‘Predictable rubbish’: Why some clubs are flying, others are dying

Boxing people say styles make fights. It’s the same in rugby league.

I watch many teams and they all play similar or identical styles, patterns, sets, shapes, whatever you want to call them.

At the start of the set, they take three plays to work to a point of the field before trying one or two set plays on the opposition defence.

The trouble is teams defend these plays at training all week, so it’s not particularly new and they easily snuff it out.

Sometimes, the plays are so slow the defenders are not put under stress. The ball just transfers sideways.

It’s predictable rubbish.

It has become clear to me this season that too many coaches are trying to clone the Storm team of the late 2000s.

Melbourne Storm have evolved with the times and the new rules – that’s why they’re favourites for back-to-back titles.Credit:NRL Photos

Because of the wrestling techniques dominating the game at the time, you had to play a structured style. You had to come up with plays to create space; you had to play backward so you could go forward.

Melbourne were the kings of it. They played a super-structured game, with sweeping second-man block plays.

But no other club had Cameron Smith, Billy Slater and Cooper Cronk pulling the strings.

In a season when teams have smashed all the records, the game has evolved again. With set restarts, with less wrestle, with a faster ruck and huge momentum shifts, the teams using the ball are the ones dominating.

Like all well-coached teams, the Storm have evolved, too. They’re almost unrecognisable in comparison to their teams of the past. This season, they’ve scored a staggering 743 points.

Sides like Souths, Penrith and Manly have moved with them.

The Rabbitohs sometimes use set plays but they’re done at breakneck speed. With Cody Walker and Latrell Mitchell, it’s near impossible to stop.

I look at the better teams this season and it’s like they’re playing ’90s football: lots of ball movement, lots of offloads, taking risks.

Superstars in key positions are playing without restriction or fear of error. The ruck is the game and the best players, in the best teams, know how to exploit it.

Less is more again. Unpredictable, unstructured, ad-lib footy is king: the ability to play in but also out of structure.

I’m reluctant to use the term because I hate it, but players are playing “eyes-up” footy.

Then again, shouldn’t your eyes always be up?

Penrith v Souths

Penrith halfback Nathan Cleary made his return last Friday night against the Dragons. I thought he was solid after two months off because of a shoulder injury.

He defended strongly, organised the team, his ball-playing and kicking were excellent. He also made halves partner Jarome Luai look like a different player.

Cleary was lucky to escape without being sanctioned for a shoulder charge. He braced but his action knocked the ball out of the hands of Dragons fullback Jack Bird.

There was some force there. By the letter of the law, it looked like a shoulder charge.

I also think he’s got a lot of work to do to get the Panthers to the grand final. If I had to rank the teams, I’d put the Storm first, closely followed by Souths, then Manly and Penrith on an even footing.

Penrith looked a different team with Cleary in it, but they scored a six out of 10 against the Dragons.

They’ll get better, starting with South Sydney in a blockbuster on Friday night.

What a matchup: Cleary and Luai against Walker and Adam Reynolds.

Dog v Del

There’s a lot of talk about sledging after what happened with Sharks centre Will Chambers.

Some of the funniest sledges I remember from my playing days came from Knights centre Adam MacDougall and the Broncos’ Wendell Sailor.

Their exchanges were so funny every player would be in stitches, especially in breaks of play at the scrum. “Duges” was always a little too smart for Wendell. We would giggle all game.

The Australian team went to England for the 2000 Rugby League World Cup and those two formed this weird allegiance to pick on Mat Rogers. They put all their energy into him, poor bloke.

Wendell was relentless: “I’m prepared to say Mad Dog is the best winger in the world. He’s better than me. What are you even doing here, Mat Rogers?”

JOEY’S TIP: Souths by 6.
FIRST TRY-SCORER: Josh Mansour.
MAN OF THE MATCH: Cody Walker.

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