyn who if fit, Like, what are you doing
Speaker 1: with that number six Jersey or that number seven Jersey?
Speaker 1: Who gets it? Mace and all la to this weekend?
Speaker 2: Yeah.
Speaker 4: I had a quick chat over a messenger with Gary
Speaker 4: a couple of hours ago about this suit.
Speaker 2: Did I reply? Yeah, you did? You did?
Speaker 4: Maybe it's he covid you've got a bit of amnesia,
Speaker 4: but a different Gary. I'd probably Yeah, different Gary, I'd
Speaker 4: give Heath another run. If Lasi was fit, I'd probably
Speaker 4: put Latu on the bench. We're going to be missing
Speaker 4: twelve next week, so there's probably a lot position that
Speaker 4: we need to fill there, so there's probably a bit
Speaker 4: of shuffling that could happen too. So I think potentially
Speaker 4: once the game settles next week that potentially you could
Speaker 4: bring Latu on and put him in that thirteen sort
Speaker 4: of role and get him ball playing as well. But
Speaker 4: I'd definitely give Heath another go. I don't think Heath
Speaker 4: did anything wrong. And one question actually had during the
Speaker 4: Midweek pod a couple of days ago about Heath was
Speaker 4: what his kicking game looked like. Because I hadn't seen it,
Speaker 4: I thought it was pretty good, Like it was no
Speaker 4: worse than what Jerome was putting in last night either.
Speaker 4: So I haven't seen any short kicks from him, but
Speaker 4: you could get the board out of feel pretty well.
Speaker 1: So I like to assaw, Yeah, well, that's first game
Speaker 1: up in the line in first grade and he didn't
Speaker 1: look too out of place. Give him twenty twenty five games,
Speaker 1: there might be a player there.
Speaker 2: Gary. Defensively, my biggest concern going into Yes They was
Speaker 2: him defending in the front line, and I thought he
Speaker 2: did a really good job of that, put his body
Speaker 2: on the line and made his tackles that he had
Speaker 2: to make. I thought he was really strong. What his
Speaker 2: performance last night, What it does for me is it
Speaker 2: means that we don't have to parachute in Latu Feu
Speaker 2: next week. And I think that's actually a really good thing.
Speaker 2: La Two's coming back. He's been having hamstring issues for
Speaker 2: what is it like eighteen months now, So for me,
Speaker 2: Lar two plays reserve grade next week, and you build
Speaker 2: up his time, and you build him up properly and
Speaker 2: allow him to return in a safe manner, and heith
Speaker 2: Mason playing well last night provide you with that opportunity.
Speaker 2: Now he could turn around on Sunday and have a
Speaker 2: really poor game and then you don't have a choice
Speaker 2: but to look at Latu. But at this point in time,
Speaker 2: Latu at Heath Mason gives you the benefit of being
Speaker 2: a little bit more careful with Latu, and I think
Speaker 2: we do need to be I do want to see
Speaker 2: Latu in the haves for a good chunk of time
Speaker 2: this season, because, like, if that's what we're moving forward with,
Speaker 2: I'd like more more data on how he's going to
Speaker 2: go in that area. But I think Mason did a
Speaker 2: solid job last night and looked dangerous with the boar,
Speaker 2: and I think is a really good option for us
Speaker 2: next week. I'll be picking him at five to eight
Speaker 2: next weekend.
Speaker 4: Just what I'm not think. On Heath too, it looks
Speaker 4: really really well received by the boys, So he looks
Speaker 4: like one of the boys. And there's been articles about
Speaker 4: Heath over the last couple of days about how much
Speaker 4: he loves the club and he doesn't want to be
Speaker 4: anywhere else but West Tigers.
Speaker 2: And he played like that too.
Speaker 4: He really took that opportunity. And Gary, what you're talking
Speaker 4: about defensive wise too, at fullback he is behind the
Speaker 4: line a lot of the time defense and he's a
Speaker 4: little fella, and when big boys or anyone's running at
Speaker 4: him at speed and he's waiting to make that impact,
Speaker 4: he does look a little bit fragile there. But in
Speaker 4: the halves last night he was in the defensive line
Speaker 4: and up really quick because he's so explosive off the mark.
Speaker 4: Who I think that helps Hi out of defense. But
Speaker 4: he didn't shy away, he didn't give anything away, you know,
Speaker 4: body size wise, he was up in that defensive line
Speaker 4: quicker than anyone.
Speaker 2: I really liked what I saw.
