Speaker 1: If you love the West Tigers as much as we do,
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Speaker 1: there soon. It's the West Tigers Podcast. How good to
Speaker 1: be doing a post victory edition of the West Tigers Podcast, Steve,
Speaker 1: I have to go back to the manual and how
Speaker 1: to do a podcast because I'd forgotten how to do
Speaker 1: a post victory edition. It's been a little while.
Speaker 2: But a lovely.
Speaker 1: Result this afternoon. Great to get the win. What's your
Speaker 1: one word?
Speaker 3: Oh well, first of yes, it is lovely, get a result,
Speaker 3: great to be a winner. My one word is simple one.
Speaker 3: This week just showed up. The team showed up. That
Speaker 3: was obvious from that. You know, we've been notoriously slow
Speaker 3: to start games and we just came out of the
Speaker 3: blocks on a mission this afternoon. Benji even referenced it
Speaker 3: in the press's press conference. He said, in the warm up,
Speaker 3: it looked like there was something pretty special brewing and
Speaker 3: that's the way they started. Now we'll get into this ladder.
Speaker 3: I'm sure it didn't. It didn't maintain that intensity through
Speaker 3: the eighty minutes, but because of that start and the
Speaker 3: fact they showed up with that attitude, it got them
Speaker 3: across the line at the end of the day.
Speaker 1: It's a good interchangeable one word because there's been plenty
Speaker 1: of times where we've been doing a losing edition of
Speaker 1: the West Tigers podcast and showed up would have been
Speaker 1: an adequate one word because we were showed.
Speaker 3: Yeah, it's all context, isn't it It is?
Speaker 1: Nick is here, he's once again in front of the
Speaker 1: scoreboard at the Likehard Oval, and he's got his blinger
Speaker 1: on these big Tiger chain filming the positive vibes. Nick,
Speaker 1: what's your word?
Speaker 4: I got the team who were seven dollars chain on
Speaker 4: the Jerome Will I love it.
Speaker 2: John.
Speaker 4: My word is a rhythmia because my heartbeat was all
Speaker 4: over the place during that game, especially early on. I know,
Speaker 4: you know, I made a comment early on in the
Speaker 4: game that we weren't playing at NRL standard. I really
Speaker 4: thought we were lucky, because, to be honest, the first
Speaker 4: fifteen or save minutes, I felt like I was watching
Speaker 4: that movie that we've all seen before, like we made
Speaker 4: so many silly mistakes where I was just waiting for
Speaker 4: you Roosters to score early and get on top.
Speaker 1: It didn't happen.
Speaker 4: So I can't fault the boys for effort. They put
Speaker 4: in a real, real hard effort today.
Speaker 1: I think it should be sort of a contractual obligation
Speaker 1: that we all have for those defibrillators in our homes
Speaker 1: if we're going to be West Tigers. Fin So that
Speaker 1: links in. Well, Gary, he's got a game face on,
Speaker 1: not looking too happy. It was only a two point win, Gary,
Speaker 1: not good enough what you.
Speaker 2: Were According to Benji, it wasn't good enough, which I
Speaker 2: was pretty pleased to hear him say in that press conference.
Speaker 2: But my one word's going to be fight. I thought
Speaker 2: the team showed up on a day where there's a
Speaker 2: lot of ready made excuses today, a lot of players out,
Speaker 2: six losses in a row, both our captain's out, and
Speaker 2: I thought they showed up and they showed the fight
Speaker 2: that I think for most of the season, apart from
Speaker 2: probably two games, they have shown a lot of fight.
Speaker 2: And I think it's hard to argue that this team
Speaker 2: actually while looking clunky and poor and execution at times.
Speaker 2: It is a team that has plenty of fight and
Speaker 2: plenty of willpower to kind of keep in there because
Speaker 2: seasons passed, this is the point of the season where
Speaker 2: we start to give up, and there was no signs
Speaker 2: of that today. So I was quite impressed with the
Speaker 2: fight from the voice that yeah, that's a good one.
Speaker 1: They did fight. Eddie's word was fainers, but I'm actually
Speaker 1: going to put a word in for it, that's bender.
Speaker 1: I think Eddie's on the bender to end all benders
Speaker 1: by all accounts, somewhere in the Eastern Suburbs at the
Speaker 1: moment with the vodka Red Bulls, And we could have
Speaker 1: had him on the podcast tonight, but I don't know
Speaker 1: exactly how conducive to good conversation that might have been
Speaker 1: given the state that I think that Eddie is in.
Speaker 1: But good to see Eddie enjoy yourself. My words, I've
Speaker 1: got gritty because like your word, fight like it was gritty.
Speaker 1: We didn't give up, fought for everything. It was just
Speaker 1: a gritty win. I've got two hundred and fifty because
Speaker 1: it was the West Tigers two hundred and fiftieth win
Speaker 1: in the NRL. Don't ask me how many losses we've had.
Speaker 1: It a lot more than.
Speaker 2: Two hundred and fifty.
Speaker 1: We're still sitting on that thirty eight percent win record.
Speaker 1: But two hundred and fifty big achievement for the club,
Speaker 1: and I don't think that's been recognized anywhere else. So
Speaker 1: well done. And the word and actually Mike has put
Speaker 1: the same word through on the West Tigers podcast for him,
Speaker 1: and I think it's the word that lead sums it
Speaker 1: up and that's needed. Steve. It was. It was a
Speaker 1: win that was needed on so many levels for the club.
Speaker 3: Absolutely it was. And I think sometimes we don't realize
Speaker 3: how badly Situa, how badly the media and the pressure
Speaker 3: affects those within the club until after the event. And
Speaker 3: just listening to Benji and players earlier on today, they
Speaker 3: were talking how the players were saying they wanted to
Speaker 3: do it for Benji and then he'd been through a
Speaker 3: light and Benji was sort of like you could tell
Speaker 3: he was very relieved. It's obviously it's been a bit
Speaker 3: of a powder keg in there. But just before we
Speaker 3: move on, can I can I just give you one
Speaker 3: more one word. It's a bit of a lighter bit of.
Speaker 2: A lighter Sita.
Speaker 3: So I was I was sitting at the ground today
Speaker 3: and before the game and just look look up at
Speaker 3: the big screen and an advertisement came up for a
Speaker 3: crypto company, so they're obviously advertising sponsor the Roosters called
Speaker 3: cash Stash. So my other big word for the lower
Speaker 3: one word for days cash Stash as a rooster sponsor.
Speaker 3: And I've actually got something that can go along with that.
Speaker 3: I want to say, Sydney Roosters and cash Stash been
Speaker 3: stashing cash since.
Speaker 4: Round paper bags?
Speaker 3: How God?
Speaker 2: Was that? Yeah? Appropriate? Just to go back to that
Speaker 2: Benji point, Steve, I'm sorry, No, you're completely fine. I
Speaker 2: thought that was hilarious. But to go back to the
Speaker 2: players wanting to play for Benji, I think La Two's
Speaker 2: comments after the game we're quite telling. Alex Fole said
Speaker 2: it in the press conference as well. I don't think
Speaker 2: there's any doubt that the players we have in the club,
Speaker 2: or the at least of the vast majority of the
Speaker 2: players we have in the club, want to play for
Speaker 2: Benji Marshall. I've been quite critical in the past this
Speaker 2: season where a couple of times they haven't shown up
Speaker 2: of when Benji Marshalls needed them to show up again
Speaker 2: this week, and that's what I was worried about going
Speaker 2: into today. The pressure was starting to build on Benji
Speaker 2: and it was good to see those players that say
Speaker 2: they're standing behind him and say they're supporting him actually
Speaker 2: show up and put that onto the field today. I
Speaker 2: thought that was really impressive and it was really needed.
Speaker 2: But boy, I don't know where it came across on
Speaker 2: the TV for you guys watching it. Benji was riding
Speaker 2: that win today. He didn't leave the sideline, and I
Speaker 2: don't mean sitting on the bench on the sideline. He
Speaker 2: was standing like an EPL manager on the sideline, almost
Speaker 2: like an NFL coach or an English soccer coach. And
Speaker 2: when we got that penalty, the first one, the one
Speaker 2: in the first half that Adam do we put over,
Speaker 2: Latu Feinhu was standing one side of the side, like
Speaker 2: one side of the line. Benji was on the other
Speaker 2: given him instructions. It was almost it was almost at
Speaker 2: that point like the under sevens game where the coach
Speaker 2: goes out on the field with the players. He was
Speaker 2: that involved in and that connect God to his players
Speaker 2: that I thought it was really good to see.
Speaker 4: I loved that part seeing that Gary, it did come
Speaker 4: across the TV and the cameras kept panning to Benji
Speaker 4: standing there, and the commentators kept talking about, you have
Speaker 4: a look at Benji. You know, he's living and breathing,
Speaker 4: breathing the whole moment, and every every time something happened,
Speaker 4: he was barking instructions from the sideline at the players.
Speaker 4: He was screaming at them. If there was a break
Speaker 4: in player, he was calling out to whoever was within
Speaker 4: ear shot to get his point across. And that was
Speaker 4: really really good. I think it probably helps the players
Speaker 4: stay a little bit more engaged with those instructions coming
Speaker 4: from the coaching as well.
Speaker 2: As the game went on, Nick, he actually got close
Speaker 2: and closer to the sideline. I was worried at one
Speaker 2: point he was going to end up on the field
Speaker 2: just a couple of slips.
