Spot on. Yes Micky gives pens away but no more than Westwood or Ablett.

Can you imagine Australia leaving Cameron Smith on the bench and picking a more aggressive player, just for aggression's sake, against NZ?

It's a silly argument IMO - Roby is simply a better player and offers more to the team so he plays.

McBanana will go has he did in one of the earlier matches, spell Roby just after halftime with Sinfield going to hooker and bringing Burrows on. The problem is it may be to late by then.

Cam Smith has been switched to 13 on numerous occasions to allow them to change the game with Farah at 9 or Cronk prior to DL retiring.

How will we change the game if we need to do so?

Roby is a strike player. That's why he was so fantastic for Saints when he came on for Cunningham. He can't perform to his best in an all out battle as he isn't that type of player. Cam Smith on the other hand is.

Roby is only a strike/impact player if you are still wandering around in 2006. He's been Saints best player by a ridiculous margin since Cunningham retired, as an 80 minute player.

Roby has more effective distribution, running game and defence (the stats suggest MM missed almost 4 times more of his tackles than Roby in SL 2013). I'm genuinely struggling to see any logic to preferring an inferior 80 minute hooker, and it appears to be logic that only exists on this board to be honest.

Physicality and aggression will only get you so far. When people consistently list aggression as a players main strength, it highlights the fact that his playing ability is limited.

Doing the occasional big hit is the one and only facet of the game that you could argue McIlorum does better than Roby. It therefore makes no sense whatsoever to play him. We need our best PLAYERS on the field v NZ, not our supposedly toughest men.

how many games played? and against what opposition?.....stats dont tell the whole truth.

McIlorum can't play. With Sinfield at first receiver the combination is far too slow and McNamara ain't going to drop Sinfield.
Roby often runs from dh then bypasses the first receiver and that is what will work. McIlorum is brilliant at Wigan as the first receivers Green/Smith know his game and he knows theirs. When he picks the ball up at dh they are already moving and that's how Wigan's structure works.
Sinfield's movement is slow and now slower than ever. He has to kick as he doesn't have the pace to run at the defensive line.
It has to be Roby over Mic Mac under McNamara's team selection with Sinfield at first receiver.

The stat I'm talking about is misses as a proportion of tackles made. If you're concerned about number of games you could use Roby 2012; I doubt it would make any difference. Roby has also been playing in a weaker side.

As for opposition, that's tricky - I think all MM's games were against Melbourne Storm and Roby played Salford a couple of dozen times.

im sure that cant be right

Or he'll leave the half-backs where they are and bring Burrows on at hooker for Roby. I'd prefer that to Sinfield at hooker, Burrows gave us more zip from the PTB when he came on against Fiji.

I'd prefer Burrow to be honest.

I'm surprised at you Rogues. This isn't Life on Mars, it's 2013. Roby would come on after 20 minutes, at the latest, to replace McIlorum but we would be down to 12 men and MM on his way for a shower. If it was that easy to get at Luke then every team would do it. MM might be harder than your average hooker, but you rarely get a one to one situation to prove who is the best fighter, and his lack of discipline would be manna from heaven to NZ. Luke is very similar to MM but far more skilful & much more controlled these days.

Obviously you see more of Roby and us of MM, but I do think there is a role in the International side for both of them.

Yes aggression only gets you so far as our good friend giraffe has pointed out, but in this day and age a hell of a lot is based around winning the "arm wrestle". If we lose that opening 20 to a side like NZ then we could have Superman at 9 and we'd still lose by 50 (not sure if Pat Richards has played hooker before )

Someone like MM gives you that chance to get on top after 20 by disrupting the opposition and allowing you to dictate the pace of the game. That is when Roby would be dangerous off the bench.

Obviously it's all opinion, but that is mine.