Speaker 1: One hundred percent. Jarrell Skelton apparently back as well. We
Speaker 1: well know more on the midwek pod, but that you know,
Speaker 1: I guess most people would say he'll come in for
Speaker 1: Charlie stains. But I don't think Charlie deserves to be dropped.
Speaker 1: But you know, I get that Skelton has more impact. Gary,
Speaker 1: I was going to ask you there were some wins
Speaker 1: in the lower grade, which is fantastic to see that
Speaker 1: new Southos Cup team got to win. Oh my goodness,
Speaker 1: it's a miracle.
Speaker 2: But you watch the game.
Speaker 1: I believe anybody, take your fancy might come into first grade.
Speaker 1: Kitler Lily is the one that sort of I have
Speaker 1: on my mind given twe I was going to be.
Speaker 2: At Yeah, Kip, I thought kit was quite strong. I
Speaker 2: do want to see him move up into that first
Speaker 2: grade side. Luke, who played fullback, was very dangerous, scored
Speaker 2: a really nice try, created space for players outside him,
Speaker 2: so I thought he did a really good job playing fullback.
Speaker 2: So yeah, it was a really solid game yesterday. It
Speaker 2: was kind of the opposite of the first grade. They
Speaker 2: got off to a really nice lead and then Newtown
Speaker 2: really came back at them at the end and they
Speaker 2: just managed to hold on. But yeah, Luke really impressed
Speaker 2: me yesterday. He was the standout for me in that game.
Speaker 2: So I think we'll be seeing him in first grade
Speaker 2: again at some point this year.
Speaker 4: I watched the highlights of that one today going on
Speaker 4: the website. So Talon looked like he was doing normal.
Speaker 2: Talent, played really well. I thought he was very Yeah,
Speaker 2: he had had a great game. Really look like he's
Speaker 2: fighting for it to get his spot back to me,
Speaker 2: and yeah, it was probably the best player on the field.
Speaker 4: Did he get through eighty minutes?
Speaker 2: I can't quite remember. I was actually watching two games
Speaker 2: at once. I was watching the reserve grade game in
Speaker 2: the NFL game that was on at the same time,
Speaker 2: so I can't tell you whether he played the full ady. Okay,
Speaker 2: all right, well.
Speaker 1: It's another West Tigers podcast. It's another post defeat edition
Speaker 1: of the West Tigers podcast. I could do these blindfolded
Speaker 1: and with my you know, with my ears blocked, because
Speaker 1: we've done so many, We've got so much practices at
Speaker 1: post post loss editions of the pod.
Speaker 2: So what says this is number four hundred and five
Speaker 2: or something, So what at least three eighty of those
Speaker 2: you see?
Speaker 4: Can I just say, Steve's face just looks like a
Speaker 4: permanent post loss face. Steve, Steve, can you smile? I know,
Speaker 4: I know this is audio and no one can see you,
Speaker 4: but I'm looking at you, mate, and you just look sad.
Speaker 2: Thanks Nick, Look knowing you have to come on here
Speaker 2: and speak to you for an hour, Nick, it kind
Speaker 2: of does that. Thanks Gary.
Speaker 1: Well, as I said right at the beginning, if it
Speaker 1: wasn't for that comeback, and not that the comeback really
Speaker 1: means much to me, but at least it gives me,
Speaker 1: gave me a little bit of energy and a little
Speaker 1: bit of enthusiasm, because if things had continued on from
Speaker 1: the sixty minute mark to the eighty minute mark. On
Speaker 1: that same trajectory, there wouldn't have been this edition of
Speaker 1: the West Tigers Podcast. I was yeah, I was just
Speaker 1: over it anyway.
Speaker 4: Yep, Nick and Penrith Panthers next week, that's going to be.
Speaker 4: That's going to be tough. I know Penrith is still
Speaker 4: below us, but for how much longer I don't know.
Speaker 4: So I can just see it now. Figers lose to
Speaker 4: Penrith next week, the media is going to be all
Speaker 4: about Penrith and there climb back up the ladder.
Speaker 2: So just go straight to the negative. What happens when
Speaker 2: they lose next week? I'll be talking about him getting
Speaker 2: the wooden spoon again.
Speaker 4: Eddie's word was actually spoon watch, so he is on
Speaker 4: spoon watch. He could obviously be on suicide watch for Eddie.
Speaker 4: I'm looking out for you, mate. I hope you're right.
Speaker 1: Batman versus Robin big game this weekend. Let's leave that
Speaker 1: for the MIDWEK pod.
Speaker 5: Thank you guys, Jeers guys, thanks for DS Boss