Speaker 3: Further was Adam Dewey looking nervous.
Speaker 1: I's going to take him out.
Speaker 2: It actually made me wonder, like how close is he
Speaker 2: allowed to get? Like he was within meters of that
Speaker 2: sideline a couple of points during that game, and like
Speaker 2: almost to the point where the cameraman stuff had to
Speaker 2: go around him. So yeah, I wonder what that rule is.
Speaker 1: I think it's I think it's there is another line
Speaker 1: that's often painted there on the field. I think it's
Speaker 1: like maybe a meter and a half or something like that.
Speaker 1: But yeah, you've got to be careful. But certainly I
Speaker 1: think we were all feeling that same those same feelings,
Speaker 1: and we probably would have all been down on the
Speaker 1: sideline doing the same thing if we could have. I
Speaker 1: was a bit worried there a couple of times. I
Speaker 1: always thought we had enough points and the roosters weren't
Speaker 1: throwing enough at us for me to get too worried.
Speaker 1: But got a little bit worried there towards the end.
Speaker 1: But they can't just make it easy. Not at this stage,
Speaker 1: before we talk more about the game, I was just
Speaker 1: going to say, just further to sort of what Gary
Speaker 1: was hitting on there Benji in the press conference. We
Speaker 1: want players that want to be here, Nick, it appears,
Speaker 1: I would suggest from the outside looking in that look.
Speaker 1: I think a couple of months ago we were all
Speaker 1: talking about some body language and some things picked up
Speaker 1: in like Terrell May's blog or vlog in the dressing room,
Speaker 1: footage of players sitting separately and things like that. Like
Speaker 1: it appears like the dynamic of the team has changed
Speaker 1: and they appear to be I know it's hard because
Speaker 1: it's a win, but they appear to be a well
Speaker 1: connected group. But there doesn't seem to be that division.
Speaker 1: We can't see that at least at this stage.
Speaker 4: I think there's a real brotherhood there.
Speaker 2: Job.
Speaker 4: I think it's probably a bit of a a three
Speaker 4: fainers and a couple of lillies. But now look the
Speaker 4: way that they're they're turning up every just about every week.
Speaker 4: There's been a couple of lapses. But you know, Benji
Speaker 4: spoke about in his press conference he was just extremely
Speaker 4: proud again of the way they came out, the effort
Speaker 4: they put on the field, especially you know after a
Speaker 4: lot of close losses. He did make a quite quick
Speaker 4: comment he said, look, even if the result went the
Speaker 4: other way, I still would have been proud of the effort.
Speaker 4: But you know we've got the win, which was good
Speaker 4: and Gary shaking head and I Benja did say after
Speaker 4: that that he wasn't happy because you know, we were
Speaker 4: twin nil up quite early and Joel, I know you
Speaker 4: said you didn't feel the Ruses were throwing enough as
Speaker 4: I had visions of a fifty to twenty loss early,
Speaker 4: and I think I've just got that much scar tissue,
Speaker 4: you know, I just I'm just sitting there waiting for
Speaker 4: the for the score. You know, the scoreboards flip the
Speaker 4: other way. So now, look, they're very tight Joel. The
Speaker 4: way that they speak about Benji as well, there's obviously
Speaker 4: a lot of respect there for him, and Benji's only
Speaker 4: forty years old. I know that we've spoken at length
Speaker 4: for the last few pods about Benji's longevity.
Speaker 1: In this role and how long you may last.
Speaker 4: Look, if the players respect him enough to come out
Speaker 4: and talk the way that they did after the game,
Speaker 4: especially Latu, He's only he got twenty years old, there's
Speaker 4: obviously a lot of love for the coach. And as
Speaker 4: long as they love and respect their coach as much
Speaker 4: as what is publicly being displayed now, I think that's
Speaker 4: going to turn into performances on a field. So you know,
Speaker 4: there's a bit of hope there. I'm pretty open.
Speaker 3: Just want to pick up on two things there. Firstly
Speaker 3: about have been a tight knit team. And I said
Speaker 3: this a couple of weeks ago that when I went
Speaker 3: to the team photo and I got to know at
Speaker 3: a distance watch the team like in a casual set
Speaker 3: in for a couple of hours, and they are really tight.
Speaker 3: It was just so obvious that they are together and
Speaker 3: they are enjoying each other's company and they're having a
Speaker 3: great time. And so I'm sure there's been a little
Speaker 3: bit of disharmony, but I think that's been weird out.
Speaker 3: But the second point, and I don't know whether it's
Speaker 3: more important or it's probably not now, but Benji was
Speaker 3: at pains to say, no, we haven't let anyone go.
Speaker 3: They didn't want to be here. They now. Telling the
Speaker 3: Silver has said all week that he wanted to say
Speaker 3: at the club that he envisioned himself being there long term,
Speaker 3: and but he put it to them that if Happy signs,
Speaker 3: he couldn't. It doesn't sort of marry up. I just
Speaker 3: get the feeling that Telling the Silver maybe wasn't as
Speaker 3: wasn't part of on the bus for one of a
Speaker 3: bit of word, as much as he would like us
Speaker 3: to think he was.
Speaker 1: Yeah, the narrative is that I wanted to stay and
Speaker 1: they didn't give me a choice. But yeah, deep down inside,
Speaker 1: when he didn't get what he wanted, then all of
Speaker 1: a sudden that proves how much you want to be
Speaker 1: here or not is how determined you are to make
Speaker 1: it work. Like you know, I know we've spoken a
Speaker 1: lot about Harry Grant in recent times, but Harry Grant
Speaker 1: wanted to be hard in Melbourne and felt that it
Speaker 1: was worthwhile sticking around for a couple of years to
Speaker 1: get that apprenticeship. Nick I wanted to say, I agree
Speaker 1: with you in regards to scar tissue. I find it
Speaker 1: very hard to enjoy West Tyger watching the West Tigers.
Speaker 1: It's punishment even when we're winning, because you're waiting for
Speaker 1: it to turn. You're waiting for that. Yeah, and the
Speaker 1: scar tissue that's there even from the very start where
Speaker 1: the Roosters kicked their first kick of the day and
Speaker 1: it went into the end goal and it's going dead
Speaker 1: for all money, and then it just takes this ninety
Speaker 1: degree right in turn and stays in the end goal.
Speaker 1: I'm like, oh God, don't tell me, but yeah. I
Speaker 1: was going to actually add in into one of my
Speaker 1: one words was happy, in that I had some actual
Speaker 1: moments of the game that made me happy, which is
Speaker 1: such a rare feeling as a Tiger's fin and one
Speaker 1: of them. Was when Latu jumped on that ball and
Speaker 1: ran and I thought, this is deja Oooh my god,
Speaker 1: he looks like Benji Marshall. The way he sort of
Speaker 1: jumped and skipped and took off. It was very Benji
Speaker 1: Marshall s Gary.
Speaker 2: Yeah, what really impressed me in that is I always
Speaker 2: thought his acceleration was really good. I thought he accelerated
Speaker 2: really well. The stop and speed looked pretty good on
Speaker 2: that run. There was no one making any ground on anyone.
Speaker 2: I know Todesco is not as fast as he used
Speaker 2: to be, but Todesco didn't take any think from him,
Speaker 2: so his top hands feed is actually pretty good as well.
Speaker 2: So I thought that was really impressive the way no
Speaker 2: one got mirroring it.
Speaker 4: I don't know about you boys, but when Latu made
Speaker 4: that fast and split them, I was hanging on every
Speaker 4: stride thinking, oh my god, hamstring, please don't. I just
Speaker 4: had visions of him pull on the left or pulling
Speaker 4: the right and been gone. But he made it and
Speaker 4: he got through the game. So yeah, he had a great,
Speaker 4: great game.
Speaker 1: And some really really important defense. But we'll talk a
Speaker 1: little bit more about that in the moment. Let's have
Speaker 1: a look at these West Tigers Podcast Forum one word
Speaker 1: submissions Peter A. Peter's word was conquered. We beat many
Speaker 1: demons today. It was a fantastic effort. Snake's word was deserved.
Speaker 1: They came to play and they succeeded. And Latu has arrived.
Speaker 1: C Q Tiger thanks thanks to Gus Gould for taking
Speaker 1: our one million dollar player. Rach O nine was where
Speaker 1: it was. Latu. What a gun player, just what we needed.
Speaker 1: Camberiger's word was proud. They showed a lot of heart.
Speaker 1: West Tiger's forever blue. I turned blue without being able
Speaker 1: to breathe. We nearly blew it. This team kills me,
Speaker 1: but I love them. We all know the feeling. Kenny
Speaker 1: four five one seven's word was effort. Wogga Tiger hope. Yes,
Speaker 1: Tristan was good, but hope for the future. Mike's word
Speaker 1: was needed. The team, the coach, and the fans really
Speaker 1: needed that. That's right, Mike, LFC Tiger, courage. Geni Tiger's
Speaker 1: word was forwards. Forwards win games. Tiger's mean physicality. They
Speaker 1: showed it from the start. Enumerator came up with five words.
Speaker 2: It's a former sy He's still in your your stick
Speaker 2: there only five.
Speaker 1: Well, you've got to blame Steve. Steve was the one
Speaker 1: who never stuck to the one word I've got. You know,
Speaker 1: remember that, Steve. You know I've got six words.
Speaker 3: Couldn't keep myself no recollection.
