Like the way of the five metre gap in defence, reviewing the points from the NRL you may have missed from round 18.
Have the New Zealand Warriors over-played their hand in showing the pushover try as they trounced Parramatta on Saturday evening. Sam Tomkins raced over after he was feed the ball by Nathan Friend off the ‘scrum’ as the Andrew McFadden-coached extended their lead to 18-0 with Shaun Johnson’s successful conversion. However given the Warriors looked dominant and ended up thumping the Eels 48-0 was a ‘trick play’ such as this showing their hand too early? The win has bumped the Warriors up to sixth spot on the ladder and improved their for and against significantly to now be plus 70 but given the small margins in which finals games are won it’s worth pondering as to whether a similar play wouldn’t be best stored in the kit bag until later in the season in a close match.
Canberra’s Jarrod Croker was at his point-scoring best this weekend and ones of the Raiders brightest as Ricky Stuart’s men outran Gold Coast 30-16. Second on the competition’s top try-scorer list with 13 (two behind Parramatta’s Semi Radradra) the 23 year-old benefitted from dynamic fullback Anthony Milford’s outstanding game. Arriving on the spot to back up or support Milford the goal-kicking centre was key for his team but upon Milford’s departure what happens next? Croker may do as well with Reece Robinson back at fullback (if that ends up being the case) however the level of improvement in combination he could have had with the Brisbane-bound Milford will leave Green Machine fans lamenting their bad luck.
Last week we discussed the 100% completion rate of the Bulldogs and the Des Hasler-coached outfit were once again impressive in round 18 competing 86% of their sets as they edged Melbourne 6-4. Interestingly the round was one of discipline across the board with Manly at 90% (35/39) completions the most professional as they thrashed the Wests Tigers 40-8. However Mick Potter’s side at 74% (28/38) were actually not that bad compared to sides in recent weeks. Only a week earlier both Gold Coast and St George Illawarra won games with a completion rate of 73%. Has the return of Origin players had something to do with that?
One-time Australian player Jamal Idris had plenty of positives in Penrith’s dramatic 35-34 triumph on Monday evening but there also cause for concern as the centre missed six tackles and was at times a virtual traffic cone, including one occasion when Brisbane halfback Ben Hunt zoomed past him without the Panthers man laying a hand on him. Facing the Roosters on Saturday afternoon it might be a case of Panthers boss Ivan Cleary asking the 24 year-old to focus on his defensive duties and for those around him to ensure he doesn’t rush up too early when the Panthers are defending on their goal-line.
Round 18 was bookended by fixtures at so-called Sydney suburban grounds in Manly and Penrith on the weekend New South Wales Minister for Sport (amongst other portfolios) Stuart Ayres confirmed the state government’s intention to focus future funding on three key stadiums. Speaking on Sky Sports Radio in response to a Sunday Telegraph article Minister Ayres noted those stadiums are Allianz Stadium, ANZ Stadium and a third located in western Sydney. Typically it initiated a cry from those officials connected with clubs of the suburban stadiums stating their ‘need’ for funding. The audacity of some of the officials is surprising given even grassroots sporting clubs need to contribute some funding and often gain broader community support when applying for grants themselves to upgrade their facilities. One of the challenges is for NRL clubs to develop revenue streams which can support stadium developments and link with local communities in doing so to ensure the benefit don’t just fall to professional sport but the local community as a whole.
@hamishneal
Disclosure: I am a fulltime employee of the Sport and Recreation Division of the Office of Sport in the NSW state government but my role is not linked to decisions of funding for elite sporting venues.
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