From The Couch: Round 5
From The Couch: Round 5
Farewell Mr Rugby League: Not one person personified Rugby League more than Tommy Raudonikis and his passing will cast a long shadow over the game he loved and lived. Tommy was and is Rugby League. He is its past and he is its heart and he is all that is great and ugly and brutal and benevolent about the great game.
The game will not and should not ever forget Tommy. He lived the characteristics that make the game great and they in turn made him great. He was an outstanding player but has never been discussed as a potential Immortal. He was not a great coach. He was rough and ready and while he made for a good quote, was never a media personality. Yet he is Mr Rugby League, an ornament of the game who never took a backward step, who believed in the reward of hard work, who never no quarter, who believed in the ideals of fairness and of loyalty, who dreamt big and gave his all and lived and loved the game in a way we could all only dream of.
Everyone has Tommy stories. They will be told in perpetuity. They are the foundations of the game. I will leave that for those who knew him. I will say this though: his passing is a sad, sad day for Rugby League. We have lost arguably the most transcendent post-War figure the game has known. He was revered and respected and beloved by those who coached him through to those who knew him as a larrikin later in life.
The son of immigrants, who grew up in the small country town of Cowra, went on to become a giant of the game. That says all you need to know about Rugby League and all you need to know about Tommy.
Origin Teams Through 5 Rounds: If Origin teams were picked on form through five rounds, these are the teams we would be looking at:
NSW: James Tedesco, Josh Addo-Carr, Jack Wighton, Jack Bird, Alex Johnston; Cody Walker, Nathan Cleary; Daniel Saifiti, Damien Cook, Junior Paulo, Angus Crichton, Cameron Murray, Nathan Brown; Ryan Papenhuyzen, David Klemmer, Reagan Campbell-Gillard, Hudson Young
QLD: AJ Brimson; Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow, Dane Gagai, Kurt Capewell, Xavier Coates;Cameron Munster, Daly Cherry-Evans; Josh Papalii, Harry Grant, Christian Welch, David Fifita, Felise Kaufusi, Tino Fa’asuamaleaui; Kalyn Ponga, Jaydn Su’A,, Jai Arrow, Lindsay Collins
The Master: Dally Messenger may hold the nickname The Master but it is Wayne Bennett who arguably deserves the name for his ability to manipulate the narrative. A year after nearly single-handedly getting Anthony Seibold fired after a master campaign against him, sending the latter mad with his underhanded tactics and media mastery. This year he is going at the Broncos just for sport. Last week, with Souths playing the Broncos, Bennett had a story planted that he was returning to Brisbane and may consider a coaching director role at the Broncos. He would never go back. They would never want him. But it proved a great distraction for Brisbane and Bennett just sat back laughing. Never mess with Wayne. He doesn’t forget and he doesn’t forgive.
Betting Angle To Follow: Teams who finished in the Top 6 last year are an outstanding 12-2 against the spread this season when playing teams who finished in the Bottom 6 last year. The two non-covers have come from Parramatta, the team expected to be the worst of the top teams.
2021 Field Goal Update – 7: It was an outstanding week for the field goal with history made on Thursday night when Adam Reynolds slotted the first two-point field goal in a play that completely summed up his intelligence and skillset. Latrell Mitchell then added insult to injury with a late field goal to extend the margin to 29 on the stroke of full-time. Daly Cherry-Evans then slotted the match-winner for Manly in their clash with the Warriors.
Fun Fact #1: There have been four father-sons coach in premiership Rugby League: Don and David Furner, Peter and Ken Gentles, John and Stuart Raper and Craig and Dean Young.
Fun Fact #2: Tommy Raudonikis coached the Ipswich Jets to their maiden Grand Final appearance in 1988.
Fun Fact #3: Tommy Raudonikis is one of only four halfbacks to play 30-plus Tests for Australia – with Cooper Cronk Johnathan Thurston and Keith Holman.
Betting Market of the Week: Wayne Bennett’s next insult to the Broncos will be:
$2.50: Coaching the second Brisbane team
$4.00: Returning to the Broncos and then doing a Des Hasler
$6.00: Run up the next Souths scoreline against Brisbane to 80
$10.00: Attempt to win the next game against the Broncos by only kicking field goals
Rumour Mill: Jason Taumalolo and Josh McGuire have been rumoured to be seeking an out at the Cowboys. The Cowboys are prepared to let McGuire walk and he has been linked to the Dragons. The Taumalolo situation is significantly more delicate and they are unlikely to let their star walk. Jake Clifford could be released to the Knights as soon as this week if the Dragons are prepared to release Adam Clune. Gareth Widdop is reportedly in discussions with both Brisbane and Cronulla about a return to Australia this season.
The Coaching Crosshairs: John Morris has reportedly been given the hatchet treatment at Cronulla with Craig Fitzgibbon set to sign a big-money deal to take over the club in 2022. It is a harsh finale for Morris, who has led the Sharks to the finals in both seasons with a roster of underperforming big-money players and very little ability to recruit. Considering some of the coaches given second chances – or being allowed to continue on with their first – Morris can rightly consider himself extremely hardly done by. The Sharks cannot be faulted for looking for a coach that can take the club back to premiership contention. Fitzgibbon is a highly-rated assistant. He comes from a strong coaching tree. He likely does have the ability to recruit more talented players. Cronulla can only be applauded for making the courageous decision the likes of Canterbury, St George Illawarra and New Zealand have failed to make it recent years. It does not make the news for Morris any easier, who is far more qualified than a number of current head coaches in both ability to get his players to play for him and his ability ro recruit.
Moronic Coaching Decision of the Week: Ricky Stuart doesn’t pull the wrong rein too often but his reshuffled post-CNK injury was bizarre. He shifted Rapana to fullback and moved the slow and short Jarrod Croker to the wing. With TWO hookers on the bench, surely the play was to move Jack Wighton to fullback, Josh Hodgson to the halves and Tom Starling to hooker. Rapana is awful at fullback and Croker is barely a first grader these days.
Jersey Watch: What a terrible shame neither Canberra or Penrith played in throwback jerseys paying homage to the 1991 Grand Final teams. Surely Penrith and Canberra could have donned their Grand Final jerseys. It was a very disappointing moment in jersey history.
Watch It: Tommy Raudonikis has produced more content than one human possibly ever should, a highlight reel from his earliest playing days until his dying years. Here he absolutely dishes it to Jarryd Hayne. He may have been rough around the edges but he was rarely wrong. Watch it here.