Speaker 1: Precedent was set five words, grand final. Here we comes.
Speaker 1: Good work there, Enumerator Tigersymmetry's word was poetry. To see
Speaker 1: all three Feinu's score and prole over the birdflow was poetry.
Speaker 1: Matt mac seventy eight's word was blocks. We got out
Speaker 1: of the blocks quickly and Mac tiger relief we needed it.
Speaker 1: Loved our forwards, Dewey and also Latsu. That was the
Speaker 1: first time ever that three brothers have scored a try
Speaker 1: in a first grade game. So a little bit of
Speaker 1: history made there. I was going to make the point
Speaker 1: in regards to this, and it's something that I haven't
Speaker 1: really heard very many people talking about. But as much
Speaker 1: as the Roosters were weakened, Gary, no Leui, no Buller,
Speaker 1: and no Happy, missing our three best attacking players, and
Speaker 1: still got the win. I mean that's a very very
Speaker 1: good sign.
Speaker 2: Still got the win and still scored thirty points. And
Speaker 2: there was times today where I thought our attack. Close
Speaker 2: to the best that's looked all year. That's Sam Feynu
Speaker 2: try and I'm sure we're going to a little bit
Speaker 2: more about the games. That's Sam. That was the best
Speaker 2: shape we've shown all season. It was a really nice play,
Speaker 2: the way Adam Dewey switched from the right hand side
Speaker 2: over to the left, and then that ball he threw
Speaker 2: for Sam and the space that lat and created inside him.
Speaker 2: It was a really well executed play, a block play
Speaker 2: that we don't seem to run very well, like safe
Speaker 2: got caught up a little bit in the line, but
Speaker 2: run the right line, so we hit the inside shoulder.
Speaker 2: It was really well executed. And even when we scored that,
Speaker 2: I looked at it and I thought, I've got to
Speaker 2: see the replay of this because I'm sure someone's messed
Speaker 2: up the wrong line there. Nope, it was perfect. So
Speaker 2: that's one of the best players where I've run all season.
Speaker 2: It was really good to see that without those really
Speaker 2: attacking players were able to execute a play like that.
Speaker 2: And there was a number of times we were executing
Speaker 2: really nice plays that are in attack.
Speaker 3: You actually you actually said it this as I stuck
Speaker 3: my hand up to speak, but I was going to say,
Speaker 3: especially in that first half, we were playing some really good,
Speaker 3: free flowing football, you know, for most of that first half,
Speaker 3: which was why we end up with a twenty point lead.
Speaker 3: But we were allowed to do that because our middle,
Speaker 3: our middles round page and Tristan Hope, like he didn't
Speaker 3: play a game like Happy would play, or even tallon
Speaker 3: to Silver will play where you notice him skirting out
Speaker 3: a dummy half and catching the markers offside, or getting
Speaker 3: a quick ten meter burst out of dumby half another
Speaker 3: of that. But he must have been doing his job well,
Speaker 3: quietly in the background without any fuss, because we were
Speaker 3: just pounding down the field in that first half. We
Speaker 3: were at the end of the day, the yardage game
Speaker 3: ended up about even because they came back in the
Speaker 3: second half, but in the first half we would have
Speaker 3: been way ahead of them on yardage. We were finishing
Speaker 3: our sets ten meters the other side of half way
Speaker 3: more than the odd occasion.
Speaker 2: What Tricia Hope did really well today, it was just
Speaker 2: nice service out of dummyheat. He wasn't a threat to
Speaker 2: run the ball, he wasn't dangerous around the ruck, but
Speaker 2: he gave really nice service, got the ball out in
Speaker 2: front of our forwards and allowed them to run onto
Speaker 2: the ball and get out of the advantage line. That's
Speaker 2: what he did really well today. I don't want want
Speaker 2: to criticize him because I thought he had a really
Speaker 2: good game and attack, but the Roosters clearly targeted him
Speaker 2: in defense. I think he ended up making forty one tackles,
Speaker 2: but they were picking him out time and time again
Speaker 2: to run at and when they were coming over us
Speaker 2: in that back end of the game once he came
Speaker 2: back on for Charlie Murray, I thought they isolated him
Speaker 2: quite a number of times. But credit where credits due.
Speaker 2: The service he provided to our forwards today was a
Speaker 2: key component of how well we started that game and
Speaker 2: got us on the front foot.
Speaker 1: It raises an interesting point, doesn't it, in that maybe
Speaker 1: if we look back on maybe the first ten or
Speaker 1: twelve rounds where we had the full strength team and
Speaker 1: we had the former half Backslash five eight and the
Speaker 1: combination of Appy that too many cooks spoil the broth
Speaker 1: and Nick sometimes you just need a clever, dummy half
Speaker 1: that just offers good service. And I'm not criticizing Appy,
Speaker 1: but maybe Happy when he feels that maybe he's trying
Speaker 1: too hard, he's trying to do too much sometimes, and
Speaker 1: that the faith and trust isn't quite there or hasn't
Speaker 1: been enough there in the harves And now you bring
Speaker 1: it back to you've got Faynu straightening things up. If
Speaker 1: Luai can get back to his strength, which is more
Speaker 1: straightening things up rather than going around in circles, and
Speaker 1: he continues to get you know, I think what my
Speaker 1: point being is is that as we struggle to score points,
Speaker 1: Appy ups the creativity, and I think sometimes that might
Speaker 1: stifle us a little bit. Albeit we need to have
Speaker 1: the right halves doing the right things for that situation
Speaker 1: to be counted.
Speaker 4: Yeah, well, we haven't really had a consistency bine across
Speaker 4: this season so far.
Speaker 2: Right, so we're over.
Speaker 4: Halfway apart from Buller at the back, you know, and
Speaker 4: Jerome's been there the majority of the games, you know,
Speaker 4: so as Appy, I suppose. But you know, we've had
Speaker 4: some changes in the half, so you know, those combinations
Speaker 4: have shifted a little bit. We've seen early in the
Speaker 4: season that it took you know, Lui quite a bit
Speaker 4: of time to settle into the way he wanted to
Speaker 4: play too, you know, when he first walked in the
Speaker 4: door or onto the field. Round one, it was all
Speaker 4: about giving Galvin as much ball as he could, and
Speaker 4: then that kind of shifted a little bit, especially when
Speaker 4: you know the talk that governmented out happens. You know,
Speaker 4: the White took a bit more control. That might be
Speaker 4: a bit the same with Appy too. I think once
Speaker 4: we once Appy's back and settles into the you know,
Speaker 4: the Jerome Slush Latu combination, that he might be able
Speaker 4: to shift his game a little bit too. I guess
Speaker 4: you get more benefit out of what we're doing attack wise,
Speaker 4: So I think there's still a lot of opportunity to
Speaker 4: work on those combinations across the what's left of the season.
Speaker 4: I think we've got what is it, eight or nine
Speaker 4: games left now, so hopefully we.
Speaker 1: Can how long's bullery up for.
Speaker 4: I'm sort of getting on the bit of another two
Speaker 4: weeks now, the two okay, so there's going to be
Speaker 4: a little bit of time let yet until we can
Speaker 4: get our full strength spote on the field. But hopefully
Speaker 4: that that last half of half a dozen or a
Speaker 4: handful of games, we can get you know, Ballerluy a
Speaker 4: Appy all on the field and we can start working
Speaker 4: on you know on what the combinations are going to
Speaker 4: look like going for next season, and there might be
Speaker 4: some changes coming up in the centers to the next
Speaker 4: couple of weeks, so we might get the season other
Speaker 4: guys come in and have an opportunity there.
Speaker 1: We hope you're enjoying this edition of the West Tigers Podcast.
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Speaker 2: I can't fault what Happy has been doing for us,
Speaker 2: not just this year, but the past couple of years.
Speaker 2: I'm very happy for him to use his creativity around
Speaker 2: the ruck whenever he sees hit. And I really think
Speaker 2: what I'm going to say is in our spine is Galvin,
Speaker 2: who I think Latu showed today and has shown the
Speaker 2: last couple of weeks that he is going to be
Speaker 2: a much I'm not going to say he's going to
Speaker 2: be a better player than Gavin, but he's going to
Speaker 2: be a player that combines better with with Luis. I
Speaker 2: just think Loui's tendency at times to go a little
Speaker 2: bit more across field and not bide in the line
Speaker 2: as much, having a guy like Latu playing inside him
Speaker 2: or playing next to him is just going to give
Speaker 2: him that extra space. It's going to make him more
Speaker 2: likely to play more direct. Because play so direct, it's
Speaker 2: just going to take Loui's game to another level, I think.
Speaker 2: I think the last month or so since Gavin left,
Speaker 2: Lui has been fantastic when he has paid for us.
Speaker 2: But I really think this combination with Latu is exactly
Speaker 2: the partner that Loui needed. And I also think the
Speaker 2: fact that he plays so direct, those markers and those
Speaker 2: type defenders are going to have to focus on him
Speaker 2: so much more. It's actually going to create opportunities for
Speaker 2: Appy as well. Because markers are going to be moving
Speaker 2: pretty quick to slide off of Appy, and those edge
Speaker 2: defenders aren't going to be able to stay as quite
Speaker 2: as tight. There's going to be opportunities there for Appy
Speaker 2: as well. I think this combination, this spine that we're developing,
Speaker 2: can be a real force. And I don't want to
Speaker 2: see Loui being a guy Nick who feeds the ball
Speaker 2: to someone like Gavin. I want to see him taking
Speaker 2: on the line himself win eating taking on the line.
