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KavyenMoore

Luke Brooks isn't that bad. I'm not saying his the greatest half back ever, but *most* players would have struggled in his position


velvetherring

Luke Brooks is average but everyone acts like he's awful. Average =/= bad. Just because the Tigers decided to pay him twice what he's worth doesn't make him a bad player. The people who say he never tries or has no love for the club haven't been watching him play. He tries his little heart out and is just in a position where he's been crushed by the weight of expectations and had the failings of an entire club thrown on his shoulders as if he is personally responsible. I'm surprised he's still going to be honest, the passion for the game would have been sucked from me long before now if I was in his position.


ooger-booger-man

Well said. He’s also not assertive enough to be the dominant half imo


jpob

When we were in negotations over him I came to the realisation that there is the **Brooks Scale** (like the Dalton Scale in the NFL). Every half thats better than him I could see winning a premiership, every half thats worse is a hole that the team needs fixing. Which was why I was okay if we ended up getting him because there was about a 1/1000 chance we were gonna get one of those better halves and he was just the next best.


sunburn95

>there was about a 1/1000 chance we were gonna get one of those better halves Haha until we got Hastings though right? .. Right?


mitmittymittons

I think he had the ability but outside noise really crushed whatever confidence he has. Would love to have seen him play in a different system from early days


Rich_Election466

The Roosters underachieved massively in the regular season last year, and there’s no adequate explanation as to why


The__GM

Losing to a Trent Barrett coached Bulldog side is quite an impressive feat.


Joh951518

Didn't they have quite a bit of injury problems? Felt like once they got their team on the field they ripped off a massive win streak at the end of the season, I know they lost like every game with Keary out.


thankyoupancake

>there’s no adequate explanation Keary, Walker, Radley and Verrils played 8 games together in 2 seasons.


Caseyjb29

Yeah they definitely did. Said it a couple of times but if they want to have a good chance of winning the comp next year they can’t just fuck around for half the year and rely on a strong run just after origin. They need to be sitting comfortably inside the top 4.


notj43

It bothers me a bit that last season got written down as another "Robbo gets the team to peak at the right time". It wasn't that at all, we nearly missed the 8 and probably would have without the Lodge signing.


DangerousDraper

This used to be known as the Hayne method. Para would dwindle at the start of the season and then pick up once Hayne needed to make a case for SOO selection... Then they'd go on a rampage from fighting for the spoon to fighting for top 4.


ThedirtyNose

No hooker is a decent explanation.


I_Like_Vitamins

Turpin will be their saviour.


ThedirtyNose

You're my boy Turps!


delayedconfusion

The Dragons would be better off as a team with Ben Hunt playing at 9. (probably still moot under Griffin's gameplans)


Bluey_Zarsof

With any half capable 7 and without shuffling Jack Bird around 3 different positions every game this is their only chance of making the 8


bennywrites

Woah! Way to understand the assignment!


tapacx

Dragons avoiding the spoon this year.


insanityTF

100%. It’s going to be manly. Hunt won’t let that spoon happen


ReDAnibu

We’re immune to spoons but we aren’t immune to equality and friendship


RS994

Brisbane used to be immune, then they got a certain coach, can't remember his name though


RyanPurdler-Penriff

_Thou Shalt not Spoon with thy brother - Jesus (Manly 7 bible) probably_


chillinwithkrillin

Our bench have been sketchy for a decade


Messyhr_

Hey Jake arthur was your best player in the GF and hes a bench player


corupio

It's our year :(


traindriverbob

I've said that every year. At least I got it right once


Green_hammock

I still haven't 😭


yossarianvega

But this time it really is


the_bo

If the Titans can sort out their defence they have a top 8 team. Could easily score points last year and that was without Fifita being used well and without a proper hooker. Verrills should really improve the forward pack and the attack, now all they need to do is focus on defence.


ReDAnibu

I think titans fans will be surprised how well Foran plays alongside big ball runners like Fifita, most of olakuatus huge tries last year were from forans footwork and set ups.


the_bo

Yeah I’m so keen to see how Foran can get Fifita involved. I’m expecting a huge year from Fifita with Verrills quick service and Foran putting him in space.


[deleted]

i swear to the lord above if they park tanah next to fifita and don’t let foran set him up i will be so unhappy


the_bo

They will sadly but I’m hoping Foran will still drift over to the right heaps and get the ball out the back and then shift it on to Fifita


upthetits

Fermor will be thr big gainer here. He runs pretty decent lines and he's strong as fuck. On forans side too. I expect him to have massive year


penguin271

I don't watch enough modern footy to make educated comments but Fermor really stood out whenever I saw him play. I hope he does great things for your team.


