League Freaks 2010 National Rugby League Season Preview
You want to know why there is such a huge buildup to the 2010 NRL season? Just take a look at how many really strong teams there are this year!
By my count we have 9 teams that have enough talent to be unquestionable finals teams. Too bad there are only 8 places. Beyond that you have a handful of sides who only miss out because they are not consistent.
I only see one really dud team this year, and sorry to say it, but its the Sharkies.
So I know you don't want to be waiting around reading this part.
So in no particular order:
Canterbury Bulldogs
See how thing turn around when you clear out all the dickheads from your club? The Bulldogs didn't add much over the off season, but a few of their players will be better for last years run.
The Good
Jamal Idris should really step up this year and break into State Of Origin and possibly the Australian side. Look for Ennis to continues his fantastic form as well. I think they need to get something from their juniors in the forwards, but they are one of the best clubs to be able to come up with the goods.
The Bad
I worry about age wearing them down. Kimmorley is old and Pattern, while he is one of the most reliable players I have ever seen, is no spring chicken himself. Will the wear and tear finally get to these two?
Can They Win It?
They defiantly can, but I feel as though they need to find an extra game breaker to really be a favorite.
Prediction
Very solid all year, very dependable. Their lack of an extra attacking edge is what gets them at the end of the day and they lose in the second week of the finals. If only there was some way to clone that Morris kid....oh wait.....
Wests Tigers
They have gone out and bought a lot of new players into the club, including signing a 30 year old Lote Tuqiri for twice as much than he is worth. They have a heck of a lot that looks good about them though.
The Good
They needed tome grunt up front and Jason Cayless should help provide some of that. If anything Tuqiri provides depth in the backs and Moltzen should be better for having another season under his belt. I think Robbie Farah will have a blinder this year and Benji Marshall will continue his amazing form. Throw in what has to be the best, most experiences coaching staff in the history of the game...its a good combination!
The Bad
I think Tuqiri's signing could be a big mistake. Thats a lot of money for an old rugby union player. I still worry that they have to rely a bit too much on fancy stuff to win them games, I don't think they can grind out wins.
Can They Win It?
They can, however they need to fix a few issues they have had in the forwards. If they have been able to do that over the off season, they are a big chance.
Prediction
They start off a little slow as combination's settle, but by August they are on fire and finish in the top four. They narrowly get beaten in the Semi Finals in front of a sellout crowd of 80,000.
Cronulla Sharks
Last year was a dog of a year with bad new on and off the field just killing the club. I look at this years team, I see less things to like about their lineup, I see many of the same problems from last season, but they were always going to get worse before they got better.
The Good
You know I've found good things about every other team, but for the Sharks, I'm really struggling to find something good to say. I guess you could say that expectations are low, so what every they do should be a bonus....right?
The Bad
They didn't really add anyone worthwhile, Trent Barrett is finished, they have no one that is even remotely dangerous, their supposedly toughest player spent the off season whinging like a bit and their coach will invest so much emotional energy into trying to make them a winner that it will just about kill him.
Can They Win It?
I see no reason why they can't. Oh, hold on, I should have deleted that first bit, I copied and pasted it from another team. Nah, the Sharks have no chance!
Prediction
They play hard and really take it up to opposition clubs, but the lack of quality players shines through and the Sharks have yet another terrible season. Wooden Spooners.
New Zealand Warriors
Funnily enough when they brought the White Ant back (Stacey Jones) anything good the club had went missing and the smokey for the 2009 Premiership had a terrible season. After Steve Price lost the captaincy and whinge about it, will more problems scuttle the Warriors this season?
The Good
Stacey Jones is gone, never to return, and not a moment too soon. The Warriors have a few good youngsters who should make an impact this year, and getting Brent Tate back will improve them a hell of a lot. They don't spend all their salary cap money, which is a good thing, this lineup isn't worth it, but that could help they get some mid season help or event see them sign a big name or two for next year.
The Bad
I can't think of anyone thats left who can really play in the halves. By bringing back Jones last year the Warriors took a dump on their halves from the previous season and they all moved on. Couple that with injury problems and it doesn't look good.
Can They Win It?
Unless they pull about 7 top quality junior players out of their arses early in the season and go on some ridiculous roll, no, they are no chance. So no....they are no chance.
Prediction
Very much a typical Warriors season. Some surprising wins, a lot of pathetic losses, they finish near the bottom of the ladder, Cleary is fired before seasons end and Fairleigh takes over....and is not up to the job.
Melbourne Storm
They are the National Rugby League Premiers and probably the best team I've seen in my lifetime. What they have achieved over the last few years is amazing and hardcore football junkies like me love the way they just keep getting up to do all the hard things every year.
The Good
No team in the game has a core as good as the Storm. Cronk, Smith, Inglis and Slater, you add them four to the worst side in the competition and you are making the finals. The Storm cover the loss of players better than anyone in the game. Look for unheralded players to perform very well under Craig Bellemys coaching, they just get the job done and the stars do the rest.
The Bad
Their preseason has been ruined by the World Club Challenge, as it always is for the previous years NRL Champions. Staying on top of your game from February to the first weekend of October is impossible, so look for the Storm to have some rough patches this year. They should cover most of their personnel losses over the off season but I do worry about the workload the likes of Inglis, Slater and Smith have been under over the last few years. At some point all that football becomes too much.
Can They Win It?
To win the Premiership you have to beat the Melbourne Storm. Right now for me, they are the clear cut best team in the competition. Their regular season form will not be all that important, in fact I'd be a little worried if they dominated all year. Leave that to the likes of the Dragons, this Storm team has learnt from past lessons and they know what is really important, being the best team during the last four finals games of the season. That is their goal.
Prediction
I think they will finish the Minor Premiership in the top three, pushing for at least a top two finish which gives them a lot of advantages in the finals system the NRL uses. Look for them to step up a few weeks out from the finals and take their game to another level. I think the Storm will win the Grand Final again in 2010, the first back to back Champions in over a decade.
St George/Illawarra Dragons
Lets make no bones about it, last season the Dragons choke when it mattered most. Its been a common problem for the Dragons over the years and as much as they don't like talking about it, its still the Gorilla in the room.
The Good
Wayne Bennett has had a year with these players now and he knows better than anyone what needs to be done. he knows who he can rely on and who he can't Nathan Fien will be a bigger part of the team this year which will help in a big way and last years experience will have taught them a lot. Jamie Soward started last year as a fringe first grader, he now has a very valueble year of experience to draw upon.
