General Ivan Cleary you cost us this game.

[Northern_Union]

Open letter to Ivan Cleary.

Ivan Cleary, for weeks you have persisted with your selection of Grant Rovelli. Rovelli in his defence has improved his general play to about NRL standards. However, you continue to select Rovelli as a general play kicker, to be honest Grants kicking in general play has been appalling and the team, our Warriors, have been winning despite Rovelli's general play kicking.

You have relagated Michael Witt to the Vulcans, not only was Witt in better form than Rovelli generally but is a far better general play kicker also. Witt offers organization in attack and creative play when the forwards are going forward. Michael Witt also has a career kicking percentage of 90%, easily the best in the NRL.

You have persisted with Grant Rovelli at 7 and left Lance Hohaia to carry out the kicking duties. Hoahaia has a career kicking percentage of around 65%, some 25% lower than Witts.

Tonight Ivan you left Witt out of the squade again and Hohaia was given the kicking duties again. Lance missed a relatively simple kick at goal and Souths won by 2 points.

You Ivan Cleary, with your bizarre selections, have cost the match tonight. You need to have a look at yourself tonight and ask yourself if your selecting the best available side for the Vodafone Warriors or are you selecting for political and face saving reasons?

 

[insulinboi_old]

Witt will be in next week and Rovelli out. there is absolutely NO humanly possible reason for Rovelli to be in at the expense of Witt who is a better player, and goal kicker. Seriously.... soooo pissed off right now. that was our chance for the 8 and it has been severly hampered. GRRRRRR

 

[Skinny_Ravs82]

*whistles*

BRING BACK WITTY!!

 

[attila_the_gorilla]

Ok I`m officially on the `cut Rovelli` bandwagon. Witt can`t be any worse, at least in attack.

 

[EnterFien_old]

Tonight it shows the difference between having a halfback and not having a halfback.
Rovelli has a good week then a number of quite weeks. Take a look at Sandow tonight, he had a quite game but still did enough to get him team home.
We could do alot worse then bring in Isaac John?

 

[Captain Mannering_old]

I agree

It is a simple equation, Even if Witt does nothing in attqack he does more than Rovelli cause he can kick goals. That would have probably got us home. Sorry Grant I am sure you are a champion player but its not working with the warriors we ned to step it up and you aint got it. :yawn:

 

[IanS_old]

Ervarn dropped the ball with the line open. He cost us the game too.

 

[attila_the_gorilla]

Ervarn dropped the ball with the line open. He cost us the game too.

Correct. Lazy attention to detail. Fai did the same at the start of the game.

 

[Northern_Union]

Your missing the point gents. Ivan Cleary is not selecting the best team possible. Thats why we lost the game tonight.

 

[insulinboi_old]

How the hell can you beat the storm, the benchmark, then lose to the rabbitohs for gods sake? AND after already having a humiliating loss to them once this year? I just don't get it.

 

[attila_the_gorilla]

Tonight it shows the difference between having a halfback and not having a halfback.
Rovelli has a good week then a number of quite weeks. Take a look at Sandow tonight, he had a quite game but still did enough to get him team home.

What Sandow does is he`s nice a crisp, very accurate passer and always thinks ahead. Doesn`t stall the attack, keeps it flowing. When he sees a high-percentage opportunity, he goes for it. It`s all in the mind.

However, it`s also true that not many of our players are helping our halves by running holes or asking for the ball. All we are doing is just hit-ups, wrestling and a bit of razzle-dazzle out wide. But zero hole running.

 

[KeepingTheFaith_old]

I believe the point NU is making is this - If Rovelli isn't there and we have even a barely adequate half pairing we're well ahead by the time Evarn drops the ball. We could've had the Rabbits done and dusted by halftime.

Our kicking game was beyond atrocious and every time the defence got up quick we'd panic and put in kicks. How many useless kicks did we put up when we weren't even on the last tackle?

 

[playdaball_old]

Tonight it shows the difference between having a halfback and not having a halfback.
Rovelli has a good week then a number of quite weeks. Take a look at Sandow tonight, he had a quite game but still did enough to get him team home.

AGREE 110%

 

[IanS_old]

I agree the kicking game was crap, but individuals cost us at a time when we could have been well in front.

 

[Northern_Union]

And if we'd had a kicking game and those two points that Lance missed tonight Ian we'd be talking about scrapping a win not our coaches bizarre selections.

 

[Iafeta_old]

The halfback was abysmal, but come on guys, there was a lot more to it than just that.

