[Uncle Rico]

Re: Today’s game v Giants : Sun Sep 15, 2024 8:32 pm  

matt_wire wrote:

Could say the same for Salford too I bet. But yeah, it's an awful look for the game.

At Salford admittedly the seats opposite the main stand (cameras) aren't full but it's a much smaller stand and to be fair both ends are usually pretty full with a decent away following

Re: Today’s game v Giants : Mon Sep 16, 2024 8:56 am  

Barbed Wire wrote:

While they were bad, they didn’t really get a chance to do anything. We were relentless, not a word often associated with us.

Some stand out stats which tell the story, tackles made by our props: Harrison 11, Musgrove 13, Yates 15, Philbin 5, Crowther 8. Only Currie and Nicholson broke 20. It’s pretty much a day off defensively,

Absolutely.
I’ve always said the best form of defence is attack.
There’s nothing great about seeing a player making 40-50 tackle in a game.
That tells me we’re not controlling the ball well enough.
The perfect game is going from minute one to the whistle without having to make a single tackle.

Re: Today’s game v Giants : Mon Sep 16, 2024 12:39 pm  

rubber duckie wrote:

Absolutely.
I’ve always said the best form of defence is attack.
There’s nothing great about seeing a player making 40-50 tackle in a game.
That tells me we’re not controlling the ball well enough.
The perfect game is going from minute one to the whistle without having to make a single tackle.

Well as a Hull fan, this is what we're used to.

Re: Today’s game v Giants : Mon Sep 16, 2024 1:23 pm  

Kevin Turvey wrote:

Perhaps a little churlish given the score yesterday but watching the tries I think Thewlis did incredibly well to score his after what was a terribly timed & early pass from Tai. I know he hits hard and puts in a shift coming out of defence but his decision making/centre play is still way off top super league quality. Probably the same with his decision to go on his own rather than use the support for his try. Not trying to be critical for the sake of it but hopefully this is something he can work on preseason as it is that difference in decision making/execution that makes a genuine top quality centre.

It's not being overly critical. Against better defences he bombs 2 tries. Thewlis and him get tackled because of poor pass timing and not passing. I don't understand where this strong runner comparison has come from with Tai. He might go into the tackle harder but it isn't resulting in him making any more metres. Compared to Ashton, King and Thewlis he makes

Less metres
Less tackle busts
More missed tackles
Less tries
Less assists (2 all season)

I'm aware that comparing a winger to a centre isn't the most fair system as they have slightly different jobs

He has a great attitude, is physically strong and occasionally puts a big hit in but his shortcomings in skill mean he's a squad player for me. King isn't the best in terms of creating tries for his winger but he's miles ahead of Tai.

Re: Today’s game v Giants : Mon Sep 16, 2024 1:40 pm  

Chris McKean wrote:

It's not being overly critical. Against better defences he bombs 2 tries.

That is true I think. No way those tries get scored against playoff teams in playoff format. His early pass to Thewlis was a shocker, it looked young school boy/girl rugby at best.

Re: Today’s game v Giants : Mon Sep 16, 2024 1:51 pm  

Do Wrench's offensive qualities/poor defensive positioning weaknesses outweigh Tai's better defensive positioning/attacking limitations?

Re: Today’s game v Giants : Mon Sep 16, 2024 1:53 pm  

I think this is a prime example where stats are not a great way of assessing players and are dangerous. You can't compare his contribution with wingers.
In tough, tight games he stands out. I would not wish to play centre against him unless I had lots of space. He's limited, obviously ... but he really does do some cracking bone shaking tackles that cannot be measured by someone ticking a box.

Re: Today’s game v Giants : Mon Sep 16, 2024 1:57 pm  

Douglas Black wrote:

Do Wrench's offensive qualities/poor defensive positioning weaknesses outweigh Tai's better defensive positioning/attacking limitations?

Big tight game ...Tai for me & by a long way.
Personally I think Wrench has so much to learn & he might never get there ... let's hope I'm wrong.

Re: Today’s game v Giants : Mon Sep 16, 2024 2:03 pm  

Douglas Black wrote:

Do Wrench's offensive qualities/poor defensive positioning weaknesses outweigh Tai's better defensive positioning/attacking limitations?

I'd probably say they do but only by a small margin and that's just my opinion. Although he did it a few times this season, Wrench isn't out of position every time. I've seen him put in some very good defensive reads. I honestly can't remember Tai giving his winger or anyone else a good ball.

Re: Today’s game v Giants : Mon Sep 16, 2024 2:36 pm  

Well you can add Lindop to the mix as well. I agree that Tai is definitely a defensive centre and a good one at that. What won’t show on the stats as Smiffy says is that his opposing centre will be very wary all game of being hit by him. Now if we had a centre with Tai’s defence and Wrenchs’s footwork….well we’d have someone the NRL would snap up instantly.

Play off time with defence so important I’m happy to have Tai starting….as we saw at Wembley it’s King that worries me.