The Bad
They didn't really add anyone that would knock your socks off and the fact is, they still have the same problem that was their downfall last year. They don't have a real halfback, an organizer, someone who can play whats in front of them. They are great off set plays, but when things don't go their way, the Dragons are stuffed, they lack ideas and they leave everything up to young Soward to do. Fien should help a bit out of hooker, but this is a major problem that has not been addressed.
Can They Win It?
They are a very good, very well coached group of players and there is no doubt they will go well, probably the favorite to win the Minor Premiership again this season. However when the big moments comes, the points of the season that really matter, you can't have any confidence in the Dragons. You get the feeling that in big finals games, when they come up against similarly great teams but who have great stars who stand up when it counts, the Dragons are the type of team that could get slaughtered.
Prediction
A great regular season, very consistent and everything going along great. It will look a little wobbly nearing the conclusion of the regular season but Bennett will draw it together just in time. They will go a bit better in the finals this year but once they hit a proven performer, its all over. They are not winning the Grand Final in 2010.
Gold Coast Titans
The Titans took a step up and joined the big boys in 2009 and so expectations for this season are raised. Close enough is no longer good enough and if you follow natural progression, the Titans really should get closer to the top this year.
The Good
On pure a football basis aloe, Greg Bird is just what they needed. A tough player who doesn't mind getting stuck into the rough stuff, a strong defender and a strong ball runner on the edges.
The Bad
The Titans aren't stupid, they know what their problem was last year. If things go a similar way it wouldn't take much for them to get disheartened and start to fall away. You also have to wonder about how some of their more injury prone players will hold up. Rogers, Bailey and even Scott Prince all sit out a lot of games every year. You get the feeling it wouldn't take too much for their season to fall apart.
Can They Win It?
If everything went their way, injuries, a few youngsters stepping up, Bird plays great, they finally find some toughness, they are an outside shot. Problem is, I think they are soft, and when they hit the likes of the Storm or even Parramatta or the Bulldogs in the finals, those teams will go through them like a buzz saw.
Prediction
A good start to the season, they will look great. Injuries will set in, they will fade a little and just about manage to get everyone back by finals time. Problem is by then, they are coming home with a wet sail and when they hit the hardened finals sides, it will be all over.
Manly Sea Eagles
This time last year the Sea Eagles were on top of the world, yet in the space of a week, their season came crashing down before it had even started. Even now the team is still dealing with the repercussions of last years season launch, and I think it will have a big baring on their 2010 season and possibly beyond.
The Good
They lost Matt Orford but he was a choker. Consistent in the games that didn't matter, but a world class choker when the games did matter. Kieran Foran will be asked to step up this year, and while he may not be as consistent just yet, he will prove to be a game winner for Manly.
The Bad
They didn't add anyone that great to a side that wasn't good enough last year. The Brett Stewart thing is hanging over their heads too, and that might get worse as the courts do their thing. The big problem will be if they continue to play Jamie Lyon at five-eight. He is not good enough, its as simple as that.
Can They Win It?
Des Hasler is a great coach that can get a lot out of his lineups. This is going to be a tough ask this year though. I think they will put in a solid effort, maybe just miss top 8.
Prediction
A so-so start to the year with a solid mid season run isn't enough to get them over the line to make the finals. I think this Brett Stewart stuff won't hurt them early in the season but once the courts get on top of this, I think it could be a big hammer blow to the club.
Brisbane Broncos
With a new coach in 2009 the Broncos has a schizophrenic season that saw them look like world beaters, then egg beaters, then world beaters again. I get the feeling after testing the coach, then giving his a decent sized contract extension, the club has its sights set firmly on rebuilding.
The Good
Forget Karmichael Hunt, in a competition full of great fullbacks and with a heap of options, I have no doubt we'll be talking about the great young fullback the Broncos have unearthed in a few months from now.
The Bad
Where to start? Hodges won't be back for months, Israel Folau looks to have stagnated, if not taken a backwards step, Lockyer is looking very old and not capable of dragging them to wins. They lost Taylor and Clinton from a pack that was already atrocious and didn't replace them with anyone of note. When you're big off season signing is Tim Smith, you are screwed.
Can They Win It?
No, they can't. The Broncos have to many problems right across the park to even be thinking of winning the title. Lockyer is a great player, and in a solid team he could still lead a team to a Premiership. However at this stage of his career even the great man himself can't lead a team kicking and screaming to wins.
Prediction
A fairly average start see's the knives come out for the Broncos, but it soon becomes apparent that this side just doesn't have the cattle. A stupid Kiwi kid comes back from France to play a game he has never played before and everyone says his loss was the problem, but it wasn't. This crash has been coming for a while. The Broncos fail to make the finals and Darren Lockyer retires.
Canberra Raiders
Its been way to long between drinks for Raiders fans. They suffered through the Matthew Elliott period, then Neill Henry dragged the club back together before leaving for North Queensland, and then last season under David Furner they showed some promise, however over all they were disappointing. can they keep moving forward this season, or do Raiders fans have to put up with more rebuilding rubbish?
The Good
They are a young team with a young coach so they will have got a bit out of last season. They even had a few players gain State Of Origin experience last year and unearthed a few more good youngsters from the lower grades. If these guys can all just take another step forward, they could surprise people.
The Bad
I don't rate David Furner as a coach just yet. Knows a lot about footy, knows what needs to be done, but a great coach is like a great artist, sure its just paint, a brush and canvass, but they produce amazing things our of basic elements. Not everyone can do it, no matter how much they want too. On top of that the Raiders have a few players that needs to step up to a new level, promising no longer cuts the mustard.
Can They Win It?
They have little experience in their side, they are way too inconsistent, they would be out coached against the best teams anyway and they don't have the cattle.
Prediction
A sadly familiar scenario for Raiders fans. They go between being completely out classed and then pulling a great performance out of their arse, only to disappoint soon after. Furner asks for patience knowing his brother (The clubs CEO) isn't about to sack him anyway, but the losses add up and the Raiders finish in the bottom third of the ladder once again, trying to aoid the wooden spoon.
Penrith Panthers
Ah Penrith, the team I follow for better or worse.
The Good
The Panthers have some very handy players in their side and the 2010 squad looks like it has a lot of depth. The Panthers are a funny team they will only win a title coming from no where, and they fad back to an also ran just as quickly.