Speaker 2: We need two halves who can take on the on
Speaker 2: the line and who are dynamic and create space for
Speaker 2: players outside them, and I think we're going to have
Speaker 2: that once this combination between Latu and Luai develops over
Speaker 2: the next couple of months. I can't wait to get
Speaker 2: lay Back playing next to Latu than Who. I think
Speaker 2: it's going to really be something the West Tigers fans
Speaker 2: haven't seen in a long time. Are really attacking halves
Speaker 2: pairing that can take the game to other teams.
Speaker 3: It's interesting. I was watching Isaiah and Isaiahta Isaiah Katara
Speaker 3: from the Dolphins about a month ago, and I was
Speaker 3: just watching how directly played it and just the impact
Speaker 3: that it had on their shape and their ability to
Speaker 3: create space and get get players in position, get players
Speaker 3: in position. Really and the more I see Latin fen
Speaker 3: Who playing, the more I see Isaiah. They've got very
Speaker 3: similar styles, I think, and neither of them have played
Speaker 3: friend of length of time to prove themselves yet, but
Speaker 3: that direct you know, We've said earlier in the season
Speaker 3: that we've seen less and less traditional halfback type players
Speaker 3: in the game. Will these two guys fit the bill
Speaker 3: and that ability to destraighten the attack and something we
Speaker 3: haven't mentioned, take it deep into the defensive line. It's
Speaker 3: going to be really really good for us. And just
Speaker 3: on on Galvin, And I know it's easy to be
Speaker 3: an expert after the event, and we do look through
Speaker 3: rose colored glasses and we look for the positives. And
Speaker 3: you didn't, Joel. You sort of said you weren't impressed
Speaker 3: with Galvin pretty much from it since that Australian game
Speaker 3: in Pup in New Guineas. But I think just Galvin
Speaker 3: is just so used to doing whatever he wants on
Speaker 3: a football field.
Speaker 5: Football unders, Yeah, like he he's just used to call
Speaker 5: on the ball whenever he wants it.
Speaker 3: And it's obvious now that he's moved to Canterbury that
Speaker 3: he still wants to do that. And when I look
Speaker 3: at it now, probably more objective than I did when
Speaker 3: he was in our colors. It's actually it was actually
Speaker 3: doing a disservice because a lot of that time when
Speaker 3: he gets the ball, he's not calling the ball because
Speaker 3: he can see something or he's got a three on
Speaker 3: two that he wants to expose. He's just taking it
Speaker 3: because he wants the ball, and then he crabs across
Speaker 3: field or slides across field in the hope of finding something.
Speaker 3: And sometimes he does or he kicks him behind and
Speaker 3: he looks great, But more and more often with us
Speaker 3: this season that wasn't happening, and I don't think that's
Speaker 3: going to happen with our current You know, when we
Speaker 3: get Feinu and Lua together.
Speaker 2: We've spoken a lot over the past couple of years
Speaker 2: how we run our outside backs out of space. Now
Speaker 2: we go on a forty five or very angle to
Speaker 2: on the field towards the corner, and by the time
Speaker 2: we get out wide, all sides are doing is sliding across.
Speaker 2: That's going to end with this current half of pairing,
Speaker 2: in my opinion, and it's going to mate. Where we're
Speaker 2: going to see the difference is when Buller does chium
Speaker 2: into that back line, he's going to have room to straighten,
Speaker 2: He's going to have room to use that footwork because
Speaker 2: our plves are both going straight up the field. It's
Speaker 2: just going to create so much more space for those
Speaker 2: outside players. I really think that left hand hand attack
Speaker 2: is going to become quite lethal, especially once we get
Speaker 2: a really strong center playing out on that left edge.
Speaker 2: And if you have a look at how Taylor May
Speaker 2: and especially Macassin he played yesterday, there's some things to
Speaker 2: really look forward to once we're able to create space
Speaker 2: for outside man, which I think over the next couple
Speaker 2: of weeks we're going to start seeing.
Speaker 3: We actually saw that in that some of the fone
Speaker 3: new try today, like lar To largely straightened like hard.
Speaker 3: He straightened hard into the line, and that dragged Dowey
Speaker 3: in do we had to follow him, But we then
Speaker 3: created the space well for fan Also Sea Sea Fast
Speaker 3: run help there as well, but Fyner initiated it and
Speaker 3: his movement dragged Dewey across as well. And and whether
Speaker 3: that was premeditated and planned, I don't know which is
Speaker 3: it was done perfectly.
Speaker 1: But but but but but we match them up front.
Speaker 1: You've got to match them up front first, Nick, I
Speaker 1: know I'm a broken record physicality, but the Roosters were
Speaker 1: missing a lot of quality up front, and I think
Speaker 1: that we managed to. We managed mostly get on top
Speaker 1: of their pack, and that laid the platform. And I
Speaker 1: worry that the current makeup of our forwards is not
Speaker 1: going to consistently get on top of the opposition or
Speaker 1: match our opposition. And I still do the cows come
Speaker 1: home saying that that's our biggest problem.
Speaker 3: Yeah it is.
Speaker 4: We were good today, but like you said, risters were
Speaker 4: a bit depleted. I thought Torell May had a pretty
Speaker 4: bun storming.
Speaker 2: Day, really good game today.
Speaker 4: Really he was all over the play and hard to handle.
Speaker 4: And who just impresses me every time I see him play.
Speaker 4: Need to be starting, yeah, one hundred percent. Needs to
Speaker 4: be starting. Yeah, and I'd be starting Soka. Did Suka
Speaker 4: didn't start today? Did he off the bench?
Speaker 2: Yes?
Speaker 3: He did? He started?
Speaker 4: Okay, yeah, good, Okay, it was showed that it didn't pay
Speaker 4: too much attention was having out wide. But no, he's
Speaker 4: a startup for me as well. But no, I agree
Speaker 4: John a couple of physicality comments. They are in the
Speaker 4: one words too, so everyone's sort of thinking along the
Speaker 4: same lines.
Speaker 2: I think that the makeup of our outside backs really
Speaker 2: helps our forward pack get on a roll. If you
Speaker 2: have a look at the yardage from our back three today,
Speaker 2: we were all over one hundred and sixty meters, so
Speaker 2: I think Taruva was about one hundred and sixty. Skeleton
Speaker 2: was about one hundred and sixty and Charlie Stains might
Speaker 2: have been up around one hundred and eighty. It's something
Speaker 2: like that for the three of them.
Speaker 6: That just allows our bigger forwards like allows guys like
Speaker 6: Terra or May a little bit of a briever and
Speaker 6: to actually be getting the ball in a space where
Speaker 6: we're not pinned down our own end.
Speaker 2: Those three guys at the back were so critical today
Speaker 2: and are going to be so critical moving forward. It's
Speaker 2: really great that we're able to get some decent yardage
Speaker 2: out of our back three at the moment. And I
Speaker 2: think while I do think we still lack that starting
Speaker 2: prop that's which I think is something we need to
Speaker 2: go look for, but between now and the end of
Speaker 2: the season, that starting prop spot should be swing. He
Speaker 2: was fantastic today. I think he played thirty nine minutes
Speaker 2: today for about one hundred and six meters. Really strong game.
Speaker 2: Score to try was difficult to handle the whole time,
Speaker 2: and last week against Manly I think overall fairly poor.
Speaker 2: I thought he was outstanding last week as well. So
Speaker 2: for me, the only thing who gets that starting.
Speaker 3: Spot and Terrell May's game is evolving too. I reckon
Speaker 3: I didn't pay much attention to what he was like
Speaker 3: at the Roosters, so I really can't say whether he's
Speaker 3: reverting to what he used to do there. But like
Speaker 3: for the first half of the season, you know, he
Speaker 3: plays long minutes and pushes out amazing meters with incredible
Speaker 3: tackle counts with no missus, and that's what he does.
Speaker 3: He's he's safe as a bank, but you wouldn't say
Speaker 3: he wouldn't say he's dynamic. But what I've seen of
Speaker 3: late and especially today, he was dynamic. He was making
Speaker 3: good post contact meters and he was beating men at
Speaker 3: the line. I'd like to go, like, I've only seen
Speaker 3: the game live, and I'm keen to have a look
Speaker 3: back at the replay to see where he had me
Speaker 3: offloads in his game that I can't remember off the
Speaker 3: top of my head.
Speaker 2: One really bad one that went about five meters backwards,
Speaker 2: but yeah, he had a couple.
Speaker 1: Yeah.
Speaker 3: So but to me, he's become a more than just
Speaker 3: that bloke who pushes out good numbers. I think he's
Speaker 3: been more than that. Oh yeah, that's not a good
Speaker 3: that's doing imag disservice to saying that really, but I
Speaker 3: think he's getting better.
Speaker 2: There was times today, Steve he was timing into the
Speaker 2: background line and stebbing players and looking to offload. But
Speaker 2: the really telling that out of his game to me
Speaker 2: today is he played seventy minutes today, so he didn't
Speaker 2: play the full lady. Does anyone know when he was
Speaker 2: off the field? No before four a half time?
Speaker 1: Four half time?
Speaker 2: Yeah, So that period where manly started not manly, sorry,
Speaker 2: the Roosters started coming through the middle and scored the
Speaker 2: two tries was while Terrell May was off the field.
