Well its about the time of year when the midseason NRL malaise sets in. It really is a long season - maybe there are too many games. Or maybe its just the fact that its always about this time of year when the Warriors seem locked in a kind of mid table purgatory - trying to squeek a win here or there to maintain the mathematical possibility of a playoff spot. One win in their last eight games is not good enough - and over reliance on the prospect of a miracle late season winning streak does not necessarily seem the best strategy. With that said - as I am noted in the past - maybe the first half of the season doesn't matter and its all just warm up for the run in to the playoffs. I just don't know and frankly I bore myself complaining about this team as its just the same indifferent mideseason Warriors form that we are all so accustomed to. Maybe we have to give it up for this year and focus on next year (when by the way this blog is going to go stratospheric). But what this team needs right now - is some wins.
So where are we - it could be a time warp reading some of the material out there on the Warriors weaknesses. Big men running at Stacey Jones to exploit defensive weakness - is this 2003? The bench is the place for Jones these days and this is hopefully what Cleary has learnt to date.
Last couple of games have been thrashings. Somehow after appearing to have great depth in the halves - the Warriors have spiralled back to complete reliance on Jones. The release of Fien perplexes me. Clearys steady hand may be starting to waiver.
Anyway Warriors (11th) play Tigers (10th) at home on Sunday. A win is desperately needed - as is some solution to the conundrum in the halves. Cleary is rejigging things a bit with the call up of two rookies - half/hooker Aaron Heremaia and under-20s star fullback Kevin Locke. Maybe its all just preperation for the future. Lets hope it works.
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