The Bad
With the coach constantly talking up every young players in the side, he has placed undue pressure on players that really didn't need it. On top of that, news that some players will be carrying up to 10 kilos of extra muscle is a real worry. Carl Jennings (Penriths trainer) has pushed players to bulk up at his previous clubs (Bradford and Canberra) and its something that never has been a good move.
Can They Win It?
I would find it very hard to rule them out of the race. They are the type of side where, if everything clicks, they could go all the way. The problem is, for everything to click, it will be more an act of luck rather than anything the coaching staff has done.
Prediction
They are a lot more solid than previous years and dispite a terrible coach, the talent gets the job done. They mix solid performances with world beating form every so often and Michael Jennings becomes one of the best in the game. They make the finals and cause problems, but they fall short in the semis.
South Sydney Rabbitohs
Give me an owner who does everything he can to build a winner. Russell Crowe went all out to get Sam Burgess and got his man. There was a change of coach, which probably needed to happen, even if it was a rotten way it worked out and now everyone is tipping the Bunnies to have a big year!
The Good
They added some real grunt up front and their pack looks very, very good. Burgess should be a very good buy as long as he sticks to his job and doesn't try and take on the world while Taylor can be dangerous out wide.
The Bad
You have a lot of very good forwards in this side, but how many grafters are among them? I look at the players they have and there are a lot of players in there that will be good in short bursts, but no one thats going to make 40 tackles and play 80 solid minutes without hurting their production. Even hooker Issac Luke needs to prove he can play 80 minutes this year.
Can They Win It?
They would need their halves Sutton and Sandow to have outstanding seasons to be in with a real chance. I worry they havent got the fire power out wide and their halves just aren't up to it. I don't think they can win the competition, but this will be a big step towards being a contender in the near future.
Prediction
The get off to a very solid start and a very big wins over top opponents gets the bandwagon rolling. However they start to struggle as the season drags on and a late recovery gives fans hope. They make the finals but are gone in week one.
Sydney Roosters
Last year was a disaster and it was not just bad luck, it was terrible management. The club sacked Brad Fittler and have brought in Brian Smith. He has a lot of work to do!
The Good
Smiths record of building a club from rubbish that is left over it outstanding. This season will have its ups and downs but he will get them back to being a playoff team. Braith Anasta should be in for a big year and lets face it, its not 2009, so thats gotta be better for the Roosters!
The Bad
Much like the Dragons, you have to wonder if their problems have been addressed. They don't have an outstanding player who can take the game by the scruff of the neck and just win it. Pearce is in a make or break year and then there is their problem of fading in the second half of games, that was a mental problem that will take a long time to fix.
Can They Win It?
No they can't To many issues upstairs, I would suggest that some of this playing staff won't like Brian Smith and that will undermine everything the team does on the field.
Prediction
Some good performances, with a lot of bad ones. Smith starts gutting the club and players are asked to move on. They get bitter, the papers jump on Smiths back and it all makes for a very tough season, one that is necessary though. They miss the finals.
Parramatta Eels
After starting slow last year the Eels finished strong, making it all the way to the 2009 Grand Final, only to lose to the Melbourne Storm. They enter 2010 with pretty much the same lineup, no major losses, but with a couple of additions in
The Good
They recruited very well before their big late season surge and so their forward pack looks fantastic. Some of their key players now have great experience under their belts and if they get off to a good start and they get fans behind them, they can ride the wave right to the Grand Final once again.
The Bad
They had so many players last year playing in career best form, and catching lightening in a bottle is the hardest thing in the world to do. I worry that Jarryd Hayne is getting away from the values that say him become one of the worlds best players last year and I worry that players like Daniel Mortimer and Fui Fui Moi Moi have to make big steps to be great on a consistent basis. There may also be an issue with club captain Nathan Cayless, some question whether he is good enough to be in the lineup at this stage of his career. If he does get dropped, they will have to appoint a new captain, and it could make for a bit of a messy situation.
Can They Win It?
On paper they look pretty good, but keep in mind this is the same team that looked bloody hopeless at the beginning of last season. I think they can win it though, however they need some of their outside backs to step up to the next level.
Prediction
A very solid season that gets tough around Origin time. Cayless ends up coming off the bench and will be lucky to be in first grade by seasons end, he may retire mid year. They are a top side all season and while there are a few wobbles, they make the Grand Final again.
Newcastle Knights
Well the season hasn't even started and its been a tough few months for the club. Off field rubbish has seen them lose a few players, players I think they won't miss too much to be honest.
The Good
Well a new coach usually is a good boost for a club, and I guess it can't be bad that some of the rotten apples are being removed from the mix. Mullen is a year more experienced and a few of their players should progress from last season.
The Bad
I would always worry about a Knights side that has not enough outside influence. Rick Stone is a Newcastle insider and up there, one team, one town, the Knights are very quick to stop looking at what everyone else is doing and kidding themselves they are doing great when in fact, they are not. Couple this with yet another players being sacked for alleged drug supply charges and it already looks like a lot of the warning signs for a Knights implosion are already going off.
Can They Win It?
No chance what so ever. They will have a consistent season, but for all the wrong reasons. Ok in some games, not quite good enough in many. They won't be easy to beat, they will push teams, but they just won't have the edge needed to win enough games to make the finals.
Prediction
They have a solid start to the year but start to tail off. A mid season boost at Origin time is flattering but they will miss the finals, lose a lot of the work Brian Smith did with them, and be back to their old ways.
North Queensland Cowboys
Its a big year up north with the focus being on Jonathan Thurstons career, the hopeful resurgence of Matthew Bowen and of course the addition of Willie Mason. Coach Neil Henry no longer has Origin duties to deal with so now there are no excuses for poor form.
The Good
If Bowen comes back and is even 75% of the player he once was, he will be a massive boost to this team. A on his game Willie Mason could also be a huge addition and a strike weapon up front they needed. They have some great players in this side, they just need to get it all together.
The Bad
Thurstons future will be a distraction while Mason could be even worse. Injury prone key players doesn't help and you just get the feeling that while things could all come together, they could just as easily fall apart up north.
Can They Win It?
No, I don't think they can. There is just too much inconsistency in this side, to many things to consider and too many things have to go right.
Prediction
They smash the Broncos in round one and while they start the season well, the cracks start appearing. Masons career is proven to be over and it seems like Thurston re-signs with the club was almost down to the fact that no one else was really chasing him. They miss the finals and big questions are asked about the direction of the club. This is this current lineups last shot, if they don't give it a real shake this year, they will be gutted and start to re-build.
