Tony Smith is a discrace!

Quote: Phuzzy "How can you agree with that SEB when he uses such ridiculous assertions asshould have been included in the GB setup for years, only that he wasn't and that Lee Briers has been a talented player - And i'm sorry that some of us may not want to hear it, and he may not have [iconsistently[/i delivered his potential, but it's daft to ty and pretend that Briers doesn't have [iability[/i because like him or not when he has delivered what he's capable of he's pulled off some stuff that only a good half can (it's a completely separate debate whether he should have done more given his natural talents or not) - I'm sorry but the lad can play when he gives it his all, there's no denying that in the same way there's no denying Bobby Goulding could play (again a whole separate debate around whether he should have done more).

Do I think Briers has been a fantastic player? No I don't but a lot of that is due to the fact he was born with enough natural talent to actually be one, and for whatever reason hasn't consistently delivered on it - he's had his moments though, in the CC semi final his kicking game for example was on a different class to ours, and i've been watching RL long enough to give credit where it's due no matter who somebody plays for or what I may or may not think of their character. For example, I can not like Long for his persona, but I've stood there and applauded the guy for some of his Rugby ability even when it's been on display so effectively against us (and no i'm not saying Long & Briers are comparable in the level they've achieved but the principle remains the same)

I personally read it as the point he was trying to get across is that sometimes for whatever reason a player won't get selected, even if at a given moment in time. Sam wasn't selected for the France game in my opinion purely for 'team fit' and in no way a reflection of his playing abilities (and i'm not defending TS there either, but having done a great deal of thinking about it i'm just mature enough not to imagine it was anything to do with some dislike of Sam). It's not impossible that Sam might never be an England regular regardless of how good he is (and I rate him massively), but simply because he might not 'fit' what the incumbent coach feels is a balanced side.

For me the whole Myler v Tomkins debate needs a line drawing under it and we all need to move on. I personally think the future for England is getting the most out of Sam, Myler, Kyle and quite probably Stefan Ratchford to, and finding a system that accommodates their differing and complimentary talents.

I'll give you an example, Darren Lockyer is without a doubt a better 5/8 than Brett Finch (nobody in their right mind could argue that) and has been better and done more than Benji Marshall, and Jonathan Thurston is a more naturally talented halfback than Cooper Cronk or Nathan Fien. However for the Storm the pairing of Finch + Cronk has been excellent, and the pairing of Marshall and Fien far outplayed Lockyer + Thurston in the game on Saturday.

Again please don't think i'm trying to make a case that the McGuire + Myler pairing was good against France, because quite clearly it didn't perform great (not imo due to Myler in this case, more due to McGuire who in turn I personally feel was affected by the selection of Sinfield and whatever instructions were given out to the 3) And I also know Sam far outperformed Myler in the Wales game (but I personally am not viewing that as a fair reflection of Mylers abilities due to lack of game time - yes I know that then opens up the whole should he have been selected or not in the first place debate).

Lets all put the sniping behind us, support the team that's been selected (you can continue to bag the coach later on ), and try and get on with it. The tournament was always going to be a bust without a settled squad that's played together anyway.

For a perfect example of how the experimenting and moving players around/selecting different ones to 'do a job' affects a team, watch the Aus v NZ game again and think about Trent Waterhouse at 2nd row (he's a lock) Anthony Watmough at lock (he's a 2nd row) Jarryd Hayne on the wing (dally M player of the year completely anonymous stuck writing postcards to his parents out on the right because hodges forgets he's there. If it hadn't been for some individual brilliance from Cam Smith (all English hookers, do me a favour and go watch what a real hooker is capable of) and Greg Inglis (all hail the 6'5 110kg monster who can actually pass and create like the best halfbacks here), then Aus would have gone down to NZ by messing around.

After this competition i'd like to see us move towards a Sam + Myler 6 & 7 partnership, Kyle moving into a FB or centre role, and players like Stefan Ratchford and Richard Owen breaking into the squad and competing for places.

Lets just all give it a rest

Sat 2nd Nov

MINT2024

England M

Samoa M

WINT2024

ENGLAND W

WALES W

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