I prefer the way the the NVL is approaching these types of off field issues...

They drew a line in the sand that day... 
After TTT and Beattie screwed us they gave the rest a get out clause with some form of statute of limitations designed to protect these idiots filming home made porn... 

They review things on a case by case basis and since Broncos are about to assume last place on the ladder and it will have massive ramifications on QLD support and the bottom dollar for the NRL, they have decided to not stick the boot in and give them some reprieve.

In the case of the Bulldogs, even sticking the boot in is a money spinner for the NRL so they dont hesitate.

I keep saying....we are probably the most important club in the NRL. Its just not reported as such

Just another normal day at the NRL. Agility as PVL would say

WHY is the NRL going to clear Staggs over his porn video...maybe he didn't measure up? Napa got into trouble when a 5 year old video surfaced and seemingly not the case with Staggs. Surely the driving force is to ensure players do not get in these positions in the first place.

No Cameron Smith...no Pappenhui....Pappemhou....the prick who plays fullback...we get 15.5 start...big chance..perhaps they wish to have Tolman to come on yo counter big Nelson. I remember in that game against Melbourne at Belmore last year...we were outsized and outmuscled...perhaps Ogden starting is also a counter measure.

Thank you SG for making a point of the stupid play by AT and demoting him to bench.
I would have dropped him altogether, but its ok as long as he gets ZERO minutes

as long as they havent been near a 5G tower for the last 14 days, they are clean

I see where a covid 19 infected consular worker flew into Sydney and then flew on to the Sunshine Coast. Exempt from quarantining at point of entry due to status as a consular worker apparently.  We are constantly told everything is  being done on the best medical advice. Does this exemption mean that covid-19 differentiates on the basis of a person's employment.
Where are the two politicians returning from USA quarantining

This year is really shaping up as the Clayton's cup.  Warriors getting loan players all over the place, then letting Green go.

I like the team selection this week, Georgie is rewarding form..

If Tols sits on the bench for 80 Marki will be very happy.

You wil be out in 5-10 years with good behavior... so don't chat up the attractive air hostess.

Sydney airport is a great experience nowadays...

Sydney Airport is a great experience nowadays...

I forgot about Cotric, we also have a young centre who seems to have potential, Tass.
Tass is injured at present.
If we decide to keep Lafai, that is the backs sorted.
If we keep Foran, then we need to sign another young half, but Lewis and Wakeham are still in the mix.
I would like to see if Cogger is worth keeping as a 9/14, he isn't as a half.

Seems to me 10,9,8 are the recruitment priorty.

I also like the idea of signing someone like Nicko Hynes as a utility, he is potentially good enough to become a half / fullback at our club. I prefer him to Drinkwater, Drinkwater is faster but more erratic and prone to poor defensive reads, Hynes is mostly solid with occasional touches of class.

A player like Hynes comes mostly for opportunity, he isn't going to get a starting spot at the Storm, at our club he is a chance.

It's just because it seemingly looked so obviously like an obstruction seeing it once in real time that anything from that point on didn't seem worth worrying about. It's bad luck not bias that it was the wrong call. At the time the sound coming out of my mouth was something like a sigh mixed with a swear word & a slug being squashed.....disappointing, but can't really blame anyone because it really did look like an obstruction at the time. Canterbury conceded 3 tries from their own errors & blew so many chances, that's why they lost, the unlucky call wasn't a match defining moment in the first half. 

Cotric is a start and hopefully JO's indiscretion will make him a better person and player. He has the size and pace. He could make a good edge forward like Joel Thompson.
Desperately need a half and hooker with the smarts.

Agree, first time I thought no try.
But the real question is why did he not let the try be scored and go to the bunker.
I can not remember another referee not doing that this year.
He said you can challenge but what a smug prvck. The players were saying go to the bunker. Big question. Yes why did he not?

smartphone keyboards... pfftt not real smart or accurate.

True Rod, but the one very noticable thing to cone out of that game is that both Tolman and Naoa are past their use by dates and need a bit of time either warming the bench or playing in the non existant canterbury cup. And if znyone comes back with " and who will replace them" take your pick there are a lot of juniors that need to be looked at and tried out.

When I saw it live, my first reaction was obstruction/no try. The ref did tell the Canterbury players they could challenge it if they want & they chose not to. The commentators had the advantage of replays, slow-mo etc. It's frustrating that it turned out to be the wrong call by the ref & wrong decision by Canterbury not to challenge it. It just wasn't one to add to the list of the refs really questionable biased calls. Also the call (& the could've been 4 points) wasn't enough to make it a "technical win" so to speak. In real time, seeing it once, it looked much worse than it was. Ultimately, Canterbury went close on the scoreboard, but they lost this one fair & square. Villi is right about the Benny Hill music, if they didn't find one way to lose it they would've found another, playing the ball backwards, kicking out on the full, passing out on the full, penalty for hitting Gutherson in the head & the list goes on. Parra just had to do some extra tackling & ride it home.