And the 2010 Premiers Are....
The Melbourne Storm beat the Parramatta Eels in the Grand Final. The Storm fight off the Panthers in the semi finals while the West Tigers lose and extra time thriller to the Eels.
The Storm by 28-22 and Billy Slater is the Clive Churchill Medalist in a season that people really start talking about his standing among the games greats.
League Freaks Ladder
1. Parramatta Eels
2. Melbourne Storm
3. St George/Illawarra Dragons
4. West Tigers
5. Gold Coast Titans
6. Canterbury Bulldogs
7. Penrith Panthers
8. South Sydney Rabbitohs
9. Manly Sea Eagles
10. Sydney Roosters
11. North Queensland Cowboys
12. Canberra Raiders
13. Brisbane Broncos
14. Newcastle Knights
15. New Zealand Warriors
16. Cronulla Sharks
A Make Or Break Season
Willie Mason is just 29 years old and could easily play another four years. However with all the issues he has generated the last few years, rightly or wrongly, a lot of people within the game feel like he is damaged goods.
Playing good football will always make up for off field issues, however if Mason comes out and plays like a bludger, his career in Australia will be effectively over.
Jarrod Mullen has been a half with a lot of promise the last few years. Learning from Andrew Johns early in his career, getting a taste of State Of Origin football, he has performed very well at times, however he has also played a lot of average football and struggled with a few injuries.
In 2010, Mullen needs to make the step up from being a promising players to a true, reliable star, otherwise he could fall back into that Brett Finch class of player who many thought would be representative stars, but who just ended up being solid first graders.
Who Is Under The Pump?
Ivan Cleary has had some good times at the Warriors, but a lot of bad times too. While New Zealand is really craving NRL action the last few years, with TV ratings through the roof, the Warriors have been terrible.
The club recently brought in David Fairleigh as an assistant coach.....it made me think of the way John Lang was ready to take Jayson Taylors job at the end of last year!
Brian Smith's needs to rebuild the Roosters and while he has always been brilliant at building a club up, he is now at a club that is notorious for discarding people at the drop of a hat. If the Roosters get off to a bad start, and with a media thats always been hostile towards Smith ready to pounce, I could see Smith shown his marching orders if this turn bad once again for the Roosters, just because that is the type of club they are.
The Dally M's
Robbie Farah wins the Dally M player of the year while the coach of the year goes to Tim Sheens. A Broncos player wins the Rookie of the Year and Jarryd Hayne wins the peoples choice award.
The Dragons get few gongs even though they have a good year but the biggest snub goes to the Storm, best team in the competition but because they cruise through the regular season they don't get the awards they probably should.
State Of Origin
I think this is the year Queensland suffers from lack of depth in the forwards. Their backline is amazing and will see them be hard to beat, but their two best forwards are older than the Origin series itself! New South Wales will pick a huge pack of forwards as they did in game three last year. With Hayne at fullback, Jennings making a bigger impact in the centers and that big pack, New South Wales finally win the Origin series!
Internationals
New Zealand come back a little as last years injuries and disappointment actually help their depth. They push Australia hard and like New South Wales in the Origin series, they take advantage of some older opposition forwards, but they lose the mid season Test.
The Four Nations is very different. PNG plays solid and Englands tour is nothing short of a disaster, but the battle between Australia and New Zealand is nothing short of titanic. The series finals see's both nations play off with New Zealand winning, emphatically, and it see's the end of the rep careers of Darren Lockyer, Petero Civoniceva and Steve Price.
So thats it. Lets see how close I got. BRING IT ON!
The Entire Knights Club Could Be Banned.....But It Can't
There are a lot of things about the Rugby League media that I simply hate.
I hate it when they are lazy and call player managers to get a cheap "Player XYZ Is Leaving!" headline. I hate it when they come out with "Exclusives" and then you find out they are just quoting widely available stats. I hate it when they go for cheap headline grabbing and saying that every other sport it out to get Rugby League.
I really hate it when they write something misleading.
By reading that you'd think the Knights are in pretty big trouble.
Reading the article itself, and the first paragraph in particular, it gets even worse for Newcastle!
The Knights could be expelled from the NRL if charges of drug trafficking against two of their players are proved, according to sanctions set out by the World Anti-Doping Agency, whose rules league is obliged to follow.
Wow, they pretty much are gone you would think! Then as you read on it becomes very fuzzy!
It turns out that if you apply certain rules to this case, and then bend them and stretch them, they could, maybe, possibly look similar to what is happening in Newcastle, except they aren't.
Then when one of WADA's more specific rules are applied to the Newcastle Knights case, it turns out that the banning of a club is completely left to the digression of the governing body of the sport in general, namely the NRL.
So the chances of Newcastle being kicked out of the competition because two of its players are up against charges of drug distribution are zero!
If that is the case, why would Roy Masters even contemplate writing this rubbish?
I like Roy Masters, he is an old school coach, he is out of the loop a bit these days but he still has his foot in the door with some of the old administrators of the game.
Sometimes he writes dribble, but he also writes some very thought provoking stuff which I really admire. So to see him come out with something that is just rubbish, space filling crap, its very disappointing.
You know if you asked Roy Masters right now, what are the chances the NRL would kick the Newcastle Knights out of the competition, he would tell you there was absolutely no chance of it happening.
So why do the write up Roy?
As the Knights scramble to try and keep sponsors, as they try to sooth the fears of their fans, and as they try to piece together what is now left of their team, they don't need their stakeholders to pick up the paper today and read that they club could be kicked out of the competition, when in fact that will never happen!
Even if the Knights players had hit the mark on these WADA rules (And they have yet to do that), what type of shit storm do you think the NRL would find itself in if it decided to ban the Knights for a year and effectively kill the club!
Its just misleading and not needed.
So fear not Knights fans, your club is safe. Just hope they can get all the rotten apples out of the place before the season starts. You lot deserve a good club you can be proud of!
Why Rugby League Can Be Proud Of Its Record Against Drugs
Few other sports in the world can claim to have the same high drug testing numbers that Rugby League has.
Over the years we have seen players testing positive to Performance Enhancing Drugs as well as other street drugs, and while it is almost impossible to get everyone, Rugby League authorities on both sides of the world have given their best in getting as many as they possibly can.
This was brought into light recently with Terry Newton becoming the first athlete ever to test positive to Human Growth Hormone, a fact that has been given world wide press attention.