Speaker 2: And I think that's quite quite telling. He does a
Speaker 2: really good good job defensively of holding up our middle,
Speaker 2: and you know, I thought we really missed him in
Speaker 2: that ten minute period he was off today. So thirty
Speaker 2: eight tackles or something that was today for him with
Speaker 2: one miss and another out standing defensive performance. But if
Speaker 2: we if we had enough prop so Steve mentioned a
Speaker 2: couple of weeks ago that you could play him as
Speaker 2: a lot, he'd make an outstanding life. The problem is
Speaker 2: he's our best crop, but he did a lot of
Speaker 2: that role today. There's a lot of time he goes
Speaker 2: to the line in your pass and a very creative player,
Speaker 2: very dynamic player, and still managed to push out two
Speaker 2: hundred and six meters. So I thought it was a
Speaker 2: fantastic performance for him. Today I think Gary, Josh Papa, well,
Speaker 2: what a difference makee get onto it?
Speaker 3: Get onto it rich. He's for a club.
Speaker 1: He's actually on my list here to talk about. Are
Speaker 1: we all were Steve's obviously in a grammy Gary one year?
Speaker 1: Two year? Would you would you give him two years?
Speaker 2: Well, you don't have to give him two years to
Speaker 2: get him here, so that that's my only concern is
Speaker 2: whether it would be a year too long. But imagine
Speaker 2: a lineup where you have him starting with Terrell May
Speaker 2: and then after twenty twenty five minutes you bring Roy's
Speaker 2: Hunt on for fifteen minutes, and you bring paul A
Speaker 2: on as well, like that's just that's such a good
Speaker 2: prop rotation and would take us to our forwards to
Speaker 2: another level.
Speaker 1: And then you've got on and you've got Alex Twyl
Speaker 1: as well that you've tried to sort of work around
Speaker 1: there as well. It's it's a shame because Hunt looks
Speaker 1: like the guy that we need. But is It's going
Speaker 1: to be interesting to see how the Royce hunt experience
Speaker 1: or experiment works out.
Speaker 2: Was good again yesterday. So came off the bench for
Speaker 2: the Magpies again yesterday and had what I thought was
Speaker 2: a quite strong game. And that's two weeks in a
Speaker 2: row where they've had him coming off the bench and
Speaker 2: not huge minutes, but getting good impact out of him
Speaker 2: and getting more minutes than we're getting in the in
Speaker 2: the first grade side. So I would think, and I'll
Speaker 2: be picking him next week, but I would think he's
Speaker 2: he's close to getting a recall.
Speaker 3: So guys, does anyone have a theory as to why
Speaker 3: he wouldn't have been picked this week? You know, we've
Speaker 3: gone with with Murray and Lily on the bench. You know,
Speaker 3: like I would have thought today at the end of
Speaker 3: the day, to masters straight, we didn't need him. He
Speaker 3: won the game, But if he had to ask me
Speaker 3: that before the game, I would have loved to have
Speaker 3: had him in that seven een.
Speaker 2: Well, you couldn't pick him over Murray today because Murray
Speaker 2: was actually picked to play as that backup hooker, So
Speaker 2: Charlie Murray came on and played hooker and replaced Tristian
Speaker 2: Hope today, So you'd be picking him in kids spot
Speaker 2: and I just think with the makeup of the Roosters
Speaker 2: forward Pat, we're looking for a pack that could play
Speaker 2: longer minutes. I know Kit didn't play played eleven minutes. Yeah,
Speaker 2: I know he didn't play a lot of minutes, but
Speaker 2: you don't know that's how the game's going to kind
Speaker 2: of pan out. So he only played probably more minutes
Speaker 2: than he has in a while. He played thirty nine today,
Speaker 2: so nearly played a full half of football. So to me,
Speaker 2: I think it was just a decision around the fact
Speaker 2: that we're playing the Roosters. I would have picked him still, Steve.
Speaker 2: I think he provides something that the rest of our
Speaker 2: pack doesn't, and I hope we see him back in
Speaker 2: first grade, hopefully next week, because while I felt a
Speaker 2: bit sorry for Kit today, his last game in first grade,
Speaker 2: he didn't really he didn't get well, he didn't really
Speaker 2: get a chance, he didn't get on the field at all.
Speaker 2: And then today he may have made that mistake, but
Speaker 2: I think he was just overly excited and overly keen
Speaker 2: to get involved because he hit that ball back hard
Speaker 2: and he just tried to play the ball way too quick.
Speaker 2: So I felt for him a little bit today because
Speaker 2: in eleven minutes. He didn't really get the opportunity to
Speaker 2: show what he can do.
Speaker 1: Yeah, that was such a novice mistake. That was he
Speaker 1: was a young player, young player mistake.
Speaker 2: So it's overly excited. Yeah, this is the word I'm
Speaker 2: going to do.
Speaker 1: It's a pity. Let's go to the other end of
Speaker 1: the field. Let's go Obviously, no Buller, but we had
Speaker 1: Charuva playing there at fullback. I thought he got better
Speaker 1: in that role as the game gone on, Nick, and
Speaker 1: he provided an offensive threat. He made plenty of meters
Speaker 1: coming up through the middle. I'm not saying that he's
Speaker 1: your full time fullback, but Jesus, he was a pretty
Speaker 1: good replacement.
Speaker 4: Good and I'd be picking him over Heath Mason if
Speaker 4: I had the choice between the two. And I know
Speaker 4: that we've got a couple more options in the outside
Speaker 4: backs to consider in the coming weeks as well, so
Speaker 4: we might not have a necessity to bring Heath back
Speaker 4: too quickly. But yeah, I thought I thought.
Speaker 2: Through of it did quite well. Yeah, he did make that.
Speaker 4: I thought it was a decision or an era with
Speaker 4: that decision letting that ball bounce in the goal. I
Speaker 4: was thinking on the first one it popped up and thought, mate,
Speaker 4: just catch it and run hard. I think he was
Speaker 4: just willing it to go over the dead ball line
Speaker 4: and got caught out there. But apart from nat he
Speaker 4: dropped the bomb one drop yeah, which was a bit disappointing,
Speaker 4: But overall I thought it was quite strong. And he
Speaker 4: can ball play too, so he threw some nice passes
Speaker 4: as well, and he just runs a ball back so hard,
Speaker 4: so I actually didn't mind him playing fullback.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I have him in that fullback role until Buller returns.
Speaker 2: His positioning was quite good for a guy who hasn't
Speaker 2: played a lot of time there. I think the only
Speaker 2: time he's played fullback before he was at an international level,
Speaker 2: So I thought he did fairly well in that role
Speaker 2: today for a guy playing there for the first time
Speaker 2: in the NRL. What I liked about him and he's
Speaker 2: a very different sort of fullback to Buller, pulls the
Speaker 2: guy that chimes into your sweeping back line plays. Where
Speaker 2: Taruva was playing through the middle, he was dangerous through
Speaker 2: the middle. He was fishing around the forwards and looking
Speaker 2: for those offloads. I think he can be a real
Speaker 2: handful against the side we start to offload against then.
Speaker 2: I think he can be really dangerous in that role,
Speaker 2: and I thought he had a really strong game today.
Speaker 2: I'm not really gonna I'm not going to pan him
Speaker 2: for that first one that it pulled up like nothing else.
Speaker 2: That kick was going dead for all money and it
Speaker 2: took a right hand turn as Joel said earlier, and
Speaker 2: just pulled up on him. I can't fault him on that,
Speaker 2: and it made a mistake on the high ball. I'll
Speaker 2: be getting him under the high ball this week to
Speaker 2: really build his confidence. But I was very happy with
Speaker 2: how he went at full back today. Gary.
Speaker 4: We all know the way that Taruba plays and we
Speaker 4: love the way that he plays, and Benji had seen that,
Speaker 4: you know, when he was at penriff and by the
Speaker 4: reason why he wanted him to come across was because
Speaker 4: he's so aggressive and the way he runs the ball back.
Speaker 1: But what I actually.
Speaker 4: Saw on TV today when I was watching it, and
Speaker 4: the huge Bennett of benefit I think from Taruba was
Speaker 4: the way that he barks instructions from the middle as well,
Speaker 4: Like usually he's out in the.
Speaker 2: Wing or out very wide on the field.
Speaker 4: But he was screaming especially some of the some of
Speaker 4: the set restarts or whether it was you know, a dropout.
Speaker 4: He was screaming at players on the other side of
Speaker 4: the field for us, you know where if he noticed
Speaker 4: we were short out the right side, he was telling
Speaker 4: people to get out and close those gaps. So his
Speaker 4: ability to bark instructions is huge, And I know Benji
Speaker 4: touted him as a leader during the preseason as well,
Speaker 4: and he really showed that in my opinion today.
Speaker 3: I think I noticed today about his play was took.
Speaker 3: It was taking that fifth tackle carry most most sets
Speaker 3: were more coming out of trouble, and he take that
Speaker 3: fifth tackle in an attempt to get a quick play
Speaker 3: the ball so that we can get less pressure on
Speaker 3: our kickers for a downtown and he was pretty Yeah,
Speaker 3: he was pretty effective at that.
