Speaker 1: Oh you know, and welcome back to the Mad Monday Podcast.
Speaker 1: There's always brought to you by four and twenty pis
Speaker 1: the perfect at home snack for watching the rugby League.
Speaker 1: My name is Minia Stewart. I'm joining the studio this
Speaker 1: fine Monday afternoon by Die Henwood. Good morning, Die, Good afternoon.
Speaker 1: I've I did a rewatcher the game. I thought I
Speaker 1: wasn't going to, but I did. I did my Monday
Speaker 1: morning catch up on the bits and bobs I've missed
Speaker 1: and then sort of start just put that game on
Speaker 1: and got transfixed and it wasn't better. That it wasn't
Speaker 1: better the second time. I was just going to say this,
Speaker 1: I did the exact same thing this morning. I was
Speaker 1: at the game and about twenty minutes into it, whenever
Speaker 1: they scored their second try the Eels, I was like,
Speaker 1: I can't do this and I turned my back on
Speaker 1: the On the game, I was treated to some corporate hospitality,
Speaker 1: so I hit the buffet pretty hard.
Speaker 2: I have to say it was we were commentating looking
Speaker 2: directly at I suppose the oldest school fans just under
Speaker 2: the coach's box. Yeah, and that's the first time in
Speaker 2: a while I've seen a straight up walk out from
Speaker 2: that section. Yeah, it was just tough viewing because we
Speaker 2: I was getting nervous when we had about ten to
Speaker 2: fifteen minutes on their line and just couldn't score. Yeah,
Speaker 2: then they scored three times the next three times they
Speaker 2: got the ball, Yes, yeah they did.
Speaker 1: And it was for me it was the way they
Speaker 1: scored those tries as well. There was just it just
Speaker 1: looked like they just ghosted straight through gaps out on
Speaker 1: our each defense. And when you're at the game, I
Speaker 1: was saying this, I think on the Agenda podcast this morning.
Speaker 1: When you're at the game, you know, the crowd rules
Speaker 1: for our tries, but there's no reaction when they score,
Speaker 1: and so it's just dead silent and you're all sort
Speaker 1: of sitting there with your own thoughts, like, damn, what happened.
Speaker 2: There that Jake Tungold try. I think the first one
Speaker 2: that was a beautiful play, oh yeah, but then the
Speaker 2: next two were just straight through one on one missus.
Speaker 2: This is where we really miss Rock o'berry, who is
Speaker 2: the best one on one tackler in the comp. Yeah. Oh,
Speaker 2: for sure.
Speaker 1: We talk about like the best defenders in the comp.
Speaker 1: He's been one of them. And you know, I know,
Speaker 1: we go on about the injuries, but it is real.
Speaker 1: We are the most injured squad in the competition. But
Speaker 1: even then, it's like it's just the way they were
Speaker 1: coming through. If you didn't watch the game and you
Speaker 1: only saw the score line at the end, you could
Speaker 1: be tricked into thinking that it was a much closer
Speaker 1: game than it was. We laid on I think about
Speaker 1: sixteen points in the last ten minutes.
Speaker 2: Yeah, like it was looking very grim. Then they got
Speaker 2: sinburn and then we just ran the numbers on that side. Yeah,
Speaker 2: And it's weird. We we played with so much urgency
Speaker 2: towards the end. I know, but it seems so casual in.
Speaker 1: The first seventy four minutes.
Speaker 2: Seventy four minutes, and when I watched other games, our
Speaker 2: kicking game just doesn't seem on point.
Speaker 1: Often for no one, you know what I mean. Yeah,
Speaker 1: a little bit shapeless, like you're not packing out a
Speaker 1: guy and just been not right, we're gonna bomb Dws's corner,
Speaker 1: or you know, we're dribbling it into the golf of
Speaker 1: this or that. You're right, it's like we're just kicking
Speaker 1: because you have to kick on the last and I
Speaker 1: think we've had that for the entire season, haven't we. Yeah.
Speaker 2: I was running some numbers again to try and get
Speaker 2: a mathematical prediction of if we can make the eight,
Speaker 2: and we sort of technically could. But what's hurting us
Speaker 2: is all those teams that were around us last year
Speaker 2: have suddenly got a lot better dogs, manly even Dragons, Titans,
Speaker 2: Dragons beating Melbourne and shout out to Melbourne making the
Speaker 2: eight fourteen times and fourteen years, that's ridiculous, and the
Speaker 2: Warriors making the eight nine times in thirty years.