While some see positive drug tests in Rugby League as a major blight on the game, I honestly believe it is good news when someone gets caught. It shows the drug users that the clock is ticking, that its just a matter of time before it is their name in the news.
Most importantly though, the bans Rugby League hands out for testing positive to banned drugs are as long as any other sport in the world.
Terry Newton received a two year ban for testing positive to HGH. Gareth Hock also received a two year ban for testing positive to Cocaine.
In Rugby Union Australia's Justin Harrison was give an 8 month ban for three charges, one of which included missing a club drug test and yelling to younger players at his English club at the time "Class A, its OK".
Under World Anti Doping Association rules (By which the NRL and RLF work by) Harrison should have received a 2 year ban. The RFU however deemed it would have been an out of competition test, so Harrison basically got the off season and two extra months as a suspension.
These type of weak bans and loop holes are used by a number of sporting organizations around the world.
In the AFL, you have to test positive to an illegal drug three times before you get suspended. You just about have to be a drug addict who no longer cares about the consequences of your actions before they even lift a finger.
Keep in mind the AFL is the same competition where former West Coast Eagles player and self confessed meth addict Ben Cousins managed to get by without testing positive for drugs once, and was only caught out when the police arrested him!
He got all of 12 months out of the game, and was back playing in the AFL once his ban was over.
Rugby League can still do more to make sure it gets as many drug users out of the game as possible, but at least fans can take heart in knowing that no sporting organization anywhere in the world does more to find drug cheats, and then ban them to the fullest extent possible.
There are many sports out there that have a lot to learn from The Greatest Game Of All.
Channel Nine Shows Its True Colours And Gallop Couldn't Give A Rats
Last week David Gallop made a pretty innocent remark about Channel Sevens push to start its own Rugby League based TV show. Basically Gallop wished them luck and said they would get the NRL's support.
Well didn't Channel Nine blow up!
Nine, the current free to air TV rights holder, is run by a bloke called David Gyngell. Imagine a self important wanker who is at the helm of the Titanic.....you have your character profile right there.
He personally launched into Gallop, and don't you worry, Gallop fired back.
What the comments from Nine showed was there steadfast belief that they are entitled to Rugby League, thats the sport belongs to them totally, and how dare anyone else suggest that another TV station should even think of showing the game!
I along with most people I know consider the major television rights holders for the NRL to be Fox Sports. Through Fox Sports I get to see five of the 8 games played every week, as well as replays during the week and various NRL TV shows.
On Channel Nine, I get one live game and two delayed replays......I feel so privileged!
The thing is, you have to look at the way both stations cover the game.
Fox Sports covers all teams, they look at every club and it doesn't matter if you are from North Queensland, Melbourne, hell even New Zealand, you don't feel left out.
Channel Nine meanwhile is well known for its Rooster centric coverage. The right Sydney teams get the spotlight, Newcastle gets a huge run too, but Queensland is rated as second class, Melbourne barely exist, Canberra doesn't exist at all and the Warriors, hell they still openly question the Warriors involvement in the competition!
On Fox Sport when I want Rugby League news, I get it immediately and in depth. Doesn't matter what club it is, you'll get the news you want to hear about.
On Channel Nine you'll hear how the Roosters are going, and then have some much raker toss up rumours that never come true. That or you'll get a word for word PR spin from the camp of a bloke that hasn't played Rugby League in 10 years now!
Its almost as though those at Channel Nine live in a bubble. They still think this is the 1980's, when people turned to Nine as their only source of coverage of sport.
I have the internet, e-mail, the radio, hell I get news on my phone. Nine just doesn't understand that there are a million different sources of NRL information out there, and they have never lifted their game to meet the challenge.
That has seen them fall way behind.
Why would I wait around for 30 seconds worth of "old" news on Nines main news broadcast when I can get all the Rugby League news I want at an instant online?
Hell I knew when Sam Burgess was enjoying some ice cream yesterday, I even got sent a picture of it (Twitter).....and Nine can't even keep up to day with major news!
That is not even to take into account the fact that Nine have the rights for the English Super League competition and have just refused to show any of it so far this season. But thank goodness they will show delayed replays after the fact from this weekend....I feel so special now!
Nine has treated the game of Rugby League like shit for well over ten years now. They have payed so far under market value, they have bullied the League into making bad decisions based on TV alone, they still have a heap of power and use it every chance they get, and at the end of the day, their coverage is average.
For a station that is bleeding viewers like never before, you would think that 30 weeks of rock solid ratings gold would be something the Nine would kill for. But no, The NRL and Rugby League fans should be thankful for having Channel Nine.....just ask them!
The sooner Seven and Ten split the TV rights for the NRL, the better. Between that and Fox Sports, I won't have any reason to watch Nine at all.
Warriors Looking To Sign Sonny Bill Williams: Good Or Bad Move?
I'm not sure where the push is coming from, I'm guessing lazy journos getting fed "news" from an anxious player managers, but there are been a bit of news recently regarding the future of Sonny Bill Williams.
First there was talk he wanted to go back to New Zealand and play for the All Blacks. Then came news Newcastle were interested in signing him. We had the ARU having to tell the press they would not be signing him and now the New Zealand Warriors have made public their interesting in signing him.
Does that all sound erratic and confused to you? Yeah....sounds like Sonny Bill Williams to me too!
Now in Sydneys Sunday Herald we had regular Sonny Bill Williams sympathizer, Danny Weidler asking NRL players if Williams ban on playing in the NRL should be lifted.
Let me make on thing clear right now, there is no ban what so ever on Sonny Bill Williams playing in the NRL.
If a clubs wants to sign Sonny Bill Williams they are free to do so, however they will have to negotiate a transfer fee with the Bulldogs as, the terms that Williams agree'd to when he settled with the club, they basically hold the rights to his NRL contract until 2013.
So Weidler asking players like Jarryd Hayne and Petero Civoniceva is Williams NRL ban should be lifted, at best was a misunderstanding on his behalf. At worst, the guy was misleading players to try and stir controversy.
What ever the case, Williams is available and the Warriors have made their interest public.
With an aging and injury prone Steve Price whining his way off the books at the end of this season (Did you hear him have a cry about losing the captaincy of the Warriors?) and Brent Tate also coming off the books at seasons end, the Warriors have some salary cap space to burn for 2011.
Couple that with the fact the club actually spends below the NRL's salary cap limit anyway, it means the Warriors could make Williams the highest paid player in the NRL if they wish too.
Its a gamble.