Speaker 2: I thought that's actually a tactic steve if you if
Speaker 2: you feel that takes that fifth tackle, it means he
Speaker 2: plays the ball, you put your kick in and he
Speaker 2: doesn't have to chase. So he after playing the ball,
Speaker 2: he just kind of stays and everyone else chases through. So,
Speaker 2: especially when you're finishing in the middle of the field,
Speaker 2: if you have a look, there's a lot of sides
Speaker 2: that do that when you're coming out of your own end.
Speaker 2: So it's quite common, and he's a great one to
Speaker 2: do it because he's such a such a hard runner
Speaker 2: of the ball. And going back to Nix point about
Speaker 2: him how vocal he was. Actually watched that quite quite closely.
Speaker 2: I sat with Steve and Rach today and watched that
Speaker 2: game and Yodi and a few others and we'll behind
Speaker 2: the posts and yeah, he definitely was directing the defense
Speaker 2: around something that dream Ball's got to bring more into
Speaker 2: his game. But I was watching the river and he
Speaker 2: did it quite well.
Speaker 1: To good to see you sitting with the common people,
Speaker 1: Gary for a change. It's good. And not even on
Speaker 1: the side, but from behind.
Speaker 2: Well, we do know who was up in the corporate
Speaker 2: boxes the day, don't we No, we don't. That's where
Speaker 2: any was today. He was the one hob nobbing around
Speaker 2: so Eastern suburbs. And yeah he gets the invite to
Speaker 2: the plush corporate boxes.
Speaker 1: He knows the special handshake.
Speaker 3: Yeah, just on the Eastern suburbs. It's apt time to
Speaker 3: bring it up. I went to the kios where we
Speaker 3: want to call it to get a.
Speaker 2: Handurg, isn't it called a canteen?
Speaker 3: To get a hamburger twenty one box. Now, Nick Nick,
Speaker 3: we don't not not miss Nick Nick Polders, we don't
Speaker 3: all live in ROAs. Twenty one bucks for a bit
Speaker 3: of meat, let us and tomato. Are you kidding me?
Speaker 3: They weren't even chips. It wasn't even a deal like
Speaker 3: I was looking for the caveat and prawns on the side.
Speaker 3: That was just the hamburger. Twenty one bucks for one hamburger.
Speaker 3: You're kidding me, you.
Speaker 1: See, Steve Nick. The problem is Steve's got used to
Speaker 1: the woman with the other man coming around with the trade,
Speaker 1: you know, saying would you like another one of these sir?
Speaker 1: And it's completely free.
Speaker 2: Steve. You'll have to take your lunchbox the games from now,
Speaker 2: pack a sandwich, peanut but sandwich.
Speaker 3: Well, I was there, boys, I was there.
Speaker 1: We have to talk about a couple of not so
Speaker 1: engulfed positive things.
Speaker 2: He had his lunchlow, Steve. He took his lunchbox to golf.
Speaker 2: That's it.
Speaker 1: Jarrell Skelton coming in off his off his off his wing.
Speaker 1: He got caught out a couple of times. He got
Speaker 1: caught out against Manly just before halftime in that trial.
Speaker 1: A few times, not in exactly the right spot that
Speaker 1: I want him to be in. Gary, have you noticed
Speaker 1: that with Jerrell.
Speaker 2: Was defensively very poor to I thought I missed a
Speaker 2: lot of tackles. Yeah, it was coming off that wing
Speaker 2: way too often. And that that try, I can't remember
Speaker 2: if they ended up scoring at it, but he came
Speaker 2: in when he didn't need to, like there was defenders there.
Speaker 2: He rushed up and ended up in front of his center.
Speaker 2: So yeah, I thought that left hand defense really struggled today.
Speaker 2: And I know I'm not going to try and pronounce
Speaker 2: that the roster Sentner's name because I can never pronounce it.
Speaker 2: But Mark, he caused us a lot of a lot
Speaker 2: of problems, and I thought, not just all out on
Speaker 2: that on that left hand edge struggled with him. But
Speaker 2: I thought Luke got caught out a number of times
Speaker 2: today as well. That first try he scored was because
Speaker 2: Luke missed an really ordinary attempt to tackle.
Speaker 3: Well, he ran he ran around easily for another try.
Speaker 5: Like like skeleton scolt was pull But but now Lily,
Speaker 5: Lily did some good things today and wasn't it wasn't disgraced,
Speaker 5: but he was given a bath defensively.
Speaker 2: He's not quite ready. See he might be nineteen, so
Speaker 2: we're just about to turn nineteen. So he's around that
Speaker 2: nineteen year old mark and he's not quite ready. And
Speaker 2: and I think he's got away with it playing on
Speaker 2: the wing.
Speaker 3: He got exposed.
Speaker 2: He moved to the States was a stretch too far
Speaker 2: for him. So I think we'll see a change there.
Speaker 2: We'll see a change there next week because I think
Speaker 2: Adam Dewey will go back to that position. But Luke
Speaker 2: has a bright future and hopefully at our club. But
Speaker 2: he got caught out a couple of times today along
Speaker 2: with his wing partner and Dre.
Speaker 1: Look at a big challenge, putting him up against the
Speaker 1: guy that's got plenty of striker who's in good form.
Speaker 1: So it was maybe what's his name? Job Mark has
Speaker 1: the seam a Pedalon.
Speaker 4: I think it is Noah Pedlong.
Speaker 1: I'm stealing a Pooh's last name from the Simpsons.
Speaker 2: We went forty three different pronunciations.
Speaker 1: The rooster center called Mark someone Mark. We went forty
Speaker 1: five minutes. We didn't mention Adam do he And I
Speaker 1: thought he played pretty done well. I mean he did
Speaker 1: everything that was required, and I thought I thought he
Speaker 1: played well there's some rumors that he's going to the Dragon,
Speaker 1: So I don't see where.
Speaker 2: I don't know.
Speaker 1: It's a hard one. I don't know his position, and
Speaker 1: I don't know where he fits, and he wants to
Speaker 1: play in the halves. I don't know how this is
Speaker 1: going to play out. Gary. It doesn't look like he's
Speaker 1: in our plans for next year.
Speaker 2: Look, I don't think he's in our plans for next year,
Speaker 2: and I can understand that, especially now he's signed with
Speaker 2: Isaac Moses. That makes him even less than our plan.
Speaker 2: Richo would have been delighted with it. Oh so happy
Speaker 2: for me. Next season. He spot on our side is
Speaker 2: backup halves, and I don't really think that's a position
Speaker 2: he's going to be willing to take. I think the
Speaker 2: up I think Taylor May is going to get a
Speaker 2: shot very soon in the centers. I think Macasine's going
Speaker 2: to get a shot very soon in the centers. And
Speaker 2: where that leaves out and do He's a really difficult
Speaker 2: one because I don't I thought he had a really
Speaker 2: strong game today. I thought he's kicking game was excellent today,
Speaker 2: and there was, but there were still a couple of
Speaker 2: situations that he had a three on two down the
Speaker 2: right hand side where he threw the ball straight into touch.
Speaker 2: He's got to nail that one. If he hits Charlie
Speaker 2: Stains on that play, Charlie Stains is away down the wind.
Speaker 2: So it's a couple of those little execution things that
Speaker 2: let him down today. But through a really nice ball
Speaker 2: for the Sam Feynu try and was very busy and
Speaker 2: I think took a lot of pressure of Latzu Feu today.
Speaker 2: He took on a lot of the directing the side
Speaker 2: around the park role and I thought he did a
Speaker 2: really good job today. But moving forward, I think for
Speaker 2: his career it's probably better at another club. I don't
Speaker 2: think he's quite got the spot in our side, but
Speaker 2: I think he'll pick up a contract somewhere.
Speaker 1: He will sure one hundred percent. Will the centers. I mean,
Speaker 1: Stafford Tower looked like he was ready to be taken
Speaker 1: off in an ambulance.
Speaker 2: I'm really worried about that. Yeah, I worried about I mean,
Speaker 2: I think he's on shoulder.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I think so definitely, which is going to open
Speaker 1: up a lot of discussion about centers. Interesting conundrum is
Speaker 1: that you've got a guy that's come back from eighteen
Speaker 1: months out of the game or two years out of
Speaker 1: the game. He's played one New South Wales Cup game.
Speaker 1: You've got half a game half a game. Yeah, you've
Speaker 1: got a rookie that you know potentially is sort of
Speaker 1: getting closer to maybe making a debut. I don't know, Nick,
Speaker 1: who are you picking in the centers this week without
Speaker 1: Stafford Tower being available? I mean, do we I suppose
Speaker 1: if you've got Leui back, you've got Dewey there, but
Speaker 1: who are you going for the other spot?
Speaker 2: May without a doubt.
Speaker 4: I know he's only played half a game of Cup yesterday,
Speaker 4: but a couple of weeks ago he was asked in
Speaker 4: an interview if he was ready to go if he
Speaker 4: were to be picked to play, and he said one
Speaker 4: hundred percent, I'm ready to go. So if he's anything
Speaker 4: like Terrell, I've got no doubt. And I know match
Speaker 4: fitness is different to general fitness, but I've got no doubt.
Speaker 4: If he's backing himself to play NRL, I would be
Speaker 4: picking him with someone that can cover him on the bench,
Speaker 4: so I'd be putting tailoring. And also, interestingly, Macassini, I've
Speaker 4: just had a quick look turns eighteen three weeks from today,
Speaker 4: on the twenty seventh of July, so he's not far
Speaker 4: away either.