Speaker 1: Jesus Christ.
Speaker 2: I mean, it's not a fun stant No, it's not
Speaker 2: you watching how because you know I was doing all
Speaker 2: the math as well before this game came in.
Speaker 1: You know, we got the buyer in the last round,
Speaker 1: so it's like to add that to our telling. Now,
Speaker 1: then if we win this one, you could conceivably convince
Speaker 1: yourself where in the top eight it gets dire. Now,
Speaker 1: we can still make it if we if we rattled
Speaker 1: off four, But after watching that game, like you said
Speaker 1: the replay, it felt even worse. That is not a
Speaker 1: team that's about to rattle off four games in a
Speaker 1: row to go into the finals.
Speaker 2: Is it no, and we've got heavyweight games Dolphins, Bulldogs,
Speaker 2: Sharks and Seagulls. Is it segs?
Speaker 1: I think it might be.
Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah it is. And they're all form teams. I
Speaker 2: mean that Bulldogs team. They're having a year we had. Yes, yeah,
Speaker 2: you're right. And it's interesting because I look at the Bulldogs.
Speaker 2: We're very similar right where we came in to take
Speaker 2: over from us the same time Cam Serraldo took over there.
Speaker 2: He had a shocker last year, but it's because they
Speaker 2: completely rejuvenated their squad.
Speaker 1: Well, we got them all mont.
Speaker 2: And so they sacked a lot of players and they've
Speaker 2: now got an exact squad they want. We bought thinking
Speaker 2: this year was the year we're going to win the
Speaker 2: premiership big time. We've got Ryan Hoffman. I was listening
Speaker 2: to the Wars Up TV guy. He made a good point.
Speaker 2: Sorry not Ryan Hoffman, Kirk Capewell. He made a good point.
Speaker 2: He said, Kirk cap Well is a real Ryan Hoffman
Speaker 2: type purchase. He's not doing anything wrong, but he's not
Speaker 2: going to break the game open.
Speaker 1: And I just think it was like the Kirk kpe
Speaker 1: bar thing was like anytime you got an opportunity to
Speaker 1: sign Kirk Cape, well to your rugby league franchise. You
Speaker 1: do it. Also, on top of that, there was the
Speaker 1: Penrith sort of Wavy Cape situation. But I just you're right.
Speaker 1: I don't know. I don't know if it was what
Speaker 1: we needed, although I don't really know how the salary
Speaker 1: cap works in.
Speaker 2: The NFL, whether we miss Justin Morgan, yeah, coaching like, yeah,
Speaker 2: just I can't nothing. There's nothing I can put my
Speaker 2: finger on. It's going to be said, see Jazz go. Yeah,
Speaker 2: for sure.
Speaker 1: I don't think he and I were going to become
Speaker 1: fast friends anytime soon, unfortunately.
Speaker 2: But it was like he had just got the errors
Speaker 2: out of his game, he had just got a lot
Speaker 2: of the penalties out of his game. Then he's been
Speaker 2: let go. We're obviously banking on a lot of these
Speaker 2: young guys, but they need game time. I think I
Speaker 2: think you're right.
Speaker 1: Seraldo's got the club that he wants over at the Bulldogs.
Speaker 1: I think we need to give Wibe time to get
Speaker 1: the kinds of player because there is a kind of
Speaker 1: player he wants, and I think we need to give
Speaker 1: him time to get them. And God knock on wood,
Speaker 1: we can keep them on the park. We're going to
Speaker 1: talk very shortly about how.
Speaker 2: Have yeah, have we signed anyone for next year? Aside
Speaker 2: from James Fish.
Speaker 1: We have signed James Fisher, Harris none that I've no
Speaker 1: big names or no big names, but I do think
Speaker 1: I reckon there's another couple of couple of shots to
Speaker 1: be fired. But just on the weekend, I just I
Speaker 1: can't get past the fact that they're sicking from the table.
Speaker 1: And I know that on paper the Eels are actually
Speaker 1: better than how this season has gone, but they're missing
Speaker 1: some big players as well. You know, Mike Sivo, Mitch Moses.
