Cronulla Sharks v South Sydney Rabbitohs - March 29, 2010. Toyota Park
1st minute - It starts raining at kick off which means at least one of these forwards will cough up early ball on a hit up. Who's it gonna be?
2nd minute - This game already feels like a standard below what we have seen this weekend.
5th minute - As we have become accustomed to, Cronulla look predictable and pedestrian in attack. They squander their first try scoring opportunity.
6th minute - Albert Kelly looks excited to be at fullback. A good kick return by him leads to a Sharks line break. Souths are on the back foot early.
7th minute - Luke Covell scores from a nice little scrum play. Good lead up work from a skilful Nathan Stapleton who appears in the 3 jersey tonight. Nathan Merritt errs in defense. No need to come of his wing. Sharks 4-0.
10th minute - Souths in trouble here. John Morris is making half breaks and the bunnies are pinned in their own quarter. A penalty relieves the pressure and starts a momentum swing.
12th minute - Souths run it on the last through Isaac Luke and score through Beau Champion. Defense caught out and they compound that error by not scramble to cover an inside step by Champion. Souths 6-4.
15th minute - Great run and off-load by Isaac Luke. He looks ready tonight.
16th minute - Fetuli Talanoa delivers the worst kick return in Rugby League history. The Sharks look like they are already out of ideas. The momentum truly with Souths now.
18th minute - If it happens twice then it must be a game plan. Souths run it on the last through Luke and Champion scores. Isaac converts magnificently from the sideline. Souths up 12-4.
Thought - Souths might do well with Sutton or Luke as captain. Roy Asotasi seems a quiet type who has suffered through injury over the past two years and may not be the voice the bunnies need out in the field. Souths need direction.
22nd minute - They get it through Ben Lowe who draws the defense perfectly to put Colin Best over. Souths 18-4.
25th minute - As predicted, the Sharks look to be lacking cohesion and confidence. Coach Ricky Stuart might need to find a way to reduce the pressure on his team. They look anxious and give away another penalty.
28th minute - Chip and chase from Sandow after poor service from dummy half. It looked slightly telegraphed and was easily regathered by the defense.
31st minute - Sharks give away another penalty after a 'run around' play does not come off. They look frustrated.
32nd minute - Now that the Isaac Luke "run it on the last” plan has become a dead horse, Souths' attack looks to have slowed down significantly. Sandow and Sutton err on consecutive sets. This game is turning into a lacklustre encounter.
37th minute - Luke makes a fantastic break through the Sharks defense, with no support. He forces a pass on the 2nd tackle. Sharks ball. Beau Champion pops Paul Gallen with a nice hit.
Thought - Nobody has worked harder than Paul Gallen to try to resurrect the Sharks over the past year or so. He looks tired and lonely.
39th minute - Scott Geddes hits Trent Barrett with a shoulder that looks like it has collapsed the Cronulla five-eighths entire chest cavity. We hope Baz is OK. He is. Isaac Luke is laughing at him.
40th minute - Sharks give away a penalty. They just dont seem to have the cattle to produce a better performance. Luke takes the two and misses. Souths 18-4.
Halftime.
42nd minute - The Sharks begin the second half with an error but Souths are the ones with problems as Talanoa looks to have hyper-extended his knee and Dave Tyrrell appears to have a busted jaw. Hopes and dreams being dashed all over the park.
44th minute - Just as I write down a thought that Sam Burgess is not seeing enough ball, Isaac Luke finds him after drawing the defense across field. Burgess scores his first NRL try. The Sharks look very tired only 4 minutes into the second half. Souths up 24-4.
I think I see some Sharks fans leaving the ground as the players’ desire seems to be waning (which is something you could never say about a team coached by R. Stuart - until now).
46th minute - The Sharks get a favourable bounce and score through the urgency of Blake Ferguson. Souths 24-8.
49th minute - The Bunnies forwards are now eating up the metres but in response, veteran Luke Covell draws a penalty for his squad from the worst attempted play the ball in Rugby League history.
51st minute - Cronulla error. TV stats say that is their 8th. Feels more like 20. Both forward packs seem to be firing up a little. Great - but the referees then ruin a possible spectacle by awarding another rubbish penalty, just as things are heating up.
53rd minute - Albert Kelly butchers a wrap play where he was supposed to run off Paul Gallen. Sometimes luck is not with you, but sometimes you just play bad. The Sharks are dealing with the latter tonight.
55th minute - Kelly nearly causes a 12 point swing on his own as he is unable to catch a bomb, but Souths fail to capitalise.
Thought - Kelly does not look like a fullback. Even though it’s his first time in the position in 1st grade, you'd think the coach would have sufficient reason to put him there. So far he has missed an assignment as hole runner, and did not get anywhere near a spiral bomb. Poor Albert is completely out of position and out of his depth.
55th minute - Kelly's opposite number, Rhys Wesser, shows him how it's done at the other end by defusing a mid-field bomb, with aplomb. His run-up was long and he didn't get it wrong. Let’s give him a gong for towering above the throng.
61st minute - Isaac Luke scores a beauty. He steps before the ball hits his chest to completely wrong-foot Gallen and score under the sticks after the Cronulla side fail to scramble. For Gallen's sake, I hope NSW Coach Craig Bellamy was not watching. Luke has been the standout in this game. Souths 30-8.
65th minute - Albert Kelly is bombed again. This time he is hit without the ball and must be wondering, "Why is coach playing me at fullback?" A tough job at the back for inexperienced young footballers.
68th minute - Standard of this game deteriorating.
69th minute - Talanoa plays through the pain of a hyper-extended knee and scores in the corner. He would be a big loss for Souths, a good defender who is excellent under the high ball. Video referee says no try.
Thought - I'm glad I decided to mute the commentary tonight. Pretty sure I'm not missing anything from the fluency of Smith and Daley.
70th minute - The Sharks faithful are still in their seats. Well done.
73rd minute - Whilst John Sutton appears to have switched off and is planning his trip home; Adam Cuthbertson makes his first appearance of the evening. Unbelievable. No wonder there is a lack of morale at this club.
75th minute - Somebody please stop the madness. John Morris throws a blatant forward pass. He must also be planning his lift home.
76th minute - Sutton advises that he can give Morris a lift back to Leichardt in a car-pool with Chris Sandow. He then throws a 'no-look' forward pass. It's getting ridiculous now.
78th minute - This means that there is only 2 minutes to go. Souths still up 30-8.
79th minute - I should not have bothered noting the 79th minute.
Full time. Ricky Stuarts post match press conference might be exciting but I need a drink and a lie down.
See you next week when we watch the Bunnies run around again. This time against the Bulldogs.
No comments:
Post a Comment