Speaker 2: Yeah, he can pretty much play next month. So at
Speaker 2: the start of next month, he's old enough to play Taylor.
Speaker 2: May I think him missing the game not last weekend.
Speaker 2: He was pulled out late in the Magwise game with
Speaker 2: hamstring tightness. That worries me, and he's only played half
Speaker 2: a game yesterday. I would be worried to pick him
Speaker 2: because I'm not quite sure he's ready just yet. But
Speaker 2: really tough next weekend, Like you were going, we're going
Speaker 2: to pick Luke again, and I thought he was found
Speaker 2: out today because I'm going to assume from what I
Speaker 2: saw today that Stafford won't be playing next weekend. Now
Speaker 2: I've heard nothing from it, but from what I saw
Speaker 2: on the field that last fifteen minutes, he was a
Speaker 2: passenger out there, and I'm really surprised that the Roosters
Speaker 2: didn't go at him a little bit more because he
Speaker 2: was really struggling out on that right edge. So I'm
Speaker 2: very concerned about what we're going to do for that
Speaker 2: center spot next week. I wouldn't be surprised if we
Speaker 2: end up with a guy like Jack Bird playing out
Speaker 2: in the center's next week, because I don't think Tailor
Speaker 2: may on one half of football after being pulled out
Speaker 2: the week before of hamshring tightness is quite ready.
Speaker 1: I'm really glad and it does. The whole paradigm of
Speaker 1: the whole feeling of the club changes when your lower
Speaker 1: grades are doing well. And it's so good to see
Speaker 1: the new South Wales Cup team being more than competitive
Speaker 1: winning games. But I'm thinking Isaac to two, who becomes
Speaker 1: part of the discussion this week, given he's played third
Speaker 1: or fourteen first grade games before, has been in really
Speaker 1: hot form, can play Santa or Wing. I wouldn't be surprised,
Speaker 1: but you know, I wouldn't be surprised. Also, if Taylor
Speaker 1: may is selected, it's gonna be an interesting lineup on Tuesday.
Speaker 1: And it's against the Titans too, so this is the
Speaker 1: kind of game where you might want to give somebody
Speaker 1: a run. It's not to say we're taking the Titans lightly,
Speaker 1: because they always play like the Melbourne Storm against us,
Speaker 1: it seems, but I think that'd be the kind of
Speaker 1: game where you may throw a couple of guys in
Speaker 1: and say, you know, show us what you got. Warriors
Speaker 1: getting in front of me and myself.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I thought it was thought it was the Warriors.
Speaker 1: Yeah, well that's a different kettle of fish.
Speaker 2: That is a different kettle of fish. Isaac, I think,
Speaker 2: is more more suited to the wing, has really good
Speaker 2: gardage coming out of his own end, is a very
Speaker 2: good finisher. He is having a very good in New
Speaker 2: South Walest Cup season. Eleven or twelve tries in about
Speaker 2: eleven games, so it's been really strong. I think there's
Speaker 2: a couple ahead of him for that wing spot, but
Speaker 2: if we move someone into that center spot, I think
Speaker 2: he does come right into calculations. Then. I really thought
Speaker 2: Charlie Stains was really good today as well. So we're
Speaker 2: quite blessed with that wing spot at the moment. And
Speaker 2: if Darrell's kind of defensive issues continue that there may
Speaker 2: be a spot come up on that that edge for him.
Speaker 2: So it'll be interesting to see what happens over the
Speaker 2: next next month, especially once Bull's back and Taruvea moves
Speaker 2: back to the wing.
Speaker 3: I think I think they've got to work on their
Speaker 3: their teamwork out managed. I don't think you can just
Speaker 3: isolate it as a Skelton Bob might like what Skelton
Speaker 3: gives us in attack. There's no way if he's available,
Speaker 3: in my opinion, that you go into a games every
Speaker 3: week without him. Yeah, he's too damaging, especially next week
Speaker 3: against the Warriors.
Speaker 2: So I don't know.
Speaker 3: I don't know what happens. Like I'm hoping, like hope
Speaker 3: that Tower is okay, and I'm hoping like hope that
Speaker 3: Lua gets through Wednesday night.
Speaker 2: Right.
Speaker 3: Otherwise we are in strife in the Senate because if
Speaker 3: louis okay, we do good doing into a center position.
Speaker 3: If Toe is fine, then we're sweet. But if not,
Speaker 3: we we do have a gap there. I don't think
Speaker 3: we can go with Leli again, I really don't. I
Speaker 3: would be looking at putting someone on the wing and
Speaker 3: perhaps giving giving Stains, giving Staines a center spot that
Speaker 3: might work really poor. That's true. The other option is
Speaker 3: what was mentioned in Jack Bird. I suppose Nayden is
Speaker 3: the other is the other option from.
Speaker 2: Good yesterday again.
Speaker 3: Yeah, right, So I don't know. But yeah, there's no way.
Speaker 3: There's no way. Skeletons even in a conversation not playing
Speaker 3: first game well.
Speaker 2: And it's really interesting we're talking about the defense on
Speaker 2: that on that left hand edge, Steve and that left
Speaker 2: hand edge has been quite good defensively when Adam Duley's
Speaker 2: been playing out on that edge. So today, to me,
Speaker 2: it is that combination of Luke Andrell just didn't work
Speaker 2: very well together because I think defensively that left edge
Speaker 2: is probably, in my opinion, being our best defensively edge
Speaker 2: this season. So I'm willing to give Skeleton a little
Speaker 2: bit more time. I wouldn't be dropping him at this point.
Speaker 2: So yeah, I think you're exactly right with that.
Speaker 1: Steve Benchi said in the press conference. We played well
Speaker 1: for forty minutes. He's looking for consistency. So where would
Speaker 1: we put the West Tiger's performance today on the Richo
Speaker 1: Meter terrible, poor, average, good or.
Speaker 3: Great age average average? Yeah, we did we want we want,
Speaker 3: went in there, we're in They're terribly understaffed, and we
Speaker 3: came away with the two points. We did what we
Speaker 3: had to do to win. And you know, I was
Speaker 3: watching the Storm yesterday and even when they were behind
Speaker 3: with about twenty to go, they'll score when they need
Speaker 3: to score, then they'll just kick deep and they'll win
Speaker 3: the game. They just win, They win the moments and
Speaker 3: they win the game. Right, we did what we had
Speaker 3: to do to win, So that from that you get
Speaker 3: a huge stick. But the glaring concern for the team
Speaker 3: is still the inability to play consistent football across the
Speaker 3: eighty minutes and to drop off like that. I do
Speaker 3: feel sorry for him. That era, that era by Lily
Speaker 3: kick Lily. That was Yeah, that was a huge momentum
Speaker 3: shift because we were coming off a try and you
Speaker 3: know that we were at twenty nil and we could
Speaker 3: have easily gone downfield I reckon and put another one
Speaker 3: on before half time because we're rolling through them, so
Speaker 3: is in that changed the whole momentum of the game
Speaker 3: from that moment. From that moment, we lost our way.
Speaker 3: We seemed to we seem to even protect our lead.
Speaker 3: From that moment, we weren't playing with the same freedom
Speaker 3: that we'd played the first thirty odd minutes for the
Speaker 3: rest of for the rest of the game. Now, mate,
Speaker 3: we won the game. We did what we had to do.
Speaker 3: We won the game. But yeah, like, as far as
Speaker 3: the whole performance goes, it was average.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I'm willing to give us above average for that,
Speaker 2: Like I'm that first half of football, well, the first
Speaker 2: thirty minutes of football was close to the best football
Speaker 2: we played all year with an understrength side. Now at
Speaker 2: some point the risk is there's some real stars and
Speaker 2: that Rooster side, like Tedesco's still there, There's still got
Speaker 2: two poop on the wing like that's still a decent
Speaker 2: especially out in the backs, that's still a decent side.
Speaker 2: And I thought at some point they are always going
Speaker 2: to come looking to get us. And they were really
Speaker 2: coming over the top of us at the back end
Speaker 2: of the game. And it's the first time I've seen
Speaker 2: a side come over the top of us and our
Speaker 2: players look out on their feet, and once we got
Speaker 2: to that point, we could no longer control the ruck.
Speaker 2: Once the russ started winning the ruck, which they did
Speaker 2: in that second half, they were going through us and
Speaker 2: our defensive I know we led him twenty eight points today,
Speaker 2: but our defensive commitment and our defensive heart today I
Speaker 2: thought was really strong to keep us in a position
Speaker 2: we're apart from the Rooster's scoring two quick tries. At
Speaker 2: the end, we were the better side today, buy a
Speaker 2: lot more than two points, and I was very happy
Speaker 2: with how we hung on to that game. At the end,
Speaker 2: I thought they'll coming to get us.
Speaker 4: Just mentioning defensive commitment, Gary excuse me that. The effort
Speaker 4: for me that I'll take you out of that game
Speaker 4: today was Latu Phone, Who's hit on Tom Robell out
Speaker 4: wide where it looked like.
Speaker 2: He was going to score on the corner.
Speaker 4: There were about four of our defenders that came from
Speaker 4: nowhere to hit him, but Latio hit him underneath with
Speaker 4: his shoulder and drove him over the sideline, and that
Speaker 4: effort was huge. I think he might have hurt himself.
Speaker 4: I know it's starting to kind of stayed down for
Speaker 4: a bit and not a bit worried about that, but completely fine.
