Wrap - Storming

Boys,

I take you back to Keith's words (possibly some of the few sensible ones!) from 20 March 2016:

"Forget the swans this year - rely on too few. Watch the Western Bulldogs rise and will win 3 consecutive flags from 2017. Remember where heard it first. TGT"

In other breaking news, the great Fugeearma will be sitting next to me at ANZ Stadium as a bloke who was born the year Cronulla came into the comp and who has ridden every disaster since. He is the luckiest bloke we know, so you never know..."Up, up Cronulla...".

*************************

1. Melbourne Storm. Amazing resilience. Amazing patterns and two amazing warhorses in Smith and Cronk. Also an amazingly boring team. Melbourne don't know how good they have it. Most clubs never unearth a hero of 300 games+ - let alone two at once. Barring injuries, Slater would be up there too. Their ruck control irritates every rugby league fan who are over the Melbourne 50:50 calls - which generally lean to 75:25. They are the masters of convincing the refs. The officialdom are under tremendous pressure this week.

2. On refs, their role will be critical. The sinbining of Wighton was your typical hot headed, dumb arse response by a referee under pressure. Doubt that goose will be near a GF. Cool heads and non-existent profile is best. Penalties are the biggest issue in the game. This softness and readiness to blow a "relieving" penalty in an attacking team's own 22 is out of control. So too are the useless get square penalties when the game is cooked. The referreeing is worse than ever. Go back to one ref...please. Two refs doubles the pain.

As I mentioned last week...Cronulla will never have a better chance to win. Their discipline v Cowboys was impressive. This is what it will take again. They will need to be creative in attack and offload - otherwise they don't win. An injury to a key Melbourne player would swing the game. Every try by Canberra was out wide. Please note!

3. The grat (ing) Jarryd Hayne...his signing has cost another Gold Coast scalp. First Mead now Hoffman. Is he worth it? I think Parramatta got this one correct.

On Parramatta, how could Foran possibly be right to play leagiue with the Warriors. Funny mentality that of an out of control gambler. They don't care who they burn. They lose all self-awareness. Who the hell is Eddie Hayson? Was he a former player? official? club stalwart?...who is he?

4. Ravi Ashwin. He has become the second fastest bowler ever to reach 200 Test wickets (after the great Clarrie Grimmet). Pretty impressive stuff. He should be thanking the Indian curators. He will make mince meat of our bats when we next visit.

5. The Swans completed one of the best victories you could ever hope for. Under pressure, a shorter turn around and a dynamic start. They will need to be sharp. The Western Bulldogs are coming together in an impressive run to the finals: West Coast-Hawthorn-GWS..three big scalps for a lower semi final marker. The bigger MCG ground will test both clubs. Pace is king on that ground...so is tackling.

I could not believe the softness and poor options that GWS took in the last five or ten minutes on Saturday night. Incredibly dumb and inexperienced (as predicted). The loss of Stevie Johnson to his nemisis - poor discipline - cost them dearly. Just when they needed him...he lets them down. This is why he was punted from Geelong. The lack of effective tackling by a panicking GWS was also to blame. Like that Western Bulldogs coach. Calm and composed under fire.

6. Man City. They are powering away. It could be too late for quite a few teams if they don't watch it. Poor loss by Chelsea on the weekend to Arsenal. Liking Liverpool. manU back, but still shaky. Leicester- gooooone!

7. Does anyone know why we play PNG in league at this time of the year?

8. A reality check for elite sportsmen who play around with big toys...Jose Fernandez the star Miami Marlins pitcher...dead in a boat accident overnight. Sad news.

Wrap - All Black Whack

1. You must hand it to the Raiders and - as much as everyone doesn't like to admit it - Ricky Stuart. Their effort so far in 2016 for an unheralded bunch has been stunning. However it is all set to end with Melbourne. The NRL are about to gift Melbourne the comp with yet another home final. I recall when both these games were played at the ANZ Olympic Stadium. If the Raiders can get away from Gerard Sutton not officiating...maybe Jarrod (Tim The Toolman) Maxwell...they may be a chance. However the wrestle that has allowed QLD and Melbourne to dominate is set to continue unabated.

2. The Cowboys v Broncos was some sort of game. The Cowboys did it tough and proud. Thurston is the best player we have seen week in week out. However a lot of folk think they will struggle next Friday night...and probably will. The Sharks need to stop the excuses and rise up. They will never get a better chance to win a comp! And why is it not at Shark Park again? That is a joke...and a fund raising venture by the NRL.

Get both games at a neutral venue?

3. GWS v Western Bulldogs. The week off will hurt GWS I suspect...and the inexperienced nerves. If it is a dry track they win. Wet? They struggle. A very early forecast says they will get a dry track. Can't believe they are playing it at Spotless. Think bigger boys!

Hawthorn probably put in the worst display by a semi final team across the weekend in all codes.

4. Swans. They will struggle - especially in Geelong, despite them having a pretty good record down there. Buddy was a lot better on Friday and the Crows were disappointing really. Toughness of Parker and Hannebery was awesome. Keiran Jack needs to lift. He has been quiet and off his game since his parents made idiots of themselves.

5. Mo Matthews. The human headline. Not besties with Dean Jones (who is?), but a stupid thing to say that his double ton in India was on a road and no big deal. He must have been asleep. That or upset he wasn't getting the adulation for the spin bowling he dished up there.

6. Leicester. Dragging their knuckles now after last year's unbelievable story. They need to get their act together. What price relegation?

7. Wallabies. Do get excited beating the Pumas? maybe only when you have been going as poorly as they have. Conversely, the All Blacks have been masterful...again...and again.

8. Davis Cup. Was it a bigger achievement to win - or to get Kgyrios on the court with Tomic? Slovakia were hardly a world threat to be honest.

