Season 2010: Round 23

From the Couch

The Parramatta Eels are a Joke: It comes as no surprise that Parramatta have not won a premiership in nearly a quarter-century. Truth be told, they have never really come close and if the joint continues to act as unprofessionally as it does both on and off the field at present then it will be another quarter-century before they win another title.

The club should be embarrassed with how 2010 has gone. Not only has the club failed to live up to expectations on the field after entering 2010 as premiership favourites, there has been constant politicking and internal bickering as well as a failure to achieve anything substantial. The board is at it with the coach. The players are at it with the coach. The players are at it with the players. The old board is at it with the new board. The club cannot sign a single halfback they have chased yet they continue to negotiate in the public sphere. The club is a joke and it is difficult to imagine them pulling themselves from the mire anytime soon.

Last Friday rumours set off like wildfire that Daniel Anderson would be fired over the weekend if the Eels lost. An Eels victory did little to stop the rumours with most believing he will not be coaching the club next season despite taking the club to a Grand Final in 2009 and still having two years remaining on his contract. It was further rumoured and since confirmed that CEO Paul Osborne has chatted with Stephen Kearney with many on the Eels board of the belief that Kearney should be bought in because he will have a better relationship with the strong and powerful Polynesian contingent at the club. Kearney should be as insulted by such insinuations as Anderson. Another line of thought is that chairman Roy Spagnolo wants Anderson out because he was an appointment of former boss Denis Fitzgerald. Wigan coach Michael Maguire has also been approached while Spagnolo and Osborne are both believed to be big fans of Ricky Stuart. Spagnolo also allegedly wants to bring back disgraced former Sharks boss Tony Zappia as football manager.

That is far from the end of it with the undermining of coach Daniel Anderson also coming from the players. It has been wildly rumoured that Polynesian players do not respond to his methods and that players like Jarryd Hayne and Timana Tahu are unhappy with Anderson and want him out. Part of the reason Feleti Mateo and Krisnan Inu have moved to the Warriors is believed to be a dislike of Anderson. The veracity of these rumours are unknown but there is no doubt that the indifferent form of Hayne since signing a big deal in the offseason has added to Anderson’s problems. Hayne’s refusal to play structured rugby league has also contributed to the Eels poor showing this year. Senior players such as Hindmarsh and Cayless are thought to not be particularly close to many of the younger players they perceive as arrogant and relatively lazy.

Adding to all these dramas are the constant leaks emanating from the club, the continual sniping and the distractions over Parramatta’s failure to sign a big name halfback despite chasing hard publicly. The likes of Cooper Cronk, Brett Kimmorley and Trent Barrett have all looked past Parramatta Stadium despite showings of confidence from Parramatta.

It is little wonder these players have opted to avoid the Eels after the way favourite son Nathan Cayless was treated earlier in the year.

Parramatta are a joke and now Denis Fitzgerald is rallying the troops trying to reclaim control of the club. Things are going to get messy out Parra way and soon. Blood will flow, be sure and certain of that.

Inglis Heads North: To the surprise of absolutely nobody, Greg Inglis is heading north to Brisbane. Despite speculation that he would head to the Titans or the Bunnies or even stay at the Storm, Inglis signed on with Brisbane for two years. He expects to return to the Storm in two years but I fancy that move is unlikely.

As I wrote at Back Page Lead Click Here last week, releasing Inglis is a good move for Melbourne. The club can now afford to keep Adam Blair, Sika Manu and Dane Nielsen, adding class and size to the Storm pack. The Storm also have enough talent in the outside backs to replace Inglis.

Conspiracy theorists have had centre stage since the move with plenty querying the legitimacy of the transfer between one News Limited club and another, particularly with the speculation that Inglis is taking less money to play at Brisbane. Considering comments from Broncos boss Bruno Cullen that the club would not go above $400,000 for Inglis and that the club could not afford another marquee player, particularly in light of upgrading the contracts of younger players, re-signing Darren Lockyer and acquiring Ben Hannant, then the conspiracy theorists may not be too far off the mark.

Having said that, I don’t think there has been anything untoward going on. In this environment and with Brisbane being a public company, I don’t think the club would be stupid enough to breach the salary cap laws. Rather, I think Brisbane secured Inglis because, firstly, his girlfriend was moving there and secondly, Brisbane is a successful and professionally run club. On the second point, the success and the nature of the club allows the Broncos to sign players for under market value as well as attract plenty of legitimate corporate support to bump up contracts. All these factors are why Brisbane can afford Inglis and Hannant on top of the stars the clubs already has. Players will play for unders at the Broncos because their long term value increases, there are opportunities outside of rugby league to be found and there is an increased chance of on-field success.

