Draft Game 2016 V2 (Squads)

Randoms Squad:

1. Matthew Moylan
2. Darius Boyd
3. Greg Inglis
4. Solomone Kata
5. Corey Oates
6. Daly Cherry-Evans
7. Ben Hunt
8. Aaron Woods
9. Josh Hodgson (C)
10. Mike Cooper
11. Elliott Whitehead
12. Josh Jackson
13. Trent Merrin

14. Andrew McCullough
15. Paul Vaughan
16. Kane Evans
17. Ava Seumanufagai

Coach: Paul Green


Introduction:

So I am going to give a quick summary about my team (5000 words later), but it is much easier to breakdown the individual aspects of the team.

The Spine:

Often referred to as the single most important group of players on the field, and for good reason. These are the guys who will be directing the team and setting up tries. Leading not only the group, but the entire team is Josh Hodgson, now some people mentioned him being almost as good of a pick as Cameron Smith (Who was selected 2nd Overall). Sadly for those people, they were wrong. Hodgson was well above Cameron Smith. This year for example Hodgson showed how he is much more capable than Cameron Smith in offense outscoring him in Tries, Try Assists, Line Breaks, Line Break Assists, and almost double the amount of Tackle Breaks. Hell I could go on about Josh Hodgson all day, but all you need to know is Hodgson > Smith. Then we get to the rest of my spine which created a whopping 73 Try-Assists last season. The Raider last season created 90 Try-Assists (The most of any team), that is from their entire squad. Meanwhile 73 Try-Assists from just four guys. This spine is built to create tries. Now I don't need to go on to how Daly Cherry-Evans and Ben Hunt are great. I will just slide an interesting fact in there, only 5 halves had more Try-Assists than Daly Cherry-Evans and one of them was Ben Hunt. The other four guys who had more aren't even on the same teams. (Hell one wasn't picked.) These two are leagues above any other pairings at creating tries. Now speaking of opportunity, Matt Moylan pushed out the current Australian and Queensland Fullback Darius Boyd to the wing. Why? Because he creates tries. He had five more try-assists than Darius Boyd, in four less games, in a team that scored less tries. Matt Moylan embodies this spine, in that he is a playmaker. Almost a Five-Eight worthy playmaker.

The Outside Backs:

Let's face it, I don't need to tell you about the chemistry between Darius Boyd and Greg Inglis that has been built up over the years of teaming up at the highest level of the sport, I don't need to tell you how they have been destroying the Blues for year, I don't need to tell you how they are the two all time highest try scorers for not only the Queensland Origin team, but for any origin player ever. I don't need to tell you at the international level they have combined for 45 tries in 55 games. Oh, and I certainly don't need to tell you about Darius Boyd's 100% win ratio at the pinnacle of the sport. That alone is enough to worry defences, but when combined with the lethal and tackle-breaking power that is Greg Inglis, well it just makes Boyd's life that little bit easier. In fact one poster mentioned just falling over his shoelaces and scoring tries, well that just goes to show how proficient he already is at it. Now on the other side of the field are two guys that had breakout years. Both earning representative honours at Origin/International level. They also both showed they know how to cross that white line and finish tries, with both men scoring 15 a piece this year. So to put this into layman's terms for someone like Archer. These guys, score tries, and they score a lot of them already and will score a lot more off the back of my incredible impressive spine. Solomone Kata knows how to break tackles, averaging almost 5 tackle breaks a game this year, and with Corey Oates on the outside who was almost averaging a try in every single one of his games this year. Well the opposition would be wise to not think we would only attack with one side of the field.

The Backrow:

These guys are 80 minute masters. These guys are to be the core of the defense. The wall that can't be broken, which all three guys are able to do well. There isn't an offense that can wear down these 80 minute performers and overcome their impressive work rates. In terms of workrate (Hitups + Tackles) no other team has a starting backrow that had a workrate nearly as high as these three guys. In fact my starting three backrowers had a workrate of 3414, while the opposing teams: SI's - 3280,Mearcats - 3095 Honeysett - 3010 and the rest had under 3000. Trent Merrin, Josh Jackson and Elliott Whitehead get through work. Add to that, that including players who only played in the second-row this year. That Trent Merrin had the most Offloads of any backrower. Elliot Whitehead had the most Try-Assists of any Second Rower, that goes to show just how lethal these guys can be in attack. (Whitehead stats include 1 game where he played outside the Second Row)*

