2022 Playing Style

bort

Jaws
Joined
Jun 4, 2007
Messages
29,404
Reaction score
5,519
Location
IN A BAR
Most kids start playing well before 16.
And should just master passing both sides straight away?

Fine

Only so much most 5 year olds who are playing prop are gunna practice throwing their weak side cut out passes at full speed.

Call him the halfback for a week and that amount might go up by 1 or 2.
Can probably throw a mean one mucking around at training though.
 

BurgoShark

Super Moderator
Joined
Apr 8, 2008
Messages
12,633
Reaction score
3,862
And should just master passing both sides straight away?

Fine

Only so much most 5 year olds who are playing prop are gunna practice throwing their weak side cut out passes at full speed.

Call him the halfback for a week and that amount might go up by 1 or 2.
Can probably throw a mean one mucking around at training though.
I know you are moreso answering Chad - but I’m not talking about weak side cut out passes at speed. For that kid who can’t pass at all when the season starts, doing a 1-2m pass while moving forward - during a game - is a milestone.

Most coaches don’t have that 5 year old pass at all, ever. His job is to follow the play and wait for his turn to run. In my experience 80-90% of kids have been coached like this before I get them.

A lot of coaches from u9’s down give the kids a number. That’s their hit-up order. The team is a hooker, a halfback, and 6 players waiting their turn.
 

BurgoShark

Super Moderator
Joined
Apr 8, 2008
Messages
12,633
Reaction score
3,862
That’s interesting to hear because in any sport technique is the key to performance. You can always get bigger, get more endurance or whatever but good technique is hard to get and also hard to improve.
Technique is important to performance - yes - but performance is less important during development years. A lot of professional athletes were playing in low divisions or not even playing the sport when they were 14 or 15. In the NRL it is more than 40%.
 
Joined
Sep 7, 2005
Messages
18,222
Reaction score
1,926
Location
The Ridge!
And should just master passing both sides straight away?

Fine

Only so much most 5 year olds who are playing prop are gunna practice throwing their weak side cut out passes at full speed.

Call him the halfback for a week and that amount might go up by 1 or 2.
Can probably throw a mean one mucking around at training though.
I don’t think HB and I are saying they should master it, but we’re both surprised that some can’t do it at least competently.

Again I’ll concede that 5-9 year olds don’t pass it much as we’ve seen from the junior games played before the main game.

But by the time they are 16-18 surely they need to do it more often and be better at it.
 

BurgoShark

Super Moderator
Joined
Apr 8, 2008
Messages
12,633
Reaction score
3,862
I don’t think HB and I are saying they should master it, but we’re both surprised that some can’t do it at least competently.

Again I’ll concede that 5-9 year olds don’t pass it much as we’ve seen from the junior games played before the main game.

But by the time they are 16-18 surely they need to do it more often and be better at it.
Agreed. Again - the problem (in my opinion) is pigeonholing players/teams in to NRL-style positions too early. If they are not encouraged to pass when they are younger they won’t spontaneously start doing it at 17.

They don’t all have to be playing like Johnathan Thurston, but they should be encouraged to develop their passing game within the context of their own position/role.

The “weakest” passer I’ve ever coached was (unsurprisingly) a middle forward. He really struggled for a full season with being asked to add a pass to his game. In year 2 he more than once sent other players on 30-40m runs upfield after a well-timed tip on. In year 3 he was still only passing once or twice per game, but he was also encouraging the new middles to run tip-on plays. He had learnt for himself that when forwards are a threat to pass it opens up space and makes them more dangerous ball runners. The penny had dropped.

This kid will never be a halfback and he still can’t pass accurately for more than a few metres - but he has a better “passing game” than 99% of middle forwards his age.
 

Super Impose

Great White
Joined
Feb 26, 2008
Messages
4,643
Reaction score
722
Location
The Hill
It’s not just confined to the juniors and not a new thing .
Back in the Bears days , Adrian Toole was told not to pass the ball under any circumstances and subsequently went to ground with a multiple man overlap one day, as per instructions ..
 

stormshark

Jaws
Joined
Jan 8, 2009
Messages
5,619
Reaction score
374
Location
Phillip Island
I don’t think HB and I are saying they should master it, but we’re both surprised that some can’t do it at least competently.

Again I’ll concede that 5-9 year olds don’t pass it much as we’ve seen from the junior games played before the main game.