The Inglis saga does, however, reinforce the need for the NRL to either adopt a centralised points-based salary cap with a spending cap or negotiate a deal with the players association where player’s salaries are public knowledge as is the case in US sports. Transparency is required to not only ensure the salary cap is adhered too but to squash the high degree of public cynicism that is damaging the image of the game. I have argued for both and not an ounce of progress has been made on either front. It is about time the NRL does something real and definitive with the salary cap rather than letting it slip, slide around in the murky reeds as it is at present. A little bit of leadership wouldn’t go astray. Neither would a more open mind to fresh ideas.

Bill Harrigan is a Goddamn Moron: Bill Harrigan’s decision to award Mark Gasnier a try against Manly was as moronic as it was arrogant and should surely see him rubbed out of the game for life. It was apparent to even the dumbest person watching (i.e Laurie Daley) that Gasnier bounced the ball. Even under the nit-picky separation rules it was apparent that no try would be flashed. Then Harrigan, in all his wisdom, awarded the Dragons a critical four points and the Eagles never got back in it. Harrigan is the second in charge of the referees and will probably come out this week and justify the decision. King of the Morons, Robert Finch, will also support the decision. It is a travesty that rugby league fans have to endure such stupidity. If Bill Harrigan becomes referees boss, something is going to get blown up, be sure and certain of that. If he is officiating next week, it is a disgrace. Bob Fulton and I rarely agree but Bozo’s calls that Harrigan is a blight on the game are spot on.

Steve Clark deserves the same rough treatment after giving Robbie Farah a try off a clear knock-on but I am sick of whipping that bastard for his stupidity and that was as much Robert Finch’s fault as Clark’s.

Three Hardheads Bid Us Adieu: Over the last week, three familiar faces have announced that 2010 will be the last time they will grace an NRL field with Steve Simpson, Mat Rogers and Luke Covell all set to retire.

Knight’s hard man Steve Simpson has retired already at the tender age of 30 after 216 games for Newcastle along with 13 games for New South Wales, 8 matches for Australia and 3 games for Country. A knee injury has finished him off. Simpson was a fine fringe runner in his day and the Maitland mauler sure could hit. Perhaps a little overrated but Simpson was a workhorse with skill and will long be a favourite son in the Hunter.

Mat Rogers is flying at present for the Titans and shocked the rugby league world by announcing his retirement. Rogers is 34 but after five seasons in rugby he looks as fresh as a daisy, appearing as if he never had to make a tackle or get tackled during the early part of the decade. Rogers could play his 200th match if the Titans reach a preliminary final and he has also played Origin and Test match league in what has been a fairly decent career as the son of a Sharks icon.

Luke Covell has never been the most talented player for either the Tigers or Cronulla but he has got the most out of his limited skill set and has played near on 150 matches as a solid winger who is the only player to have played for Country and New Zealand.

Every year retirements bring a pall over the league and like them or dislike them, the names Simpson, Rogers and Covell have become familiar faces in the League over the last decade and all will be severely missed.

Meeting Brendan Cowell: It was pleasing to see avid Cronulla fan Brendan Cowell down the Rising Sun in South Melbourne to watch his beloved Sharks roll those dastardly Roosters. He wasn’t shy in going the cheer and he smashed the table when calls went against him. Outstanding passion from a diehard league man with even Cowell shocked by Ben Pomeory’s one handed intercept, perhaps the most amazing event in the history of rugby league. With Cowell now ticked off for Cronulla, here are the fifteen other clubs most famous fans I expect to see cheering on their team in the very near future:

Brisbane: Karl Stefanovic (television presenter, drunk)

Canberra: Brad Haddin (cricketer, opponent of Kostya Tszyu)

Canterbury: Don Burke (gardening guru, grump)

Gold Coast: Joel Parkinson (surfer)

Manly: Peter Phelps (actor, Abo Henry)

Melbourne: Ben Mendhelson (actor, the new Bill Hunter)

Newcastle: Jennifer Hawkins (hottie, dumped by Clint Newton)

New Zealand: David Batista (wrestler)

