Also why the fvck would anyone swap their hooker for a 5/8???... especially when 2 of them are internationals...

And I also find it bemusing you hang off every word Cronk has to say but when it's pointed out he is at odds with your assessment of Foz you disregard it...

Not sure who it was that posted a Dogs V Dragons game from back in 2003 or something at Kogarah on Twitter last week leading into the Dragons game


We belted the F##K out of them..... Our forwards nailed them, we dominated in tackles.... all legal too


We’ve always lacked speedy backs, we’ve always lacked something special from a No9... but our club ALWAYS bred tough mutha effing forwards that belted oppositions....


The Sharks the past few years have been as close to that past successful Bulldogs formula as anyone else.... not surprising they’ve been pretty successful too

I've got a spare room here in the Waters for you mate... 15 mins to Northies... ;)

You silly sausage.... I’m married!


Shane Flanagan if available down the track would be the ideal coach for the Bulldogs..... there, Ive said it!

Now watch us end up with Clive Palmer as coach instead....

Bloody hell... just reading up on some news regarding Peter Tunks’s daughter 


Naughty naughty girl....

Neither, it's that you're that shallow.

The truth is that you had not even considered, not even noticed, how heavily Foran is targeted until I posted it. You'll grudgingly acknowledge it now to pretend you knew all along and will try a "Yeah, but still...." but the truth is anything deeper than a puddle eludes you and that did.

Tell me, how did Thurston perform for The Cows when he had Morgan (particularly) and to a lesser extent Taumalolo out... if you noticed? Actually probably the better example even above those two would be his right hand... I mean left hand.... man Gavin Cooper (who wouldn't have a try to his name without JT)

I'll tell you, to typical JT standard - excellently. But how effective was he - barely, if at all.

Zef, my concern is is his not his effectiveness, but his involvement - especially when the chips are done. You're above example is horrifically poor. JT in the absence of Morgan became  the focal point but he didn't shy away from the task. There were also games there where those 2 couldnt play well when both on the field and played better when alone do again not sure you brought up a good example to justify your comment.

Better example is recent game for Roosters where Robinson didn't want to risk Cronk due to injury so didnt play him in the 17. Keary goes down in HIA inside 6 mins. Roosters end up with makeshift halves (Radley and someone else) and are easily beaten.

It's not easy to win without your playmakers - we all know that. My gripe is that it's possible to win with 1 down but it requires your remaining half to pick up the pieces. 

We werent going to win against Saints - they were too good and too smart to react and capitalise to our defensive misnumbering and staggered line from a shooting Montoya. But the point is, we didnt even try. 

Yes, more than 1 player had to lift their game or their involvement. Pay also stuffed up as he should have (at least at halftime) assigned JMK in the halves and filled hooker role with Martin or Elliott. It would have helped Foran abit. 

My ultimate point in all this is that Foran is good when gets the ball but doesn't do it enough. Never did at any if his clubs. Was always just second fiddle to the halfback. 

I like how he runs to the line and puts defenses in 2 minds and pops passes laterally or inside. He is one of few in the team that does. And on that note I feel is better suited as the right centre, lock or maybe even hooker. He doesn't demand the ball enough at 5/8th and before everyone says "he picks his moment" there is no point picking moments when you are the key half and paid as the key half. 

I would love to see Lewis-Cogger halves with Foran in a utility role or right centre or lock. He can continue to pick his moments without the responsibility of running the show.

Leave that to guys who want the ball.

Marki, the thing about these top notch play-makers is not their "skill" in an athletic sense, it's not their killer side-step or their pace or fend - and that's not saying they mightn't have some of that - but it is saying that in any given team they play in there'd be someone with a much infinitely better side-step or pace or fend that they have at their disposal.

It's their use of weapons.

You can take your guru as the example. There are no tip sheets about Cronk's pace, side-step, fend or even dummy. If he ever had any of them they hardly rated a mention.

But he knows how to use those that do have them.

Currently he comes to a gun fight armed with (to name just two) Mitchell for early ball and Tedesco out the back, and that's not even to mention who he can kick for or who can take the yards to give him space. And this is while he's the closest he'll ever be to being as targeted as heavily as Foran for a long period because he hasn't got deputy Keary with him (and no he's NEVER been targeted as heavily as Foran, because there's ALWAYS been someone else needs just as much targeting in any team he's played in). But come semi-finals, Easts will go into those games with two of the games best gun-slingers armed to the teeth.

Foran is going into gun fights armed with a butter knife - and you think the problem is "involvement"

LOOK DEEPER.

Holy moly they are the worst lips I have ever seen...did she get the Ubangi special?

