Workhorse Watch: Rd 13
Phil Gould says Paul Gallen should not have been automatically picked for NSW. It’s never easy knowing just when it’s time to call it quits. There is a fine line between continuing to go back to the well of valuable experience and knowing when it’s time to find a new spring. But on Sunday afternoon it was plain to see, it is definitely time for a changing of the guard. Gus, you’re time is up. If Phil Gould thinks Paul Gallen is not still a valuable member of the NSW side he needs to hang up the headset.
Gallen might be short of a gallop (he missed 5 tackles which is equal to the number he missed in the three games prior to injury) but he still made 235 metres in 24 runs to go along with 34 tackles.
The only thing Gallen needs to do is ensure he doesn’t overplay his hand next Wednesday night. When it’s time for his play makers to do their thing he needs to trust them to do their job and not get in the way by just carting it up for another hit up. The whole overplaying your hand thing is probably some good advice for Gus as well.
Round 13 would have created something of a crisis for many NRLCEOs with workhorse guns Robbie Farah and Corey Parker both out, not to mention the season ending injury to Tony Williams! Of course I kid about T-Rex’s departure but the absence of Farah and Parker simply added to a list of some quality personnel who are currently out. Manly have been without Jamie Buhrer and Brenton Lawrence for much of the season and if you add in guys like Robbie Rochow and Glenn Stewart, you’ve got a very handy workhorse pack currently on the sideline. Fortunately Parker was only rested and should be back next week.
The move to the back row has done wonders for Chris Lawrence. He may not have registered a workhorse try on Friday (22 tackles, 14 hit ups) but he did bag two tries. Sure, his second was incorrectly awarded but it’s the first time he’s crossed the stripe in a year.
After highlighting the workhorse plight of hookers at the Titans last week, Daniel Mortimer and Kieran Moseley both scored workhorse tries against the Tigers. Mortimer was given the number 9 jersey against the Tigers but after Kane Elgey went off in the 23rd minute it meant both Mortimer and Moseley were on the field for the remainder of the match. Mortimer finished with 37 tackles and 7 runs while Moseley had 38 tackles and 3 runs.
And then there were two. In my mid-year review I highlighted the four players who had scored a workhorse every week. After Round 13 there are only two left. Andrew McCullough (28 tackles, 3 runs) fell short, as did Bodene Thompson (26 tackles, 10 runs) leaving Simon Mannering and Kade Snowden as the last two standing.
WORKHORSE OF THE WEEK
Nathan Peats
I’m sure Peats would have preferred an Eels win but his second Workhorse of the Week honour and inclusion in the NRLCEO Dream Team, are decent consolation prizes. Peats was the only player to register a double workhorse with a number of players including Tolman, Gallen and Guerra racking up the required metres but falling just one or two involvements short.
WORKHORSE PACK OF THE WEEK
- Kade Snowden: 49 tackles + 11 hitups = 60
- Nathan Peats: 56 tackles + 9 hitups = 65
- Aiden Tolman: 41 tackles + 18 hitups = 59
- Aiden Guerra: 44 tackles + 14 hitups = 58
- Kyle Lovett: 50 tackles + 8 hitups = 58
- Paul Gallen: 34 tackles + 24 hitups = 58
- Matt Ballin: 55 tackles + 5 hitups = 60
- Mike Cooper: 44 tackles + 14 hitups = 58
CLOSE BUT NO CIGAR
“How many short were you Josh?”
Jake Trbojevic: 30 tackles + 9 hitups = 39
Josh McGuire: 18 tackles + 21 hitups = 39
Luke Lewis: 36 tackles + 13 hitups = 39
Tariq Sims: 30 tackles + 9 hitups = 3
STATS PER MINUTE
It’s only when he’s gone that Tony Williams is worth a mention in the stats per minute section. T-Rex consistently has one of the lowest stats per minute score each week (0.39 SPM in 2015) and whilst his last outing was actually his best for the year, his injury will at least make room for someone who might actually make a contribution.
Ben Lowe returned from injury on Saturday and wasted no time after being elevated from 18th man to the starting side. Lowe had 10 involvements in the first 4 minutes! He had 27 involvements by the time he came off after 27 minutes. His involvement rate was so high, he was still leading the tackle count at the break despite spending the last 13 minutes of the half on the bench. Lowe went on to finish with 50 involvements in 58 minutes (0.86 SPM).
Bryce Cartwright scored his first workhorse try for the season as the Panthers went down to the Melbourne Storm. After carving up the Parramatta defence last week, the St Mary’s junior had to roll up his sleeves this week and finished with 35 tackles and 7 hit ups in 50 minutes of game time (0.84 SPM). Cartwright is definitely a talent but he will have to work on the defensive lapses that resulted in 4 missed tackles on Saturday and 5 the week before against the Eels.
So there I was, drinking my beer, watching my beloved Eels leading North Queensland 30 points to 6, thinking we’ve got this. Nek minnit, the Cowboys are all square at 30 all and Gavin Cooper has 3 tries! He later wraps up a workhorse try with 32 tackles and 14 hit ups and plays the full 80 minutes (0.58 SPM). It’s not the elusive double/double but it’s worth just as much.
JUST QUICKLY
Friday night was the first time I tuned into the second Friday night game for a while and was pleasantly surprised to hear Mat Thompson instead of Ray Hadley or Tim Gilbert. Has this been going on for a few weeks now?
Sadly the pleasantness was short lived with Thompson joined in the box by Gus, Wally and Locky.
Geoff Adams
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