The Frontrow:

Leading the front row is Aaron Woods and Mike Cooper. Both of these guys are big bodies, get through mountains of work and are able to play big minutes. Why is that worth mentioning? Because of the size of the bench. My bench forwards are massive. All 3 guys on the bench are 110kg+ monsters who can put their size to good use in short stints due to the minutes that Cooper and Woods can play. While they have large size and great capabilities, my bench guys that are made up of Ava Seumanufagai, Paul Vaughan and Kane Evans are also able to play a large amount of minutes if an injury were to occur. Now onto the main purpose of the forward pack. It is to gain field position and eat up as many meters as possible. Which is easy considering 4/5 of these guys averaged 100+ meters per game last season. They will gain field position against any team, and the one guy who didn't average 100+ meters this year is a 6'6" monster Kane Evans, who would relish short stints to use his size and be destructive. So a quick checklist, the front row can play big minutes (Check) can make big massive amount of meters (Check) and have the size to bash around other teams (Check).

The Utility:

Our utility has been heralded as the FAC (Future Australian Captain) Andrew McCullough. He is great defensively and can slot into the Lock Position, play Hooker and jump into the halves. His versatility would be enough to allow the rest of the team to play to their versatility as Whitehead can play in the halves, Jackson can drop into CTR's. Boyd and Inglis are both International and Origin worthy Fullbacks who can shift from their respective positions. Our team can be hit by an injury anywhere in the squad and have the ability to adjust and perform at a high level.

The Coach:

Paul Green, he was able to do something that no one thought was possible. He was able to get North Queensland Cowboys to win in Sydney, and not only win but to take home the big one against an ever impressive Brisbane Team. He can easily lead this team triumphantly over any of the other teams listed below.

1. Roger Tuivasa-Sheck
2. David Nofoaluma
3. Michael Jennings
4. Josh Morris
5. Marika Koroibete
6. Anthony Milford
7. Shaun Johnson (gk)
8. Matt Scott (c)
9. Jake Friend
10. Ben Matulino
11. Boyd Cordner
12. Sio Siua Taukeiaho
13. Corey Parker

14. Tyrone Peachey
15. Jason Taumalolo
16. David Klemmer
17. Nelson Asofa-Solomona

Coach: Mal Meninga



Gday lads, as you all know I based my team selections around the NRL players that I personally enjoy watching. Now rather then list reasons why my squad is the best (That is up to you to decide), I will list the reasons why I made certain selections for each position with a few fun facts / stats throw in for good measure.

Fullback:
The 2013 Dally M winger of the year was also crowned the 2015 Dally M Fullback of the year for his electric speed, agility, evasiveness and tackle breaking ability. RTS is one of the few players who averages more then 200 run meters almost every single NRL game, throw in a penchant to beat the first defender more often then not RTS guarantees his team to start each set on the front foot. His side step is a thing of absolute beauty often bamboozling (see what I did there) the opposition.  

Wingers:
The 2013 Dally M try of the year scorer (David Nofoaluma) broke 140 tackles in 2016, more then any other player! [sourced from NRL.com].
He is joined on the wing by one of if not the fastest men in the NRL - Marika Koroibete. Both of these blokes have some serious speed to burn. With a combined effort of 33 linebreaks between them for the season Nofo and Koro often leave the opposition in their wake. What is even more astonishing is the second phase play created by Nofoaluma with a staggering 38 offloads for the season (8th in the competition).

Centers:
Jmoz and Jennings boast a whopping 224 NRL tries between them. Josh, brother of Brett, is most well known for his dominant defence during state of origin keeping Greg Inglis in check - no mean feat. Like Nofoaluma, Jmoz has an appetite for offloads clocking up a reasonable 30 offloads for the year in 2016. Both have represented Australia at various points showing they are easily some of the games top tier centers and NSW regulars.

Halves:
What can I say about these two superstars? The 2014 Golden Boot winner of the year Shaun Johnson is one of the most gifted players in the NRL. Not to be outdone Anthony Milford otherwise known as Milfy Milf won the 2016 Peter Frilingos headline moment of the year for his match winning field goal vs the Cowboys (who can forget that moment). Both attacking superstars have a skill set not often seen in the NRL with the ability to create something from nothing. Both possess blinding speed off the mark with the ability to break the line then jink and skip their way past opponents to the try line. Both have a highlights reel that lasts longer then Jamie Buhrers origin career.