North Queensland: Rachael Finch (hottie)

Parramatta: Don King (boxing promoter, massive hair)

Penrith: Bindi Irwin (crocodile child, enemy of my enemy Catherine Deveny)

Souths: Snoop Dogg (rapper, star of Old School, weed lover)

Roosters: Mark McInnes (David Jones boss, alleged sexual harasser)

Dragons: John Howard and Mark Latham (2004 election combatants, one a champion, the other a nut now working for Sixty Minutes)

Tigers: Anthony Field (Wiggle)

Pinching Rugby’s Lot: It has been reported extensively over the weekend that Parramatta are chasing rugby international Quade Cooper. There is as much chance of the Eels signing Cooper as there is of a week going by without a leak from the Parramatta camp. The club is being used but as per usual they are too stupid to see it. There is a World Cup next year and Cooper is viewed by rugby experts as the Wallabies key player. There is no way that the ARU won’t bump up their offer and they will bump it up even more now the Eels have gotten involved. I have no idea who Quade Cooper is or how talented he may be but I do know he is using the NRL to get a decent price. And trust the club who has missed out on Cooper Cronk, Brett Kimmorley, Trent Barrett and even looked into Brent Sherwin to fall for it. Parramatta are a club on the verge of falling apart.

Super League v ARL-34 Players you have forgotten from 1997:

 

	Super League	ARL
1	Damon Booby (Can)	Shane Kenword (Dra)
2	Royston Lightning (Can)	Evan Cochrane (New)
3	Danny Grimley (Ade)	Russell Wyer (Par)
4	Craig Wise (Hun)	FRank Napoli (GC)
5	Fred Petersen (Pen)	Johnathan Britten (Ill)
6	Shane Endacott (War)	Willie Newton (Wes)
7	Steve Stone (Ade)	Steven Jolly (Bal)
13	Gordon Falcom (Pen)	Andrew Tanga-Toa (Dra)
12	Kyle Warren (Cow)	Hudson Smith (Bal)
11	Bert Tabuai (Cow)	Des Clark (GC)
10	Michael Smith (Bul)	Brenton Pommery (Nor)
9	Paul Fisher (Cro)	Cole Skelly (Sou)
8	Grant Young (War)	Steele Retchless (Cru)
14	Bruce Mamando (Ade)	Troy Pezet (Cru)
15	James Pickering (Bul)	Matthew Guberina (Man)
16	Tiaan Strauss (Cro)	Michael Ostini (Sou)
17	Earmann Edgar (Per)	Chad Halliday (Roo)

 

What I Learned from Twitter This Week: Eddy Pettybourne allegedly snores and stinks, according to Sam Burgess, while the same pom is of the opinion that Terry Campese needs to admit he is bald rather than clutching to his few remaining locks.

The Plumber’s Crack: I have always enjoyed Nathan Hindmarsh’s low-riding shorts, a sort of wink to a day gone by with Hindmarsh being more footballer than athlete. I can’t help but think we saw a little too much of Nathan Hindmarsh’s ass last Friday when Hindmarsh went down with his pants around his ankles though. He was later pantsed again. A little crack is okay Hindy…there is no need for the full moon however.

Going Out on a High: Luke O’Donnell looks to have played his last game in the NRL after picking up a knee injury as the Cowboys got touched-up by the Titans. This author couldn’t be happier. O’Donnell’s injury came after he was sin-binned for slapping around Nathan Friend. O’Donnell was somehow surprised he was binned. I couldn’t be happier that I will no longer need to see this grub gone from Australian shores.

Fun Fact #1: Below are the following election year Grand Final results since mandatory deciders came into being in 1954:

2007: Melbourne 34, Manly 8
2004: Canterbury 16, Roosters 13
2001: Newcastle 30, Parramatta 24
1998: Brisbane 38, Canterbury 12
1996: Manly 20, St. George 8
1993: Brisbane 14, St. George 6
1990: Canberra 18, Penrith 14
1987: Manly 18, Canberra 8
1984: Canterbury 6, Parramatta 4
1983: Parramatta 18, Manly 6
1980: Canterbury 18, Roosters 4
1977: St. George 22, Parramatta 0 (Replay after 9-9 draw)
1975: Roosters 38, St. George 0
1974: Roosters 19, Canterbury 4
1972: Manly 19, Roosters 14
1969: Balmain 11, Souths 2
1967: Souths 12, Canterbury 11
1966: St. George 23, Balmain 4
1964: St. George 11, Balmain 6
1963: St. George 8, Wests 3
1961: St. George 22, Wests 0
1958: St. George 20, Wests 9
1955: Souths 12, Newtown 11
1954: Souths 23, Newtown 15

Fun Fact #2: St. George have won the most premierships in election years with 6 titles. The last, however, came in 1977. The Dragons are 6-3 all-time in election years.

