Quote Sal Paradise="Sal Paradise"You really do watch games through tinted glasses. Hardaker was MOM and Leeds lost because Sinfield wasn't allowed to control the Leeds play - you often post good stuff but both of those points are very wide of the mark. He slipped because Burgess wrong footed him even if he hadn't he would not have got near him and he was out of position for the Williams try. Not sure how that contributes to a MOM performance.
Zac is an excellent player but he has still someway to go before he is the finished article especially if we compare him to his counterparts in the NRL'"
For a start Sal, I have not in any single post either stated, or alluded to the fact that we lost because Sinfield wasn't allowed to control the Leeds play. So when talking about tinted glasses, that needs to be addressed by you.
On Hardaker, he did not slip because Burgess wrong footed him, Burgess changed the direction of his run after Hardaker slipped, a slip that most players had done all weekend, and the slip was at least 20 yards ahead of Burgess. He was not our of position for the Williams try, it was nearly a miraculous save, that no other fullback in our comp would have made. Well it actually was a save, if not for incorrect officiating.
However, even presuming you were correct on those two points, which you are not, how does that make it right to ignore all the other brilliant things he did in the match?
For a start people say Bowen had a great game. Well if you look at stats, Bowen made 2 more metres than Hardaker throughout the match. That was despite playing 10 minutes more and part of a team that were continually going forward, unlike ours, and where the kicks were continually raining down his throat. Its also worth noting that Hardaker was one of only three players in the Leeds team to achieve over 100 metres in the game, he got 209, and just to back up the point of go forward, there were seven Wigan player who achieved this. Of the other two Leeds players to get this, six of the Wigan players made less carries than them.
On Tackle busts, Hardaker made more than double anyone else on the pitch, 8 more than Bowen. He made more clean breaks than anybody on the pitch. He made more offloads than Bowen.
Had there been a yawning gap in the Wigan defence and he had a winger racing up to it, I am 100% sure he too would have put the winger away for a try.
Did you not see the clearing from our in goal area on numerous occasions despite the chasing defence?
There is nothing biased about it at all. The sky commentary team were repeating the very same things. Had Leeds won that game, Hardaker would have easily been nominated MOM.
'"