Speaker 2: Yeah, they didn't have this starting half. Why am I
Speaker 2: forgetting the props name Junior Polo?
Speaker 1: So like, there's all these guys out for them, but
Speaker 1: still just to lose to the second last place team
Speaker 1: on the latter as a real heartbreaker for me, and
Speaker 1: I don't think that it builds the kind of confidence
Speaker 1: that we need to win four games in a row.
Speaker 1: And if I had to put it, like put that
Speaker 1: lost down to one thing, probably the spot.
Speaker 2: I obviously want to reach for injuries straight away, but I'm.
Speaker 1: Like, I just feel like when we when we let
Speaker 1: a couple of tries in, it opens the flood gates
Speaker 1: a little bit. I don't know what it is or
Speaker 1: who's fault it is, you know, I just wonder, like
Speaker 1: they get behind the sticks, Are they having a yarn?
Speaker 1: Are they pointing fingers?
Speaker 2: What worries me is the stat that we have won
Speaker 2: four out of nine at Mount Smart this year. Yeah,
Speaker 2: one was a drawing it yeah, it's well yeah one
Speaker 2: of the so one was a draw. But so, yeah
Speaker 2: we've won.
Speaker 1: I suppose you could call that fifty to fifty, but you.
Speaker 2: Know that that should be our fortress. Yeah. I also
Speaker 2: I worried about this at the beginning of the season.
Speaker 2: We don't maybe look quite as fit as some of
Speaker 2: the other teams, so maybe we need one hell of
Speaker 2: an off season. There's the elephant in the room of
Speaker 2: are we going to resign Sewan Johnson?
Speaker 1: Yeah, I mean he's yeah. Asked about that ad nauseum.
Speaker 2: He was what's going to happen to to Harris.
Speaker 1: Out for the rest of the season.
Speaker 2: Yeah.
Speaker 1: I I really don't know with Sewan Johnson. One, if
Speaker 1: I had to guess, I would say yes he re
Speaker 1: signs because he has been offered contracts from other clubs
Speaker 1: and I don't think that no matter where you're out
Speaker 1: in your career, you ever turned down guaranteed money when
Speaker 1: it's in six figures, you know, even if you get
Speaker 1: to tape yourself together.
Speaker 3: Oh, because then the tigers throw I think the roosters
Speaker 3: as well. The roosters, yeah, both of them. So you know,
Speaker 3: I don't think it doesn't matter how much money you
Speaker 3: got someone offers you three, four or five six hundred
Speaker 3: thousand dollars a year. I think you just take it
Speaker 3: and figure it out.
Speaker 2: And I think what hurts is like You've got Dallen
Speaker 2: who is daily and winner, winner of the year. You've
Speaker 2: got Sean who what's the daisy? To be honest, you
Speaker 2: know he got pipped at the post. They both dipped
Speaker 2: in form. Well, our attacking structure is different. I'd have
Speaker 2: to say Wade is maybe dipped in form, but he
Speaker 2: takes so much traffic in the middle. It's an interesting
Speaker 2: one and it's a very rude awakening for Webee because
Speaker 2: he sort of started had the golden start.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I think because I was talking to my dad
Speaker 1: about it yesterday and I was like, if I had
Speaker 1: to put my finger on one thing, there was the
Speaker 1: difference between last year and this year. It is as
Speaker 1: simple as we essentially lost the Dali M Player of
Speaker 1: the Year. Shawn Johnson should have won it last year.
Speaker 1: It was like a clerical era that he didn't. And
Speaker 1: then he's just been injured all year. So it's through
Speaker 1: no fold of his own. But he has been playing
Speaker 1: with injury or been out with injury for this entire year.
Speaker 1: And I think if you take the best player in
Speaker 1: the competition off a team, I don't think it's that
Speaker 1: ridiculous to think that'd fall out of the top four
Speaker 1: down to fourteenth.
Speaker 2: You know, you have a look at the Broncos and
Speaker 2: Adam Reynolds exactly because last year I think everyone thought
Speaker 2: that where he's just Willy went with Will, where he
Speaker 2: was Willy Wonka and the chocolate factory. You know that
Speaker 2: he was just this mythical guy. But now it's like
Speaker 2: always at the Grindstone.
Speaker 1: No, now he's Willy Wonker in that tunnel where it
Speaker 1: just goes full acid trip oh hard, and they're certainly
Speaker 1: not showing.