Fun Fact #3: Manly (3-2) and Souths (3-1) have each won three premierships in election years while the Roosters (2-3), Canterbury (2-3) and Brisbane (2-0) have each won twice in election years.

Fun Fact #4: Manly have played in the Grand Final the last three times government has changed hands and four of the last five times power has switched between parties: 1969, 1983, 1996 and 2007

Fun Fact #5: Grand Final records/Premierships for current teams by ruling party.

 

Team	GF Record/Premierships	Under Coalition	Under ALP
Brisbane	6-0	4-0	2-0
Canberra	3-2	0-0	3-2
Canterbury	8-8	4-4	4-4
Cronulla	0-3	0-2	0-1
Gold Coast	0-0	0-0	0-0
Manly	7-10	4-8	3-2
Melbourne	3-2	2-1	1-1
Newcastle	2-0	2-0	0-0
New Zealand	0-1	0-1	0-0
Nth Qld	0-1	0-1	0-0
Penrith	2-1	1-0	1-1
Parramatta	4-6	2-3	2-3
Roosters	12-14	7-13	5-1
Dragons*	0-1	0-1	0-0
Souths	2-13	19-10	1-3
West Tigers*	1-0	1-0	0-0

 

*St. George (15-12) went 14-5 under Coalition rule and 1-7 under Labor rule while Illawarra never played in a Grand Final.
*Balmain (11-9) went 6-5 under Coalition rule and 5-5 under Labor while Western Suburbs (4-8) went 2-8 under Coalition rule 2-0 under Labor.

Fun Fact #6: Manly and the Roosters have markedly better records under Labor while Dragons and Souths fans should be cheering a Coalition win this Saturday.

Bonus Fun Fact Heard at a Pub: Chris Heighington once gave away rugby league as a junior to pursue body boarding while Gavin Cooper did same to pursue BMX riding.

Willie M Medal Voting: And Anthony Watmough, the dumbest player in the NRL, would have copped 12 points if I had the power to do so such was his goddamn stupidity on Monday night.

 

Brisbane-Parramatta	3-Josh Hoffman (Bri)
	2-Krisnan Inu (Par)
	1-Jharal Yow Yeh (Bri)
Cronulla-Roosters	3-Phil Graham (Roo)
	2-John Morris (Cro)
	1-Jason Ryles (Roo)
Gold Coast-Cowboys	3-Arana Taumata
	2-Willie Tonga (Cow)
	1-Ben Harris (Cow)
Canterbury-Canberra	3-Bryson Goodwin (Bul)
	2-Mickey Paea (Bul)
	1-Joel Monaghan (Can)
Warriors-Newcastle	3-Kurt Gidley (New)
	2-Adam MacDougall (New)
	1-Bill Tupou (War)
Melbourne-Souths	3-Issac Luke (Sou)
	2-Chris Sandow (Sou)
	1-Brett White (Mel)
Tigers-Penrith	3-Travis Burns (Pen)
	2-Sam McKendry (Pen)
	1-Daine Laurie (Pen)
Dragons-Manly	3-Anthony Watmough (Man)
	2-Glenn Stewart (Man)
	1-Tony Williams (Man)
Leaderboard	17-Carl Webb (Cow)
	16-James Maloney (War), Max Minichiello (GC), Chris Sandow (Sou)
	15-Preston Campbell (GC)
	14-Krisnan Inu (Par), Ben Pomeroy (Cro)
	13-Tim Smith (Cro)
	12-Scott Dureau (New), Josh McCrone (Can), Joseph Tomane (GC)
	11-Brett Kimmorley (Bul), Dave Taylor (Sou)
	10-Trent Barrett (Cro)

 

 