Most of it is poor service or the wrong option from dummy half, combined with the dummy halfs and props not creating much, it is a wonder the team is going as well as we are.

My hunch is we will avoid the spoon, a team or a number of tesms above us will hit the wall, we don't need to change much to win the odd game.

Appart from that this season is simply young players getting NRL experience and Barrett seeing what the players offer.

I just finished listening to Annersley's ref roundup and he said that Sutton got the call wrong in Montoya's first try and RFM didn't take Moses out but it was a poor defensive read. He should gave refered it to the bunker, because the no try would have been overturned on the evidence. Therefore the ref screwed us AGAIN..... Having said that the DWZ reverse PTB also fvcked us. 

A lot of our problems in attack can be aimed directly at the ruck. Whether it's poor service out of dummy half or forwards getting in the way we see it week after week. A half break is made and we just don't seem to be able to take advantage of a scattered defensive line on the next play. Anything near the try-line with a retreating defence should be directed out to Foran's side. He is the quickest between the ears and seems to make the right call more often than not whether to put in a kick, play short or long.

At the moment the onus is on completing our sets so we don't chance our arm when it comes to attack from within our own half. There are few backline movements or offloads and when there is an offload there is no one there to take advantage of it. This is a deliberate tactic but I think it is time to throw caution to the wind and allow the boys to play with a bit more freedom. I definitely feel they are capable of defending any errors caused from this approach. An increase in offloads will lead to an increase in support play which could help the players in their approach to playing on the front foot more often.

All we can do is fix the biggest problems first.

At least Katoa and Lewis are improving..

Meaney and Averillo have pace and skill.

Foz offers a lot, but we can replace him if we need to.

In that game the Parra starting props dominated the middle for a lot of the first half.

The game changed a bit when Odgen came on.

The priority from here is to work out what we are missing, and recruit players to fill the gaps.

IMO a hooker and a good starting prop are essential.
A centre/winger with size and impact is a priority.
We need to replace Foz with an experienced half if he leaves.
A utilty who can cover a range of backline positions and hooker of the bench is handy.

If we can get some or all of those players lets see how Barrett goes with the side next year.
For the next few years it is a similar process we need to strengthen the squad and start to get rid of players that don't have it. 

We a stronger squad and a better coach, underperforming players should find themselves in reserve grade. Then it is up to them to respond or not.

That'll stop 'em from having an opinion!

Maybe he can do a wifeswap with Dylan Walker and they can go round and belt each other's wives up...

Ahh the days of Ben Barba...
Remember that run around play from the scrum under Des? 

When you look at the replay of the disallowed try in the first half...it appeared the ref acted hastily for at least not calling for a review. Commentary said RFM was subject of a bad read by the Parramatta player but the ref ruled the other way just penalising the Dogs without a review...it may have been different if reviewed properly...apart from that he didn't favour anyone and was really not noticeable...such indication being he had a good game.
Have watched the Averillo try on several occasions...Marki I suggest you watch it to gain a smattering of optimism...and apart from scoring it you can see he watches exactly where the ball was placed and knew he had scored it 100%

There are some severe problems this team has had for a number of years now.

1) We cannot score length of field tries or very rarely do. This is a function of lack of speed and lack of support play. We have Meaney now who is fast but the rest will get caught by halfway. Cotric might make a difference as he has a long stride but we lack a down and out speedstar in the JAC, Pappenhuyzen or Tedesco mould

2) We simply dont make enough yardage to get into the opposition 20m zone on our own. We rely on penalties, set restarts or opposition errors. This means that we cannot work towards scoring points. We need intervention from the ref or dropsies from the opposition. Need to change our running style and enthusiasm to convert the 20-25m gains into 60-70m gains ROUTINELY. We did it yesterday for a few sets in a row in the second half and once we failed to level the scores and Parra repelled the next 2 sets, we gave up that territorial advantage and let them off the hook. Couldnt get back after that.

3) We are very impotent inside the opposition 20m zone. Alot has to do with JMK who is very poor in player selection off the ruck. Katoa was awful in his first 2 games but yesterday showed more variation and unpredictability at hooker and gave us some options and go forward. There was also a period in that second half that Lewis was demanding the ball at first receiver on nearly every play and we had the Eels backpedalling. More of this is needed. Foran doesnt demand the ball enough for mine.

The pleasing thing is that a number of players in this team can play the right style. The bad thing is that it is so foreign to us that we cannot sustain it for long periods and revert back to our usual lethargic style in attack and defence.

We must be the only team that stands and waits after the opposition has thrown a wayward pass 20m back. Every other team swarms the opposition and makes it a costly loss of ground, yet we use it as a breather with no one moving up to make a takle. Im surprised we dont apologise to the opposition.