Today we take a look at who should wear the No.7 jersey at the Bulldogs, the long road ahead for the Tigers, and whether or not the Warriors have turned the corner in 2024.
Read on as we tackle some of the big talking points in this week's NRL Real or Not.
Toby Sexton is the Bulldogs halfback
REAL: Keyboard coaching is easy, we all do it, and we all know exactly what is needed to turn our clubs around. It is much easier than being an actual coach, as Brad Arthur discovered this week. Those of us at our desks or on our phones don't have the pressure of losing our jobs if we get it wrong, not that we ever get it wrong of course.
Those professional coaches on the big dollars have no idea. So we happily throw them advice through social media; "pick this player; drop that player; spread the ball more; run it up the middle; play a sliding defence; we need more up and in pressure, less block plays, more decoy runners." If there is a problem, perceived or otherwise, we all have the solutions.
Which brings us to the Bulldogs and the countless keyboard coaches who have spent the best part of this season screaming that Drew Hutchison is not the answer at halfback. And the answer would be? Toby Sexton, Blake Taafe, Bailey Hayward or any number of youngsters coming through the ranks. Coach Cameron Ciraldo has ignored all the advice and stuck firmly with Hutchison, despite the results being less than encouraging. Solid in defence, sure of hand with a reasonable passing and kicking game, Hutchison only lacks the most important ingredients of a quality halfback; sharpness, guile, speed, elusiveness and creativity.
As the deadline approached for the Bulldogs to finalise their line-up to take on the Dragons, Hutchison was mysteriously replaced by Sexton at halfback and a chorus of thousands of keyboard coaches screamed out in delight. But according to Ciraldo, it wasn't a planned move and it would seem, perhaps, not a permanent one either.
"Nah it wasn't planned, we've had a couple of tough weeks, high intensity games, we thought on a short turn around this week it was best to bring in some fresh legs," Ciraldo said after the game.
"Toby has been working away in the background there and playing really well in NSW Cup and he was getting closer and closer to an opportunity, but we just thought we needed some fresh legs this week on the back of a couple of tough games and a six-day turn around, so that was more the reason behind it, but I thought he did really well Toby, showed all the hard work he has been putting in."
The second-half humbling of the Dragons came down to many factors other than just the selection of Sexton. There was the injury to Jack Bird, a terrible tackled into touch call against the Dragons, a near perfect second-half completion rate from the Bulldogs, and a diabolical defensive performance from Tom Eisenhuth. But Sexton was sharper, faster and improved the Bulldogs attack to no end. He looked like a halfback and the Bulldogs attack responded.
Don't get me wrong, Sexton isn't the answer to all of their woes, they are still painfully undersized in the engine room and will still struggle against the better defences. But for now, the keyboard coaches can bask in the glory of their correctness, at least for this week.
The Warriors turned a corner with their victory over the Panthers
NOT REAL: Yes it was a very impressive win by New Zealand over Penrith during Magic Round. To concede a try in the opening minutes and still manage to stick with, and eventually topple, the premiers was no mean feat. It came after a long run of outs and another loss could have consigned the club to a permanent spot in the bottom half of the ladder. But was it the win that will turn their season around?
Everyone hopes so, the Warriors promised so much through last season and at the start of 2024. Injuries have hit them, but even before that they were showing worrying signs of not competing for the fill 80 minutes. Mistakes were creeping into their game that everyone thought coach Andrew Webster had weeded out of them last year. Frankly they have been letting down the thousands of fans who are packing into their home games.
They host the Dolphins this weekend and really must back up their win over the Panthers. The stands will once again be packed with their adoring fans and they owe it to them to prove that they are on their way back to the Top 8.
Tigers at the beginning of a long, rough road
REAL: Wests Tigers are reportedly beginning the process of clearing out some deadwood to properly commence a rebuild. It is well-established that players and their managers demand more money to sign with clubs like the Tigers. Players won't go there unless the financial rewards outweigh the potential suffering which comes from being beaten most weeks. It becomes a real problem when these players turn up just to collect their bloated pay-packets, without putting in the supreme effort needed to help turn a struggling club around. The thing is, the players, fans, coaches and management can see clearly which players are earning their pay packets and which players are taking the club for a ride.
There is nothing worse for a struggling club than carrying several players who are being paid more than they are earning. Morale is really damaged when the players on a lot less money start to wonder why they are doing all the heavy lifting for the so called "stars". The only way forward is to find players with less flashy highlight reels, but with greater reputations for hard work. The Tigers need only look to towards their struggling neighbours, the Bulldogs, to see an example of how to go about a value for money rebuild. Sure, the Bulldogs are still a fair way from being a Top 8 team, but over the last year or so they have signed plenty of hard working, no-nonsense, fringe first graders.
You put these players around the genuine superstars that you either buy elsewhere or develop locally. For the Tigers that means Apisai Koroisau, Jahream Bula, Lachlan Galvin and, next year, Jahrome Luai. In order to keep these players at the club you need spare cash for upgrades and you also need to have room for another key purchase or two. The reward for all is improved performances. Those who aren't willing to get dirty during a rebuild, are detrimental to the cause and have to be weeded out.