Sat 22 Aug: CC6: Catalans Dragons v Wakefield Trinity KO 2.30pm (BBC One)

[Wakey Til I Die]

It was better than last week but not by much. Effort was better but execution wasn’t and some of the defending of kicks was laughable. Catalans easing off made the scoreline flattering. We look a poor team.  

[welshmagpie]

29 minutes ago, Wakey Til I Die said:

It was better than last week but not by much. Effort was better but execution wasn’t and some of the defending of kicks was laughable. Catalans easing off made the scoreline flattering. We look a poor team.  

As a Trinity fan can I ask your opinion on Jowitt? Is he on the wing out of necessity or is that just where he’s going now?

Thought he was going to burst on the scene and excel but didn’t impress me today. 

[Wakey Til I Die]

25 minutes ago, welshmagpie said:

As a Trinity fan can I ask your opinion on Jowitt? Is he on the wing out of necessity or is that just where he’s going now?

Thought he was going to burst on the scene and excel but didn’t impress me today. 

He’s been a victim of horrendous coaching neglect. When he broke through he looked like the real deal at fullback but Chester has always seen him as a fill in and as the ‘easy drop’ when we lose, even if he has done nothing wrong. He’s tried to reinvent himself as a halfback, a position he played quite a bit as a junior, and has done well when given the chance. But once again Chester will leave him out for pretty much anyone else if available. Today it was probably either him or Hampshire on the wing due to lack of numbers but next week with Kay and possibly Jones-Bishop back he’ll be back kicking his heels. 
 

It’s a similar story with Batchelor and Crowther, always Chesters scapegoats. We tend to like to go and sign other teams average players than play our own, see Atkins, Navarette, Tangata etc . I guess they need less Development coaching which when thats something you are very limited at it helps mask your failings to many. 

[DavidM]

Watched cricket and caught up on this later as I knew that Catalans would win by 12....

[Scubby]

4 hours ago, daz39 said:

I'll get it in 1st - normal crowd at Huddersfield !!

 

secondly Wakefield are poor, their forwards especially the fat one used to be barnstorming when they were a top 5 club now it' almost as if they are afraid of having the ball, can't remember last time i saw a least effective pack.

Anyway always nice to see them getting stuffed at Huddersfield

I actually thought it was a touch lower than average tbf  

[unapologetic pedant]

11 hours ago, John Rhino said:

I would just like to agree with the above post! The discussion pre match on the BBC is second to non these days. 

The stats quoted for ball in play pre and post lockdown were amazing. Compare that to the union ball in play stats on the cross code forum 

The general commentary and punditry was pretty good throughout the game. But, with the ongoing failure to be across the significance of the tackle count. When a team run a kick play on tackle 4 or 5, the fact that it was tackle 4 or tackle 5 (and not 6) is an important detail, and crucial in conveying the tactics of RL to viewers. Particularly anyone more familiar with RU.

Sometimes they notice, but without highlighting the significance, almost accidentally or as an afterthought. It is amazing how ex-players, ex-coaches and commentators don`t see the tackle count as central to a proper appreciation of what we`re watching.

The shortcoming was even more conspicuous than normal in this game since Catalans were regularly kicking early in the count, both attacking kicks and kicks for territory. It wasn`t happening ad hoc, it was clearly integral to their gameplan.

[The Rocket]

2 hours ago, unapologetic pedant said:

The general commentary and punditry was pretty good throughout the game. But, with the ongoing failure to be across the significance of the tackle count. When a team run a kick play on tackle 4 or 5, the fact that it was tackle 4 or tackle 5 (and not 6) is an important detail, and crucial in conveying the tactics of RL to viewers. Particularly anyone more familiar with RU.

Sometimes they notice, but without highlighting the significance, almost accidentally or as an afterthought. It is amazing how ex-players, ex-coaches and commentators don`t see the tackle count as central to a proper appreciation of what we`re watching.

The shortcoming was even more conspicuous than normal in this game since Catalans were regularly kicking early in the count, both attacking kicks and kicks for territory. It wasn`t happening ad hoc, it was clearly integral to their gameplan.

It is those 1%ers that commentators should be getting right like the players should. People will never see our game as anything but `simple` unless various tactics are pointed out.

[Wiltshire Warrior Dragon]

22 hours ago, JohnM said:

Converted?

Two thoughts on the Wakefield 'goal'.

First, I thought the touch judges were too close together.  I would have thought one would position himself in a direct line with the near upright and the goal kicker.  That way, you don't need to move at all; you just watch the direction and flight of the ball and if it starts to swirl in flight, step forward to the goal line and watch it as it passes directly over your head.  That's what I used to do when I occasionally was a touch judge on the dark side decades ago.

Second, I accept that cost vis a vis frequency of use may be the prohibiting factor, but how about using the existing Hawkeye technology for kicks that pass the goal higher than the upright.  The programme already exists; it is used at Croke Park, Dublin, in GAA matches.

[Wiltshire Warrior Dragon]

17 hours ago, DavidM said:

Watched cricket and caught up on this later as I knew that Catalans would win by 12....

David, my old mate, my long lost friend!  Any chance of a private massage with next week's Lotto numbers...?

[DavidM]

1 minute ago, Wiltshire Warrior Dragon said:

David, my old mate, my long lost friend!  Any chance of a private massage with next week's Lotto numbers...?

Ring this number at £20 a minute for lotto numbers , racing tips and horoscopes ... 

[Bleep1673]

So can anyone answer, from RLHQ why the one game played on the BBC Last weekend, is being repeated on the red-button, but not worthy of a mention on the Days 24-hour rolling news & sports?

[Bleep1673]

Just now, Bleep1673 said:

So can anyone answer, from RLHQ why the one game played on the BBC Last weekend, is being repeated on the red-button, but not worthy of a mention on the Days 24-hour rolling news & sports?

However Two Rugby Union games, not shown on BBC were given prominence?

[unapologetic pedant]

23 hours ago, The Rocket said:

It is those 1%ers that commentators should be getting right like the players should. People will never see our game as anything but `simple` unless various tactics are pointed out.

I agree that commentators should be looking for "1%ers", but the tackle count is not a 1%er. It`s fundamental to the calibration of risk and the tactical contest between the teams.

So much of any sport is context. A try scored in the 80th minute is dramatically different from the self-same try scored in the 5th minute. Likewise a kick-play on 4th tackle is different from the same play on 6th tackle. Mentioning the 4th tackle status of the play is essential to  the commentary. Defensive set-ups are contingent on the tackle count. 

There are now screen graphics indicating the tackle count, yet it`s clear commentators are often not looking at them. They seem to think it`s incidental.

It`s inconceivable that a Gridiron commentator would be unaware whether a play was first, second, third, or fourth down.

The Catalans kickers obviously understand the tactical significance of the tackle count when they`re playing. Yet if they were asked to do some punditry, they would probably be as vague as the current lot. Either this is because they lack the vocabulary to verbally replicate their on-field intelligence, or that when they enter the commentary box they fall in with the "simple game for simple people" fallacy.