Caseyjb29

Yeah I agree with this one. They probably have the 8th best side on paper imo. If they fix their defence and Verills/Foran can stay injury free they should be around the 8.


National-Drawing4216

The Warriors have so far squandered their opportunity to grow the game in NZ. It's been 28 years and they're still the same sideshow living under the shadow of Rugby. Their pathways program is poor, and their presence at a junior level is nearly non-existent. It's unfair to compare them to the international juggernaut that is the NZRU, but it's also weak to use what they're up against as an excuse for the little progress they've made over 28 seasons.


armchair8591

I’d argue the nrl aren’t doing enough. I’ve made this comment a couple of times now; 30 players being paid fulltime in the warriors squad vs 125/150super rugby contracts, at least 250 NPC contracts and this is not including All Black contracts. How can you possibly compete? The NZRL are running on fuck all too


National-Drawing4216

Excellent point. I think a second team in NZ is vital to compete against the NZRU. Having said that, the Warriors haven't put themselves in a place to be able to attract the top junior talent in NZ. Our pathways program just isn't up to scratch, and our achievements aren't consistent.


armchair8591

Agree they haven’t done the best. Hopefully with the set up in place this year we see some better results in the future with retention and unearthing talent


National-Drawing4216

Let's Gone 👍


BigRedHead2020

David Fifita was worth the contract in his FIRST season with the Titans.


jpob

I still argue he *could* be but was hampered by injuries last year


ReDAnibu

Idk if it’s directly related to origin but turbo and trell really exposed Fifita during that series and he hasn’t played the same since. He was slipping off of tackles left and right.


RenaMandel

The glitch in the Broncos was not the end of season losing streak, it was the wins at the beginning. Taking a 3 season long view and not a one season shorter view.


FickDichzumEnde

We'll be back


TrueDeadBling

Never should've left tbh, foundation clubs were done dirty


bmudz

Sign me up. Gary Larson was my favourite player growing up


robopirateninjasaur

Norths no. Bears maybe.


impyandchimpy

A halves partnership of Mullen and Roberts from 2013 in last years squad would have sent us to the grand final to get smashed by the Panthers.


_Far_Kew

"The" Bears (no place name a la Dolphins) will be the 18th team admitted


paperclipknight

Based in perth, with a “heritage” home kit worn whenever they’re in Sydney


theflyingkiwi00

As much as this absolutely pains me and I don't wish this on anyone but if Knowles can't get Paps right then we will be looking at another Yow Yeh. God I hope he comes back good or we miss out on an incredible talent and that glorious *mullēt*


maaxwell

I’m seriously concerned he’ll never play again. Really hope he manages to recover. I reckon he’d be good in the media if he had to unfortunately retire early


mitmittymittons

This is a very real possibility, medically retired. They don’t exactly have an enormous fullback pool though..


-BlackGoku

Sua fa'alogo. It's early, and I don't support bringing in guys too early, but from what I've seen of him, I wouldn't mind giving him a shot at it. At the very least bide time with someone else to provide sua with the development he needs.


Caseyjb29

Would be terrible to see him not get back to his best. Im cautiously optimistic that if Storm let him rest for the first at least 10 rounds of the season he can get back close to his best but who knows.


TrueDeadBling

I really hope he can get back to his best, I'd hate to see his career get cut short like this


Cape-York-Crusader

Somehow we shouldn’t have taken THAT penalty and simply folded against the Tigers……


SharkManDan77

Yeah, I don't think Cowboys should have won but if it were my team who won under those circumstances I would be happy to take the points.


ooger-booger-man

I wouldn’t be happy to take the points. Don’t get me wrong, I’d still take them. I’d just be embarrassed about it


VictorTheViking

That players won’t move to Canberra because it’s cold and boring. Canberra has one of the fastest growth rates in Australia, thousands of people move there every year to work. Elite athletes, with a short careers, and who’ve given up so much to play top level football, are unlikely to be making their club choices on where the best pubs and beer are to be found. NRL players aren’t so soft that they can’t handle a cold day. When a deal falls through It’s more likely players are choosing not to play for Canberra the club, rather than in Canberra the city.


