What would your ideal pack/bench be if everyone were available? I really liked the look of Burns back in the middle. It's hard to tell against a team that were a bit flat from that period of the game, but I'd imagine we'll run it back for more data.
I want to see for now 4 more mobile middles at least (McInnes/Burns/JC/Sifa), and 3 bigger bodies (AFB + 2 of Rudolf/Kaufusi/Hazleton). I'd really love to see Puru get a few games though to potentially see the value in shifting that balance to 5 and 2.
If I was picking my perfect PVL ball pack, it would probably be
8. AFB
10. JC
13. McInnes
14. Sifa
15. Burns
16. Kaufusi
17. Puru
18. Rudolf/Hazleton
19. Hiroti/outside back cover.
I think PVL ball gets over-stated. Footy games are still won by going forward and generating quick play the balls, and big guys are best at doing that. You want to avoid your big men getting bogged down defending for long stretches, but having McInnes back means you can still have those big guys and just shave a few minutes of each of their shifts.
The other thing to consider is that in a game with 60-70 points scored your forwards are getting a lot of extra rest during bunker reviews, conversions and kick-offs. NRL.com has Kaufusi down as having played 15 minutes, but he was out there for 3 tries and 2 dropouts. PVL can tell us "ball in play is up" and "big men are getting fatigued" as often as he likes but I'd be shocked if Kaufusi played more than 7 minutes of actual footy on Sunday.
My perfect lineup? Sifa to left centre and drop Iro, just so I can hear the Fins Up boys have a meltdown
Seriously though.... a few actual thoughts on the middles.
If PVL ball is about quick play the balls and repeat efforts in defence the players you want out there the most are AFB, McInnes, Colquhoun and Rudolf - because they are good at both those things.
Hazelton and Burns have a high defensive work rate but will get slow ptb's when the opposition is able to get numbers in tackles.
Conversely... Kaufusi, Uele and Talakai can win the ruck consistently but don't give you the defensive work rate of the others.
I think with "PVL ball" you still need a balance. You also want guys who complement each other and you don't want too much of one thing on at the same time.
I think there is a case for starting to use the bench on a case by case basis (which may already be happening).
Colquhoun on after 20-25. Depending on what they think they need at that time they can send him out with 2 workers like they did on Sunday (Burns and Hazelton) or they can send out one of those two and someone to win the ruck (Talakai or Kaufusi).
You then hold that last "Roycey" sub for whatever it is you think you need from that stint. It doesn't have to be a redlining middle. It could be Puru if chasing points, or Burns/Tommy if the opposition have had a run of possession. It appears this happened at least once already. The only game this season where the Sharks were down by more than 8 points with 30 minutes to go they used Puru instead of Uele.
So for a lineup I'd go with the current starting pack plus Colquhoun as the core, and then players 15-19 get used according to the situation.
14. Colquhoun
15. Kaufusi
16. Hazelton
17 Talakai
18. Burns
19. Puru
They may not be 1 for 1 swaps every time but I'd look to do something like...
Rudolf and
Colquhoun split time
McInnes splits time with one of
Hazelton/Burns
AFB splits time with one of Kaufusi/Talakai/Hazelton/
Burns (subject to needs)
4th benchie
Kaufusi/Talakai/Hazelton/Burns/Puru comes on at 50-55 minute mark (subject to needs)
Keep a spare interchange until the last 10
This is actually in line with what happened on Sunday too (the bold ones), though obviously Talakai wasn't an option there (it was Jones).
