juju
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NRL NRL Round 10 2026 Discussion
- Thread starter 1995warriorsfan
- Start date
snake77
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I've thought this as well. A lot of hype coming into the season and a few losses and things start compounding.
I wouldn't be surprised if there is a rebound next year. Like us 2024 > 2025 teams have done it before. Depends on what the issues are, injuries, play style etc.
There are a few times from last year that have fallen away. It is a credit to our side we have kept the momentum going.
yep, hence why I think the comparison is apt. Just like Dogs 25, Wahs 23 made top 4 and we all thought 24 was the window, just as the dogs thought 26 was their window. Watching the dogs play this year is like taking a time machine back to that year. We had the same problem in 24: always dominated field possession but could never score and would then get skinned on the edges by faster teams in second gear.To be fair we also thought we were winning it in 2024musical chair
When the Phins get it together, they can be a top 4 team. They only lost to the top 2 teams (us and the riff) by a total margin of 3 pts. They also spanked the sharks at shark park, another top 4 adjacent team. They will put 40-50 pts on a lot of teams this year. I'm just glad we got them early.
WAH MAN
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Not yet. It's there too see but that's the draw we had. And while they aren't going well down the bottom end of the table, those bottom teams have all scalped somebody each. It's great that we get to hit some harder teams soon. You have to eventually to get to the top top.
Noitall
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Storm would have thought they’d use us to get their season back on track such has been their psychological edge over the years. Titans have caught us out regularly in recent years, I think winning the games you should be winning is as much of the battle
The Dogs before Galvin were 10-2 last year.
Since then they've gone 10-13 which is a pretty drastic turn around
Since then they've gone 10-13 which is a pretty drastic turn around
JaggedJ
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Nah. First half of the season ladder can swing with 1 or 2 wins either way.
Those teams are down there because we helped put them there.
roguei
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I think it'd be naive to just brush it off. But i'd count dolphins and knights as fringe top 8 teams. Then again we did beat the roosters round 1 when they suck, and knights without ponga, brown and sharpe. I don't personally see raiders, titans, eels, storm and dragons moving into the 8 anytime soon. And who knows maybe like some posters think, luke caused our loses so we would of won against the tigers/sharks. Can only play who is infront of you. And a real powerhouse club puts away bottom tier teams, which we've been doing. And some of those teams stepped up when against us (titans, raiders, eels). To early to tell but i feel confident in us being a top 4 team.
difference is the juniors. I put the 2025 revival down to Webby backing the juniors in (Leka, Demi, Jake, etc) to replace the experience that left in 2024 (ie Tohu Harris, AFB, etc). From what I can see, the dogs junior prospects are far less promising (Zyon Maiu’u Maiu' has disappeared completely). So they are going to have to import their way out of this.
Bulldogs way over hyped, most dog players are average and have reached there ceiling while teams like the phins are finding new levels... No genuine game breakers except for a busted up Crichton and the Burton bomb... Only a couple of players I would take from the bulldogs whereas you would almost certainly take most phins backs
I actually blame the 2 losses on CNK to center, rather than Metcalf replacing CHT. CNK has had enough reps there for us to know that CNK at center doesn't work and his edge leaked the vast majority of tries during those 2 weeks. I think Webby knows now, it is Taine vs CNK, not both just as it is Mets vs Boyd, not both.
You could make the same observation about the other top 4 sides. Rabbits have only beaten one top 8 side too (Wests) and they are in the top 4 also. Roosters have also had many soft wins also. It's just the nature of the draw that the current top 4 sides haven't really played each other much yet.
Also, the current composition of the top 8 probably doesn't reflect the best 8 teams. In particular, I think our toughest opponent this year has actually been the Phins who currently sit outside the 8. They pushed us and the riff to the brink and smashed up the sharks at shark park. Knights also were no push overs either, even though they were missing Ponga and Brown. They were still able to jag a few wins against good sides with those players out.
So overall, we should be happy with where we are at, but at the same time acknowledge we haven't been truly tested yet. As far as I'm concerned, there's only one true test: Penrith. We'll see where we are at in 3 weeks.
Sean O Sullivan starting at 6 tells you a bit about where there depth s at.
They had to play Curran at centre which is pretty bad....
They had to play Curran at centre which is pretty bad....
Actually thought they looked good with SOS and Galvin. They were controlling the game well and actually asked questions on attack. Their issue is that they keep getting skinned on the edges, undoing all the good work they do through the middle. It's like rewatching our 2024 season.
Yeah , agree a bit. Brondon xerri was on the outer but is now playing consistently bad.
I think Galvin is being hung out to dry a bit. It would help if he had quality 1, 6 and 9s outside to help him steer the team as a young 7. He is just the scapegoat for wider issues in the team imo.
mrblonde
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I'd have thought - since so many people call them The Chocolate Soldiers - that The Flakes would be a better fit...
I noticed on the Kennel forum some people have taken to refering to Ciraldo as Ciraldud...