Aside from the fact he is injury prone (He's even had two major injuries playing French Rugby Union!) and hasn't played the game in about two years, Williams is, how do you put it delicately.....a basket case!
In the weeks leading into him walking out on the Bulldogs over night and flying to France, Williams stated his desires to be a Bulldogs captain, a New South Wales Origin player, a Kiwi captain and an All Black as well as being a leader for Polynesian players (Apparently the fact he is whiter than Alan Tongue didn't matter!).
So this is a kid thats all over the place. Throw in his injury problems and the fact that forwards in the NRL have gotten a lot bigger in the short space of time he was gone, and you have a very unreliable investment on your hands if thats the way the Warriors want to go.
With all of that said, the PR boost for the Warriors would be huge. It was raise the clubs profile (I'd argue that right now NZ fans are so disheartened by the Warriors that other NRL clubs are more popular in NZ than they are!), it would boost their crowds, and hey, the teams on field performance could use a kick in the backside as well.
If they could get him on around $400,000 a year, he'd be a good buy, one that would pay for itself. Anything more and its too much, but having said that, I think spending that extra money is more desirable than not spending it, or spending it on crap.
I personally don't believe the Warriors have a real shot at signing him anyway. I think he'll end up playing for a "Super" 14 Rugby Union team in New Zealand, probably as a center.
Sometimes, You Just Have To Love What Happens In Super League!
There is a bit happening ins Super League right now, some things are interesting while others are just batshit crazy!
I'm always interesting in hearing, not so much the news about who won and lost, but the news that effects the competition itself.
We've had a fair bit of that lately!
After a tough year last year I think we have rightfully seen the RFL looking to be a little conservative recently, just wanting to make sure clubs survive. Now things are starting to look up, news of expansion and making a bigger impact are starting to filter out again.
Anyway, lets look at the few things that caught my eye over the last week or so:
The Crusaders Sign An Old Rugby Union Player
You have to feel for the management at the Crusaders. The club is putting on a brave face, and they have already done better than expected on the field, but the whole thing is still a house of cards that could fall apart at any time.
Signing a Welsh Rugby Union player was always going to happen at some point, and lets be fair, they have done this more for the publicity more than anything else. No doubt they will get a few more Welsh eyeballs on the club now, even if its just to see how this bloke goes.
Here is the problem though at the end of the day. The Crusaders now have a 35 year old player on their books that has never actually played Rugby League before.
The number of 35 year old Rugby League players running around you could count on one hand, and still have digits left over. These guys have played the game all their lives and by some miracle hit the gene jackpot and were blessed to be able to play a few more years.
Imagine the insanity of any of these guys if they upped and went to play another game. You'd have to question their motivation....and that of the club that signed them.
I think this bloke is going to be a passenger at best. I know that any opposition player worth anything would love the idea of playing across from a 35 year old rugby union player!
The flip side is, if those guy comes in and handles himself ok, what does that say about the quality of Super League?
Adrian Morley Think The RFL Should Employ Terry Newton
It was a very proud moment for Rugby League in the UK when it becomes the first sport to find a drug cheat using Human Growth Hormone via a blood test. I was actually reading the after effects of the test in U.S. sporting news for a week afterward, the RFL was all of a sudden a world leader and setting an example.
I then read a little article on the BBC web site in which Adrian Morley gave a few of his ideas to a journalist.
He said Newton was gutted over what he has done(Now he's been caught). He said Newton felt like he has let everyone down (Now he's been caught). He said Terry Newton was locked up at home and only just starting to get over his stupid act (Now he's been caught).
Then Morley put forward an idea that to be fair, I've seen put forward by other people when a player does something stupid and illegal.
He suggested the RFL hire Terry Newton, the drug cheat, to teach young players about what not to do.
Excuse me?
The same idea was put forward by a lot of people in regards to Wendel Sailors cocaine ban. Gotta show the kids that drug don't pay.....well, forget the various television deals and the two extra years of fame and fortune he received after his ban....APART FROM THAT< drugs don't pay kids!
Now, Morley is no Rocket Surgeon, we all know that. If the writer really was a mate of his, he'd have probably found a way to let those comments slide.
Its a worry though that a guy who has cheated the game so badly, and made world wide headlines in doing so, is still seen by some as a good bloke who just made a bit of a mistake.
Sorry Adrian, the game needs to purge itself of people like Terry Newton, as well as those who sympathize with his self imposed plight!
Toulouse Handshake Deal Becomes Public
In the past I have talked about quiet RFL handshake deals with expansion clubs. They are good for the game to be honest, expansion teams need the full backing of the RFL no matter what old, useless clubs that have been around for 100 years say!
It happened with the Catalan Dragons, and they have been a success. It happened with the Celtic Crusaders, and while the first version fell apart, the second version looks a lot more stable.
It seems the RFL has given the same assurances to Toulouse that they will not have to reach the same levels as other English first division clubs to be in with a shot at being promoted to Super League.
Now, that upset powerful clubs like Halifax, Widnes and Barrow, who right now are the only three clubs that would qualify under the RFL's guidelines it set out two years ago. It forced the RFL to take a leaf out of this guys book:
Of course, the RFL and Super League NEEDS a second French club in the top flight. When you look at how much the Catalan Dragons have added to the competition and how little teams like Widnes, Halifax and the like have to offer Super League, its a no brainer.
Still, the fact this deal become public has got to piss the RFL off.
The Melbourne Storm Win A Very Average World Club Challenge
The Melbourne Storm have won the 2010 World Club Challenge 18-10 in what was a very average game of football.
Played on the only pitch which is completely unsuitable for a top class game of Rugby League, the Storm played the percentages and simply beat Leeds playing very basic football.
Leeds suffered an early injury when Kevin Sinfield left the field with a thigh injury. He tried to stay on the field but could hardly walk, and vision of him getting strapped up when he couldn't even stand on his own verged on comical.
The first half saw no tried scores and it was a reflection of the conditions, both teams playing fairly average, Leeds inability to create much and the Storm just playing percentages.
Billy Slater seems reluctant to run, you could almost hear Craig Bellemy telling him to offload to his wingers to avoid injury, and Greg Inglis hardly touched the ball all game.
Cameron Smith was playing at halfback but in the first half the Storm just ground out meters through their forwards, who were very impressive and completely dominated Leeds.
With Sinfield off the field it was up to McGuire and Burrow to create, and they were both bloody hopeless. Burrow surely must be under pressure to keep his place in the side, now that defenses in Super League are allowed to complete tackles and have structure, Burrow's one trick pony show is over, and he just has nothing to add to the Leeds side.
