HarVeeGee13
Danny 'Bedsy' Buderus
It's only a problem if all of Best, Lucas, Manu and McEwen are all fit all the time. Historically, this has not been common. There's a simple and obvious way to fit them all in when Best misses games for example.
Francis Manuleleua thread
- Thread starter Celticman98
- Start date
most likely an inside centre which is pretty much a rugby league 2nd rower.
Roundtable
Jamie Ainscough
I can only think of Adam Muir and Chief.
Roundtable
Jamie Ainscough
didn't even make their team of the week still. Bench included.
Defender1
Matthew Johns
Yeah, both hit their straps early... they weren't running through opposition teams with ease in their first half a dozen games though.
Steve Simpson and Fitzgibbon were good from early on in their careers aswell.
101k
Gavin Hanrahan
Probably not with hunt and winter, although he does a job whenever he has had to fill in there I think he is 10 x better at backrow. Arguably could still win dally m back row with Ola but probably unlikely now due to the circumstances.
Our back row depth for the future is fkn insane. Lucas, mcewen, Manu and cant. We also have a young bloke Curtis mulherin who was named in the aussie schoolboys squad this year and has been playing cup recently. Looks to be a bright talent as well.
Billy
Danny 'Bedsy' Buderus
A week ago I said it was unlikely that Francis would be selected for Samoa for the World Cup, but after another great game, both Samoa and New Zealand must be looking at him, and a few more games like that and he must make a squad you'd think.
We saw Leo Thompson improve out of sight after training and playing with NZ.
It would certainly be the best possible off season for Manu to go with Crossland and Ponga to play and train with elite forwards.
We saw Leo Thompson improve out of sight after training and playing with NZ.
It would certainly be the best possible off season for Manu to go with Crossland and Ponga to play and train with elite forwards.
Ranga89
David Boyd
yeah nah, Lucas is one of the best edge forwards in the game, why on earth would you want to move him to accommodate lesser talent? sure he does a fine job filling in at centre when required but we have enough good youngsters coming through to replace Gagai without having to do that.
McEwen to start then shift into the middle rotation after the opening 20-25 mins and Manu coming on would be wayyy better. or just shift McEwen into the middle full time if they feel Manu can handle 80 mins week in week out fitness wise and defensively.
While we are trying to work out how we fit Lucas, McEwen and Manuleleua into the team for next year, are we considering if the change in position is best for that player and the team
I mean,
Lucas for example is a left sided player, best suited to left side 2nd row, so I wouldn’t be moving him to the right or to centre
Can Manuleleua play on the right and still be as effective or is he a left sided 2nd row as well
Can McEwen handle the middle and would he be playing lock or front row. If he plays lock, does he have the ball skills to distribute the ball and mop up in defence. Is he big enough or would he need to bulk up to be effective as a front rower because that will affect how you structure his training in the off season
These are just some questions I’m coming up with
Either way, it’s going to be one hell of an off season for these guys and a few others competing for spots in the team
I mean,
Lucas for example is a left sided player, best suited to left side 2nd row, so I wouldn’t be moving him to the right or to centre
Can Manuleleua play on the right and still be as effective or is he a left sided 2nd row as well
Can McEwen handle the middle and would he be playing lock or front row. If he plays lock, does he have the ball skills to distribute the ball and mop up in defence. Is he big enough or would he need to bulk up to be effective as a front rower because that will affect how you structure his training in the off season
These are just some questions I’m coming up with
Either way, it’s going to be one hell of an off season for these guys and a few others competing for spots in the team
Fair points mate, my take just on Manu and Lucas is that Manu has a very nice left to right pass, so I like him on the left. Lucas is a hole runner so could transfer his skills to the right without losing anything? But I see why you wouldn't want to move him too.
I still cant believe how good the coaching and development of these young players, particularly the forwards, has been. At the start of the year I thought after losing KPP and Thompson that we would really struggle in the forwards, but the improvement of this young group of players has been impressive and they seem to get tougher and better each week.
We still are losing the middle in alot of games (mainly the middle 3rd of the game when we are relying on our bench) The fact we throw so much shape in our own end shows the coaching staff know we dont have the cattle to go the set for set battle for extended periods. Perfect example of a great coach who is coaching to his squads strengths.
We had the same discussion over last offseason around who our half’s would be. Thank God for having that extra half in Sandon. Over a long season we will need 3/4 good edge forwards to cover injuries and the situation will work itself out. If we are fortunate to have all available the cream will rise to the top. It’s a very good position to be in and thanks to POS and has excellent roster management and Holbrook’s outstanding coaching.
HarVeeGee13
Danny 'Bedsy' Buderus
Yeah if everyone is fit all at once someone will have to wear jersey 17. That’s footy.
They should definitely give both Dylan and Francis reps at centre over pre-season so it’s an option in the back pocket. Francis at centre in particular could be very interesting.
They should definitely give both Dylan and Francis reps at centre over pre-season so it’s an option in the back pocket. Francis at centre in particular could be very interesting.
Billy
Danny 'Bedsy' Buderus
In the pre-season I'm sure I wrote a post about seeing if he could play wing because I thought he might never have the motor for a firstgrade forward, but he has the speed, agility and power to be a crazy good winger, and wouldn't need to make tackles.
Be our version of Leka Halasima
Billy, do you know how Manuleleua goes on the right