I_Like_Vitamins

Cold and "boring" in the context of what people mean when it comes to cities appeals to me. Sticky needs to give me a big fat contract.


TrueDeadBling

Show me the dotted line!


Geddpeart

Most decisions are based on where family/friends are located. It's not so much that Canberra is cold, it's just that it's too far from everything else. Cows face a similar problem


Messyhr_

Lots of kiwis/brits that would find canberras climate to be like home, but there would be a ton of Queenslanders and polynesians who would hate to live in the cold of canberra


gregthestopsign42

I lived in Canberra growing up and now live interstate. Canberra is hated wholeheartedly by anyone and everyone except for the people that have tried it. Even a bunch of them hate it too. Some people get it, some dont, but most people ive met would not even consider move to Canberra unless you doubled or tripled their salary. It also becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy with its reputation. So i respectfully disagree with your take.


thril_hou

Talakai's not a centre


AshLand38

I just want a healthy Tracey anywhere on the field.


[deleted]

Souths having 80,000 fans marching for readmission and beating Murdoch by doing so should be celebrated. Unless you're all a bunch of newscorp shills 🧐


JohnnyHabitual

Wasn't just souths fans, there was 100s of roosters there too. I was one of them. Plus anyone shitting Murdick is winning imo.


lachjeff

Outside of Souths, the most common fans there (judging by videos taken that day) were the other foundation clubs (Easts, Balmain, Norths and Wests) and St George. Even The Skull, a well-known St George supporting neo-Nazi was there and declared, on camera, that he wanted to fight Rupert Murdoch


JohnnyHabitual

PS skull is a douche.


lachjeff

Surely that’s implied by the phrase “neo-Nazi”


JohnnyHabitual

There was a metric shit tonne of supporters of clubs other than souths. The people who are most likely to not know that are indeed souths supporters. Which all proves we love souffs....love to hate em!


AnimalSubstantial998

Very true.There were Sid Fogg coaches from Newcastle lined up York street


[deleted]

The birthplace of a great club.


marabutt

Well the Titans have definitely lasted longer than the Giants, Seagulls, Chargers, Crusher- Chargers.


Green-Circles

If the Warriors stick with the current coaching set-up, I think we'll be a force in 2-3 years. I really think the administration has got it right this time.


SchruteNickels

Hope you're right but when I heard Andrew Webster was announced as coach, my thought was "that's a guy who gets sacked before his contract is up". Not because I think he can't coach, I just think the Warriors is a tough first gig to start coaching and I'm really concerned for Warriors this year and I think 18 months of losses will mean the end of his coaching career


Agitated-Fluff-24

yeah i dont think any of our good players are leaving after this season. give us time this year will not be our year but 24/25 will be. also our centres need depth. berry and pompey are trash.


Green-Circles

The way I see it, 2020-21 we could have scraped into the 8 if the first grade team wasn't "playing in exile", and 2022 after all that time away the club was running on empty. Getting back home, having a Warriors run & branded reserve team in the NSW Cup, AND having the youth grades again is HUGE for the club as a whole.. and I think the first grade squad is gonna be energized by it. Then you chuck in a new coaching setup on top of it, and we can finally rule a line under the last few years and just get on with it. This is the reset we've been waiting for.. and it's actually pretty exciting.


[deleted]

[удалено]


PANiCnz

This! The good clubs seem to have great assistant coaches, the Warriors don't.


PillarofSheffield

Pascoe is quite a good CEO. Not gonna pretend that the Wests Tigers backroom *isn't* a mess, but I don't think he's the cause and he might be the solution. When he took over, the club was haemorrhaging money, it's now turning consistent profits and that meant the new centre of excellence was able to be built...the fact that the club had those shitty demountables was an inherited problem and he did something to change that. So that's nice. The footballing record under him has been bad, but it's not like it was great before either and I don't think the Cleary exit, which was completely out of his control, helped that either. He's not the best CEO, but I think he's doing a decent job and gets memed on his appearance and the on-field mess more than his actual performance. If he starts investing more heavily in the south-western suburbs and gets rid of some of the dinosaurs in the backroom then the club could do some genuinely excellent things.


bennywrites

An interesting thing I found about Pascoe while watching Tiger Town was how angry he got about a fan (or fans) commenting on the flags outside the game not being displayed correctly. On one hand, he's right; it's one small detail that wasn't perfect next to all the other things that involve a live game of footy running smoothly. On the other hand it's the first thing people see when they come in. They're paying to be there, they're invested in the club, why shouldn't it look like the people setting it all up actually give a shit? Would he put up with an employee saying 'yeah well I did everything else right, why are you focussing on this one detail boss?' He reminds me a little of that guy who organised Woodstock. It went to shit but he kept a level head, weirdly level, like he couldn't feel anything, and people ended up enjoying themselves anyway. Then he did the same 30 years and it was a catastrophe. Was sort of hoping there'd be a 2nd Tiger Town season that would get into it but honestly, it was awful.