Front row:
Standing at 6ft 1 and 6ft 4 Matt Scott and Ben Matulino are some of the hardest front rowers in the NRL. Playing anywhere from 50-60 minutes each game both regular internationals Scott and Matulino run as hard in the first minute of the game as they do in the last. Not much needs to be said about these two bookends as everyone knows they are built like brick shithouses with a never say die attitude.

Hooker:
Future QLD and AUS #9 Jake Friend was a shining light in an otherwise disappointing year for the Roosters. One of the best defenders in the game Friend made a massive 1279 tackles this year (the most in the NRL). His service from dummy half is matched by his toughness and willingness to clock up solid 80 minute performances. With a respectable 12 try assists to his name (more then any other Roosters player this year) Friend has shown his ability to take on the line when necessary.

Second row / lock:
Like a fine wine Corey Parker just gets better with age, known for his amazing ability to pop an offload Parker finished his career with more hair then when he started. Making a respectable 2973 metres this year CP13 made 322 hitups, not bad going for an ole grey fox.

Joined in the backrow by the best edge runner in the game Boyd Cordner (now a NSW and AUS regular), Cordner has been tipped to take over the NSW Captaincy when Paul Gallen retires. On the other edge is one of the hardest running and most damaging ball runners in the game - Sio Siua Taukeiaho. Between the two they only missed 31 tackles from a whopping 889 tackles this year.

Bench:
On the bench I have the 2015 and 2016 Dally M lock of the year, The RLPA 2016 player of the year and joint Dally M 2016 Medal winner Jason Taumalolo. The NZ regular is THE most damaging ball runner in the game. Clocking up a MASSIVE 4454 running meters in 2016. Taumalolo has been described by the great Andrew Johns as a beast who runs like a freight train. Taumalolo also made a respectable 646 tackles and made 82 tackle breaks.

Next up is one of the scariest men to ever take the NRL field in David Klemmer. Now a NSW and AUS regular Klemmer is an absolute force every time he takes the field. Standing at 6ft 6 Klemmer towers over the competition and like Taumalolo requires 3-4 defenders to stop him in his tracks. Making a respectable 568 tackles while only missing 19 Klemmer not only runs hard but shores up the defence when he is on the field.

One of if not the most versatile players in the game Tyrone Peachey can play anywhere from center, 5/8th, second row, lock or even at hooker at a pinch. His stats for 2016 read as follows - 13 tries, 17 linebreaks, 92 tackle breaks, 9 try assists and 399 tackles. Simply outstanding. Not only can he cover a variety of positions on the field he also has great acceleration off the mark and has a freakish ability to bust the game open at a moments notice.

Last but not least on the bench is Nelson Asofa-Solomona aka NAS. Standing at 6ft 7 NAS is an absolute giant. While he may not play big minutes the time he spends on the field is usually spent destroying the opposition through his hard running, hard hitting style. Like the other 3 big boys on my bench NAS requires multiple players to slow him down enough to complete the tackle. However he still managed to pop out 20 offloads this year ensuring some second phase play with a broken defensive line.

Coach:
Not only is Mal Meninga one of the modern day greats in rugby league he has also transferred that winning attitude into his role as coach. With an average win ratio of 77% over club and rep football Mal gets the best out of all his players with his easy going nature and coaching style. The great Cameron Smith has often spoken about the great respect and admiration all players have for Mal, probably one of the reasons why he has been so successful as QLD and more recently AUS coach.

Mearcats Squad:

1. Lachlan Coote
2. Bevan French
3. Jarrod Croker
4. Euan Aitken
5. Clint Gutherson
6. Michael Morgan
7. Nathan Cleary
8. Jake Trbojevic
9. Cameron Smith(C)
10. Ryan James
11. Bodene Thompson
12. Matt Gillett
13. Simon Mannering

14. Kalyn Ponga
15. Agnatius Paasi
16. Jarrod Wallace
17. Kenny Bromwhich


Coach. Wayne Bennett






Led by THE supercoach (none of these pretenders are contenders, especially those that [get caught ] cheating salary caps). Bennett has won more premierships on his own than every other coach combined across this field. That in it's own right speaks volumes. His ability to get the best out of young players will suit a team brimming with unrivaled levels of talent.