Speaker 2: Any times that they are slowing.
Speaker 1: That's him right now. He's just in the middle of it.
Speaker 1: Everyone's injured. This fucking trippy kalitoscope effects.
Speaker 2: You got glasses glope, but you got on Timmy TV
Speaker 2: or whatever his name is.
Speaker 1: Yeah, that's right.
Speaker 2: Now.
Speaker 1: All of the different players that we've lost through injuries
Speaker 1: are the different children that died in the Wonka factory
Speaker 1: for various different reasons.
Speaker 2: Also, man, if I went on a chocolate factory tour
Speaker 2: and there were that many deaths, you'd have to contact
Speaker 2: someone after the first. After the first, you just have
Speaker 2: to maybe reach out.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I mean maybe I could be convince if the
Speaker 1: first person died and I was just like, hey, I
Speaker 1: think you kid just drowned the chocolate river back there,
Speaker 1: and someone's like, nah, yeah, there right, we'll keep going
Speaker 1: after the second definitely.
Speaker 2: And a whole lot of tiny Donald Trump's just carried
Speaker 2: them off to another room.
Speaker 1: Do you guys seen it?
Speaker 2: No, no talk of so.
Speaker 1: Yeah, the Warrior season has been Willie Walker in the
Speaker 1: chocolate factory. We've only got like Charlie. He's the only
Speaker 1: one left. Yeah, Charlie from the chocolate factory and his granddad.
Speaker 2: And I mean it's I feel for the club because
Speaker 2: we were heading our strides. We're selling out every home game.
Speaker 2: The game of league is popping off in New Zealand.
Speaker 2: But this is when we need to end strong. Yes,
Speaker 2: I'd love I we probably could mathematically make the ape,
Speaker 2: but I don't think so. But I want us to
Speaker 2: end strong, go into Vegas, get a win over there,
Speaker 2: and reassert ourselves. Yeah, for sure, And I think we
Speaker 2: can do that.
Speaker 1: And I think we neither of us wanted to come
Speaker 1: in here today and have leave this podcast studio.
Speaker 2: On a negative note. So let's take a break. When
Speaker 2: we come back.
Speaker 1: We don't outline exactly how we can do that, how
Speaker 1: we can turn it around, not just for the end
Speaker 1: of the season, but how next year. If we're going
Speaker 1: to make next year our year, how do we do it.
Speaker 2: Also, just before we do go to this break, I
Speaker 2: really feel for Maila Graham Tulfaw. Well, like you're a
Speaker 2: young guy, you have a breakout game. Oh yeah, Then
Speaker 2: I don't put it down to his fault, you know
Speaker 2: how sometimes you just have one of those games of
Speaker 2: something where you can't do any every ball you drop.
Speaker 2: I have it in cricket. Sometimes I'm a great catfielder, right,
Speaker 2: but then sometimes I just cannot catch a ball. And
Speaker 2: he just had one of those ones where he was
Speaker 2: slightly out of position, he dropped the ball gets stood
Speaker 2: up in a tackle and then you just keep losing
Speaker 2: your confidence because now you're guessing yourself. Yeah, and it's
Speaker 2: that's the thing with these younger guys. They need, you know,
Speaker 2: you've got to have a good swag of games under you, yeah,
Speaker 2: before you just feel safe and first grade ali Le
Speaker 2: Tower's doing great, excellent. I really like how we've used
Speaker 2: tame to a picky through the year, giving him time,
Speaker 2: but not like going the teams on your shoulders, although
Speaker 2: it did he won the magic round. No, you're right.
Speaker 1: And then the opposite side of that is how many
Speaker 1: wingers have we seen come through the penwith panthers thing
Speaker 1: and then just get signed by another team straight away
Speaker 1: and then.
Speaker 2: They just bring another one up.
Speaker 1: It's like, well, yeah, of course, because you can't. You
Speaker 1: don't fail when you're on the end of the.
Speaker 2: That's where I think Robbo wants to take the club,
Speaker 2: which is why. And look we've got SGB oh the
Speaker 2: owner bringing in or these yeah teams you know. Yeah,
Speaker 2: so I think we've got the stocks and yeah, let's
Speaker 2: talk about how we can come out of the blocks
Speaker 2: and win the prem next year.
