Punters,
My dear departed father was always full of sage advice in his advancing years, e.g., “never bet on football, son. it’s a mugs game”.
However, having had a cursory glance at the recent results between the two sides at http://footystats.freeservers.com/Daily/Diary.html and realizing that Sydney and Brisbane have not played anything but very close games over many years; could not resist having a lick at the luxury odds of $4.50 the bookies were offering on the Swans to win by 1-19 points.
Good get.
The old man was also an adherent to the principle that rules are made to be broken.
A solid performance all round from the boys, with SC Roos finally working out the “zone” [whatever that really is!]
A good start from the visitors for a change in an away game, and the Bears were never going to kick their way through that defence for any sort of lead at any stage, and in fact the home side spent all night playing catch up football.
Good to see the forwards start firing on the back of some excellent work out of the backs – five multiple goal kickers -- and Magic at least showing some semblance of form and kicking a few goals to boot.
When he starts taking some hard-fought one-one-on-one marks, things are looking up.
Rhino Keefe was best on ground for mine, with McVeigh not far behind and Captain” never played a bad game” Kirk did well in marshalling the troops.
Good to see SC Roos coaching from the bench again, and the way the dug-out is arranged at the Gabba, on the television footage at least, he appeared to be swinging from the monkey bars for much of the night.
Tickets to the cheap seats are in hand for the time honoured grudge match against the Weagles at the Western Paddock this Saturday night.
There are always scores to settle in this one.
Seen these people before -- there will no doubt be some die hard fools again -- who come a very very very long way across the Nullabor to see their team lose.
They will be personally reminded of the fact.
BRISBANE: 1.2, 5.4, 7.7, 10.11 (71). Goals: Bradshaw 5, Henderson 2, Brown, Notting, Sherman.
SYDNEY: 3.3, 7.4, 10.6, 13.10 (88). Goals: O'Loughlin 2, McVeigh 2, Moore 2, O'Keefe 2, Hall 2, Kirk, Buchanan, Barlow.
At Brisbane Cricket Ground (‘Gabba).
Crowd; 29,061.
The Tigers match almost entirely passed me by.
Have not seen a frame of the action, and a good thing too, by the look of the scoresheet.
By what the fishwraps have to say, the Tigers kicking game was “poor” to “non-existent” [like it would be a good idea to determine in the game plan who was actually doing the kicks in play for a start off!], and with Farah out with a bad back, the forwards were lacking starch, and the backs working on no-go-forward from the forwards, very quickly ran out of attacking ideas, just as they did last week against the Bulldogs.
Looks like SC Sheens has quite a lot of work to do on the training paddock this week, after they let the chance to embed themselves in the top eight early in the season go begging. The “we’ll learn from our losses” side of the coaching ledger will take on extra significance, as the next few games are no gimme’s by any means, and as he’d be acutely aware, seasons can be flat lined by early losing streaks.
You have to pity the poor hardened Western Suburbs fans, though, coaxed out of their comfortable homes to go to Campbelltown Sports ground, which can be a god forsaken place on a wet and miserable Monday night, just to be denied their pom poms, and see their team get a flogging.
The long-sufferers must have left the ground thinking “can do better”.
WESTS TIGERS 8: Try: Ryan. Goals: Hodgson (2).
PENRITH PANTHERS 30: Tries: Blair, Gordon, Jennings, Priddis, Tighe. Goals: Sammut (5).
At Campbelltown Sports Ground.
Crowd: 11,898.