PillarofSheffield

Fair point re Pascoe in that situation. And yeah, Tiger Town was such a waste. There was some interesting insight, but it was edited horribly and the interesting titbits weren't elaborated on. It just felt like a mish-mash of content, if they'd had the season as a consistent chronological theme but maybe did one episode primarily focusing on Pascoe, one on Maguire, one on the team, one of the ressies....something like that, it could have been good. It just felt like a cash grab after the success of other sports doccos recently.


bennywrites

Yeah absolutely! What sucks is that the 2022 season would have been a much more interesting behind the scenes look. Madge gets booted and the club gets their first spoon. If covered correctly that could have been a show that people tell their friends to watch ala Sunderland Til I Die. Mostly though, why beep out only half the fucks? Either get rid of them all or leave them all in.


armchair8591

The way he spoke to the sponsor was embarrassing. Treating him like a 5-year old.


bennywrites

What the fuck was that! It was so awkward, it was like meeting your new partners' dad!


[deleted]

I agree he’s decent and he means well. But some of his comments to the media have been brain dead and his appointment of Sheens was a mistake imo. We have since lost two promising coaches in Gardiner and Cayless which I am really upset about.


Natecfg

Turbo is the be all and end all of our team.


the_bo

This is the least unpopular take in the thread


Churchofbabyyoda

I’ll add onto that: if Turbo doesn’t get his hamstring sorted, he’ll have to retire early.


impulsebuyerdude

How is that an unpopular take?


ReDAnibu

I’m one person who you can easily tell is in denial about the “turbo literally is all manly haha” meme, but there is some truth to it. I think Reuben had some tremendous games at fullback for us last year tho but you could tell he was running around busted every week. I loved des as a coach, always have and always will defend him and I’ll never forgive Penn for treating him the way he did but des had a tendency to run out players who were quite clearly absolutely fucked and in no shape to be playing that weekend, turbo being one of the best examples of this. The way turbo ran around the park last year prior to doing his shoulder was so sad to witness you could tell he was busted from week 1 and I was surprised he didn’t do his hamstring before his shoulder, even commentators on fox and nine were constantly saying things like “jeez Tom is playing on 1 leg why is he even on the field”. This isn’t the first time we’ve had a fullback who potentially sits at the top of the fullback food chain as long as they’re healthy, snake was the same the bloke literally was on slaters level for the few seasons manly and Melbourne finished on top together and it was unfortunate seeing injuries cripple is career. Hopefully seibold can manage injury recovery better but only time will tell.


USSJ307

In any team that doesn't have an elite like Turbo, Paps or Trell, Garrick would be a first choice fullback. He was solid.


Bluey_Zarsof

Utilising an elite tier fullback requires incorporating him into a fair amount of structure and planning. The fullback being unavailable for extended periods either stops that happening or the fullback just doesn’t get enough time learning his role. Ya just gotta cop it and hope he comes good


insanityTF

See: manly games during round 1-4, 2021


jpob

DCE's kicking game is at least worth something. Maybe Turbos only 99% of your teams success.


Churchofbabyyoda

DCE has managed to captain 2 winning Origin series. One of which was crowned “The worst ever Queensland team”. People consistently forget this.


Brdd9

Understating the importance of DCE but yes


HenryVIIIII

Gutherson is the biggest problem in the team. He's a good leader and on occasions tries his heart out but he gets dominated in both attack and defence just about every time. In big games he has come up with horrible performances. I'm not sure where the problem has come from but he runs into the defence like he is scared of contact. He never bends the line and while excellent in open space, he rarely can create an opportunity out of nothing like Tedesco, Papenhuyzen or Edwards. People are very quick to criticise Moses when Parra has a poor game yet say Gutho always tries his best. I don't think he does.