Speaker 1: Let's take a quick breathing when we come back, We're
Speaker 1: gonna We're going to fill you with hope for twenty
Speaker 1: twenty five. All right, welcome back into the Mad Monday Podcasts.
Speaker 1: If you're king to join the ACC team from Massive
Speaker 1: Rugby League weekend in March of twenty twenty five in
Speaker 1: Las Vegas, you can do that. Just takes Vegas to
Speaker 1: three two three six to book your spot. You're heading
Speaker 1: over to Vegas, aren't you.
Speaker 2: Yes, I'm over there with the ha ha hurly the man.
Speaker 2: I'm going to be looking after a planeload of people.
Speaker 1: It's a long flight.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I've never done a thirteen hour stand up. G're
Speaker 2: going to playing before.
Speaker 1: But have you got thirteen hours? You reckon? It's hours.
Speaker 2: It's the type thirty. Now. I don't think they want
Speaker 2: to see much of me at the event we do
Speaker 2: when we land, but yeah, we're taking a crew over.
Speaker 2: I reckon. It's going to be phenomenal.
Speaker 1: Oh yeah.
Speaker 2: The hardest thing is though, four games in one day
Speaker 2: is a lot.
Speaker 1: Yeah, it's eight hours of rugby league. It's a good
Speaker 1: God's honest shift at the rugby League Factory. Yeah.
Speaker 2: I think as talking to some people in the know,
Speaker 2: and I think our games the second game perfect, which
Speaker 2: is perfect. So yeah, sort of cruise in and get
Speaker 2: a feel for the stadium. Check the warm up game.
Speaker 1: Catch the second half of what we'll call a curtain raiser.
Speaker 2: Yeah, and then I'd obviously want to watch the Panthers game.
Speaker 2: I think there's a Super League game. Yeah, miss that
Speaker 2: Warrington Wolves, you know that it switched Telly Workers or whatever.
Speaker 2: And then you've got the jill ARUs playing the English
Speaker 2: women's team and then the Panthers.
Speaker 1: Yeah, it's accountable. Also, like, how do you approach it
Speaker 1: if you go to burg on night one? Is that
Speaker 1: your night one?
Speaker 2: Hey? Where I'm where I'm intrigued is we're going the
Speaker 2: reverse to how I think a Vegas trip should be
Speaker 2: focused around an event. I think if you've got a
Speaker 2: specific event in Vegas, you have to almost walk off
Speaker 2: the plane to that event. I agree. Yes, we're landing,
Speaker 2: having three days, then the game, then fly out the
Speaker 2: next day. I'll be a husk. A husk because I
Speaker 2: almost think, right, you've got a bit of excitement on
Speaker 2: the plane, you sort of need to land go and
Speaker 2: drop your bags, get into it.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I think so too. Throw the bag at the
Speaker 1: back wall of the hotel room. Yeah, straight into it,
Speaker 1: go out party all day.
Speaker 2: That's obviously going to go into the night. Ye, go
Speaker 2: back to your hotel reevaluate the decision you made for
Speaker 2: about ten hours, then get back into it in a
Speaker 2: more gentlemanly like fashion.
Speaker 1: Yes, I agree with you. I've heard the ACC trips
Speaker 1: not going that way either. So they're going Las Vegas,
Speaker 1: sorry La for a NBA game, then to Vegas, so
Speaker 1: again Husk City by the time they get there.
Speaker 2: I agree with you, you should it just go straight in there.
Speaker 2: There is going to be some steamed hands at that game.
Speaker 1: Oh my god. But what a way to start your season.
Speaker 1: And what they call Round zero now over there in
Speaker 1: Las Vegas. I reckon this after watching the first round
Speaker 1: in Las Vegas. It's not so much about growing the
Speaker 1: game in Las Vegas. It's more about growing the game
Speaker 1: here in Australasia because we love it and it's a
Speaker 1: great place for us to go.
