The unsung hero

[Jacks Fur Coat]

The footy media are reluctant to nail the real reason we are such a dominant force these days.

Its always "the roster" they fall back on lazily.

Us fans know its Robbo and the coaching and development systems we have in place. Thats the big point of difference and gets way too little exposure.

Credit to support coaches too like Fitzy, JT and Kingy who all contribute to the success.

But its Robbo the genius who orchestrates it all and has created a culture of winning and excellence in all we do as a club.

They just never hit that point hard enough. Dont know why.

[ism22]

Yeah at times it's frustrating seeing him at work coz you miss out on what your heart wants as a fan.

He has a way with players though ay? I dunno how it works but I reckon he's very black and white. Either:
- He knows you're putting in, is happy with your progression and will pull strings to find a place for you in the squad.

OR

- You've done something. He won't spread rumours or talk to the media about it but you will not be selected no matter how good you are and how much the team needs quality in the position. He will not select you. You've farked him around and you're now outside the circle of trust. Nothing will be said publicly about you, but you'd better find another club ASAP.

It can frustrate me because I'm an emotional guy who always loves to see people get another chance. However, he's got a firm hand and his inner-circle all seem to understand it 100%. IMO Robbo's one forbidden fruit is not trying. It's okay to be young and working on your game or a journeyman in search of confidence, but slackness or a negative attitude will not be tolerated.

I haven't experienced it first hand obviously but IMO he creates a good culture because he makes it clear that you MUST show up with a good attitude every day, or you can go fark yourself. This means you don't get spoiled brats running the club on the basis that they know nobody's gonna drop them (which in turn breeds cynicism/frustration...etc). Robbo is harsh but fair.

[Tommy Smith]

Robbo might well be the most adored Rooster of all time. So much love for that man.

I think he needs a statue or mural outside Easts Leagues.

[milanja]

The roster absolutely has everything to do with it, regardless who the coach is, with no cattle you don’t go close to winning a comp.

robbo has absolutely earned the right to be mentioned in the same breath as Bennett,Bellamy and Gibson though.

[Jacks Fur Coat]

The roster absolutely has everything to do with it, regardless who the coach is, with no cattle you don’t go close to winning a comp.

robbo has absolutely earned the right to be mentioned in the same breath as Bennett,Bellamy and Gibson though.

My reply to the boring "its the roster" media rhetoric is its more about what you do with your roster.

[zac]

robbo's first 7 years as coach are as good as anyone's in the modern era. if he retired now he'd be behind bennett and bellamy but the sky's the limit if he hangs around for another decade or two.

[007]

Robbo might well be the most adored Rooster of all time. So much love for that man.

I think he needs a statue or mural outside Easts Leagues.

How about somewhere in Nana Glen?

[Tommy Smith]

The roster absolutely has everything to do with it, regardless who the coach is, with no cattle you don’t go close to winning a comp.

robbo has absolutely earned the right to be mentioned in the same breath as Bennett,Bellamy and Gibson though.

On the surface of it, yes, the roster is everything.

But let's for a second imagine that Mary McGregor, Kearney or Dean Pay had been our coach the past 7 years...

I'd wager strongly that we'd have a soft culture and have won zero Premierships, with zero GF appearances.

Let's not forget that we were a bit of a joke for all bar one season between the Sticky and Robbo eras.

Robbo changed that.

So yes, you absolutely need the players to succeed. But on the pyramid of success I think club culture and ethos sits higher still. And that's 100% down to Robbo and what he has moulded.

[Jacks Fur Coat]

On the surface of it, yes, the roster is everything.

But let's for a second imagine that Mary McGregor, Kearney or Dean Pay had been our coach the past 7 years...

I'd wager strongly that we'd have a soft culture and have won zero Premierships, with zero GF appearances.

Let's not forget that we were a bit of a joke for all bar one season between the Sticky and Robbo eras.

Robbo changed that.

So yes, you absolutely need the players to succeed. But on the pyramid of success I think club culture and ethos sits higher still. And that's 100% down to Robbo and what he has moulded.

Toups, Joey, Keary, Teddy, Vic, Butcher, Liu, SST, JWH, Jake, Lindsay, Angus to name a few are all better players for being in our development system....thats kind of my point.