Wrap - The Clap

1.     Panthers. They really played a great brand of footy, but the Berries let them. Some interesting tactics that define the future of the game always seem to emerge in semi finals: Running on the last tackle for Penrith multiple times to tire the big forwards who love a stop start (actually…no penalties for Panthers and super quick play the balls were a feature). Give up a penalty in a final = the hook! 

Offloads are the key to your future as a forward in the NRL. For example, Canterbury (Eastwood, Kasiano, Klemmer, Williams) and Penrith (Cartwright, Merren, Latimore). No offload ability = no future. Great to see Mansour do well…Captain Risky lookalike.

2. The Bulldogs looked nervous. An angry coach like Hasler at half time does nothing for you in finals. Composure is crucial. It is funny how often the cranky coach tactic does not work.

One thing about Grand Finals and semis…things will always go wrong and it will seem as though things are really against you…then it will turn. Stay composed and calm…Look at Moylan. Three handling errors in about ten minutes…then a return to excellence, starring in the drive home.

3. Surely the short kick off has a good future. The athleticism of the current player would make it very likely your team will get the ball back. That or the hard low grubber kick off that goes out the sideline. Time to change it up in this area of the game. If you can hold your defence till half time, fatigue time will see massive opportunities later. This is new thinking in the modern game.

4. Jarrod Maxwell is the best ref we have. Gerard Sutton needs to be left on Fort Denistone next weekend. This will upset Melbourne who get a lot of 50-50 calls with him.

5. Hayne – David Mead has now left the Titans club…Brad Arthur’s theory is correct. No player is bigger than the club. Hard to defend on your own. The salary sombrero can only fit Jarryd and not many more.

6. If you were a progressive Chief Executive wouldn’t you ban Mad Monday? Where did that crap come from? If only their effort here was matched by their effort on the field in the season…! There is a fair bit of planning there…too much! Some of those Parra players are a disgrace...still. A hard team to like or support.

7. Maxwell. Diamonds and rocks. Plenty of diamonds last week. Our nation is leading the world in the shift of world cricket. ODI and T20 dominate and not many players care about Test Cricket.

8. The GWS juggernaut has arrived. They were so quick v Swans. Quick on the break and so fit! The hard afternoon deck really helped them too. They will struggle a bit more at night I suspect. However, what depth and on a big field they carved up the Swans. The Swans on a smaller SCG might recover. Tippett is playing for his future – or if he misses the game, he may be done. He has struggled badly. Buddy needs to spring back to life. He was too quiet. Adelaide will not be easy. They can play.

The bye weekend killed the West Coast and did not help Sydney.

9. I still like the Hawks I must say. That last kick miss was terrible. Arrogant and smug - and stil lterrible. Geelong were good. GWS will struggle to repeat their effort.

10. Wallabies. A sound win, but they will take each one. Not sure how many people bothered to watch it. Interested to hear that at the Randwick rugby club, they approach South Sydney NRL to take all those players cut and keep them playing (with possible retrieval by the NRL team if need be). This helps the NRL club and the rugby club. Maybe Penrith rugby might have hope with this model.

11. Tennis. Serena seems like she may have hit the wall in her quest for more Grand Slam titles. Age is catching her…Kerber is dominating. Djokovic had an absolute rails run (three walkovers) to the final v Stan the Man. However, unless Stan loses it mentally, he will struggle on that surface.

12. Loved the Viking clap! I think there is a medication for it. Great coordination and solidarity. Didn’t help though…

13. Not sure what Robbie Farah will do this week? Maybe he will parachute into the Grand Final or sing at half time? He is now on $1.2 million a year from what we read. No tears there. Have another beer on the scoreboard? Joke. Would not be real keen seeing my "star" recruit up there with no net.

Wrap - An Investigation Into This

1. Manly. Trent Barrett has been the dud coach of the year. A million stories...a million pre season promises. Bozo has again come up empty - like Origin for the last ten years. "There's going to need to be an investigation into this. Somebody has to be accountable for this". Bring back Geoff!

2. Robbie Farah. We have all enough of the sympathy stories and media rubbish. Go to a new club and give us all a break Robbie...for everyone's sake. Thank God he's gone! He won't be out of pocket. Business.

3. Gerard Sutton is clearly either hopeless or stupid. He blows penalties when there is no real reason (maybe Gerard gets tired?) and catches up the other team in the last ten minutes. He sucks up excessively to players too. Totally bewitched by Cameron Smith. Good luck with him in Melbourne.

4. Henry Perenara did the unbelievable on the weekend...blew a marginal penalty at 26-26 in the last minute in the Newcastle v St George game 30 metres out, right in front. Pathetic. 28-26 to the Dragons from a penalty goal. He should start the year in the Dickhead Cup. Nathan Brown's silence was pretty impressive.

5. If you want to pass an examination - school, university, work -  get the NRL concussion testers involved. They'll get you through any test, any time. No sweat.

6. AFL. How you decide to have a whole week off and lose momentum for the comp is staggering. The game needs to step up here and stop pandering to the idiot minority. A glitch in a glittering season.

7. US Open. Nadal and Djokovic. Wrist injuries show how hard they go. Murray is looming as world number one. Serena may take second place this week from Steffi Graf with 23 Grand Slams too. 

8. Is there anything more boring than a sportsman or woman who is injured? Sympathy yes...interest, no. Plenty of time to get it right. Nick Kygrios...ho hum. have we not got any intense, hard working Chinese-Australian tennis players graduating yet? Surely we will have a few soon!

9. Semi Radradra taking the last kick for goal v Warriors? He is exiting from Parra I suppose... Warriors have done what they did last year - lost their last five or six in a row! Horrible.