Reds 2011
- Thread starter Lee Grant
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Courier Mail???
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Albert
Guest
That would be very interesting. He's going great guns for the Beasts down here...
Missed a week or two with injury, but a standout in the other games. No doubt Burgo and J. Holmes would've been looking over shoulders at him; they'd be quite happy I imagine if he does head home. Surely he'd be of great value in Melbourne??
Hard to get a good read on the halfback landscape in Aus. Sheehan, Valo, Phibbsy, Holmes, O'Young all older blokes. Will many take off after the WC next year?
Some handy young fellas running around. Nick Phipps and Ed Bredenhann (I know he's a Qlder) from Uni plus Nic White from Canberra are all around the same age as Justin Turner. Looking forward to seeing how they all evolve.
Lee Grant
John Eales (66)
That's awesome - so he passed to himself?
And we all thought Will was the best player in the family.
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David
Guest
Its not surprising what a good season with a good coach can do. That and all the bureaucratic nonsense finally appears to be resolved, the Reds are not just the "loyal" choice, but are also now a career choice (e.g. Shep). I am really looking forward to Slippers development, he looked the goods against the Highlanders.
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tranquility
Guest
he is the real deal no doubt. I just hope he can learn to play tight head in the off season
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David
Guest
Yeah, with Daley going well at loose head he really has no choice. I have always preferred a specialised tight head over a prop who can play both, but with that said Slipper has impressed me enough that he has changed my thoughts on this.
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TheTruth
Guest
Slipper seems to e one of te newish breeds of young props in that good and improving scrummager but a heap of skills and mobility as well - as with B Daley can play a full 80 which must be delightful for a coach. Slip played THP in U 20's Aust last year and obviously at schoolboys level. Big G. Morgan plays him at LHP in club when Daley unavailable thru Reds committments or injury. word is that he is at least equal at LHP as Daley but shows more mobility and general skills. However is equally good at THP - currently about 110-112 but has body shape to increase another 5-6 kg and maintain that mobility which seems so very important in the modern game- will be interesting at Reds who will be playing THP/LHP next year
- great that Shep signed as means real competition for THP and LHP - Shep will be revigoured, is only about 28 and can find a real home at Ballymore. For the reds to continue with their success imperative to have a great mongrel tight 5 - think they have all covered now that Shep signed except the huge loss of Daniel Braid - big big big hole . Reds seem to have plenty of young talent such as Quirk, Gill etc but but but boys someone wil have to step up big time
Does anyone know which club Shep is going to compliment
Lee Grant
John Eales (66)
I didn't see enough of Slipper on the park in the S14 this year to assess him properly but folks north of the Tweed rate him highly.
If he does well in the next year or so we will see one of the salutary effects of having a 5th Super team. A young fellow has got a start on his career because another has moved on to the new team. Whilst the Oz player base could not support any more Super teams I think that we will find that 5 will be more beneficial than 4, once all the excess foreigners leave.
Watch this space in five years time.
As for the resurgence of the Reds: I wrote about 5 years ago on the other forum, when the Force were poaching players before start up, that the Reds were in a Catch-22 situation. They needed to retain players and attract some to them to improve their standing in Super rugby, but they couldn't do that because players didn't want to play for a dud team.
Catch-22.
Somehow the Reds have turned things around though it has taken a while as we all thought it would. We have discussed the reasons why at length and McKenzie has been given a great deal of credit and some has gone to ex-coach Mooney. Link has the knowledge of managing players and the experience and gravitas of the guru he is but I don't think that enough credit has gone to the players themselves.
I've never played Super rugby, a super game every now and then was my lot, but it must be a very lonely place out there in the middle. We have to congratulate all the Reds who were on the park this year. Their individual skill and ability to play in a team way, yet with a style that was not structured, has lifted the interest of all Oz rugby lovers and not a few offshore.
Now they are keeping players; now players from outside will be looking at playing for a good team north of the Tweed; now the franchise is strengthened and the public more interested in attending matches.
It's all good.
If he does well in the next year or so we will see one of the salutary effects of having a 5th Super team. A young fellow has got a start on his career because another has moved on to the new team. Whilst the Oz player base could not support any more Super teams I think that we will find that 5 will be more beneficial than 4, once all the excess foreigners leave.
Watch this space in five years time.
