Re: Best & Worst Combined 13 : Wed Dec 25, 2019 11:17 pm  

spegs wrote:

Ewan Dowes “best prop in SL” is without doubt the funniest thing I have ever read.

Yeah well I've got no interest in your opinion if that's what you think. 2005/6 Ewan Dowes was outstanding. Thackeray and Carvell caught the eye, but Dowes was our best prop of that era. There wasn't a front rower in SL who could sustain his work rate for 80 minutes like he used to.

Re: Best & Worst Combined 13 : Thu Dec 26, 2019 10:08 am  

Mr. Zucchini Head wrote:

Yeah well I've got no interest in your opinion if that's what you think. 2005/6 Ewan Dowes was outstanding. Thackeray and Carvell caught the eye, but Dowes was our best prop of that era. There wasn't a front rower in SL who could sustain his work rate for 80 minutes like he used to.

You are entitled to your opinion, even if it was funnier than any joke anyone got in a cracker with their dinner yesterday.

Re: Best & Worst Combined 13 : Thu Dec 26, 2019 12:53 pm  

Mr. Zucchini Head wrote:

Yeah well I've got no interest in your opinion if that's what you think. 2005/6 Ewan Dowes was outstanding. Thackeray and Carvell caught the eye, but Dowes was our best prop of that era. There wasn't a front rower in SL who could sustain his work rate for 80 minutes like he used to.

How strong are those chocolate liqueurs?

Re: Best & Worst Combined 13 : Thu Dec 26, 2019 7:25 pm  

Mr. Zucchini Head wrote:

Yeah well I've got no interest in your opinion if that's what you think. 2005/6 Ewan Dowes was outstanding. Thackeray and Carvell caught the eye, but Dowes was our best prop of that era. There wasn't a front rower in SL who could sustain his work rate for 80 minutes like he used to.

The thing about that group of 4 adding in King, was that they were all very good but also different and there was never a dip when they were rotated. The best group of props as a collective we've had in the last 30 years IMO and the platform of our success for those couple of years. A reason why I think we'll struggle to break the big 4 this time round - just don't see that consistent quality in our front row options. As a comparison in 16/17 we had Taylor, Watts, Bowden and Green with the latter two in their best form.amd again intensity not really dropping during interchanges. Just don't see that for 2020 but hope I'm wrong.

Re: Best & Worst Combined 13 : Thu Dec 26, 2019 7:27 pm  

He was possibly the most consistent player in a team that won a Challenge Cup and reached a Grand Final. Admittedly his form took a dive over the next 2 or 3 years, but he was very close to a GB call up around that time and in 2006 in particular he was right up there amongst the best front rowers in the league. He was never the most eye catching, but his engine was second to none. If you can't understand the value of a player like Dowes in his prime then you clearly don't know much about the game. And to dismiss his name as a joke is pretty disrespectful to a guy that gave his all for the club every time he went out there.

Re: Best & Worst Combined 13 : Thu Dec 26, 2019 7:36 pm  

Mrs Barista wrote:

The thing about that group of 4 adding in King, was that they were all very good but also different and there was never a dip when they were rotated. The best group of props as a collective we've had in the last 30 years IMO and the platform of our success for those couple of years. A reason why I think we'll struggle to break the big 4 this time round - just don't see that consistent quality in our front row options. As a comparison in 16/17 we had Taylor, Watts, Bowden and Green with the latter two in their best form.amd again intensity not really dropping during interchanges. Just don't see that for 2020 but hope I'm wrong.

It's not often I agree with you Mrs B but you are dead right there on all counts. That group had all bases covered, they complimented each other perfectly. We had a grafter (Dowes), a big bodied metre maker (Carvell), a tackle busting impact player (Thacks) and a skillful all rounder (Kingy).

I'll reserve judgement on this years group, but I do share similar concerns. Houghton cant keep making 60 tackles a game forever. Someone somewhere is going to have to take up that slack. I'm sure this group of props will break bags of tackles and get plenty of offloads away, but you have to be good without the ball as well.

Re: Best & Worst Combined 13 : Thu Dec 26, 2019 7:49 pm  

Mr. Zucchini Head wrote:

It's not often I agree with you Mrs B but you are dead right there on all counts. That group had all bases covered, they complimented each other perfectly. We had a grafter (Dowes), a big bodied metre maker (Carvell), a tackle busting impact player (Thacks) and a skillful all rounder (Kingy).

I'll reserve judgement on this years group, but I do share similar concerns. Houghton cant keep making 60 tackles a game forever. Someone somewhere is going to have to take up that slack. I'm sure this group of props will break bags of tackles and get plenty of offloads away, but you have to be good without the ball as well.

Great description of that 'Awesome Foursome". On the Houghton point I guess the kid from Widnes will start spelling him at some point, but it's unfortunate/concerning that he'll be chucked in the deep end for the first few rounds while Houghton recovers from injury.