"Heads In!" Round 11
Unpacking the scrum each week in the NRL
The media is talking up a club vs player feud this week, while there’s an on-field match up we should be talking about. Elsewhere, injuries look to bring the competition leaders back to the pack, while a left-field selection move has paid immediate dividends.
Whether you’re searching for an edge in the workplace tipping comp, or just desperate to talk some footy, you’ve found the place. Join me as we unpack the scrum that is the NRL each week.
Centre-Field Scrum
What’s centre-frame in the Rugby League lens this week?
Back Row Battle
The rugby league mediascape has been hyping up tonight’s clash between Parramatta and Wests on the back of Ryan Matterson’s tumultuous departure from the Tigers last season.
While 11-minutes of overtime at work mightn’t be the news of the week for you (me either), the prospect of Matterson lining up against rival edge forward Luciano Leilua on Thursday night should give us plenty to discuss.
Since his club debut for the Eels this year, Matterson has been one of the more consistent second rowers in the competition, forming a likely combination with Mitchell Moses down Parramatta’s right edge already this season.
Matterson is an out-and-out back-rower of years gone by; he staunchly plays the 80-minute role of defensive bodyguard for his halfback, averaging a tic under 40 tackles a game to be a key part of the best defensive outfit in the competition so far in 2020.
With the ball, Matterson runs his lines with a great sense of timing, likely a product of time spent in the halves throughout his junior playing career.
Whether he’s running overs to isolate smaller defenders or hitting a short ball off Moses’ hip, Matterson has proven himself to be a handy offensive weapon for the Eels this season, particularly with his offloading abilities:
Matterson ranks first among back-rowers for offloads this season with 24 already, and we’ll be looking out for this shape tonight against the unfamiliar defensive pairing of Billy Walters and Moses Mbye on the Tigers’ right edge.
Matterson’s opposite number will have to work hard in defence to help Walters in particular, and if his 2020 form is anything to go by, then the Wests Tigers’ Luciano Leilua is more than up to the challenge.
Luciano joined his brother BJ at the club in the offseason, and in just 10 games has transformed himself from an interchange utility forward into a starting first-grade back-rower who has lost none of the impact of his previous stints off the bench.
Since his debut in 2016, Leilua had played the full 80-minutes in just five NRL games, as his playing weight was scrutinised by fans and good judges alike who saw potential being hamstrung by a lack of fitness and mobility.
Fast forward to 2020, and under new coach Michael Maguire, Leilua is noticeably fitter and reaping the rewards.
Now comfortably cemented on the Tigers’ left edge as an 80-minute forward, Leilua’s dynamic running game has been the highlight of his season so far, ranking second for back-rowers in tackle breaks (27) and equal first for tries (4).
And when he’s not running it straight and bumping off would-be tacklers, Leilua can pour into a hole between defenders like the best of them:
He starts wide here to run unders at Kurt Mann, but when Enari Tuala shoots out of the defensive line, Leilua shows good awareness and agility to adjust on his run and get in behind Tuala for an easy try.
Considering the feisty playing style of his brother BJ, it may surprise some to note that Luciano is playing an extremely disciplined brand of football too - he defends with a 93% tackle efficiency, has made just five errors and conceded only one penalty so far this season - all while playing 80-minutes most weeks.
Tonight’s match up between the two back-rowers will be one to watch out for - and not because of whatever happened at an extended training session last year between Matterson and his old club.
Matterson will be eagerly awaiting the return of his halfback Moses, while Leilua is flying high after a two-try performance against the Broncos last week and has made Matterson’s old position his own.
Game on.
Right Scrum-Line
Who is feeling the pressure this week?
Testing the Depth
It might seem a little strange to suggest the outright competition leaders are under pressure this week, but stay with me here...
The Penrith Panthers have long-since shed their tag as premiership dark horses, after a string of five straight wins conducted by the convincing form of Nathan Cleary has catapulted them to the top of the Telstra Premiership ladder.
It’s no secret that we have been big fans of Apisai Koroisau at RugbyLeagueWriters this season, as the crafty hooker shapes to be not only Buy of the Season, but the missing piece to Penrith’s premiership puzzle that more than a few have tried to solve in recent years.
Whether he’s manipulating markers to bring his forwards onto the ball, or embarrassing short side defenders with his deception from dummy half, Koroisau has been crucial to the Panthers’ blistering attack this season.
Cleary’s recent dominance as the competition’s premier playmaker has been a product not only of his own abilities, but of Koroisau’s work from hooker; he is constantly getting Penrith into good field position and providing quality dummy-half service to his halfback.
Not to mention Koroisau is averaging 51 tackles per game at an almost 92% tackle efficiency, getting through plenty of work without the ball in his 80-minute stints to contribute to Penrith’s fourth-best defence in the competition.
His hooking replacements in Mitch Kenny and Tyrone May - who might spend some time at dummy-half this week - have a combined 106 minutes of football between them this season, and will be hard pressed to produce the same quality and quantity of work as their injured star.