Foran was one of our better performing players against the Dragons, and when fit has been one of our better players all season....
That was by far the best game I have seen from JMK, Foran and Napa... in combination...
There are reasons why we lost, but those 3 did all they could reasonably be expected to do.
Foran got caught a few times with the ball on tackle 5, but it is pointless have a single kicker take all the kicks, we needed to mix it up.
To be a chance of winning games we need to do better in the middle, we actually did fairly well in attack against the Dragons in the first half, but the defence was far below where it needed to be, and the problems start in the middle. 
I was also happy with our start overall i that game in terms of energy and effort.... so while there are negatives, .. it is not all negatives.... we need to build on the positives and work on fixing the negatives.... for his personal chances of surviving as a coach .. Pay needs a win ASAP.

I think you praise him too much.

Dman at least acknowledges the previous administration paid him too much, which is my point about his "value".
I cant blame the current admin or coach for that. It was done before them. But I just them to be clear that when his contract is up, they don't fall for the BS manager upsell again. He is good when he hands on the ball, but he is not a dominant half and shouldn't be paid dominant half money.

I cut some slack to Lewis and Cogger because they are young and on relatively low money compared to him. That's not to say they are better than him. Just better value.

I noticed in your recent emails about our warchest for 2021 you didn't include Foran as a definite so I think deep down you also agree that he is not worth his current contract. Overpaying a multitude of players has been the reason for our SC dramas and not back-ended contracts. I think we both agree on that.

The best example I can give is the 2018 GF.
Cronk took the field purely to keep the Storm guessing as to who was running the show. He misdirected them to think it was him while the plan was always for Keary to have a pivotal role. It worked a treat and outfooled 3 of the best minds in rugby league (Bellamy, Smith and Slater). The focused their attention on Cronk and that gave Keary an opportunity to step up and shine. 80mins later and Keary is deservedly Clive Churchill medallist.

The above example does 2 things. Supports yours and Zefs and Dmans arguments that you need to deflect attention otherwise you can get marked out of games, but also that the other half has to step up and take control. Keary did that. Foran needs to do that. Pay needs to learn that for Foran to do that, he needs to put the right man in the halves to attract enough attention. He didn't. He should have put JMK there, but instead he put Martin.

OK it was a mistake and he should probably learn from it. But he is 18months in the job and its not a mistake you can do. I expect better from the coach. I expect a senior player to step up and question the coach or put his hand up to stop the mistake.

Every week, we find a new schoolboy error on the field and in the coaching box that I find scratching my end. Its the hallmark of a deserving wooden spoon side.

His salary is not an issue now as he is on the books and we have to pay him....

When the time comes to talk extensions, we offer him what we think he is worth which is probably significantly less than what he is on now, but might still be an OK deal for both parties...

He might be offered more money elsewhere and he might take it....  but stick to our offer.

For now value doesn't come into it, what they can offer to the team does, he is currently well ahead of Lewis and Cogger on that score...

Interesting comments from DWZ on the Dogs website.... while he has to talk it up, he may have been sincere...

That kind of echos my thoughts, we mostly matched the Dragons in ability and effort, the beat us with team work, decision making and execution....and also a bit of bad luck/planing with Cogger going off and no bench utility (or Martin not really suited to that role)

So the score, and some of the poor reads in defence, made us look worse than we were.

Point being, team work, decision making and execution can be fixed..... whether or not Pay can fix them is the question....

DWZ ia a great media performer,, I like his style...  

Houndog has told you that twice now if I remember correctly Marki, and he is absolutely right.

What he is being payed has got nothing to do with it, it's what he is getting payed, it's donem and that's not his fault. Is it over-payed? f***in oath it is but again - what the f***'s it got to do with anything now? Do you expect him to give it back, is that it?

And yeah I got him down for a punting, at present. But that was always mainly to do with his fitness and longevity. He gives me another 18 months of this form injury free i'd extend him in a heartbeat... at the right price.... and have him down as #6 for a few more years yet.

I'd love to see him with some weapons at hand.

I don't expect him to give it back. I'd like him to earn his full dollar worth.
He is certainly capable - but at the right team setup.

As you say... with the right team setup (manly 2011), he can be very good. Outside of that, his contract value should be commensurate with his performances without a gun halfback. Hope the club considers this at the next negotiation.

The 1M dollar halves should be the guys that shine no matter what team or players are around them.
Leave that to the Cronks, DCE's, JT's, Kearys etc. Even Shaun Johnson carried his Warriors without a decent halves partner for a number of years.

2018 GF is interesting, I think playing against an injured Cronk put the Storm in 2 minds,.. they didn't know whether to smash him, or try to avoid hurting him.... Keary also took up the challenge and played a great game... it also inspired the rest of the  Roosters team.

I think Robinson may have gone with his gut instinct even though he didn't know why he was doing it... because aside from the mental and motivational aspects, playing an injured player is the wrong call.

So one day I would like to read the true inside story on this as it is interesting in terms of what motivates players.....