As for McGuire, has his game progressed one bit since he was a teenager?
One point in the first half I found very amusing what when Ryan Bailey predictably tried to start a fight. The two sides come together and when Bailey found himself toe-to-toe with Adam Blair, his nuts when missing. The sight of Blair growling into Baileys face and seeing Bailey wanting nothing of it, priceless!
The first half ended with two penalty goals a piece, 4-all, it was like a sleeping pill.
As the second half got under way you could see the Storm starting to get into a bit of form.
Slater got more involved and the Storm started to throw a few plays at the Leeds defense.
After the terrible off side call that saw Leeds just ahead 10-4 the Storm hit back and leveled things up less than two minutes later when they caught the Rhinos short out wide.
A penalty goal followed and as the game started to turn towards the Storm, and Leeds didn't get a chance to use this as an ego boosting excersise, they wanted to try and start fights all over the field.
Its a Pommy thing....
The Storm wrapped the game up late with a try in the corner, from which Leeds once again tried to start a fight.
At the end of the day the best team won, the Storm got a decent run under their belts ahead of the season proper and Leeds, well, who cares.
The Referee
Keeping in mind that all English official have problems with how they handle the game (A poor ten meters, allowing markers to split early, allowing players to be offside from kicks) I thought Silverwood was fair to both teams and thats about as much as you can say about his performance.
There was a lot of Pommy whinging in the commentary about how long players were allowed to hold down the attacking player in the tackle. It was nothing more than I have seen in Super League over the last year.
The commentators seems to suggest it had something to do with international rules, aboslute crap. Melbourne would have loved nothing more than fast play the balls, you get on a roll with the worlds best hooker getting on the front foot and Billy Slater sniffing around, please, those slow play the balls saved Leeds 40 points at least!
The Off Side Call
The English officials always, without fail, throw up at least one terrible, disgraceful decision, and this year it was a try they gifted to the player formally known as Danny McGuire.
McGuire was clearly off side from a kick from his team mate Brett Delaney (Who had put his foot out to stop a Storm chip through the line) and he raced away to score was was a black and white, no try decision.
The video referee gave it though, without a single replay giving any hint that McGuire might have been onside.
Incompetence? Lets hope so, because anything beyond that starts to take the game into very murky water.
Next Season?
The contract between the NRL and RFL to play this game is now up for renewal and to be honest, I don't want this game played again as it stands right now.
Its played in England, at basically the English teams home, controlled by English official, its a carve up.
Before this years game the Storm went to their only pitch inspection to get a run on the field. They were stopped by security who would only allow two people on the pitch at a time.
Why would anyone want to bother with this game when crap like that is going on. Its just petty rubbish, once again, a Pommy thing.
It might help that the Storm won this year and that might get the NRL on board again. I would like to see the game played in Australia maybe ones in a decade, but the problem there is that the English club wouldn't just get beaten, they would get slaughtered.
Play Melbourne vs Leeds next week in Melbourne and the Storm wouldn't score less than 50.
At the end of the day it will come down to money.
The English officials need this game as a promotional vehicle. When the English teams win they get a lot out of it promotional wide. They offer the Australian teams enough money that it becomes smart business to walk into the Pommy attempts at an ambush. Considering few in Australia actually care about this game, why not grab a bit of easy cash in England?
The problem is that this game completely destroys an NRL champions pre-season preparation. It also makes it a very long season.
I'm pretty sure that we'll see the contract to play these games renewed, under the same format, but really, this is a broken fixture and tonight's game proved as much.
NRL's 2010 Television Advert Is Solid, But They Should Aim Higher
Well the NRL has released its 2010 Television advert and I'm sure it will get a lot of play over the next week at 11pm during the commercial breaks in infomercials.
A lot of people have been critical of this years advert saying it doesn't get them all that pumped up. I think there is a bit of a whinge factor in it, seriously, what do people honestly want from a TV advert?
I've been critical of the way the NRL markets the game for two reasons.
Firstly, they run these ads at terrible times of the day, poorly thought out times of the day, and they only run the ads for about a month at most.
Second, and most importantly, I live in Sydney and I consider myself fairly well plugged into the media that the NRL must be marketing too. What do people in country NSW see? How little must people in Melbourne must see these ads? If a person in the biggest media market in Australia that is the biggest focus of the NRL hardly see's these ad, it makes me wonder if the NRL even bothers elsewhere!
As for the ads themselves, I think they are usually very good. I can only think of one advert that was terrible (Blow that whistle ref!) but the rest of them did the job.
Of course, when these adverts come out, there are two words you are bound to hear.
Tina Turner.
You'll get people not even born when the original Tina Turner adverts hit the screens talking about how much they loved those adverts.
Tina Turner is 70 years old. It was a moment in time that can never be relived, but what if the NRL ran with the "Simply The Best" theme again but updated it for a new generation?
It would be expensive, but I think Simply The Best by Beyonce set to Rugby League footage would be a real home run and something the NRL could run with for a number of years to come.
So to the NRL, start saving, because Beyonce wouldn't come cheap. If you want to make a classic advert though that gets people talking and looking at your product a little closer, you know what you need to do!
I had tipped South Sydney to win 28-26 and while I was close, the game actually ended in a 26 all draw.
The Dragons scored right on full time to level the scores up, and Jamie Soward had a chance to win the game with a kick right from the sideline, but he narrowly missed.
The Charity Shield is a trial game with a big of added incentive, however I think there was a bit you could get out of watching this game.
Watching the Dragons one thing was clear, they still desperately need a halfback.
They are fine when there is a set play but they don't have an organizer who can play whats in from of them. That means when things don't turn out how they expect, their attack falls to bits, and then its usually left to Jamie Soward to run them out of trouble or kick.
This was the same problem the Dragons had last year and ended up with them doing a massive choke job after ending the season as Minor Premiers.
For Souths, they were fairly scrappy through a lot of the game. I didn't really get much out of watching them expect that they need to sort out their defense out wide which folds like a stable table from Ikea.
For our Pommy readers, Sam Burgess was pretty quiet, however he did seem to be getting caught out with the same problem Gareth Ellis did last year, he tackles dummy runners way too quickly and that causes space out wide. Its something he'll need to work on.
Souths other big name signing, Dave Taylor was also pretty quiet.
As I've said before, trial games don't mean a great deal but they can be used as a guide to some extent.