1) Ropati misses a try because of a pressure pass from Tate
2) Lowe strolls through when Tate defensively starts believing in the Ropati theory (IE tackle no one and open up a gap)
3) Kidwell scores when the fullback on the try line for some reason is pushing up with the defensive line
4) That's off the back of the winger showing absolutely no commitment to clean up a simple 40/20
5) I forgot how often Sonny dropped the ball, cold
6) Evarn had the line open and somehow, and I'm still stumped how, drops it cold
7) Logan Swann again gets white line fever and performs a move only bettered by his illustrious no pass v Parramatta, passes again it's a 2-1 and a highly probable score.
8) We get six again and Mannering kicks it (admittedly I doubt he heard the call).

Whilst Rovelli's kicking was ordinary, Fien's was certainly nothing to write home about it either. We missed our opportunity to fix it with Head, and we're putting a lot of eggs into a young basket expecting Foran to fix it if we comes. Is Witt the answer? He did have two good games (albeit though one was when he started to fire some shots well after doing nothing in a smashing up at Gold Coast), and from all reports he's not cashing in for the Vulcans. The answer is there is no one within the club, not Fien, not Witt, not Rovelli. All COULD play six with a good organising half inside them (EG Head), but none can organise their way out of a brothel (Fien, Witt included).

Ultimately, I have no idea how we stayed within 2 points at the end giving absolutely everything. It was just a dreadful performance where they turned up expecting to roll their opponents. If Henderson wasn't out there tonight I think we'd have got a good old fashioned belting. Too much dropped ball, not helped by poor halves but neither are mutually exclusive of one being the reason we lost. It was practically everything tonight.

 

[Kid-Dynamite_old]

We lose...it's the coaches fault! Gee it's a tough life for a coach!

Ivan Cleary cost us the game did he?

Well then who was responsible for the four in a row we won before that! All of that gets forgotten does it!

What coach would of made changes to a team that had just beaten one of the competitons front runners!

It's easy to say now, that Ivan Cleary made selection blunders, and maybe he did, but what did you expect him to do! His team had just one four in a row!

Is it his fault that players were making un forced errors? Is it his fault Hohaia missed that conversion?

Cleary is not to blame for this performance!

 

[Skinny_Ravs82]

Everyone's just very hot under the collar righ tnow, I know I am after coming off a brilliant high just before the Warriors game, so let's take it easy a bit. Time out everyone!!

 

[Viking_old]

The halfback was abysmal, but come on guys, there was a lot more to it than just that.

1) Ropati misses a try because of a pressure pass from Tate
2) Lowe strolls through when Tate defensively starts believing in the Ropati theory (IE tackle no one and open up a gap)
3) Kidwell scores when the fullback on the try line for some reason is pushing up with the defensive line
4) That's off the back of the winger showing absolutely no commitment to clean up a simple 40/20
5) I forgot how often Sonny dropped the ball, cold
6) Evarn had the line open and somehow, and I'm still stumped how, drops it cold
7) Logan Swann again gets white line fever and performs a move only bettered by his illustrious no pass v Parramatta, passes again it's a 2-1 and a highly probable score.
8) We get six again and Mannering kicks it (admittedly I doubt he heard the call).

Whilst Rovelli's kicking was ordinary, Fien's was certainly nothing to write home about it either. We missed our opportunity to fix it with Head, and we're putting a lot of eggs into a young basket expecting Foran to fix it if we comes. Is Witt the answer? He did have two good games (albeit though one was when he started to fire some shots well after doing nothing in a smashing up at Gold Coast), and from all reports he's not cashing in for the Vulcans. The answer is there is no one within the club, not Fien, not Witt, not Rovelli. All COULD play six with a good organising half inside them (EG Head), but none can organise their way out of a brothel (Fien, Witt included).

Ultimately, I have no idea how we stayed within 2 points at the end giving absolutely everything. It was just a dreadful performance where they turned up expecting to roll their opponents. If Henderson wasn't out there tonight I think we'd have got a good old fashioned belting. Too much dropped ball, not helped by poor halves but neither are mutually exclusive of one being the reason we lost. It was practically everything tonight.

You're a bit hard on Manu there, it was a bloody good kick that probably no winger back in the pocket would have got by a halfback I'd trade half our team for.

 

[Mone_old]

Lol 4 in a row, yeah we beat the Storm (minus Slater) but we only beat the dogs the cowboys and wests before that hardly a 4 in a row to brag about.
If Witt was there there is a 95% chance we win.
Agree fully NU.