Gale

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Flat Capper
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Re: Gale

Post by Flat Capper » 15 Nov 2016, 14:32

I suspect that like many on here I spent a good deal of my time on Sunday bellowing at the box. However, none of what happened during the game could match the frustrations I felt upon hearing the team news although I should've known better.

I genuinely feel that in this tournament, England played their best rugby when Clark was on the field and Gale played better on the back of Clark's distribution. To have no recognised backup at hooker was shambolic.

AS for the halves, you'll never win anything changing the combination every week and whilst Brown may have is supporters to thrust him in for the most important game was purely folly. The only change required at half-back was to let gale play to his strengths and William's his.

This combination may not have outclassed the Smith/Cronk/Thurston combo but it would have at least played to our strengths and not theirs.

I agree that we looked particularly weak in the centres and it may have been worth putting Sam Burgess in there to mark Ingliss who just needs a good old fashioned smack to shut him up.

Overall I thought the choice of Sam Burgess as skipper was the wrong call as whilst there's no doubt that Sam plays best when playing at the forefront of a team, he is no leader. Graham can do both but accepting he would take a break then Gale is more than happy barking out orders, attempting to organise the whole team.

Following on from this I found it truly astonishing for Bennett to blame the players and whilst he may have a point when he says we don't know how to win, it's is surely his job to change that and therefore his failure when it doesn't happen.

I fear the worst for next year's World Cup...
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Re: Gale

Post by bane73 » 15 Nov 2016, 15:36

Our "lack" of knowing how to win is surpassed only by the mans total lack of charisma and manners.
what doesn't kill me simply makes me...stranger.

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Re: Gale

Post by orrsome » 15 Nov 2016, 17:27

Flat Capper wrote:I suspect that like many on here I spent a good deal of my time on Sunday bellowing at the box. However, none of what happened during the game could match the frustrations I felt upon hearing the team news although I should've known better.

I genuinely feel that in this tournament, England played their best rugby when Clark was on the field and Gale played better on the back of Clark's distribution. To have no recognised backup at hooker was shambolic.

AS for the halves, you'll never win anything changing the combination every week and whilst Brown may have is supporters to thrust him in for the most important game was purely folly. The only change required at half-back was to let gale play to his strengths and William's his.

This combination may not have outclassed the Smith/Cronk/Thurston combo but it would have at least played to our strengths and not theirs.

I agree that we looked particularly weak in the centres and it may have been worth putting Sam Burgess in there to mark Ingliss who just needs a good old fashioned smack to shut him up.

Overall I thought the choice of Sam Burgess as skipper was the wrong call as whilst there's no doubt that Sam plays best when playing at the forefront of a team, he is no leader. Graham can do both but accepting he would take a break then Gale is more than happy barking out orders, attempting to organise the whole team.

Following on from this I found it truly astonishing for Bennett to blame the players and whilst he may have a point when he says we don't know how to win, it's is surely his job to change that and therefore his failure when it doesn't happen.

I fear the worst for next year's World Cup...
I agree, England will get stuffed in the World Cup if the selection and tactics don't change.
There should be a few warm up games organised with a settled core of the team so that the players have the opportunity to gel with well practiced plays at specific times when called by the Captain, rather than the headless chicken approach we have just witnessed.

My idea of the 'core' is: full back - Ratchford, centres - Griffin and Currie, the halves - Gale and Williams, with set plays on the left and right for each. Hookers - Clark and Houghton / Hodgson. If he's fit LF should be O'Loughlin as he provides leadership.
I also think that Darryl Powell should be part of the coaching team to bring some ideas and flair to the backs. This reliance on forward power, in other words trying to play the Aussie way, just doesn't work. We played like we were coached by forwards only, and fell for the Aussie pre-match comments that we would use our size and power

Another area that requires vast improvement is our kicking game. Shaun Johnson killed us with his grubbers over our line. I'm not saying that is all we should do but certainly the team should know who's going to kick and what type of kick is coming.
All in all England need to play the RL way not the NRL way as the Aussies and NZ will tackle all day. We need to play to our strengths - off loading and putting on set moves at speed as any team in the world will struggle against those tactics.
If we lose against the Aussie and NZ again, at least we will have gone down entertaining.

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Re: Gale

Post by drleftie » 15 Nov 2016, 20:44

Flat Capper wrote:I suspect that like many on here I spent a good deal of my time on Sunday bellowing at the box. However, none of what happened during the game could match the frustrations I felt upon hearing the team news although I should've known better.

I genuinely feel that in this tournament, England played their best rugby when Clark was on the field and Gale played better on the back of Clark's distribution. To have no recognised backup at hooker was shambolic.

AS for the halves, you'll never win anything changing the combination every week and whilst Brown may have is supporters to thrust him in for the most important game was purely folly. The only change required at half-back was to let gale play to his strengths and William's his.

This combination may not have outclassed the Smith/Cronk/Thurston combo but it would have at least played to our strengths and not theirs.

I agree that we looked particularly weak in the centres and it may have been worth putting Sam Burgess in there to mark Ingliss who just needs a good old fashioned smack to shut him up.

Overall I thought the choice of Sam Burgess as skipper was the wrong call as whilst there's no doubt that Sam plays best when playing at the forefront of a team, he is no leader. Graham can do both but accepting he would take a break then Gale is more than happy barking out orders, attempting to organise the whole team.

Following on from this I found it truly astonishing for Bennett to blame the players and whilst he may have a point when he says we don't know how to win, it's is surely his job to change that and therefore his failure when it doesn't happen.

I fear the worst for next year's World Cup...

Pretty much my thoughts too. I could understand dropping Gale but not for Brown and as you say while none of our combinations would have bested the Aussie halves at least playing a settled pairing would have been better than trying yet another combination in the most crucial game.
Our centres were very poor and watching Cronk repeatedly shoving the retreating Watkins for his 'late' tackle was embarrassing and epitomised our effort. I'm not condoning violence but Watkins didn't even stand up for himself. If that had been Cas a) Cronk wouldnt have dared to start on Jake and b) if he had half the team would have piled in. Too many of our players seemed to be in awe of them.

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Re: Gale

Post by dude » 15 Nov 2016, 21:39

So far this tournament Australia have changed the half back pairing every week and won. Played cronk and maloney against Scotland, maloney and thurston against NZ and thurston and cronk against us. The simple fact is were not good enough whatever team we pick

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Re: Gale

Post by Flat Capper » 16 Nov 2016, 14:05

dude wrote:So far this tournament Australia have changed the half back pairing every week and won. Played cronk and maloney against Scotland, maloney and thurston against NZ and thurston and cronk against us. The simple fact is were not good enough whatever team we pick
Whilst that is true there are subtle differences.

The infamous trio of Smith/Cronk/Thurston is tried and tested and regarded as one of the best combinations in history. Meninga knows what he's going to get from them and doesn't need to worry about changing anything. In less significant games he has the luxury of resting whoever he wants to enable him to take a look at alternatives, just in case.

Up until the Scotts/NZ result, there was a (remote) possibility that Australia would fail to make the final and there was no doubt who would play. England did not have this luxury and the team choices for the final were at best a work in progress with the evidence up to that point suggesting further tinkering at that stage wouldn't be helpful.
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Re: Gale

Post by takethetwo » 17 Nov 2016, 19:05

Bit O/T but did anyone see Luke Gales interview on At The Races today ? Said he only gets 4 weeks off before training starts again and that was including England duty . So I'm guessing the rest of he lads will be back in by end of this month . At least they'll be in shape lol .

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