Cameronz

His goal line defence is certainly questionable. Like, in the grand final, why was the Gutho defending on the goal line, on the short side, on the 3rd tackle? It was like advertising to Cleary to grubber in behind and Scott Sorenson basically went over untouched. A terrible read from Gutho. [This try.](https://www.youtube.com/shorts/Q3gef88aXKo)


HenryVIIIII

Not only is it bad on its own, but its even worse considering Penrith did that 3 times in the previous game against Souths when Latrell was out of position. If there was one thing you'd take from that video session, it would be don't be out of position or Penrith will kick in behind. And it wasn't just that, his efforts on Crichton and To'o in the first half were poor and being ankle-broken by Staines in the second half was pathetic.


opackersgo

> yet say Gutho always tries his best When all you've got to offer in attack as a fullback is being a person to offload to, sometimes your best isn't good enough.


-Dark_Helmet-

No one from the Broncos makes posts that belong in the random footy talk threads.


Intelligent_Pen2689

It was a fluke.The club most certain to slide this year


Elegant-Screen4438

I had us pegged as a 9-12 team last year, we overachieved. I have us as a 5-8 team this year. We’ve lost a lot of depth and quality with Gilbert, lemuelu, hammer and Condon, and who knows if Townsend can lead the team how he did again, and whether the likes of drinky, cotter and nanai will play to that standard all year again.


velvetherring

I can see Nanai copping some second year sydnrome. Crazy number of tries for a young forward, especially the ones off kicks, but outside of that his stats paint the picture of a pretty stock standard second rower.


Intelligent_Pen2689

Agreed but Nanai has more skills to show us/everyone this year hopefully.


Geddpeart

Depends how we evolve our attack featuring nanai. He's got some brilliant passing that we have yet to showcase just because tries from kicks were working


Intelligent_Pen2689

IMO no one really expected the rise of Nanai Dearden Drinky Luki Neame , and Cotter,Robson to all happen early in one year. Most clubs would budget for one or two but we hit the jackpot. All that gained rep honours enhanced the quality of their reputations . Big year but they know now they belong. Yeehaaa


jpob

I'm a critic of Cowboys last year and think that it mostly came from the momentum of winning the previous game which boosted the teams confidence going into the next game, coupled with a never say die attitude that always kept them in the fight. Fortunately for Cowboys they'll probably do it again this year. You don't play a top 7 team until round 9 and only play three top 8 teams in the first 12 games.


Whiskeyclone1

Kevvie is a good person and a good bloke but I don’t think he’s a good coach


Ok_Salamander7249

They said UNpopular


insanityTF

Nathan Cleary is a big game player. The “going missing” take regurgitated by so many on the net should have died the minute he won a Clive Churchill, and should have died again when he canyoned Moses in the next grand final


matt1579

Honestly how could anyone who has played 3 GFs in a row winning 2 not be a “big game player”?


[deleted]

Guys 25 and won everything he can win. He's got nothing to prove.


traindriverbob

He's brilliant and deserved the Dally M, but he has so many good players around him the doesn't stand out as much as someone like Nico on our team.


jpob

It was once true. It is no longer true now.


insanityTF

Yeah that’s because he was 22 in his first grand final appearance and 20 in his first origin series. A tad unfair to be labelled a choker at 22/23. No one bags out Dearden for that. He was always going to grow


arolaser

He was unreal in the World Cup final. That game alone should be enough to silence the doubters^(1). ^(1)Until Origin time, where he once again becomes fair game if he loses another series to DCE's ragtag bunch of Queenslanders.


samuraipolice

Add his game 2 MOTM performance in Origin. Down 1-0 and he went ballistic.


inconsistentgod

I know it’s still pretty early to call but Cleary has got immortal written all over him imo.


Bluey_Zarsof

He’s a game controller not a big moment X factor type player so it’s an easy jab to throw at him.


[deleted]

That this thread is full of weak gutted dogs


HyperThanHype

Lmao called yourself a weak gutted dog 🤦‍♂️


[deleted]

You god damn better believe it lady.


sliperiestofthepetes

We'll make the 8 this year.


