by Pookus McFly Sun Apr 01, 2018 12:32 pm
I am not a Raiders fan. I don't even have a soft spot for them. But I have been thinking about them this morning and perhaps a die hard fan that is more in the know can offer some further thoughts.
I remember when Wighton played centre and i really rated him highly there, moreso than as a fullback. Leipana clearly isnt working out like in 2016 and Leilua is the obvious weak link. Am i correct that Rapana played FB in his junior years? How is he not the kind of dynamic player you want to get more ball to? He is the exact kind of player you base a team around. People talk about Inglis needing more ball because hes wasted in the centres, how can an elusive TB machine like Rapana be still stuck on the wing? I completely get that their biggest problem is defence rather than scoring points, so changes to the forward pack is probably more important right now but it baffles me that Sticky has not toyed with Rapana to FB and Wighton to centre, punting Leilua for a younger winger along the way. Seems like an obvious shakeup to me. Is his defence really that much more of a liability than Wightons?
As far as the forward pack goes, I think they never really recovered from the loss of Vaughan. Should have thrown a blank cheque at him because they have so many big bodies but nobody with real aggression. Papilii probably the closest thing to an enforcer and getting too tired playing a full game in the second row. Boyd, Tapine, Bateman, Whitehead, Paulo, Soli- its funny how many of these guys seem solid players (without being brilliant) and yet they just cant click as a defensive unit.
Perhaps Ricky really is cursed (/ just a terrible coach). Lets break it down- he had maybe 3 good seasons as a rookie coach with the premiership Roosters he inherrited from Gould and then ran down until they missed finals, and really has had very little success otherwise: One passable season at the Sharks in 2008 when they came 3rd but then crashed to 15th and 14th in subsequent years; a dismal season at the Eels; and one passable season at the Raiders (2016) but ultimately he makes finals once in four years (and once in five assuming they miss this year); a terrible record with NSW- albeit against an unbeatable Qld dynasty; and a tenure for Australia last decade which was successful but fell during a period when other countries offered little opposition. But his coaching at club level will be 5 finals series in 15 years if he falls short in 2018. Take out those first three years at the Roosters and he is two finals series in 12 years- of which hes won one of four finals games. How is he still getting gigs?
I guess my overall point, is where do we draw the line of wondering why a team is underperforming when the coach has a rich history of similar capitulation with other sides? It's oh so easy to jump on the Ricky hating bandwagon, but I really think he has to be moved on for the good of that club
Sorry for the long rant guys, slow morning
Last edited by Pookus McFly on Sun Apr 01, 2018 12:49 pm; edited 2 times in total
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