Roosters v Knights Match Discussion

[Guest]

Roosters

1 Mitchell
2 Burgess
3 Aubbo
4 Fergo
5 SKD
6 Hastings
7 Pearce
8 Moa
9 Friend (c)
10 Napa
11 Cordner
12 Guerra
13 Liu

14 Evans
15 Vunakece
16 Matterson
17 JWH

18th Man Watson

Knights

1 Gagai
2 Ross
3 S Mata'uita
4 P Mata'uita
5 Uate
6 some dude called Pearsall
7 Hodgkinson (c)
8 S Mataora
9 Levi
10 Saifiti
11 T Sims
12 K Sims
13 Smith

14 Randall
15 Bhana
16 J Saifiti
17 Pauli Pauli

18 B Lamb
19 Stockwell
20 M Paea

The Knights look pretty weak and without Mullen are ripe for the picking.

Roosters by 12

[Guest]

Allianz Stadium
Saturday, 5.30pm
It's hard to imagine that these two sides played off in a preliminary final in 2013. Fast forward three years and Saturday evening's Round 9 Telstra Premiership showdown will be a battle to avoid bottom place on the ladder.
Much has been made of the Roosters' woes this year, but in a rare bit of good news, it appears they're returning to full strength with the triumvirate of Mitchell Pearce, Boyd Cordner and Jared Waerea-Hargreaves set to run out for the first time together in 2016.
With just one win from their opening eight matches, all hopes of a fourth straight minor premiership are long gone, but the 2013 premiers know that they are still a mathematical chance of making the top eight if they can win 11 of their next 16 games.
That will have to start against a Newcastle side that sits one point clear of the Tricolours in 15th place. The youthful Novocastrians have more than held their own in recent weeks (apart from the crushing loss against Brisbane) with tight losses to the Storm and Sea Eagles and a gutsy win over fellow strugglers the Wests Tigers.
There are enough changes amongst both sides this week to make your head spin. The Roosters finally welcome back Pearce and Waerea-Hargreaves, while Isaac Liu is back from suspension. Brendan Elliot and Mitchell Frei drop out of the 17 with Mitchell Aubusson shifting to the centres.
The Knights have lost Jarrod Mullen, Peter Mata'utia and Josh King, with Will Pearsall, Pat Mata'utia and Pauli Pauli taking their places. Nathan Brown has also included Mickey Paea and Jack Stockwell on an extended bench, as well as Brock Lamb – a crafty half who has been plying his trade in the Holden Cup.



Watch out Roosters: No team has made more errors in 2016 than the Roosters. The Tricolours have racked up 87 of the 'coach killers' so far this year, including a whopping 14 on Anzac Day. Shaun Kenny-Dowall (13) and Latrell Mitchell (12) are two of the worst offenders in the competition, while the usually reliable Aidan Guerra (10) isn't far behind.
Watch out Knights: Statistically speaking 2016 hasn't been a great year for the Knights, with the Novocastrians ranking in the bottom two in most major categories. Of most concern has to be metres gained, where the Knights sit 16th with 10,097 metres through eight rounds. Compare that to the Broncos who have run for 2,815 more metres at an average of more than 351m extra per game. They'll have their work cut out for them against a Roosters pack that is nearly back to full strength.
Key match-up: Mitchell Pearce v Trent Hodkinson. The 2015 State of Origin halves look at long odds to line-up for the Blues when the series kicks off on June 1 in Sydney. Pearce is set to play his first game of the season after serving an eight game ban and will be keen to make up for lost time on Saturday. It would be unfair to expect him to be at his best, but don't be surprised to see his teammates lift for their halfback. Hodkinson has had an indifferent start to life as a Knight with four try assists and just one line break through eight rounds. He will need to find his 2014 form quickly, especially with halves partner Jarrod Mullen (hamstring) set to be sidelined for an extended period of time.
The history: Played 47; Roosters 26, Knights 19, Drawn 2. The Roosters have won five of the past six, including four straight in Sydney. The Tricolours piled on 38 points in a comfortable 16-point win in their only meeting last year, but the only tryscorer from that game set to play on Saturday evening is Kane Evans.
What are the odds: Sportsbet customers have been very patient with the Roosters and once again they're the best backed side in this one. In fact, 85 per cent of all money invested on the head to head market has gone on the underperforming Roosters and they've been backed to win by a big margin too. Latest odds at Sportsbet.com.au
Match officials: Referee: Matt Cecchin. Assistant referee: David Munro. Sideline officials: Clayton Sharpe and David Ryan.
Televised: Fox Sports 1 – Live coverage from 5pm.
The way we see it: Saturday night will see the Roosters welcome back some of their much needed cavalry, but don't expect the return of key personnel to turn them into premiership contenders overnight. Trent Robinson's men will win – and should win well – and with three of their next four games against teams currently sitting outside the top eight, Saturday's clash could be the catalyst needed to spark a greater back-from-the-dead comeback than Jon Snow. Spoiler alerts? Roosters by 18.