But by the time they are 16-18 surely they need to do it more often and be better at it.
This is why good development squads in the last 3/5 yrs have taken 16 yos and stripped back to basics/fundamentals in Pathways squads. Penriff were the first to do it, and others have followed. Players in Rep teams unable to do ALL the fundamentals properly, now are being focused on. Players sometimes have to be brought backwards to go forwards..Even tackle techniques, if you can refine by about 17yo, it can be changed. I recount a story but if left to late.,Former Aus 20s Coach just this yr, observed former NRL Player and National Mens coach, with one other, trying to change a 17yos Tackle technique however, overruled them both, and said that's how he tackles leave it, too late now to change"'.( And in my View the player concerned is an Excellent tackler ,but they don't like planted feet and too many "'low to high" hits, one or two feet launched off grnd).
 
Last edited:

stormshark

Jaws
Joined
Jan 8, 2009
Messages
5,619
Reaction score
374
Location
Phillip Island
This is the Balanced style.Attack attack balanced by defence. Attacking from in our own half, albeit a bit earlier than usually wise in those conditions, paid off. Having the Indigenous boys composition, gives us a fluid risk/reward aspect. I t aint always gonna work but when clicks, leads to a great brand of footy.
 

Wiz

Jaws
Joined
Mar 23, 2016
Messages
5,906
Reaction score
1,514
This is the Balanced style.Attack attack balanced by defence. Attacking from in our own half, albeit a bit earlier than usually wise in those conditions, paid off. Having the Indigenous boys composition, gives us a fluid risk/reward aspect. I t aint always gonna work but when clicks, leads to a great brand of footy.
And they've been coached that the ball only gets spread once the forwards have earned it and then that platform is laid... last year it was hardly* earned before that happened
 
Last edited:

Milkshark

Great White
Joined
Jul 16, 2012
Messages
4,733
Reaction score
517
And they've been coached that the ball only gets spread once the forwards have earned it and then that platform is laid... last year it was hardly* earned before that happened
I always remember Flano saying that, the team has to earn to play this way
 

BurgoShark

Super Moderator
Joined
Apr 8, 2008
Messages
12,633
Reaction score
3,862
Some interesting analysis of our attack in this article

Following on from the other thread...

This is part of what I'm talking about in the last few pages of this one. You can exposes defences with quick, clean, crisp passing. No fancy block plays, line runs, or sweeping fullbacks necessary.
 
Joined
Sep 7, 2005
Messages
18,222
Reaction score
1,926
Location
The Ridge!
So, early days I know but with what everyone has seen in the first three rounds, are we a top four team?

Before you answer, take into consideration the following points:

1. We have no major injuries to our top 17. By this I mean only weeks where someone might be out for 1-2 weeks.
2. There are no distractions, scandals, off field incidents.
3. The coaching staff remain the same.
 

bort

Jaws
Joined
Jun 4, 2007
Messages
29,404
Reaction score
5,519
Location
IN A BAR
So, early days I know but with what everyone has seen in the first three rounds, are we a top four team?

Before you answer, take into consideration the following points:

1. We have no major injuries to our top 17. By this I mean only weeks where someone might be out for 1-2 weeks.
2. There are no distractions, scandals, off field incidents.
3. The coaching staff remain the same.
Wade Graham: "Am I a joke to you?"
 

apezza

Great White
Joined
Apr 1, 2010
Messages
4,022
Reaction score
1,721
So, early days I know but with what everyone has seen in the first three rounds, are we a top four team?

Before you answer, take into consideration the following points:

1. We have no major injuries to our top 17. By this I mean only weeks where someone might be out for 1-2 weeks.
2. There are no distractions, scandals, off field incidents.
3. The coaching staff remain the same.
Going off current form (both us and the competition) you would have to say yes.

We will know more when we play against sides we are expected to win to against - starting this week against the Knights.
 

CrazyMatt

Jaws
Joined
Jul 31, 2010
Messages
22,982
Reaction score
2,612
Location
Colyton, Sydney
So, early days I know but with what everyone has seen in the first three rounds, are we a top four team?

Before you answer, take into consideration the following points:

1. We have no major injuries to our top 17. By this I mean only weeks where someone might be out for 1-2 weeks.
2. There are no distractions, scandals, off field incidents.
3. The coaching staff remain the same.


Waaaaaay too early to answer. We’ve had one clinical win, one close scrappy win and one loss on the bell. Not exactly top 4 form, but its only 3 games in so its impossible to answer.

Also I think the club captain counts as a ‘major injury to our top 17’ 😂
 

Milkshark

Great White
Joined
Jul 16, 2012
Messages
4,733
Reaction score
517
We are a top 4 team.

If Wade come backs and plays well, we are a top 2 team
 
Top