Rumour Mill: As noted above, the rumour mill went into overdrive last Friday that Daniel Anderson would be fired over the weekend had the Eels lost against Brisbane on Friday. It has been rumoured that Eels CEO Paul Osborne met with Stephen Kearney to discuss his interest in taking over the role. It is believed Jarryd Hayne and Timana Tahu are both offside with Anderson while another rumour has it that chairman Roy Spagnolo is trying to rid the club of Anderson because he was a Dennis Fitzgerald appointment. Anderson most likely will be fired if the club does not reach the semi-finals. The knives are certainly out for him. Parramatta are also said to be chasing rugby player Quade Cooper though the likelihood is Cooper is just using the club to force the ARU into a bigger contract. One well-known recruitment officer’s gambling problem is becoming increasingly concerning for club officials. Matt Gidley is believed to be considering a farewell season at the Knights with Rick Stone keen to sign him. Laurie Daley is believed a certainty to be coaching the Blues next season.

Power Rankings:

 

Rank	Team	Record	Last Week	High	Low
1	Dragons	15-6	1	1	2
2	Gold Coast	13-8	3	2	10
3	West Tigers	13-8	6	2	8
4	Roosters	12-9	2	1	11
5	Brisbane	11-10	4	4	15
6	Manly	11-10	5	2	10
7	Warriors	13-8	9	3	13
8	Penrith	12-9	8	2	11
9	Souths	10-11	7	2	16
10	Parramatta	10-11	11	3	13
11	Canberra	10-11	12	9	15
12	Newcastle	9-12	10	10	15
13	Canterbury	7-14	13	5	13
14	Cronulla	6-15	15	12	15
15	Cowboys	5-16	14	12	15
*	Melbourne	12-9	*	*	*

 

 

Where the Melbourne Storm Would Be If: The Storm certainly would have covered the start yesterday had they been playing for points and Cameron Smith certainly wouldn’t have rocked up to play after a week in Port Douglas holidaying with his family. It showed as Smith took the better part of four tackles to get back onside during the first 30 minutes of the match.

Game of the Year Nomination, Round 23: Cronulla-Roosters, 18-12. It wasn’t a bad weekend of footy but there were no standout matches. The Sharks-Roosters clash on Friday night was probably the best match. It certainly went down to the wire with the scores locked at 12-12 when Nathan Gardner scored a nice try to finish the match off and give the Sharks a famous victory. Gardner has made a name for himself this year and he has made it with two superb performances against the Roosters. The match also included an unlikely Ben Pomeroy intercept try, two Todd Carney 40/20’s and some big hits from Roosters big bopper Mose “The Accountant” Masoe. Overall, it was an entertaining affair with the Sharks earning a well deserved victory.

Exchanges with Fisk: Fisk actually made it down to Melbourne this weekend where much vodka was consumed and very little remembered. I rolled an ankle, Fisk found the Rising Sun and we found out that Olympic Park did indeed host an Origin match. Many of the exchanges required censorship. There was one call, however, that stood out with Fisky exclaiming high in the stands of AAMI Park that With Souths down 18-10 and on the attack, Fisky proclaimed: “If Souths score here, they will win the premiership.” I think he meant match but I couldn’t be sure. Fisk also reiterated his love for his boy Justin Poore, whom he considers a top-class player despite a season of evidence to the contrary.

Coaching Stocks:

Wayne Bennett [5] The most impressive aspect of his work at the Dragons is the desperation defence he has instilled.

Craig Bellamy [4.5] The fact the Storm are still playing hard at home makes this Bellamy’s finest hour.

John Cartwright [4.5] Carty has the Titans flying and the move of Rogers to six is working well. He is a top mentor.

John Lang [4] A gallant effort from the Bunnies with so many injuries in Melbourne. Season on the brink now.

Brian Smith [3.5] Embarrassing loss to the Sharks. Smith has never won a title. Have the Chooks peaked too early?

Ivan Henjak [3.5] The Broncs looked lost without Locky, who could be done for 2010. Gillett at six was boneheaded.

Ivan Cleary [3.5] The Warriors are really sneaking up the table. Maximising tools at the moment. Get it to Vatuvei.

Tim Sheens [3] The Tigers bounced back with an impressive win over Penrith. Need more day matches.

Des Hasler [2.5] Manly played some awfully dumb football against the Dragons. Not sure if they are smart enough.

Matt Elliott [2] The Panthers have fallen away badly. They could miss the finals. Going like busteds.

David Furner [1.5] With more to play for, the Raiders got home late against the Dogs. Doubt he will get job done.

Rick Stone [0.5] Knights tried hard against Warriors and Stone should be applauded for work done in 2010.