Yet Penrith must also navigate the absence of fullback Dylan Edwards, who has been in scintillating form since his return from a syndesmosis injury in Round 6:
Still just 50 games into his NRL career, Edwards is yet to fully impose himself in first grade, but his return to fullback six weeks ago saw Penrith go on an unbeaten run of five games in a sign that his development is well and truely underway.
He is a great support player, very safe under the high ball and a handy ball player in Penrith’s backline shifts - this tip on to Charlie Staines in the corner is an example of the polish Edwards has added to the Panthers’ attack in the last few weeks:
His replacement Caleb Aekins is a fair backup, having performed reasonably well in his nine-game NRL career so far, albeit without some of the touches Edwards can produce.
The Panthers ran the same shape way back in their Round 3 thriller against Newcastle, with Aekins chiming in to create the extra numbers again down Penrith’s right edge. But where Edwards found the pass, Aekins tucked the ball under and took the tackle:
No knock on young Aekins here - sometimes its better to take the safe option.
But it’s these subtle touches that Penrith will miss from Edwards in the coming weeks, especially without the creativity of Koroisau from dummy-half setting things up in attack.
Penrith have already proven themselves as having one of the deepest NRL squads in the competition, with the likes of Staines, Brent Naden and Matt Burton performing admirably in the absence of regular first graders Cleary, Dean Whare and Brian To’o at times.
How Penrith cope over the next few weeks - now they sit atop of the ladder with a target on their heads - will go a long way to proving their premiership credentials too.
Left Scrum-Line
My left-field thought on the NRL this week
Hunt to Hooker
When a team is under the pump, there will always be left-field suggestions lobbed from everywhere as fans and experts alike throw in their two-cents - often that’s about all the ideas are worth.
But with the St George Illawarra Dragons closing in on a top-eight berth following a run of four wins from six games - as well as two respectable performances against heavyweights Sydney Roosters and Canberra Raiders - the I-told-you-so’s are growing louder from those who called for maligned playmaker Ben Hunt to be moved to the hooker position.
It’s not often that moving your best player from his favoured position pays dividends - let alone immediate ones. Think Cameron Murray - his cameo on Souths’ left edge this year was short lived, as it became quickly apparent that the Rabbitohs needed him in the middle third of the field.
So when Mary McGregor moved Cameron McInnes to lock and Hunt from halfback to the bench to hooker, you would have been excused for holding your breath and expecting the worst.
Yet as the ever-classy McInnes embraced his new running role with aplomb, we have watched the Red-V turn a disaster start to the season into a comeback story as Hunt in particular has flourished in his new hooking role.
Haunted by defining moments throughout his career - yes, think that horror dropped ball - Hunt’s transition to the hooker position has alleviated the natural pressure and scrutiny that comes with being an NRL halfback.
He isn’t the one pulling the strings at the end of a slick backline move, nor is he kicking match-winning field goals or throwing miracle balls to his outside backs.
No, now Hunt is getting through 50+ tackles a week in repeat effort scenarios like this, throwing himself into the dirty work and gaining confidence through his efforts off the ball.
It’s a throwback to junior footy; when things aren’t going your way, run hard and tackle hard and the rest will sort itself out.
The problem is, NRL halfbacks don’t build their game around running and tackling hard.
So with the nine now on his back and his confidence growing, we’ve started to see some more of the ball playing skills that established Hunt as a club, state and international level playmaker:
Hunt spots Brenden Elliott here defending at A-defender and knows he is likely to peel out the back and assume his position at fullback once the ball leaves the ruck, rather than push up in the defensive line.
Knowing where the space will be, Hunt looks to play out the back to Corey Norman. His deception causes Joel Thompson to shift ever so slightly to the left, leaving him flat footed against a charging Josh Kerr close to the line.
Elliott and Thompson both make arms tackles on Kerr, who crashes over thanks largely to Hunt’s subtle work from hooker.
With Harry Grant and Reed Mahoney sparking Origin discussions in recent weeks, its worth considering that Hunt is the incumbent Queensland hooker and had been selected there despite not playing in that position at club-level.
If his form continues at hooker for the Dragons, he is sure to be in the conversation for QLD come November.
Until then, it’s just nice to see Hunt playing some good footy again.
Round 10, begin!
My eyes will be firmly fixed on South Sydney this weekend, where rookies Bayley Sironen and Jack Johns will look to replace the work of Ethan Lowe on the Rabbitohs’ left edge. Both players have household names and big wraps on their lower-grade form, and will need to live up to the hype if Souths want to stay in the premiership race.
Elsewhere, the NRL heavyweights go toe-to-toe with the cellar-dwellers, with the Broncos, Warriors and Titans all facing a tough task this weekend against top-four sides.
You’d be a brave punter to bet against the competition leaders, but the Gold Coast Titans must surely sniff an upset with some key players missing from Penrith’s lineup…
Goodluck to your teams, your tips and your punts!
Glory Glory.