[Parkway_Drive]

Water under the bridge now lets all move forward

---

Hopefully with Pearce back in the team, there are no major fractures in the playing group.

With our big 3 back (although JWH will be short on fitness) and possibly Pearce with his timing and match conditioning, I am expecting us to play a lot better as a group and start to close out wins instead of just falling short.

With no Mullen out of a very weak Knights, it will be unacceptable to lose today. We might still be a bit clunky early on but I expect to blow them away in the second half.

Easts to win!

[Jacks Fur Coat]

I like it when you look at your bench and know that each reserve can/will provide a spark of energy...or in Jareds case an explosion.

[Spirit of 66]

Statistically, the referee today - Matt Cecchin - is not the worst option. Our win rate under his jurisdiction is very good (22 wins and 11 losses - the best performing team under him in the NRL) and we get a fair share of the total penalties too (49% - the best for us among the current batch of referees).

But a lot depends on the instructions he has been given, of course.

[ism22]

I'm scared. People are expecting us to win, but the Knights have some decent players. I'm scared...

Gagai, Matty Utai x 2, Hodkinson, Jeremy Smith, Uate and the Sims brothers. There's a lot of experience and attacking power there and we are 'favourites' right for the plucking. It'll be a close game IMO and with the wrong attitude we could get pipped.

[Game Fowl]

We are all well aware that there is no such thing as a "sure thing " on the footy paddock - the team that wants it the most will get the rewards.

[Big Arty]

James Hooper has been suggesting that Jackson is out of favour with some team mates, apparently he's a little bit "different", possibly going to start off the bench with Matterson starting, anyone else heard anything?

[Johnny.]

James Hooper has been suggesting that Jackson is out of favour with some team mates, apparently he's a little bit "different", possibly going to start off the bench with Matterson starting, anyone else heard anything?

Yeah, James Hooper is full of shit is something I've heard. If Robinson drops Hastings but keeps Pearce in, he deserves the sort of scorn Brian Cashman and Joe Girardi are getting at the moment.

[Guest]

Johnny you are a clown that hasn't got a clue.

[Planetboy 2]

Jayden Nikorima playing fullback in 20's and absolutely killing it. Too good for under 20's. Looks comfortable in the fullback role.

[Easts75]

Jayden Nikorima playing fullback in 20's and absolutely killing it. Too good for under 20's. Looks comfortable in the fullback role.

Maybe better off playing NSW Cup against men ???

[Guest]

What was the score in the 20s game?

[roosterchook]

I'm scared. People are expecting us to win, but the Knights have some decent players. I'm scared...

Gagai, Matty Utai x 2, Hodkinson, Jeremy Smith, Uate and the Sims brothers. There's a lot of experience and attacking power there and we are 'favourites' right for the plucking. It'll be a close game IMO and with the wrong attitude we could get pipped.

I'm trying to figure out how big the win might be 40,50? but I don't think much higher than that. This is an opportunity to build back our for and against so it's not a matter of if we win but by how much will we thrash them by.

A win is a foregone conclusion. But to beat the Z team in the comp is no feat and I won't be celebrating. A girls team with their eyes closed could beat the Knights so the only real thing I'm interested in today is watching Matterson and seeing how our rookies go. Other than that there's no merit in beating this side even by 50 with the Stars we have who are Intenational and Origin level.

[Lydon]

Guerra lol
Nothing seems to change