Kevin Moore [0.5] Another ordinary effort from Canterbury. Time to blood some kids for 2011.

Daniel Anderson [0.5] Massive win for the Eels but Anderson’s job still on the line. He has been treated very poorly.

Shane Flanagan [0.5] A huge win to kick off Flanagan’s career. Needs to lock in Gardner for life. He is a star.

Neil Henry [-10] 2011 in England is looking more and more likely.

Obscure Scores of the Week: The AMNRL staged the first week of its eight-team single elimination playoffs over the weekend. Below are the following results:

New Haven Warriors 80, Fairfax Eagles 26
Jacksonville Axemen defeated Connecticut Wildcats via forfeit
Aston Bulls 40, Philadelphia Fight 30
New York Knights 28, D.C Slayers 22

Three-time AMNRL winners Connecticut unfortunately had to forfeit to the Axemen due to a debilitating injury list that left the club unable to field a team. The New Haven Warriors, led by former Shark Jye Mullane and Bronco Tony Duggan, had few problems in smashing Fairfax 80-26, the third straight week the Warriors have put on 80-plus points making them the new competition favourites. Daniel Wagon led the Aston Bulls to a 40-36 win over Philadelphia while defending champions New York held off the D.C Slayers in a thriller. This week minor premiers New Haven take on New York while Jacksonville host the Aston Bulls.

Stats from the Special Needs Penguin: Ben Pomeroy amazingly took a one-handed intercept before juggling the ball three times and then racing 50-metres to score a try as Cronulla marched to an 18-12 win over the Roosters. It is the most sensational, unbelievable and astonishing moment in the 115 year history of the code. I went and checked myself immediately into hospital afterwards believing I was on some strange acid trip I’d never escape from. The Special Needs Penguin certainly flew last Friday.

The Queanbeyan Kangaroos 2010 Campaign: A 52-22 win over the Tuggeranong Bushrangers and a Scholars win over Yass has seen the Kangaroos lock in second place while the Scholars have taken out the minor premiership. The Kangaroos have again hit form and they are doing so at the right time of season as the likes of Gorrell and Robinson carve the league to shreds. Results this week determined the top four with Goulburn and Gungahlin rounding out the top four. The Kangaroos will now contest the major semi-final against Scholars in a fortnight with a warm-up match against Yass in what should have the boys flying high heading into the finals.

Fantasy Team of the Week:

1.Jarryd Hayne (Par)
2. Michael Gordon (Pen)
3. Steve Michaels (GC)
4. Josh Morris (Bul)
5. Manu Vatuvei (War)
6. Benji Marshall (Tig)
7. Scott Prince (GC)
13. Corey Parker (Bri)
12. Andrew Fifita (Tig)
11. Gareth Ellis (Tig)
10. Nate Myles (Roo)
9. Robbie Farah (Tig)
8. Luke Bailey (GC)

Waiver Wire Advice: Owners who have kept Issac Luke throughout his shoulder injury are regretful right now as Luke has not stepped up to the mark post-injury as the finals of Supercoach take place. Luke has been okay over the last fortnight with scores of 61 and 66 but turned in a shocker against the Storm on Sunday where he dropped everything as the Storm went hard at the Souths hooker. At his price tag of $360k-plus, it is time to dump him (if it isn’t too late) and pick up a Robbie Farah or Cameron Smith.

Lazy Long Bay Days, Part 24: Danny has not been able to sleep since he heard that Greg Inglis was on the move to Brisbane. He turns as white as a sheet when he gets word John Elias is in the waiting room. After some small talk, Elias brings up the proposed fix. Wicks tells Elias he is sorry but the Storm boys are out. “”Ever hear that story about the McDonalds car park, Danny?” askes Elias. Wicks nods. “Think about that next time you chat to Wally and you be sure and tell the Storm boys too.”

Beard Watch: Beards are starting to make a nice comeback at the backend of the season with recalled Broncos prop Scott Anderson the latest player to get all woolly. Anderson is not alone with a number of Knights forwards, the entire Warriors team and any number of Storm players getting in on the action over the last fortnight. Hopefully Scott Anderson can lock down an NRL spot now he has pulled out the big and beardy look.