Speaker 2: I think he's one of the best defensive halves in
Speaker 2: the game. He hits really well hard front on. He
Speaker 2: can hit a forward front on that cover defense, and
Speaker 2: that commitment in defense was fantastic. He's going to be
Speaker 2: a fantastic defensive We always spoke about how good of
Speaker 2: a defender Luke Brooks was.
Speaker 1: Well, I thought you're going to say Lincoln Withers. He
Speaker 1: was a good defender.
Speaker 2: Brooks, But I think last is going to have a
Speaker 2: very good career defensively as well.
Speaker 3: Something we haven't mentioned about that second half, the russ
Speaker 3: has played it almost perfect. Twenty five to thirty minutes
Speaker 3: they had that. I think we got a pedalty goal
Speaker 3: early did early of them, and then then they started
Speaker 3: to come back, but they didn't make it. They didn't
Speaker 3: give away a penalty, they didn't give away a rock
Speaker 3: infringement any for about twenty five to thirty minutes, and
Speaker 3: we had to slog it out set for set for set,
Speaker 3: and we had to get out of our our ten
Speaker 3: media and get up for all the hard way every set,
Speaker 3: and that that's what sucked the gas out of us.
Speaker 3: That's why in that that's why we looked out in
Speaker 3: our feet towards the end, and we really did look
Speaker 3: out our feet. So even though their stars were out,
Speaker 3: you know, and a few injuries and sat of origin,
Speaker 3: they played a very disciplined second half of football.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I think that first penalty goals they came in
Speaker 2: the first half, so I think that was before halftime.
Speaker 3: Right, the back of the first half, wasn't.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I think so. So that that just emphasizes your
Speaker 2: point even more about how disciplined they were. And once again,
Speaker 2: there were periods in that second half where our discipline
Speaker 2: really let us down. A couple of times we gave
Speaker 2: away six agains on the four, third and fourth tackles,
Speaker 2: a penalty at one point on the fourth tackle. They're
Speaker 2: the little areas that we've got to start getting right.
Speaker 2: That's that attention to detail, that's that striving for excellence
Speaker 2: that we tend to let ourselves down and it lets
Speaker 2: teams back into the game. So again, during that kind
Speaker 2: of period where the ruses were coming at us, our
Speaker 2: discipline let us down a number of times. But you
Speaker 2: know what, it's hard to say that that happens when
Speaker 2: you're not winning that ruck like we weren't in that
Speaker 2: second half.
Speaker 1: Their good points guys. I think another way of looking
Speaker 1: at the ritometer is how many wins a team gets
Speaker 1: in a year. So I'd say a terrible team gets
Speaker 1: four wins, a poor team gets somewhere around six to
Speaker 1: eight wins, an average team gets around ten to twelve wins.
Speaker 1: We're at six wins now, we've matched last year. Are
Speaker 1: we going to avoid another losing streak? I mean, it's
Speaker 1: hard to tell. Without the the three attacking threats, it's
Speaker 1: hard to know exactly how this is going to play out.
Speaker 1: But if we win half of our games to finish
Speaker 1: off the year, I think that we'd be in a
Speaker 1: pretty good spot Stove.
Speaker 3: Well, this is this is the big the big goal
Speaker 3: for the rest of the year, you know. And I'm
Speaker 3: sure the team haven't put the bottom of the top
Speaker 3: eight out of their minds as a goal. I'm sure
Speaker 3: it's still there's something they'd like to achieve. I think
Speaker 3: I think it's almost fanciful that we're going to get
Speaker 3: there now. But the goal really is to play some
Speaker 3: consistent footing. And Benji again mentioned this in the press
Speaker 3: conference today, Like they said, are you happy? He said no,
Speaker 3: he said, because I need to see it next week.
Speaker 3: I need to see I needed to see it in
Speaker 3: the second half and at least it needs to come
Speaker 3: out again next week. The Warriors are depleted, they've lost
Speaker 3: their half.
Speaker 2: They've lost their is a huge out mate.
Speaker 3: That's huge, and so is there front rower. He's out,
Speaker 3: So the Warrior they are there for the taking. If
Speaker 3: we go over there and play good football, it's unlikely.
Speaker 3: It's going to be a difficult assignment, but it's not.
Speaker 3: It's not an outrageous proposition that we can get the
Speaker 3: two points. Then I think we've got the Titans. And
Speaker 3: I've got the Titans again later in it, and I
Speaker 3: think we've got manly maybe at the City Football Stadium,
Speaker 3: that's that's very beautable. So if we start to show
Speaker 3: some consistency, surely we can pull out another three wins.
Speaker 2: Surely, Steve, I think next weekend is a game we
Speaker 2: should win. Like I know we're going over to New Zealand.
Speaker 2: I know Louis will be playing off the back of
Speaker 2: playing origin, but the Warriors have met Metcalfe has been
Speaker 2: having a great season. That is a massive out for them,
Speaker 2: and I think the seasons going to fall away while
Speaker 2: he's well well, sadly he's sitting on the sidelines. So
Speaker 2: I think we're a big shot up next weekend if
Speaker 2: we If we play the same football we did today,
Speaker 2: especially in that first half, I think that goes a
Speaker 2: long way to being the Warrior.
Speaker 3: Isn't It's that's the thing, guys, That's the point Benji
Speaker 3: made is to go out next week and play the
Speaker 3: same football. Yeah, that's how long's it been since we've
Speaker 3: been able to do that?
Speaker 2: To be fair, Steve, I actually think the game against
Speaker 2: the Raiders and the game against penrif we're playing a
Speaker 2: very high level of football the only month, the only
Speaker 2: game I'm not happy with is the game against man
Speaker 2: and Manly. I think our form stands up really well.
Speaker 2: When you look at the game against the Roosters today
Speaker 2: and the game against Penriff and the game against the Raiders,
Speaker 2: I think we're Yeah, I'm I'm quite sure we should
Speaker 2: put on a pretty good performance next WEEKND just.
Speaker 1: Stop and think about this for a moment. The Warriors
Speaker 1: are beating us the last eight times? Eight times?
Speaker 2: Would you row?
Speaker 1: But they've beaten us? I mean how they embarrassing?
Speaker 2: Is that? I mean?
Speaker 4: What was what was the record with the Roosters, wasn't
Speaker 4: it twenty nine from thirty or twenty eight from thirty
Speaker 4: with something stupid like games we've lost out in the
Speaker 4: last I know it was.
Speaker 3: One from nineteen.
Speaker 2: I don't know, if there's nothing I think all time
Speaker 2: it's thirty from thirty eight, is what I heard today. Yeah, okay,
Speaker 2: so I think it was a lot eight times in
Speaker 2: our history. So and like things like we hadn't won
Speaker 2: at the Sydney Football Stadium against the russ ince twenty
Speaker 2: twelve and hadn't won there since twenty eighteen or something.
Speaker 2: So there was a lot of those sort of things
Speaker 2: today and the longer those things go, it just means
Speaker 2: you'd you. I know about you, guys.
Speaker 4: But when we were twenty nil up today, I went
Speaker 4: online and bought final tickets, so I reckon, we're going
Speaker 4: to go on the winning streak.
Speaker 3: I was going to but I went and bought a hamburger.
Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, that your Grand Final go on exactly, but
Speaker 1: plus more than the final tickets.
Speaker 3: That was the humor.
Speaker 2: That was That was the joke.
Speaker 1: Oh get it now? Very good, Steve. If you have
Speaker 1: to explain it, it's probably.
Speaker 2: Not next time. Just paying him a picture, Steve.
Speaker 1: Now, our little birdies told me that they like an't
Speaker 1: Oval master plan has been released. Now what that is is, basically,
Speaker 1: they are the detailed plans for what's going to be
Speaker 1: happening at Leichardoval. So keep your eyes open for that
Speaker 1: this week. I think that could be coming out. It
Speaker 1: looks quite interesting from what I understand. Is there a
Speaker 1: statue of Gary out the front, Yes, and it's he's
Speaker 1: superimposed onto Benji's body doing the step as a hybrid statue?
Speaker 2: Yes?
Speaker 1: And that Campbelltown situation still no change there, so we'll
Speaker 1: keep our eye on that as well. But thank you guys,
Speaker 1: it's lovely to do a post victory edition of the podcast.
Speaker 2: Yes, Gary, look I do have to actually mention one thing,
Speaker 2: and this is a bit of a shout out to Jordan.
Speaker 2: I went to the Platinum Members function on Friday night,
Speaker 2: which was a trivia night, and we've given Jordan a
Speaker 2: hard time for years the years, well since last year
Speaker 2: over his prediction of three wins in a row and
Speaker 2: we fell just short of that.
Speaker 1: Who's this wei?
Speaker 2: I haven't? Well? I have on Friday night, We're in
Speaker 2: a team with Solomon Sakura, and Solomon gave him the
Speaker 2: correct answer, which Jordan then overruled, which was the only
Speaker 2: question we got wrong to lose us the trivia Jordan,
Speaker 2: no predictions from you and no team captains of trivia.
Speaker 1: Yeah yeah, Bann alrighty and one one winner is a streak,
Speaker 1: So the streakers commenced. Can we get the three at
Speaker 1: some point in our life?
Speaker 2: Streaking?
Speaker 1: Streaking, exactly, streaking. Thank you boys, We'll see you for
Speaker 1: the Idioto midweek fishers.
Speaker 2: Thanks very much.