Speaker 2: But I think it's just forty thousand Aussies and kiwis
Speaker 2: in a different stadium, And I mean what I think
Speaker 2: this is gonna as we segue into how we're going
Speaker 2: to be awesome next year. I think this is actually
Speaker 2: going to be a great bonding experience for the team,
Speaker 2: because I think they're on the ground. One of the
Speaker 2: one of the sort of I suppose requirements was that
Speaker 2: they stay in Vegas the whole time. So I think
Speaker 2: their boots on the ground in Vegas for ten days maybe,
Speaker 2: so it'll be a great bonding experience. Yeah, hopefully we've
Speaker 2: got some new signings, you know, by then, and welcome
Speaker 2: to the club fellas. Yeah, and yeah, we'll see what
Speaker 2: young guys they take over. And yeah, no, I think
Speaker 2: it's going to be good for the club, and it's
Speaker 2: going to be a great way to start. And I'm
Speaker 2: so stoked we're playing the Raiders rather than the Panthers,
Speaker 2: oh one.
Speaker 1: D because it'll be so NRL of them to be like, hey,
Speaker 1: we're going to send you guys over to Las Vegas,
Speaker 1: but we're going to fuck you up at the Panthers.
Speaker 2: Play the Panthers or the Storm. Yeah that's right. I
Speaker 2: really thought that's what they're going to do, because the
Speaker 2: Raiders is just a team for us. We don't have
Speaker 2: a whodo against them all for them. Yeah.
Speaker 1: I saw a comment on a Reddit through this morning
Speaker 1: when I was scrolling around when after that loss, and
Speaker 1: someone said they should send the Warriors to New zealand
Speaker 1: get them out of Australia next year.
Speaker 2: My favorite Reddit comment I said putting our through was
Speaker 2: imagine being a single name motherfucker trying to get into
Speaker 2: the war we have. It's outrageous how many even the
Speaker 2: new guys love Mawhila Graham tel for Yeah, it is.
Speaker 2: It is outrageous.
Speaker 1: But no, I've said for the longest time the best
Speaker 1: rugby league players come from broken homes and that's why
Speaker 1: we've got such a great squad guard at the moment,
Speaker 1: but I think yeah next year. So as we said before,
Speaker 1: the only signing that we've got confirmed so far is
Speaker 1: Fisher Harris, and I think that is the best signing
Speaker 1: that we possibly could have made in the rugby league.
Speaker 2: We're talking a lot of levels, on many, many.
Speaker 1: Many different levels. First of all, three time Grand Chabot,
Speaker 1: so you know we're talking about a guy who knows
Speaker 1: how to win competitions of rugby league. He is a
Speaker 1: Kiwi and he's as key as they come, like he's
Speaker 1: and also.
Speaker 2: He personifies mana. Yeah, like he carries so much mana.
Speaker 2: You don't much with Fisher Harris no word is he's
Speaker 2: a real club man as well, like he demands high training.
Speaker 2: He'll pully not like pay out on the younger guys,
Speaker 2: but be such a good example. Yeah, and I think
Speaker 2: when you've got people like him rts tahou Cape.
Speaker 1: Well, who would you say has been our best player
Speaker 1: this year for the Warriors, Mitch Barnie, Mitch Barnier. And
Speaker 1: he is a man of great mana as well, even
Speaker 1: though he's an Australian come over here to in New Zealand.
Speaker 1: He's resigned. He is the captain that ta who Harris
Speaker 1: is out? But even when to who was in there,
Speaker 1: you could tell he was the one that everyone looked to.
Speaker 2: So now you he's a talker. Where to who's nodded to?
Speaker 2: Who's lead from the front?
Speaker 1: Yeah, you know lead by example, has a great way
Speaker 1: with talking to the reef, which I think is why
Speaker 1: he was the captain.
Speaker 2: I was at a arcade right with my kids and
Speaker 2: this woman next to me goes this Steven Adams man.
Speaker 2: I was looking Harris and then it was the first
Speaker 2: time I went should they actually do they give off
Speaker 2: similar vibes? And too's at all? Dude.
Speaker 1: Yeah, he's a big basket. But yeah, no, you're right,
Speaker 1: that was the exact same note. The only note that
Speaker 1: I made, and how can we make next year? Our
Speaker 1: year is high runner. This team needs to have an identity,
Speaker 1: and I think we had that last year and I
Speaker 1: don't quite think we've had that this year. And I
Speaker 1: think it's about bringing in those guys like James Fisher
Speaker 1: Harris and what he can do for because, like you say,
Speaker 1: we've got this awesome crop of young fellas coming through,
Speaker 1: and so we just need to make sure that we
Speaker 1: have a team with a solid identity because then even
Speaker 1: if we lose or you know, we finished next season
Speaker 1: in fourteenth place, if we can put our hand up
Speaker 1: so look, we had a team that had a clear
Speaker 1: identity that didn't go our way, then we can feel
Speaker 1: good about the team. And I think that that's maybe
Speaker 1: what we're feeling right now. Coming off the high of
Speaker 1: last year. We come into this year lost our identity
Speaker 1: a little bit and we're like, fuck, at least if
Speaker 1: we had to fired some shots, you know.