As for the resurgence of the Reds: I wrote about 5 years ago on the other forum, when the Force were poaching players before start up, that the Reds were in a Catch-22 situation. They needed to retain players and attract some to them to improve their standing in Super rugby, but they couldn't do that because players didn't want to play for a dud team.
Catch-22.
Somehow the Reds have turned things around though it has taken a while as we all thought it would. We have discussed the reasons why at length and McKenzie has been given a great deal of credit and some has gone to ex-coach Mooney. Link has the knowledge of managing players and the experience and gravitas of the guru he is but I don't think that enough credit has gone to the players themselves.
I've never played Super rugby, a super game every now and then was my lot, but it must be a very lonely place out there in the middle. We have to congratulate all the Reds who were on the park this year. Their individual skill and ability to play in a team way, yet with a style that was not structured, has lifted the interest of all Oz rugby lovers and not a few offshore.
Now they are keeping players; now players from outside will be looking at playing for a good team north of the Tweed; now the franchise is strengthened and the public more interested in attending matches.
It's all good.
I'll tell you who doesn't get the credit he deserves and that's Paul Carozza. He's been the Academy coach for some time and we all know the quality of the players coming through our academy program. And I think its fair to say most have adapted to the Super program pretty well. Squabba is largely responsible for keeping so much good talent in the state when it all could have gotten a whole lot messier.
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tranquility
Guest
agree on that noddy, he is also very good at talent identification.
On slipper again, he may only be 113kg but he is a big boy. He will end up at around the 120+ mobile prop which is great. Big Benny Daley will probably play at around the 115 at his biggest I would have thought.
It said in a recent article that Link thought of Daley as a potential TH? I am really curious to find out if this this a legitimate idea or if it was just poor rugby journalism?
On slipper again, he may only be 113kg but he is a big boy. He will end up at around the 120+ mobile prop which is great. Big Benny Daley will probably play at around the 115 at his biggest I would have thought.
It said in a recent article that Link thought of Daley as a potential TH? I am really curious to find out if this this a legitimate idea or if it was just poor rugby journalism?
Aussie D
Desmond Connor (43)
I think he will say nice things about all the clubs but not sure which one he will complement.
Somewhere that doesn't play him in second grade would be my guess
Actually I am wrong he has moved from South Districts (where he was behind Palmer) to Easts and is playing 1sts
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dbla
Guest
The other lot that I think can claim credit for the current strength of qld rugby are the ones that hand out sporting scholarships in gps schools. With all the crap that has been in the papers up here about the unfair competition people seem to forget that half the reason the young players that come through and go on to play for qld are as good as they are, is that they play with and against the best in the one comp.
If talented players weren't being brought in to play against other particularly talented players in gps would the current crop of young players (slipper, quirk, gill etc.) be as good? I don't think so. Obviously they would still be good players I just don't think they would be at the standard they are at such a young age. I think the reds should really thank the gps "importing" policies.
If talented players weren't being brought in to play against other particularly talented players in gps would the current crop of young players (slipper, quirk, gill etc.) be as good? I don't think so. Obviously they would still be good players I just don't think they would be at the standard they are at such a young age. I think the reds should really thank the gps "importing" policies.
Lee Grant
John Eales (66)
Years ago before my boys went to Joeys I had the opposite view. I deplored the absence of boys from State Schools in the NSW and Oz Schools team but now I agree that it brings the lads on quicker. Mind you, in a year or two after the lads leave school it doesn't really mean beans.
But the more important thing is that lads who go to a private school on scholarships are more likely to stay in the game of rugby union than their mates from their junior clubs who are in state schools. Those other boys are more likely to play league and union 50/50 in their high school years. If they want to go further in footie and are good enough they will probably end up 70/30 in NRL teams compared to probably 10/90 of the scholarship boys who are good enough to play pro rugby union.
Moreover some rugby scholarships go to boys who play league and many of them stay in the sport after school and play pro rugby if they are good enough, whereas without the scholarship they would be in the NRL 100%.
But the more important thing is that lads who go to a private school on scholarships are more likely to stay in the game of rugby union than their mates from their junior clubs who are in state schools. Those other boys are more likely to play league and union 50/50 in their high school years. If they want to go further in footie and are good enough they will probably end up 70/30 in NRL teams compared to probably 10/90 of the scholarship boys who are good enough to play pro rugby union.
Moreover some rugby scholarships go to boys who play league and many of them stay in the sport after school and play pro rugby if they are good enough, whereas without the scholarship they would be in the NRL 100%.
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