Changes : Sat Feb 24, 2018 8:02 am
I AM just interested in seeing people’s thoughts on potential changes we need to make, if any, after the first month or so of the 2018 season?Not looking at a knee jerk after last nights poor performance but on what we have seen for the season so far.
From a selection point of view, for me you need your best players on the field for as long as possible and at the moment the Powell, Tomkins, Escaré shift isn’t working. Powell seems lost playing as a 7 and does not give us the spark or direction we need. I personally think it’s tome to revert to a traditional system of Sam at 7 Escaré, who looks very threatening when he is on to 1 and rotate TL and Powell at 9. My main concern then is our lack of height in our back 3 but it’s worth it for the speed that move generates.
I would ban Gildart from kicking. I’m a massive fan of his potential but he seems to me to be believing his own hype this year trying to overplay situations when he has ball in hand. He needs to go back to basics and focus on his running game as when he does that is when he looks most effective. Sick of this 4th tackle grubbed to nothing he seems to have added all too often to his game.
Meters after contact is a massive one for me. We really don’t make any. We must be the worst team in the league for it. I know we use the excuse it is a tactic, if it is it needs to change now, but I’m not so sure.
The players we give the most credit to and who seem most effective are Davies, Marshall and Bateman who always look for the post contact meters. If they are doing it regularly are they defying their coaches instruction? Regardless this is an area we really need to improve and as such I would look to bring Hamlin into the 17 for Tautai or Isa.
Finally I’ve been pleased with our more expansive style (ok we didn’t see it last night) but it has generally been evidenced in the other games, I however would just like to see us sharpen up our passing and execution. Passes going behind and poorly timed runs are stifling our effectiveness so significant hours need to be put in, in training to correct that.
Bigger issues of transfer policy in relation to size and utility style player stratergy are a massive problem and need to never addressed but that can’t happen in the short term for 2018.