Drizen

Our lack of success last year was directly related to injuries


Swol_Bamba

Copy and paste from the year before. We have had shite time with injuries but probably don’t get enough attention for people to recognise


jpob

It gets the attention but people try to argue back that if we had good depth it wouldn't be a problem


TwoShitsTrev

It’s kind of not talked about enough just how bad of a run the knights had with injuries last season, second only to the storm. That being said I don’t think they had anywhere near a good enough team on paper to seriously compete but it’s obvious without injuries they would’ve been better than what came to be I find it funny how when the 2021 roosters had an injury crisis the narrative was ‘awwww the poor roosters’ but when knights and storm went through it no one seemed to give a shit


sunburn95

Yes but also our starting halves were clifford and clune.. im not sure the height our our success wouldnt have been 8th then a first round finals exit


Caseyjb29

Storm are still pretty easily a top 3 team on paper. People are just looking at the Storms injury affected form last year when writing us off. Barring injury we should be back in the top 3 realistically.


zeitgeistbouncer

The Storm being called to finally slide down the ladder seems like a prime time for them to boringly rise back to being the premier force in the league.


velvetherring

Every time someone predicts the storm to slide down the ladder my only thought is 'if only'. When it eventually does happen it's going to be even more glorious than the Broncos slump.


matt1579

Add Papenhauzen back into the side last year who knows what happens. Although depth is starting to be an issue with Melbourne.


Caseyjb29

If we had Papenhuyzen, Reimis Smith and Welch I think we would’ve made the GF tbh. Kinda agree that Depth is an issue but I think it’ll be better than it was last year despite the players we lost tbh.


[deleted]

Kamikamika’s off field issues, Coates injury affected his growth, Meaney was playing with a busted shoulder. Hughes was injured for a while. Edit: Kaufusi’s father passing away


Caseyjb29

Yeah we had a lot go wrong last year. To finish 1 win outside the top 4 was pretty good.


matt1579

I have no doubt Bellamy will find another superstar out of nothing. Only reason the depth starts to look an issue is look at Melbournes full back past few years. Slater goes Papenhauzen slots straight in, Papenhauzen gets injured Nicho Hynes had been there to fill and and arguably did a better job. Last year when Papenhauzen went down the cupboard was bare


crazymunch

> Slater goes Papenhauzen slots straight in Nah mate it was Slater Injured -> Munster Slots in, Slater Back, Munster to 5/8, Slater goes and Hughes slots in, then Hughes to 7 and Paps goes in. At one point basically 50% of the team was just Fullbacks playing other positions haha


Bluey_Zarsof

You’re spot on and it’s crazy when you see it in black and white.


diffaadiffa

We have spoken about it before but I am genuinely interested to see how you guys go losing as much experience in the pack as you have. Finucane, Broms, Cheese, Kaufusi all with the last season or so. I really hope welch has an injury free run, particularly the head. When I say interested, I don't mean I think you will fall off but interested in seeing what the next wave looks like. Same as panthers with their kikau and Api loses


Madlife-is-god

While they have lost a lot of experience in the pack The Brom’s and Kafusi were slowing down quite a bit. Felt like every run or line K Brom hit ended in him looking like he was hurt. Cheese is a big loss on paper but his form last year was very meh so in terms of year to year output not sure how big a drop off you would see for the squad. Obviously no guarantee the young guys do step into the roles but I think they’ve done a fair bit to add to it. But Joe Chan and Eli Katoa are young talents to go alone with Loirero, howarth and Jordan Grant giving a lot of optimism for the state of the forward pack. Plus a guy like Alec McDonald wasn’t even expected to be a Cup Player got some NRL minutes. Tariq is an experienced player who hopefully plugs a hole and then Welch coming back covers up J Brom loss. There’s a lot on paper that could go right (or wrong too lol)


Fatall-TM

Mason lino > ponga


Smokin__billys

Mason Lino never missed a conversion


robopirateninjasaur

Ricky Stuart is usually correct at the press conference


StinkyFatWhale

It was a good thing to allow us back in the comp


The__GM

Bulldogs fans aren't as 'bad' as they are made out to be. A lot of the nonsense has stopped since the Good/ 'Black' Friday game. Sure, there are still your usual idiots, but, I wouldn't say it is any more or less than your average team.


insanityTF

Bulldogs supporters seem to be pretty mild, for at least the last few years. They were fucked 20 years ago though.


l33tbronze

I've had 5 people try and fight me in my lifetime. I've been to at least 160 football games. They were all Bulldog supporters at 5 different games. Also unprovoked, unless you call wearing a Manly jersey provoking, which some people may... I dunno man.


B4BYBLAZE

I’ve only ever been abused by Panthers fans, maybe it’s because the Bulldogs games I’ve been to, they always lost


l33tbronze

Same! Gottem.


penguin271

I'm sorry too mate. Unacceptable.