Speaker 2: Oh, I know, Like the identity thing I think is
Speaker 2: so crucial because where we succeeded so much in twenty
Speaker 2: twenty three was grind. Yeah, we just every man played
Speaker 2: for their other man. We tackled our asses off our
Speaker 2: goal line defense was insane. Now I notice, I think
Speaker 2: we need to HARKing back to another thing old Wars
Speaker 2: up TV said a good analysis. Dude, he just made
Speaker 2: a good point around. We do probably need some sort
Speaker 2: of attacking coaching flair put in because last year we
Speaker 2: had which I think was justin Morgan, we had this
Speaker 2: big sweeping plays, so many dummy runners, shortball, long ball.
Speaker 2: Now I noticed we just have a sweeping back line.
Speaker 2: We don't have such an intricate flow in the offense,
Speaker 2: and a lot of that is probably because we were
Speaker 2: fresh last year and teams to video on us. So
Speaker 2: I think we we need a lot of reinvigoration. But
Speaker 2: why I'm excited about next year is it's not like, right,
Speaker 2: let's burn the club down and start again there. We
Speaker 2: just need That's what I was saying before this Eels game.
Speaker 2: I was hoping the Eels game would be the game
Speaker 2: where we clicked and we just got into form. Yeah.
Speaker 2: So if we if Sean stays on, I just hope
Speaker 2: he goes works on his body, does what he needs
Speaker 2: to be to be at one hundred percent and can
Speaker 2: somehow add a couple of tricks to his game or
Speaker 2: just dust a couple off. He has got them.
Speaker 1: You know. Even when he went to Cronulla, he was
Speaker 1: the leading triasis player in the competition. When he was
Speaker 1: over there in last year, he still had them. He
Speaker 1: was throwing no look, well not no look passes. He
Speaker 1: was throwing passes to where he couldn't even see charms,
Speaker 1: and he was throwing pinpoint passes to him as they
Speaker 1: were sweeping around that they had that right side clicking,
Speaker 1: and for whatever reason, they haven't this year, but we
Speaker 1: know that they can.
Speaker 2: No, it's right there. We're slightly relying on the short
Speaker 2: ball in the acordo a lot, so I think just
Speaker 2: a couple of tweets, yeah, and just a little bit
Speaker 2: of tweakage and we're going to be good to fly.
Speaker 2: We've got Tine Turpigi, who I think is almost at
Speaker 2: full first grade level, Real Ali, Leia Tower's coming right,
Speaker 2: a lot of green shoots around Lecajalasimo Dimitrix of a
Speaker 2: cooler even Tom Ali.
Speaker 1: We forget how young he is because he's been a
Speaker 1: you know, rotation player this year.
Speaker 2: Next year I think we'll probably see a bit maybe
Speaker 2: of Pasacala or Settu too coming in around the wing.
Speaker 1: I like the guys that we've re signed and Wade
Speaker 1: Egan you talk about obviously Minett, Yeah I believe. Oh no,
Speaker 1: I've lost it, but yeah, just some of the guys
Speaker 1: that we're that we're keeping on. You plug all of
Speaker 1: those dudes in and the key with Mitch baronets and
Speaker 1: this is no Luke.
Speaker 2: Metcalf look at you exactly because we were he's been
Speaker 2: gone all. He's cool when I saw him with his
Speaker 2: glasses on when we interviewed him. Yeah, he's got a
Speaker 2: Clark kent Via a little bit, yeah, a little bit,
Speaker 2: great talker too. Yeah, he's just like a buff Excel
Speaker 2: spreadsheet that scores strikes. It's exactly. He's a scouting report
Speaker 2: on look. He had a cracking game in the New
Speaker 2: South Wales Cup to Marty Martin did. Yeah, God, just
Speaker 2: as you think he can't get hotter like a herd
Speaker 2: out fisherman hunter dude as well.
