From The Couch: Grand Final Preview
From The Couch: Grand Final Preview
Grand Final Preview: This has been one of the strangest seasons in memory and this Grand Final is incredibly strange. But despite the weirdness of the year, there will be no strange Grand Final result … the Melbourne Storm will win and win well.
Melbourne have done what Melbourne always do. They have set the standard. They continue to be defensive powerhouses but this year have been sensational with ball in hand. They have the most magnificent spine, astonishing considering they have lost Billy Slater and Cooper Cronk. The rise of Ryan Papenhuyzen has been something to behold while they arguably have the best pack in the competition.
Penrith have achieved so much this year. Winning 17 straight is a mighty achievement. A young team has emerged from a pretty trying 2019 under a very clever coach. Their success has seemed somewhat tenuous though. I have been against them all year … one more game it is.
Melbourne have plenty of advantages. They are better coached. They have a more talented roster. They have more big-game experience. They have an ability to win playing different styles. This won’t be close. Melbourne deserve to be crowned premiers and they will be.
Let Cameon Smith Make His Call: Cameron Smith may not be the most brilliant player to ever grace a Rugby League field. He may not be the most aesthetically pleasing. He is though the most successful and arguably the greatest the game has known. No player has earned the right to dictate the time of his retirement more than Smith. If he does not know yet, so be it. The parade of idiots at News Limited led by king clown Paul Crawley have been painfully embarrassing trying to force a decision out of Smith, who has done a tremendous job in trolling them. Crawley should lose his job for his shameful take on Smith throughout the week. Smith is an icon of the game. His like may never be seen again. No player has ever had a higher floor. No player has come close to achieving what he has. No player has won like Smith. If he retires, the game will say farewell to a great. And if he doesn’t, we will be blessed with more of a legend.
Dally M Debacle: It should come as absolutely no surprise that an organisation that employs both Paul Crawley and Phil Rothfield would be incompetent enough to leak the Dally M results hours before they are broadcast. It was, nonetheless, galling and a terrible look for the game that has tried to eradicate its constant bungling and image self-harm. Alas, a joke of an awards night was once again a humiliating evening for Rugby League, a terrible shame when the game’s best players are being honoured. After last year’s betting scandal, one would have thought the NRL would have been more vigilant about the results of these awards.
The solution is simple and the NRL needs to adopt the following and stick with it:
- A panel of judges who understand the game to vote – ex-players and those who understand the sport
- Multiple voters for all games
- All votes kept secret
- Betting allowed
- All votes read at the awards night
- All votes published
The award needs transparency. It needs stability. It needs attention. PVL will step in on this and he should have it done by 2021.
2020 Field Goal Update – 18: Another weekend without field goals. How tremendously sad.
Fun Fact #1: Five teams in premiership history have won multiple titles but have a losing record in Grand Finals: Manly, Canterbury, Parramatta, Newtown and Western Suburbs,
Fun Fact #2: The Storm average a Grand Final once every 3.29 years – second behind only St George and South Sydney.
Fun Fact #3: Favourites have won 10 of the last 11 Grand Finals.
Betting Market of the Week: The NRL Grand Final will be marred by what kind of officiating error:
$3.50: Obvious missed forward pass from a touch judge
$7.00: An incorrect six again call
$2.50: A refusal to give an earned six again
$1.80: Bunker disaster
$4.00: Clive Churchill Medal given to wrong person
Rumour Mill: Canterbury have emerged as the front-runners for speedy pair James Roberts and Josh Addo-Carr. St George Illawarra have backed out of an attempt to sign unwanted Bronco Jack Bird. Referees boss Bernard Sutton is expected to be sacked once the season concludes.
The Coaching Crosshairs: Ivan Cleary is one of just two coaches in the Top 20 of most premiership games coached without a premiership (along with Brian Smith). He is obviously in no danger of losing his job but after 15 seasons and 341 games, this Sunday’s game could not be more important to his legacy.
Moronic Coaching Decision of the Week: Ricky Stuart leaving Tom Starling on the bench for 50 minutes against the Storm was the height of stupidity. Talk about overthinking it. Play your best players.
Beard Watch: Grand Final Facial Hair Top 5 Power Rankings
- Cameron Munster
- Ryan Papenhuyzen
- Josh Addo-Carr
- Brent Naden
- Kenny Bromwich
Watch It: This year marks the 40th anniversary of the greatest Grand Final try ever scored, that by Steve Gearin from Greg Bretnall’s towering kick. Watch the magnificent try here.
Souths have not been mentioned once by you in any of your play off From the Couch reports, so they must have been pretty good not to get a mention because if they were bad they definitely would have got a mention.
Love them or hate them, you have to respect the Storm who have lived out of a suitcase away from home for 5+ months and were still able to be as “Storm” as ever, if not more. The way they weren’t scared to throw the footy around in the first half of a wet grand final showed the confidence they had – they knew they were going to win before kick-off, again a ‘Storm” way to play the game.
Can we also put in the new broadcasting agreement that the Cheese gets interviewed after every game (whether he has played or not) and guarantee him a job at Fox Sports when he has retired. His 2 minutes was the only time I was glad I had the volume up throughout the broadcast (hate to sound old but how do we get the Festival of the Boot back?)
Woo hoo $1.80…might parlay that into the $4