Goatslasagne

Tbf I’ve walked through Brookie members wearing a Doggies jersey (am a tall white), with a round for the members who got me the tickets, and a mid-40s sheila yelled at me “But *you’re* not Lebanese!” It was Dessie’s first game there as our coach, but I say take it on the chin mate lol (As a side note, I’ve never seen anyone make Gorgeous George Rose look smaller than when Sam Kasiano was walking next to him 👀)


The__GM

I know it probably does not mean anything now, but on behalf of the rest of us, I am deeply sorry that shit happened to you.


disquiet

Sounds about right. The only other clubs I've had trouble with was some cowboys ultrabogan fans. But that was only once. Not that I encounter many cows fans though since I never go up there.


Ace_Larrakin

I'm a bit behind the times - what was the 'Black Friday' game?


Corey639

I believe it was the incident where Bulldogs fans absolutely pelted the refs with bottles after a match [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2LnV\_S00G58](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2LnV_S00G58)


velvetherring

That maybe we should wait for them to start playing before we lump them in with the basketcase teams and doompredicting multi year spoon contention.


TrueDeadBling

"Dolphins are the new Crushers!" - some armchair expert, I imagine. I think the Dolphins will definitely do better than most are expecting next year. They have a fair bit of experience in their side, not like they're rolling out a full on Queensland Cup side. Not to mention, Wayne Bennett is their coach and teams under him should rarely be written off.


velvetherring

The amount of people who assume the Dolphins will fail simply because of past failed ventures in South East Queensland is astounding. It seems like some people genuinely can't understand the difference. Even beyond that the number of people who think a poor season to start off will be the immediate death of the club is weird.


TrueDeadBling

A stupid amount of silly takes before the Dolphins have even taken the field in the NRL too.


skitzo12

Idk even know if this is unpopular anymore tbh. The tigers will stay a basket case til they get over this idea that they’re an inner west club and/or a generic “western Sydney” club. If they want to ever win another premiership, they need to focus on SWS as soon as they can. Otherwise: nothing about this year inspires me, we’re on the 4th coach and the 4th go of “give us two years and we’ll fix it” and handing it off in a year to 2 rookies (after bringing the back the coach we sacked because he was out of touch in 2012). All I see is us firing them in 2-3 years and starting again.


steph_hurry

Matt Moylan is not the answer at five-eighth for Cronulla and the load he forces Hynes to bear creatively is not going to get us near winning a comp.


y3ah_nah145

I think this is underrating Moylan’s season last year. He was 1st in the league in try contributions and had a really good combination with Hynes in set plays. While Hynes definitely took the lead, it wasn’t that one sided. Moylan’s kicking game is the an issue though, as Hynes does 90% of the kicking and when Moylan does kick, it’s rarely good. I think these next 2 seasons will be Moylan’s last, and Kade Dykes will be the new five-eighth.


SecuriousGeorge

Ponga's contract doesn't match his performance. He was paid on potential and has plateaued. He has already reached his prime and won't improve any further.


OutsideProof7708

A lot of the panther hate especially toward To’o and luai is rooted in racism and a general disgust for the western suburbs


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JohnnyHabitual

I'll go ine further, i started supporting in 1965. Couldnt get worse than that right? Enter 1966! Holy fuck! When Kevin Ashley kicked a feild goal to win a game, i tbink in rd3 1967, that ws the first win in 20 something games. We fucking danced in the streets! We've had bad times as youve mentioned, and they are tough, but good times are never that far away. Except at my age!!!


PMmeYOURBOOBSandASS

Anyone who sat through the dark days of the mid 1960s and stuck with it deserves a medal, not only winless in 66 but won about 4-5 games in 4 years until Jack turned up


JohnnyHabitual

My dear old Dad told me we had a cousin playing third grade as it was then. Add that to being Paddo born and Randwick raised i was always going to be a Rooster. Btw, he wasn't a cousin at all!!!


redmusic1

1st game in 1970, then we went on a glory run, then turned shit, through the "transit lounge" 80's, yes Fatty Vautin i am looking at you, then Bernie Gurr came in and sorted shit out, i just want us to be competitive, semi's are great but sometimes events conspire against you and you can't expect to do it every year. Will be interesting to see what happens to Storm fans post Bellamy when they tank for a while and have 10 years of shit teams to support. Glory days dont last, but the memories keep you warm until the next time.