WFB - With an old hand at the helm in Lachlan Coote there is experience to lead to excitement machines in French and Gutherson on the flanks. Coote has done it all, winning grand finals, Auck 9's and WCC as well as representing his state and country. With the emergence this year of try scoring machine French and versatile utility Gutherson taking his game to another level, these three would struggle NOT to score against any team list thrown their way.


CTR - Absolutely no point in having all that talent on the outside if you don't have the links in between. While Aitken is your no nonsense, tackle busting meter eater who is rock solid in defense, Croker is your quietly unspoken attacking weapon. Capable of kicking a goal from anywhere on the park and destroying lines better than Joey Johns, combined, these two guys are the yin and yang and the perfect pair to complete the back 5. While this complete backline may not have some of the flashy name, they're reliable, will be there week in week out and have uncapped potential.


HLF - Anyone who lets the youth of this pair lull you into a false sense of security will quickly be spanked harder than Brens dong when looking at a Mila Kunis nudie book! New kid on the block Cleary has proven that he has a kicking game only rivaled by the great JT and a maturity well beyond his years. A super calm head gives him the uncanny ability to close out the tight games against ageing opposition and makes him a pure joy to watch. A super gifted, natural 7. (N.B. Thankfully no one signed Ivan as a coach or Wayne wouldn't be allowed to retain him, that's written in his contract). Pivots don't come any tougher than Michael Morgan. While other teams have fleet footed Milfords who is a man in a boys body, a techno viking wannabe wearing Green who has clearly lost his razor, a bunch of guys playing outta position or a couple of guys with serious mental issues and drug problems, Morgs or White Lightning as he's known amongst his mates is a no nonsense, 6ft 1 94kg wrecking ball capable of decimating teams all on his own. His size and strength coupled with his speed and experience at just 24yrs of age are undeniable ans as an understudy to the Jesus of Townsville (JT, see what I did there??  ) few can deny his pedigree. Keeping these guys together at such a young age with so much potential will be a struggle but we all know Wayne has the ability to convince players to take massive unders to keep the kids together!


2RF - WOWWEE! JUST WOWWEE! While other teams went for household names that may give you a semi, some of us put a little more thought into these things. That's why you are looking at easily the best, no bullshit "I'll tackle all day and play 80" lock in the game, Mr. Manring. Couple that with two massively damaging edge runners that have some of the best defensive techniques in the game and penetrating this line is going to be harder than getting Taylor Swifts pants let alone cracking that chastity belt! With more rep caps between them than ropes pissed up at Welshys command, you just know the experience of these guys makes you hotter than a Raiders fan in FNQ!


FRF - The future. Simply put these guys are the future of forwards. One is renowned for having the best defensive technique in the game and hits harder than the stench of an after grog bog or the taste of one of the hipster Honeysetts matcha tea, quinoa infused soy lattes, the other is a Samson and Delilah bible story in reverse. Cutting that horrendous head of hair off seemed to have the desired effects and this year he has proven what a weapon he can be. With a penchant for grabbing a meat pie and the odd attackers head in a high tackle, these two are the go forward that a smart coach is looking for. Capable of playing huge minutes, I may as well have not even picked a bench at all and these guys would still dick all over all comers.


HOK - Captain courageous. Cam Smith. 70+ tackles. NUFF SAID!


Orange Peelers (The Bench) - Three workhorses and a whizz kid utility. That's a Wayne Bennett wet dream. You just know that when Paasi comes on he's going to bust things up like Fifita's best mate and his dog shot. The guy is an animal. Wallace will get you the meters and KBrom has just that little bit of mongrel that makes everyone sit on the edge of their seats and wait for the action. and then, BOOM, there it comes in the form of Kalyn Ponga. This guy has more clubs chasing him across all sporting codes than Fiddy has eaten Sizzler meals. He's been winning sporting tournaments since he was 12yrs old! If watching him play the game doesn't get your heart racing, best get out a defibrillator and call a doc cos chances are you're dead and have crossed over to the underworld.


In summary, while not packed with star studded names, this is a team that will go toe to toe with anyone else and come out swinging like Cassius Clay rumbling in the jungle. They'll float like butterflies and sting like bees and all the rest of you will be left pissing into the breeze!