Our problem is simple Cogger can throw a good pass to an edge runner  .. all he needs is a good understanding with a back-rower who will run the right lines.. JMK is much improved and needs to repeat the performance in the Dragons game each week, and Meaney needs to get more involved.

More hard running from a ball runner with hard running support players and the occasional good pass to a support will help.

So the team can do more to help Foran that is within their capabilities, the young guys just need the confidence to step up and get more involved.
Cogger isn't lacking confidence, he is lacking a guy running the right line...

Sounds promising that he can detect the issues that led to the poor performance.
I really want him at fullback asap as he sounds like he understand the defensive miscommunication and reads. He will no doubt offer better support play from there than at centre.

In my opinion, we are probably better playing Meaney at wing with DWZ at fullback. Nothing wrong with Meaney on the wing. He takes bombs very well so can help out the fullback. Most good fullback players start on wing anyways (Hayne, Boyd, RTS, Turbo Tom)

Its more a case of getting the most out of your team and I reckon we gain more with DWZ at fullback and Meaney on wing than the current named team.

Yes.
And I think the correct players are Martin and CHN in the second row. 
I know people don't want to hear this but Jacko no longer offers angled runs and neither does Elliott anymore (although they both use to).
One of them needs to be lock. The other benched or not in team at all.

DWZ can run off CHN (from fullback) and this will either create line breaks for us which will lead to retreating and slower defence line from the opposition which will give us territory and allow our halves more room.

JMK needs to just play the way he did against Dragons. Minimum 1 run every second set of 6. Absolute minimum. I don't care about if he makes a mistake or not. Just the thought of doing it will keep the defence at bay and open up other opportunities to other players.

We have been hindered by 1 dimensional play from our hookers for way too long.

DWZ at fullback and Meaney on the wing doesn't sound too out of place and it might just work. Our biggest problem has been the left edge all year and that's exectly where all opposition teams are targetting and being mighty successful just quietly. Why the coach wont address the issue is something we may never know, but it will come back to bite him at contract renewal time. Just like some players have football brains and can read the play and react accordingly so do most coaches and can mentor their players. Some players have footballs for brains and need game plans to almost be tattooed  on their arms (and struggle to read them) some coaches are so stubborn it seems that they fall into this category and Dean is certainly beginning to show signs.

Odf
you dont think all thougs josh jackson misses
 in the middle dont help
2 me we wont beat the roosters period

steve 
what did tunks daughter do enlighten us

Just wow...
Another gem from leagues greatest mind...

Tony you are too young...and innocent...well young anyway....well maybe forget both of these... In the age where every celebrity bloke seems to be a sexual predator the swimsuit model offers a contra look at that situation.

Tony, I'm not quite sure what you are trying to say but yeah we may as well have Josh Jackson's missus in the middle for all the starch our forwards are producing.

I thought DWZ handled himself so well today..... never really listened or seen him interviewed before TBH

Spoke well, the guy is articulate which is great. 



I hope Pay plays Tolman’s half brother Meaney on the wing (instead of that hack Montoya) & we get the full value of DWZ at No 1

My prediction :- DWZ at left centre or left winger with CHN or Montoya.

DWZ said he talked to Pay and talked to other players playing here and decided to come to the club.... so either we are paying good money, or things are not as bad as fans think.. he had other options...

The reserve grade coach also said CHN had a good attitude after being dropped.....

We are losing games, but that doesn't mean the club is a shambles ... mostly it means the coach and;/or players are not good enough.

Additional prediction.. Martin  and Montoya dropped ... Brown and Odgen  on the bench... CHN playing left centre...

Odf , just saying guys like jackson is missing quite a few tackles than usual & how pay picked elliett 
is beggers belief to me our forwards are soft as of late
if the engine room isnt firing the backs have no hope
the table says it all dead last with 3 wins
the roosters you can put $1,000 on them in the tab
youll collect $3500 

His other options were either The Cows or The Tigers. I'm sure he would've like other options with more chance of immediate success but these are the ones he had.

I'd bet the one who had most influence of getting him here is the one who explained our situation come 2021 onwards. I doubt and I bet DWZ would too that The Tigers and Cows have fat chance of achieving much before '21 and so post '21 we look better placed. The 18 month contract gives him a chance to re-assess because I'm sure we would've tried to tie him for a season longer.

I think he's using us to mark time until he commits long term come '21. And I'm fine with it because I'm sure he'll still perform to his best ability to keep his value high, and given we've now got him I'd have us favourites to get him long term IF he sees the promise of 2021 onwards eventuating. And if he doesn't he'll try and get a contract with a contender.

He didn't come here to compete for the spoon. He knows he will this year and maybe next but he's wearing that to play for contenders of the 20's.

Plus he wanted to stay in Sydney, there's that too.

So The Cows were never really in the hunt.