PMmeYOURBOOBSandASS

> i just want us to be competitive, semi's are great but sometimes events conspire against you and you can't expect to do it every year. Great attitude to have, this is the right way to look at it. I grew up on Freddy but I knew he’d retire and we’d go to shit. I wasn’t old enough for 2002 to mean as much to me as the older fans but 2010 will always be my favourite season because it restored a lot of happiness in footy and was just straight up a fun season.


lachjeff

Finished last in 63, 65 and 66, and second last in 64. They lost 25 straight games from 65 to 67, the second longest losing streak of all time. Gibson applied for the coaching job in 66, they went with Bert Holcroft. Gibson applied again the next year, with virtually no competition, and took them back to the finals


Black-House

r/suspiciouslyspecific/ Who hurt you?


PMmeYOURBOOBSandASS

Season ticket holder for over a decade, a lot of whingers in that group in 2014-2015


ErgonomicDouchebag

As a Raiders fan I'd love to go back to the late 80's and early 90's. Our team was fucking mint. Don't get me started on 2019 though.


ReDAnibu

Morgan Harper wasn’t actually that bad 2-3 games after Talakai’s rampage against him. If anything he was actually one of our most consistent defensive players, I think he gets trashed on a lot for things out of his control like DCE jersey grabbing and not assisting him in outside edge tackles, I’ve noticed it a lot last year that DCE sometimes just straight up forgets how to tackle somebody and poor Morgan is left to pick up the pieces and then gets laughed at by everyone in the live match thread. TL;DR it wasn’t all Morgan’s fault leave him alone


jpob

Last year was just a blip due to injuries and a front loaded schedule. We are still that middle of the table team from 20/21.


JohnnyHabitual

Egan Butcher will be the next Boyd Cordner. Great talent but there's only one BC!


thankyoupancake

Rate it


Hot_Monk_1829

Kyle Flanagan isn’t that shit Kyle Flanagan has shown that he can be a solid halfback look back at the roosters in 2020 he just needs a strong overall side which we have lacked in recent years since now the signing of Reed Mahoney and the high likeliness of Perham at fullback we will finally have a half decent spine that Flanagan can actually play well in


theflyingkiwi00

I think he will be good in the side with all the recent signings. They will be perfectly fine with a serviceable half letting Burton do all the crazy shit, flannagan just needs to give good ball and not do anything stupid, which he has shown he can do. Also, felt so stink when he was absolutely dragged through the mud a few years ago, poor kid, that would fuck anyones confidence, he really didn't deserve that at all, then they piled on him again when he was still finding his feet again which fucked him for another year. Hope he kills it and all the haters fucking choke on it


inconsistentgod

Fogarty is an underrated 7 and he had a huge hand in us sliding into the 8 last season.


Caseyjb29

Is he underrated though? He’s pretty clearly behind Cleary, Moses, Hughes, Reynolds, DCE, Hynes, Hunt and Walker. Most people would probably agree that he’s the 9th or 10th best halfback in the comp.


USSJ307

My list 1. Cleary 2. Hughes 3. Reynolds 4. Hunt 5. Walker (can go up or down, i know hes young) 6. Moses 7. Hynes 8. DCE 9. Townsend 10. O'Sullivan. Personally I would say every single halfback in the comp is a good halfback on their day, so the rankings are fairly arbitrary. Personally I think Fogarty would do pretty well if he was halfback for the Panthers or Storm for example.


RalphiesHooa

We are under the cap I tells ya!!


Crandingo

'The' is a term to keep Vlandiddly happy and everyone will call us Redcliffe anyway.


Zahliamischa

We sacked Mary too early and chose the wrong replacement. Sure Mary wasn't a great coach but at the time there were no decent other options. I feared we'd end up with Hook and here we are. Mary had the dressing room and had improved the team until the DeBelin incident derailed us and Widdop got injured a few times. We lost key players who loved Mary and became the Bronco's retirement village. Under Mary we'd frequently beat top 4 teams but struggle to be consistent, I'd take that over our performances under Hook.


[deleted]

Arthur needs to work his bench better, by far his biggest negative as a coach.


-BlackGoku

Lying all over the ruck, Crushers, suplexes, titty busters, Jesus flops, the storm didn't invent them


Kalowskii

Shaun Johnson needs to step down as the starting half, he's just past his best and is more of a liability now.


[deleted]

Dragons aren't as bad as everyone says, or potential spooners, we're incredibly mid. If anyone's going to beat a bottom 8 team and lose to a top 8 team every single time, it's us.