Archers

1. Valentine Holmes
2. Jordan Rapana
3. Jack Bird
4. Konrad Hurrell
5. Josh Mansour
6. Corey Norman
7. James Maloney
8. George Burgess
9. Jake Granville
10. Jared Waerea-Hargreaves
11. Josh Papalii
12. Kevin Proctor
13. Martin Taupau

14. Josh Reynolds
15. Shannon Boyd
16. Junior Paulo
17. Joseph Tapine

Coach: Ricky Stuart

Ok lads, get a load of that team.

Feast your eyes on the engine room; that pack has the size, skill, intimidation and strength to completely dominate any opposition pack and it carries over to the Bench,when Burgess or JWH comes off they are replaced by equally destructive players. Not only are they fantastic at making meters, but they can offload, hit the right line and don't even get me started on how hard those boys hit in defence. It's also a fantastic mix of experience and youth which means it won't be missing the vital leadership aspect of a forward pack. Granville is going to run amok off the back of that go forward.

How about that back 5; Honestly It kind of feels like cheating having these backs. It's filled with blokes who have the strength and determination to make the difficult meters in the later stages of the game when forward packs inevitably tire, ensuring this team will always truck the ball down to an oppositions half and play it there. But they are also the kind of players who can tear apart their opposite number. Get them one on one in attack (which will happen with the play the balls of that pack) or defence and 9.9/10 they come out ahead, period.

What about the halves I won't kid you here, that's not Thurston or Cronk, I won't pretend otherwise. But lets not pretend their mugs either. Maloney has proven his worth this year, guiding a new team to a premiership for the second time. Norman is a good young talent, who has enough experience to steer a team around on his own if the shit hits the fan, but goes far better when he can sit back and pick his moments. Perfect, exactly what this team provides him! The pack ensure he isn't playing behind a beaten pack (impossible), the backs are the kind that create something on their own (so he doesn't need to fuss about overthinking it and creating something for them, he can always just give them early ball) and his partner in Maloney is happy to take charge of the team most of the time.

Utility
Todo


Coach
Todo


Other
Todo

I'll add more later, as I'm sure you're all dying to know how Ricky will handle injuries/reshuffles and how he can utilise JRey off the bench, but i have to head out soon.

Archer wrote:Archers Squad:
Going to leave numbers off for now as i don't want to give too much away just yet.

Well lah-dee-fuckin-dah!

Frizells Fancies


1. James Tedesco
2. Semi Radradra
3. James Roberts
4. Josh Dugan
5. Brett Morris
6. Kieran Foran
7. Adam Reynolds [GK]
8. Andrew Fifita
9. Issac Luke
10. Josh McGuire
11. Tyson Frizell
12. Ethan Lowe
13. Paul Gallen [C]

14. Matt Parcell
15. Reagan Campbell-Gillard
16. Sam Thaiday
17. Tariq Sims


Coach. Des Hasler

took me a while, excuse the grammar, didn't spell check it haha

Frizells fancies, what an absolute delight this team is!
I’ll start with the backs, there can be absolutely no arguing this is the best backline in this competition, in fact If I was picking a dream backline I would of struggled to replace any of the guys I have starting. If I’m being honest I would probably have BJ in the CTR and shunted Roberts onto the wing replacing BMoz, but that would be a stretch as Bmoz has been a kangaroos and origin stalwart for years, impressing for both.
Tedesco is the No.1 fullback currently in the game, Teddy offers everything, immense TB ability, LB’s, try assists and tries galore, his try scoring record for a No.1 is incredible, what is more impressive is him doing everything mentioned above so consistently in a very poor side. Aside from super Friz, my favourite player in the game.

Flanking Teddy are the Semi train and Brett Morris, BMoz returned from injury for the dogs and bagged 10 tries in 10 matches propelling them at the seasons back end, Semi is the best wing in the business, some would argue he had a down year last year, with his team in disarray (again) he still scored 12 tries in 19 games, and averaged 150 RM a game, this trio has scored 124 tries in 152 combined games, absolute scenes!

Occupying the centre spots are Jimmy the Jet and Josh Dugan, wowsers! If the trio above doesn’t frighten the opposition then this pair will, offering fine defensive input these two excel tenfold in the attacking sense. Unbelievable break away speed from JRob combined with the wild languid running style of Dugan would constantly put opposition defenders on the back foot.

