The cream is definitely starting to rise to the top on the eve of the NRL finals series.
(pic credit - DailyTelegraph.com.au)
The performance of Greg Inglis on Thursday night was as good as you’ll ever see. His athleticism, balance and raw strength are a showpiece for rugby league. He did some amazing things in the match and nearly single handedly won the match for the Rabbits. Just as we are all saying that Souths have now become more than a one-man-band, and rightly so, along comes a performance of the highest quality that just cements the thought that Souths are the real deal in 2014.
Another of their best since returning, Luke Keary again highlighted his potential with an inspired, controlled performance. He adds a new dimension to the team and brings some composure to their play. His game suits Souths style, playing direct with a great show and go, coupled with the ability to open up space with short passes. Basically, he is what the modern day half has become; a runner first, with the subtlety being the pass rather than the pass first, run second which was more akin to the halves of yesteryear. Good to see he still calls "us" when making reference to Queensland.
I write this fresh on the back of the great game between the Bulldogs and Eels. A game between two desperate teams who fought tooth and nail for 80 minutes. The game should not be overshadowed by the Sandow 40/20 and the calling back correctly ruled by Ben Cummins. In all honesty, this rule change simply has not worked. The ball travels too far a distance to be able to have a quick tap, and at times it has looked farcical. All and sundry go into panic mode creating an image for the game which looks amateurish.
Whilst on the Eels, Coach Brad Arthur has done a great job, taking them from being the at-times laughing stock in 2013, to an entertaining, committed footy side. You can tell through his emotions that he has the respect of the players as he, like the other great coaches, never leaves his players second guessing. What that inevitably means is that the rapport is very good and players understand that any kick up the arse is for their betterment.
The salary cap issues just won’t go away and we would be naive to think they ever will. Some breaches range out of necessity, poor management, oversights and in a very small number of cases, out-and-out cheating. The latest issue bought to the table is, for me, a storm in a teacup. Without knowing the ins and outs of the Darcy Lussick apartment issue, I personally can't see how we can say anything is untoward. The prices are similar and I would say the person whom the unit was bought off wouldn't have been the first person to buy property and sell it at a loss. For all the negativity at times around the NRL they are very proactive in a lot of areas and we should have faith in any breach being dealt with fairly and transparently.
Cheers until next week,
Andrew