Watch It: The 1995 Grand Final is perhaps my favourite moment in rugby league and September of that year, as the Bulldogs made an unlikely charge from sixth, is certainly a month I enjoyed more than any other in my two-plus decades in the code. It was a time of great excitement with many of my favourites running around. The mighty Chris Anderson mentored a Terry Lamb skippered team that included the likes of Simon Gillies, Craig Polla-Mounta, Daryl Halligan, Jason Hetherington. Robert Relf, Darren Britt and Matt Ryan. Those champions overcame the adversity of four traitors turning their back on the club to win four straight semi-final matches as an underdog in what was one of the most likable and charming teams ever to go the distance. The Bulldogs allowed only three tries all finals while Terry Lamb spent time in the sin bin twice. Sadly, You Tube has no footage of the 1995 Grand Final in what may be the biggest tragedy ever to hit the world. Never mind. Here Is a super try from “the magician” Terry Lamb in what set the wheels in motion for a Bulldogs win for a 25-6 preliminary final victory against Canberra. A week later the Bulldogs would smoke Manly 17-4. Terry Lamb held aloft the Winfield Cup in what was, at the time, his final match. It was a wonderful time to be alive.

Correspondence Corner: I received an email this week from a long-time reader and friend who did not wish to be named. He taunted me by directing me to the new book of Alan Whiticker and Ian Collis “The Top 10 of Rugby League”. More specifically, he wanted to know what my thoughts were of the Top 10 Coaches, a list that does not include Chris Anderson, the man I consider a champion mentor and the third best coach of all-time.

Well, Anonymous, while I enjoyed the book very much and it opened the memory bank along with the rugby league senses, I was incredibly disappointed that Anderson missed the list, seen here:

1. Jack Gibson
2. Wayne Bennett
3. Ken Kearney
4. Harry Bath
5. Arthur “Pony” Holloway
6. Phil Gould
7. Norm Provan
8. Jack Rayner
9. Tim Sheens
10. Bob Fulton

It is very difficult, as the authors note, to get a grip on the old coaches. The record of Jack Gibson speaks for itself and Harry Bath won two titles with a young Dragons team and did a stellar job taking Balmain to two Grand Finals.

“Pony” Holloway won eight premierships at two different clubs as both a playing and non-playing coach so he needs to be included. Ken Kearney developed the formula for the great Dragons decade of dominance. Provan was a tremendous leader who led not only the Saints to glory as captain-coach but took Parramatta to the semi-finals in 1975 before leading Cronulla to a Grand Final replay in 1978.

There is some dispute over Rayner as a coach though. Jack Rayner led Souths to five titles in the fifties but when he moved to Parramatta he had a record of 7-47 with three wooden spoons in three seasons.

More tellingly are the records of the modern coaches with only Wayne Bennett having a clear edge on Anderson. It strikes me as debatable that Phil Gould and Tim Sheens would be included and Anderson overlooked and it strikes me as madness that anybody in their right mind would consider Bob Fulton a better coach than Opes.

In terms of premierships, Sheens has won 4 in 25 seasons while Gould has 2 in 12 and Fulton 2 in 17. Anderson has 2 in 15. Sheens, Gould and Anderson both won premierships at 2 different clubs. Fulton did not. Sheens is 4-1 in Grand Finals while Gould and Anderson are both 2-1. Fulton is 2-4.

In terms of finals campaigns, Anderson guided his teams to September 8 times in 15 years at a strike rate of 53.3%. Sheens is 10 from 25 at 40%, Gould is 7 from 12 at 58.3% and Fulton is 14 of 17. Fulton had the benefit of much of his success in the Arko years though and it is debatable how well he would have done had Manly not been running the League.

Rep records have Gould as the best Blues coach in history with a 14-9-1 record and six series wins. Sheens, Fulton and Anderson have all coached Australia with Sheens the current mentor, owning a record of 5-1 though he lost the 1991 Origin series as coach of New South Wales. Fulton has a 30-6-1 record including World Cup wins in 1992 and 1995. Anderson went 21-3 as coach of Australia, winning the 2000 World Cup.

On premierships, Anderson rates with Gould and Sheens ahead of Fulton because Fulton lost far more Grand Finals than the rest. In terms of semi-finals, Fulton gets the nod but the fact he had better teams counts against him. Gould, Fulton and Anderson have a slight edge on Sheens in terms of rep footy. On all this it is clear than Anderson rates above Bob Fulton and he probably has an edge over Sheens and Gould. It is disgraceful that he was overlooked for the list.