So ....we built the roster....it didnt arrive on our doorstep with a ribbon and nice card.

[Kingbilly]

The Roster has to buy into the culture, philosophy and game plans that the coaching staff determine.
Most of our players are not super stars, they are good players that are actually very good if not great players but because they are committed 100% to the Roosters way.

Robbo is by far the best coach in the game and could very well be the best coach ever. But the players are the icing on the cake.. They put the team above themselves and believe in Robbos way.

I think that half the reason they let LM go was he was more about himself that the team

[Rooster1908]

Roster is important! But have a look a Storm, Bellyache has taken average players to Melbourne and turned them to champions , as does Robbo , to me that's not luck , it's man management

[ism22]

robbo's first 7 years as coach are as good as anyone's in the modern era. if he retired now he'd be behind bennett and bellamy but the sky's the limit if he hangs around for another decade or two.

He's won more premierships than Bellamy in about half as many years. This includes going B2B.

Further, and I think importantly, Robbos has ALWAYS based his game around a more positive, attractive style of footy. Whereas, Bellamy's 2 premierships came off the back of what I'd call coaching hacks rather than positive, fast-paced, free-flowing footy.

Rub out Wayne's Brisbane premierships for a minute. Quite seriously - they aren't from the same era - Wayne was the best coach of THAT era but IMO the fact he's an old fart who doesn't know what's best for him doesn't mean he gets to be called the best coach of every era he happens to have coached in.

IMO Robbo is undisputedly the most successful coach of the current era.

Back when Ian Thorpe was a swimmer I remember him quite rightfully saying something like 'I don't compare myself to all the swimmers whose records I have broken because I swim in a warm, clean pool wearing a body suit and have a $$$ team behind me. They were the best of their era and that's all that matters'. You hear the same with tennis players... Rod Laver versus Federer kinda BS... WHO CARES! They weren't of the same era. IMO we should take the same approach to the NRL. I mean it's a fact that Bennett didn't have a salary cap in the 90's and had the QLD Origin team at his disposal. The rules are different now and the last 2 times I've seen us play his team I wouldn't say he looked like the greatest coach around right now...

[zac]

He's won more premierships than Bellamy in about half as many years. This includes going B2B.

Further, and I think importantly, Robbos has ALWAYS based his game around a more positive, attractive style of footy. Whereas, Bellamy's 2 premierships came off the back of what I'd call coaching hacks rather than positive, fast-paced, free-flowing footy.

Rub out Wayne's Brisbane premierships for a minute. Quite seriously - they aren't from the same era - Wayne was the best coach of THAT era but IMO the fact he's an old fart who doesn't know what's best for him doesn't mean he gets to be called the best coach of every era he happens to have coached in.

IMO Robbo is undisputedly the most successful coach of the current era.

Back when Ian Thorpe was a swimmer I remember him quite rightfully saying something like 'I don't compare myself to all the swimmers whose records I have broken because I swim in a warm, clean pool wearing a body suit and have a $$$ team behind me. They were the best of their era and that's all that matters'. You hear the same with tennis players... Rod Laver versus Federer kinda BS... WHO CARES! They weren't of the same era. IMO we should take the same approach to the NRL. I mean it's a fact that Bennett didn't have a salary cap in the 90's and had the QLD Origin team at his disposal. The rules are different now and the last 2 times I've seen us play his team I wouldn't say he looked like the greatest coach around right now...

he's certainly the best coach of the last 7 years.
but i think longevity is a factor in deciding who's the best coach over all.
the game has changed but benny's premierships at Brisbane have to count for something. yes, bellamy has only won 2 comps but, as we're saying, it's not just about the roster, so he should get some (partial) credit for winning 2 comps illegitimately. also, his feat in keeping the team together over that salary cap controversy is pretty impressive and his ability to keep the storm competitive despite losing cronk and then slater was an achievement.
but robbo's up there and there's every chance that if he coaches for another decade he will go to number one.

[Bondicigar]

You know your going great as a club when you can't hang on to assistant coach's It wasn't long ago that probably half of NRL coaches could have been traced back to the Raiders....

[The Skeez]

Our defence looks even better thus year. Credit to Fitzy.

There were times on Thursday night where it reminded me of 2002-4 and our swarming defence.