Now we come to the halves, the halves combo is a vital part of any successful side and without matching JT with pretty much anyone I don’t think I could of gotten a better mix with these two! Seemingly being around for a lifetime Kieran Foran is still only 26 years of age, many would say not even in his prime, best all round game of any of the halves in the NRL, absolutely fearless in defence, and often seen sending shockwaves down the spine of opposition attackers, Foran is supreme at making for others and is a kicking halves best friend! A kicking half you say, enter AReyn, best all round kicking game of any NRL half, brilliant goalkicker and immense in general play! An on field general who held more than a helping to the Rabs  premiership and WCC titles! 2 Halves whose games compliment each others perfectly.

No backline or halves paring can function well unless their pack is getting constant go forward and the 2 book end front rowers for the fancies are beasts! The most devastating player in the NRL, a phrase which I liken to Fifita is “You can't stop him, you can only hope to contain him." Rings true when talking about Fifi! the knock on him was penchant for mistakes and a sometimes uncontainable temper leading to a train of errors, he out a lot of that to bed the past year and was robbed of the clive Churchill medal in the grand final and the dally M for best prop this year. The other end we have Josh Mcguire, an absolute workhorse, massive metre eater and tackles all day, origin and kangaroos stalwart in waiting! Loves the rough stuff!

Sandwiched between the 2 props is Issac Luke, kiwi legend and my type of player, loves the niggle! Fantastic shooting out of dummy half, the little livewire offers plenty, Playing on the back of this packs rampaging runs Issac Luke would be lethal!

Now we come to the jewel of the crown, The Friz!!! Over the past 2 seasons Tyson Frizell has flourished into a world class edge backrower, all the bigging up and potentially annoying outbursts by myself has made me look like a genius as he has morphed into an apparent NSW fixture and newly capped Australian international! A wrecking ball in attack and solid as a rock defensively the Frizz has it all! As if he couldnt do it all anyway the guy could actually be put in the middle as a lock!

The massively underrated Ethan Lowe operates on the other side and looks set to enter the QLD origin fray in the next year with the aging backrow stalwarts seemingly soon bowing out! Great in defence and knows his way to the tryline, no headbands or socks down allowed though!!

Old now and past his brilliant best but Gallen showed last year he still has it leading his team to their first ever NRL title, eats metre after metre and tackles everything that moves! What a career from the rock nugget! Captain of the fancies and leads from the front

Love my bench make up, Parcell offering the spark in the final twenty, incredible acceleration out of dummy half, Parcell would destroy tired, loitering forwards too slow getting out of the ruck
One of the best young props in the game, RCG bound for international and origin honours in the future offers great go forward after fifita and Mcguire are done marmalising the opposition. An absolute man mountain
Another absolute beast coming off the pine is Tariq Sims, struggles with the odd brain fart but when he has his head on, the boy is a tank
Rounding off the fancies is Sam Thaiday! Been there done that, be it needing extra leadership or a calming influence to kill off a game, Thaiday offers the versatility needed, always plays better in the big games, clutch performer! Thaiday is an icon in this generation of NRL!

Then we have Des Hasler, 2 premiership titles and a minor! Super Des has done it all! top 3 coach in the NRL and loves the big men, say hi Fifita and RCG!!

1. Cameron Munster
2. Latrell Mitchell
3. Will Chambers
4. Blake Ferguson
5. Dane Gagai
6. Johnathan Thurston (C) (GK)
7. Mitchell Pearce
8. Jesse Bromwich
9. Michael Ennis
10. Dylan Napa
11. Wade Graham
12. Luke Lewis
13. Sam Burgess

14. James Tamou
15. Adam Blair
16. Greg Bird
17. Dale Finucane

Coach: Craig Bellamy

The Leadership
Craig Bellamy is in my eyes the best coach of the modern era, bar none. The Storm are always a premiership threat and he is known are getting the absolute best out of all of his players. There's been extremely few players that leave the Storm that play better under someone else's leadership but the other way around? He turns spuds into strong players within the team. Everyone knows their role and plays their part. He's reason #1 why I believe this team goes the distance.


