Cheers mateGood podcast as always fonzie!
Talking about edge defense, I don't pretend to know anything but when a team decides to go up and in, say it's the right edge doing this, what is the left side doing to set up for when the play comes the other way? Is it the whole team is playing up and in on a set or is it a 80min strategy?
Also on the halves, I really would love to see Paul Turner get a go. I would like your idea of having kodi on the ball and maybe just maybe reconnecting with katoa, that combo was looking so deadly last year and I feel he has suffered a bit this year without kodi. Paul Turner playing a roving half role on both sides with kodi could actually be very dangerous.
Anyways hope the family is all good bro and yes agree we need to beat these teams at the bottom to hold on to any chance when the cavalry arrives.
✌
And having just ranted about being a fan of the sliding D, when you’re close to the line, like 5m out, absolutely up and in has to be the mode of D.Personally, I’m not a fan of the up and in. If you look at the last play in the Canberra game, that’s exactly what they did with Fus coming in to try and kill the ball. He completely butchered that play which resulted in a huge overlap and near obvious try if it wasn’t for RTS superman heroics.
My understanding of up and in is to kill space and effectively stop the ball reaching the outside. It’s high risk for the obvious reason as mentioned in the Canberra example. I think the most effective way to implement this style is when the opposition backs stand shallow. This makes the distance between you and the offensive line much shorter, therefore easier for the tackler to reach his target. Up and in isn’t going to work against a deep attacking backline. Better to slide and wait for the A to reach you in my opinion.
I’m much more a fan of a sliding defence. The question then becomes spacing between defenders. If too compressed the attacking half will be eyeing where the gap is. If too spread, it’s makes for an easy offload before the second man comes it. Both styles have their advantages and flaws. It really depends on the moment. SOS was definitely a contributor to the Tedesco try. It was genius and opportunistic of Tedsco to see the Egan - SOS partnering and take full advantage of it. I definitely don’t think it was planned, just a function of that combination at that moment in D.
I think if you become a predictable team on D whether it’s sliding or up and in, there’s enough video tape for teams to figure out and exploit that weakness. If Fus is always up and in, while Ken’s side slides, then it’s a weakness. Again, it fundamentally comes down to football IQ and how well players react to split second decisions. Defence is a fine art. How to tackle, when to tackle, where to tackle.. and timing. We spend way too much time only seeing the attacking art of the sport in video highlights, and not enough time appreciating defence. Good podcast. Rant over.
Personally, I’m not a fan of the up and in. If you look at the last play in the Canberra game, that’s exactly what they did with Fus coming in to try and kill the ball. He completely butchered that play which resulted in a huge overlap and near obvious try if it wasn’t for RTS superman heroics.
I can't agree with this - the overlap was already there well before it got to the wing. If Fus had just stayed on Rapana, they give the ball to Wighton or Croker who stroll over. Fus at least forced a long loopy pass which gave Rog just enough time to get across.
18 Apr
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