Bash and also barge to prevail in the humid soup of Townsville
The Cows are missing a few and erratic, and don't defend as if they're Spartans in a tunnel. The Raiders have a dominant forward pack and wacky backs. This could be 48-all.
The Cows? In Cow Town? In 100 percent humidity at the family-friendly telecast time of 5:30pm?
Dunno. Flat out Duh. Know.
For who can know? If you could play the game entirely in the forwards, make it all about bashing, with occasional fits of barging, our Canberra Raiders would be favoured. The longer Joe Tapine and Josh Papali’i are on the field, the more chance of some big time bashing and barging, and the domination of our enemies.
Emre Guler’s been given the gig over Trey Mooney, and all Emre knows is bashing and also barging. Tom Smithies’ work is equal parts bash with barge.
And with Hudson Young overdue for something, anything, creative on the edge, I favour our forward pack over theirs which is missing Jeremiah Nanai, Coen Hess, Jake Granville and Jason Taumalolo.
But the backs? With Seb Kris on the wing, Adam Cook starting in the six, and Jordan Rapana’s head having a rest?
Dunno.
Cook in the six? Very much in the dunno basket. Does he run the ball? Is not Jamal Fogarty the better game-manager-style number seven? Shouldn’t the ruck-frightening man in the six be the hot-stepper and runner like Jahrome Luai and, oh, Ethan Strange, who’s playing in the centres this week as he did last week?
Dunno.
But I did enjoy this analysis by a fellah called “Dan” who runs the Sportress, who offered:
“When Ricky Stuart goes into the foxhole he reaches for his binkies. His safety blankets. Known quantities. Grinders. People that won’t make errors. People he trusts, whether they deserve it or not. He reaches for workmanlike halves and pushes anyone that offers a point of difference wider and wider from the ball. He doesn’t care if someone will give him 80 per cent of another’s ceiling. He just wants to know he’ll get the 80 per cent.”
Dan compares Cook to Matt Frawley and Sam Williams, men who’ll “do what Stuart wants, play the way he wants.”
“This team is the Sticky persona writ large,” adds Dan. “His attitude. His insecurities. His ontology of rugby league. What is true or real to Ricky Stuart is found in the pages of this team sheet. When in doubt Stuart chooses certainty. When risk is present Stuart chooses mitigation. Forget embracing uncertainty. Ricky would rather give in to the devil than ask whether god exists.”
Quality gibber.
That said, the Cowboys don’t have Chad Townsend, so … I dunno. I dunno holds up. I dunno counts as crack analysis.
Raiders by two.
Up The Milk.