Re: World Cup 2021 - What are your thoughts : Sat Nov 12, 2022 6:16 pm  

No complaints, the better team won, we conceded some poor tries really, but they managed territory better, made fewer mistakes and took advantage of their chances. We really should have played sneyd today IMO, we needed a tactical kicking game in case we couldn't win the arm wrestle and we didn't have one. Welsby has been alright this world cup but he wasn't the answer in the halves today, just not the correct foil for Williams who had a very good game. Maybe he could have played centre over Watkins?

Whitehead was excellent, Williams was excellent. Most of the others were good but sadly not good enough.

Re: World Cup 2021 - What are your thoughts : Sat Nov 12, 2022 6:35 pm  

Fine margins. We defended poorly on our right edge during the game, and we should have kicked through when nobody was covering their line, as Crichton and To'o moved up. Instead, Crichton gets an easy intercept. Williams got us back into the game for a second time, only for us not to complete the most important two set of the match in extra time. We just lacked individual composure that lost us the opportunity of scoring some points or stopping them being added to the against column.

Well done to Samoa, who found the way to get to the final.

Re: World Cup 2021 - What are your thoughts : Sat Nov 12, 2022 8:10 pm  

The Samoa team almost all play in the NRL and several of them play for the champions.

Most of the England team play in Super League and possibly our best two players from the champions were missing.

I thought before the tournament it would be an Australia vs Samoa final. Unless Australia have a mare they'll walk the final. Luai won't have consecutive good games.

Re: World Cup 2021 - What are your thoughts : Sun Nov 13, 2022 8:18 am  

karetaker wrote:

Williams best player on the pitch today for England.

Agreed. Also, Sneyd should've been the other half with Welsby at fb. There are at least 4 better No.9s than Mickymac, and that right edge? Well, what more can you say?.

Re: World Cup 2021 - What are your thoughts : Sun Nov 13, 2022 1:30 pm  

Cokey wrote:

Agreed. Also, Sneyd should've been the other half with Welsby at fb. There are at least 4 better No.9s than Mickymac, and that right edge? Well, what more can you say?.

Yep Mickmac was a strange one.
Well past his best.
Leeds & Wire had two better attacking hookers.
No running threat at all.
.

Re: World Cup 2021 - What are your thoughts : Mon Nov 14, 2022 9:04 am  

Smiffy27 wrote:

Yep Mickmac was a strange one.
Well past his best.
Leeds & Wire had two better attacking hookers.
No running threat at all.
.

He's Wane's love child, it's hardly suprising he was picked. Common knowledge that Wane has his favorites. This is on him.

Re: World Cup 2021 - What are your thoughts : Mon Nov 14, 2022 9:30 am  

I accept that there are technically better hookers than McIllorum available, but I think the areas of the game where ha can be faulted are about him being dominated in defence. It’s is without question that he is the most aggressive and resilient defender from those available, so if he couldn’t cope with the Samoa pack, who could?

I understand the argument, he’s not the best all round hooker. And if we had struggled to score points or to shift the ball cleanly from the ruck, I’d accept the argued against him, but we didn’t in truth. He just got picked out and worked over by a big pack. Houghton and Clark are good defenders, but not as aggressive and smaller/lighter. Leeming isn’t a bad defender but I’ve never picked him out to be his strongest aspect of the game. Ackers, not seen enough of him to have an informed opinion, but Wane has had 4 weeks with him.

I don’t think we need a scapegoat here. There are a few areas where it went wrong on the day.

Re: World Cup 2021 - What are your thoughts : Mon Nov 14, 2022 9:47 am  

Agree with your assessment of McIlorum, but what you forget to mention is that he offered no threat in attack. How often did you see him run from acting half back at the retiring Samoan defence. I don't recall a single occasion.
Yes Whitehead was excellent, bit oh if only he'd taken the tackle after his break at the end, a drop goal would have won it.
Overall a poor performance by too many players who had a good World Cup up to that game.

Re: World Cup 2021 - What are your thoughts : Mon Nov 14, 2022 9:58 am  

RogerMoore wrote:

Agree with your assessment of McIlorum, but what you forget to mention is that he offered no threat in attack. How often did you see him run from acting half back at the retiring Samoan defence. I don't recall a single occasion.
Yes Whitehead was excellent, bit oh if only he'd taken the tackle after his break at the end, a drop goal would have won it.
Overall a poor performance by too many players who had a good World Cup up to that game.

I’m not sure he was picked for his attacking skills though. His distribution is clean and effective, that is all he has ever has in attack. I think sometimes hookers who want to be playmakers can just get in the way, you pick halfbacks for a reason.

I would accept the argument on favourites to a point if this criticism was levelled at Bateman, as there have been players in that position who have been better than him this season. Now, there isn’t a person alive who knows anything about RL that would say that Bateman isn’t a top class player, but… people will argue that Bachelor has been better. It then boils down to personal preference and style. But there is nobody to compete with McIllorum for the aggressive confrontational style that Wane wants to play with.

Re: World Cup 2021 - What are your thoughts : Mon Nov 14, 2022 8:56 pm  

Barbed Wire wrote:

I’m not sure he was picked for his attacking skills though. His distribution is clean and effective, that is all he has ever has in attack. I think sometimes hookers who want to be playmakers can just get in the way, you pick halfbacks for a reason.

Believe me, there is not a single half-back in the world who wants the ball fed in the same way all the time. Hookers have to be a threat otherwise it is so easy to defend. Micky Mac was a selection mistake and when he wasn't about for a short time on Saturday we looked much more dangerous.