I think the Dragons will have a year similar to 2009, and the Bunnies, they'll go ok but they have a few issues to sort if they want to make the finals.
Expand The World Club Challenge....Um.....How About No!
LEEDS chief executive Gary Hetherington really needs to step back into reality and remember he is not an important figure in the grand scheme of things.
Hetherington has come out this week and said that the World Club Challenge needs to be expanded.
Now, I've said before that Rugby League in England is run on ego and self importance, and Hetheringtons plan just shows are bloody stupid and ignorant he is.
His plan is for the top three teams in the NRL and Super League to play each other the following February.
Super League would have a week off, and the third placed teams would play each other, then the second placed teams would play each other with the NRL and Super League champions then playing off for the World Club Challenge trophy.
I know, I know, its senseless, it has no meaning, there are two extra meaningless games added to what is already a meaningless fixture.
Its once again held in very important England, it once again is held during the NRL pre-season and it once again forces Australian clubs to ruin their pre season just to give the Poms some help.
Needless to say, I think this idea is stupid!
The only way I could ever see an expanded World Club Challenge really working is if we allowed it to replace the International Calender at the end of each season.
Clubs would love that idea, but the fact is that grabbing the attention of a nation, or grabbing the attention of the supporter bases of 8 clubs, its is two very different sized markets you are selling too.
I'd rather watch Australia play bloody Kenya then see the Penrith Panthers play some Super League club!
I think the only way you can save this dead fixture is to have it stay as a one off game.
Play it at a real neutral venue, play it in Hong Kong, play it in the UAE, play it somewhere you can market an annual event in a new market. Play it two weeks after the respective competitions Grand Finals and you know what, if they set it up like that, I'd be willing to say it was a fair contest to see which club can call itself the World Champions.
Hetheringtons idea is all about self interest. The chance that Leeds wouldn't be a top three side over the next decade are very low. You'd expect them to be in the top three Super League clubs at least 7 of the next ten years.
So he is just looking for a way he can sell a big fixture early in the season.
As it stands now the World Club Challenge is a complete and utter failure. No one outside of Northern England cares, and that is just a tiny part of the wider Rugby League market.
Worst of all, it completely stuffs one NRL clubs pre season preparation.
At this stage if they scrapped this game, I wouldn't miss it.
Benji Marshall Worked Out What Is Really Important
Over the off season Benji Marshall sat down with former Penrith Panther and now West Tigers defensive coach Royce Simmons and asked him how much it meant to him to be a one club player.
Marshall has always been a very mature player, if you know a bit about his background, even away from football, you know this is a young man wise beyond his years.
Because of this I think Marshall worked out what is really important in like....being happy.
A lot of young men over the years have been duped into moving away from good situations, good clubs, places where they grew up and were happy just because people talked up other options.
Sure, money is important, but when you are at the level of a Benji Marshall, even your lowest offer on the table will mean you are very well off well beyond your playing days.
The old saying that the grass is always greener on the other side does ring true. We've all experienced that in our every day lives at some point, whether it be thinking of moving, changing jobs, getting a new car, hell even little things like buying a new mobile phone or a new TV.
Something always seems it might be a little better than what you have.
The fact is, if you are happy where you are, that is worth all the money in the world.
Benji Marshall is still only a young bloke, but he already has a Grand Final win to his name, has an amazing World Cup victory under his belt and he has years of football ahead of him. He's happy at the Tigers, he likes the players around him, he likes the coaching staff, he likes the culture of the club.....why would he think of leaving?
There are so many players lured away from good situations you know they wished they never left.
You know that Willie Mason would loved to still be a Bulldog. There are already rumours that Mark Gasnier wishes he was back at St George/Illawarra. Would Matt Orford have ever left Melbourne? Would Michael Crocker or Matt King rather be back at the Storm for that matter?
The list goes on and on.
Marshall made a smart move, a long term contract at the club he loves playing for. The Tigers made a smart move too, you lock up one of the games best player, one of the most marketable player, and it stabilizes the whole club.
League Freak 06/11/2009 02:13 Rich backers, the exchange rate and relaxed salary cap monitoring.
fazerino 06/11/2009 01:03 Fair enough, so why does SuperLeague have more cash than NRL? (if it's only played in grotty Northern towns in England?)
League Freak 03/11/2009 23:21 A Nation Comp means a bigger TV deal and bigger sponsorships. The NRL's deals are smaller because they don't have the national reach on a weekly basis.
fazerino 03/11/2009 07:24 Freak- why does AFL have more cash to lure players from league when there is absolutely no international scene?
League Freak 06/10/2009 22:14 To be honest all I know about him is that he is an assistant coach at Melbourne. He should be pretty good though.
wiz66 06/10/2009 15:28 Freak - what is the form of Micheal Mcguire who is supposed to be coming to replace Noble at Wigan as coach
League Freak 12/08/2009 13:09 You know, they can blame Smith all they want, they are just playing dumb, soft football.
NEWCASTLE 09/08/2009 21:58 I dont want to talk about how awful the knights have been playing lately its like they have lost all hope
League Freak 26/07/2009 22:29 Saw a bit of him against Leeds, he played well!
wiz66 26/07/2009 18:28 Seems Kris Rads has been coaching his full back play at Wigan to great effect
wiz66 26/07/2009 18:26 Cameron Phelps is turning into one of the best imports in SL at the moment
NEWCASTLE 22/07/2009 11:02 I bet newcastle are gonig fall back to their old culture next year.
League Freak 20/07/2009 23:05 I can't blame him. Newcastle stuffed him around with his contract length and the Roosters offered stability.
NEWCASTLE 19/07/2009 20:54 God Damn Smith!!!! He's done it just for the money
NEWCASTLE 17/07/2009 23:36 A backline cant do everything Full Stop.
NEWCASTLE 17/07/2009 23:27 correct as you said It was the opposite for QLD thier fowards werent really on thier game that means slater cant do what he does best
League Freak 17/07/2009 22:03 He was quiet. I don't think he looked for the ball as much. Then again, the forwards were doing their job so he didnt have to,
NEWCASTLE 17/07/2009 20:56 One more thing, I think NSW didnt use Hayne much at all in the third match he look like scoring every time he had the ball
League Freak 16/07/2009 13:51 He can't hold onto the ball either. And he can't field a kick. Apart from that though, he was pretty good!
NEWCASTLE 16/07/2009 11:43 Put it simple he cant tackle he just got palmed off every single time someone ran at him.
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