Official Thomas Hazelton

Sharks NRL Prospects said:
On the “going down easy” thing… you have to understand that in a lot of situations the defence would rather concede another few metres than let a player find his front quickly.

Concede a few extra metres but it takes an extra 3 seconds for the player to get to ground = more time for the defence to get set.

Player makes a few less metres but is able to find his front 3 seconds earlier = less time for the defence to get set.
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Hear what you are saying but for a big guy he seems to get chopped easier than you’d think of even as a comparison to other big units from other teams who have a similar stature.

I can’t give you example after example but one that sticks out was last yr, he broke the line & was charging for the line, Galvin from Tigers brought him down beautifully & easily.

Some mates of my mates liken his hit ups to a budgie that’s flying around the house & flies straight into the glass window & immediately drops.
 
Sharks NRL Prospects said:
On the “going down easy” thing… you have to understand that in a lot of situations the defence would rather concede another few metres than let a player find his front quickly.

Concede a few extra metres but it takes an extra 3 seconds for the player to get to ground = more time for the defence to get set.

Player makes a few less metres but is able to find his front 3 seconds earlier = less time for the defence to get set.
Click to expand...
Mcinnes is a classic example of this, never gets held up and turtled.
 
Bundy Shark said:
Hear what you are saying but for a big guy he seems to get chopped easier than you’d think of even as a comparison to other big units from other teams who have a similar stature.

I can’t give you example after example but one that sticks out was last yr, he broke the line & was charging for the line, Galvin from Tigers brought him down beautifully & easily.

Some mates of my mates liken his hit ups to a budgie that’s flying around the house & flies straight into the glass window & immediately drops.
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I’ve always thought that Tom is more effective off a tip on. Gets him away from the marker and A defender so less chance of this.
 
Sharks NRL Prospects said:
On the “going down easy” thing… you have to understand that in a lot of situations the defence would rather concede another few metres than let a player find his front quickly.

Concede a few extra metres but it takes an extra 3 seconds for the player to get to ground = more time for the defence to get set.

Player makes a few less metres but is able to find his front 3 seconds earlier = less time for the defence to get set.
Click to expand...
Problem is. He doesn’t make the extra metres and still takes an extra 3 seconds
 
Sharks NRL Prospects said:
I was addressing a specific technical criticism. i.e. going to ground too quickly is always bad.

You are saying he goes to ground too slowly.
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No, he still takes the extra time in the tackle which negates the benefit of the “soft run”

What you’re saying is right, just this scenario it doesn’t quite work like that
 
AdShark said:
No, he still takes the extra time in the tackle which negates the benefit of the “soft run”

What you’re saying is right, just this scenario it doesn’t quite work like that
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Agreed. Doesn’t make the extra metres trying to get a quick play the ball. Just a shame he’s as quick as a tug boat who gives the defence the 3 seconds to get back anyway.
 
So even though he was loitering in the sheds pre Origin, how close is he actually to playing?
 
I reckon there would be 10 probs before Tom as of today. That doesnt mean he can't move up the line over the next couple of years.

It is good that he has had a taste of what could be. It's up to him now to see if he can get to that level.
 
AdShark said:
No, he still takes the extra time in the tackle which negates the benefit of the “soft run”

What you’re saying is right, just this scenario it doesn’t quite work like that
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I don't understand what you are saying then. Do you mean he plays the ball slow once going down?

BrickMan said:
Agreed. Doesn’t make the extra metres trying to get a quick play the ball. Just a shame he’s as quick as a tug boat who gives the defence the 3 seconds to get back anyway.
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3 seconds is better than 6 seconds though, right?
 
AdShark said:
Yes
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Yeah ok. I don't think he is ever going to be super fast at that part of it. Just limited by his body shape. He has improved though, and if it is about minimising the total time the defence has to reload then finding his front ASAP is a good strategy.

Could someone else on the roster (Kaufusi/Uele) do it faster if given the identical role? Almost certainly yes, but the coach can't control what role he needs from that jersey every week. Imo Tommy is ahead of those two based on his ability to do a "decent" job in different roles depending on what is needed at the time, whereas the other two will give you something a bit more specific/narrow.
 
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