2011 Harold Matthews Thread

With Souths losing this week we climb from 4th to 3rd and will get a home semi along with the Ball side.

The Cessnock field is pretty chopped up - maybe we will get to see them play at EAS if the weather is good and the field is dry next week.
 
Team for the semi.

They have only really settled on the team in the last 3 or 4 weeks after using a lot of players over the season.

Last year the coach (former Knights firstgrader and country player of the year Kurt Hancock) had a completely different strategy. He basically worked out his top 17 in the trials and stuck with them all season, barring a few changes due to injuries.
This year they tried a couple of players in nearly every position, and the team has only been settled and hit top form as we go into the finals. The big win last week has me pretty confident that the boys are ready to play their best game yet this week.

1. Eli Levido
2. Matthew Bridge
3. Jake O’Brien
4. Sione Mata’utia (vc)
5. Rhys Binns
6. Zac Jones
7. Bryce Donovan
8. Josh Hayes
9. Nathan Lo Monaco
10. Josh Kiem
11. Tevita Pangai
12. Ben Steven
13. Luke Yates (c)

14. Tanner Felix
15. Dylan Jones
16. Ryley Thomas
17. Jarrod Smith
18. Bryce Medcalf-Pommer
19. Nicholas Andrews
20. Scott Grant
21. Liam Smyth
22. Michael Dent
23. Rhys Clacherty
24. Haine Ropati
 
Zac Jones is a very good player. The Harold Matthews should go quite well looking at that team.
 
Apparently Sione Mata'utia has been suspended and won't play.

I'd put Pangai in the centres and bring in an extra forward.

Pangai loves terrorising the outside backs anyway.
 
Pangai would go beast in the centres IMO, he's so big & hard to stop out there on the fringes for opposing forwards so imagine how good he could be even wider against smaller opponents!
 
The NSW possibles V Probables game was last night.

I can't find lineups on the net, and the only comment i've seen about any Knights player is that Pangai mostly played prop and went very well.
 
Luke Yates has been added to the NSW under 16s side.

He was co captain and lock forward of Mathews, but missed a lot of the season.

He is a very hard worker, which seems to be what the selectors like to see.
 
Heard a report that Luke Yates got MOTM in NSW's 18-16 win.
He played starting prop in number 18 - which is odd because he isn't a huge forward and plays lock for us.
 
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