The Spine
Thurston in my mind is the greatest player playing the game, I don't think many people would argue. He's one of the top 3 best ever players. With him leading the side around the park it leaves Pearce to play what's in front of him which is what he does best. When Pearce doesn't have to worry about setting the team up he's up there with some of the best halfbacks around. Look what happened when he had Maloney with him at NRL level, premiership. Michael Ennis is a pest, but he's a winner. Speak to any Dogs fans and they'll tell you the positive impact he had on the team, he gets in the face of the opposition and he's now a premiership winner with the Sharks. He saved his best season for his last and is would serve the team well. Probably the third best hooker this season behind Smith and Hodgson. Then you've got Cameron Munster so I rate as the best young talent in the game, he's learnt at the feet of Billy Slater who's had an outstanding career. He's safe as houses can be the final pass to finish off tries and can score them himself. He's the future QLD #1 and Aus #1 for many years to come.

The Forwards
There is no better prop than Jesse Bromwich, none. Anyone trying to argue otherwise is fooling themselves. Footwork late at the line and gets through a mountain of work. Add in the Hitman Dylan Napa and teams won't get off the canvas after the first twenty minutes. Then you've got Slammin Sam Burgess playing at lock where he won a Clive Churchill medal, if needed he could play prop but I feel he's better in the lock role and has great leadership qualities for the younger guys around him. The second row Shark combo of Luke Lewis and Wade Graham is everything I need them to be, strong defensively and able to break the line. Luke Lewis is like a fine wine and continues to defy father time. He will never let you down. Add in potential future NSW captain Wade Graham who everyone knows is one of the best ball playing big men playing the game at the moment. Could you imagine the impact he would have running into holes off JT passes?


The Backs
To be honest not as strong as the rest of my team. That being said it's not at all weak. Will Chambers and Blake Ferguson are current representative players in their own right with Fergy playing ten times better when he's in a team full of talent. Has not set a foot wrong at rep level and with a team of this much quality that's all he has around him. Chambers is a match winner and went within a whisker of stealing the Storm a premiership. They'll be setting up their wingers for days. Gagai while playing for Newcastle still got picked for the QLD team and has scored 5 Origin tries in 3 games, a better strike rate than GI and one of only 7 players to score a hat trick at Origin level. He's got speed and enough natural talent to keep on scoring. Then Latrell Mitchell, who burst onto the scene this year. He's a player for the future, today. Speed, step, fend, try. GI lite at this stage of his career but he's an absolute beast. I can only imagine what the JT and Mitchell combo would be like, it would be Mango and JT all over again.

The Bench
Bromwich comes off and we lose size? Wrong. Enter James Tamou, NSW prop. Napa needs a rest and we have no one to carry the ball up? Adam Blair, NZ prop. Now since leaving the Storm he hasn't been great, but now he's back under the tutelage of Craig Bellamy, the man that knows exactly how to get the best out of him. He doesn't need to be anything other than a ball carrier and Bellyache knows that. Filling in for the second rowers we've got Greg Bird and Dale Finucane, the latter another Bellamy success story. Bird does his role, he's not going to act up around Bellamy - no one does. The bench has enough there to continue the momentum that our team builds over the course of the game with enough game breaking ability as well.

The Extras
The Last 3 Clive Churchill medal winners.
Johnathan Thurston
Luke Lewis
Sam Burgess

Wrap Up
With Thurston pulling the strings behind an absolute monster forward pack and Pearce allowed to play his natural game this team will score more than Rolf Harris at a Wiggles concert.

The Standard's

1  Jarryd Hayne (C)
2  Tom Trbojevic
3  BJ Leilua
4  Cody Walker
5  Suliasi Vunivalu
6  Blake Austin
7  Cooper Cronk
8  Aiden Tolman
9  Robbie Farah (C)
10 James Graham
11 Bryce Cartwright
12 Tohu Harris
13 Jack De Belin

14 Sam Kasiano
15 Leilani Latu
16 Sia Soliola
17 Jamie Buhrer

Coach: Shane Flanagan

Honeysett wrote:Speak to any Dogs fans...

This is where you lost me.

filthridden wrote:

This is where you lost me.

@leaguegod - he will tell you what Ennis meant to the Dogs.

Honeysett wrote:

@leaguegod - he will tell you what Ennis meant to the Dogs.

leaguegod is cool, I'll give you that but you said "fans" plural.
I still think it's unlikely that there are multiple bulldogs fans which I would want to converse with on any subject.