Speaker 1: I know I've been saying the longest time he is
Speaker 1: whoever in New Zealand man thinks he is. When your
Speaker 1: confidence is at its highest, we all think that we're
Speaker 1: look metcaff You're like, you know what, if I wanted to,
Speaker 1: I could just go out drag ah a pope, take
Speaker 1: three a peg out of the bush, and then go
Speaker 1: play half back for the Warriors on the weekend.
Speaker 2: Exactly.
Speaker 1: That's what he does.
Speaker 2: And that thing of not It's not like he's posing
Speaker 2: in front of a ford if I'm fifty with aar
Speaker 2: fifteen like some American punisher. He's just on like a
Speaker 2: eu stallion, Yeah, with an old school rifle and like
Speaker 2: a peg over the saddle.
Speaker 1: Yeah, he's tremendous so home around as well. I just
Speaker 1: feel like we're definitely starting to build a character of
Speaker 1: high mono players that I think once we can put
Speaker 1: that together next year and have a bit of pride
Speaker 1: in the in the country. You know, we're a one
Speaker 1: club country, and I think that once we put more
Speaker 1: of that money in the g.
Speaker 2: GY, I reckon, if we can get the manna between
Speaker 2: ninety and one, yeah, then we drizzle a bit of
Speaker 2: moldy order, a bit of spirit and a bit of
Speaker 2: life force on that. Unstoppable.
Speaker 1: I think we are unstoppable. So look, that's that's how
Speaker 1: I think. I think if we were to tie a
Speaker 1: bow on that it's the monna next year. It's about
Speaker 1: the mana, restoring the mona to the club, to the jersey.
Speaker 1: And also it's there at the ground by the way. Sorry.
Speaker 2: Yeah, and look, I mean look what a little bit
Speaker 2: of mona and beliefs done for the Titans.
Speaker 1: Yeah.
Speaker 2: Also, why was Dan Carter and Tim Morrison in the
Speaker 2: changing rooms yesterday?
Speaker 1: Could you come to Mount Smart? No, it's like Tim,
Speaker 1: come on, come on, Tim, what do we doing? Could
Speaker 1: have done with it?
Speaker 2: Yeah? Putting the money back in the jersey. I think
Speaker 2: he's a bold man looking at Tino for cook me
Speaker 2: some eggs. He's given him the full side eye.
Speaker 1: You were that even if you get that frying.
Speaker 2: But yeah, I mean we're there. I don't think we
Speaker 2: actually need to sign a huge amount of players. We
Speaker 2: just need to get all of our players back onto
Speaker 2: that twenty twenty three. I think this is we might
Speaker 2: just have to go. Let's forget about four, move into
Speaker 2: the preseason, you know.
Speaker 1: And it wasn't a bad year by Warriors standards. If
Speaker 1: we hadn't had the year that we had last year,
Speaker 1: this Warriors year, but good one, I would say we're twelve.
Speaker 2: Yeah, we've got a mathematical chance.
Speaker 1: Yeah, mathematical chance. All right, let's draw a line under it.
Speaker 1: We'll take one more break. Hopefully that failed you at
Speaker 1: the bit of confidence with twenty twenty five. When we
Speaker 1: come back, we are going to go through the Stonker
Speaker 1: of the Round. All right, Welcome back to the Mad
Speaker 1: Monday Podcast. The four and twenty four pack prize pack
Speaker 1: is still going each Monday each month the Mad Monday Team.
Speaker 1: They're giving away four tickets to Warriors and four and
Speaker 1: twenty five ouches to enter. Just text the monthly keyword
Speaker 1: to three two three six. Listen the podcast steps to
Speaker 1: find out the new keyword each month. This month, because
Speaker 1: it is August, the keyword is game, So text game
Speaker 1: two three two three six to be in to win.
Speaker 1: But now it is time to talk about the best
Speaker 1: game of the weekend.
Speaker 2: It is the.
Speaker 1: Stonker of the Round and this weekend, die the Stonker
Speaker 1: had to be the Dogs verse the Raiders twenty two
Speaker 1: points to eighteen. I feel like the Dogs have found
Speaker 1: something in the last couple of weeks. I feel like
Speaker 1: they have clicked the way we've been waiting for the
Speaker 1: Warriors to click. They are playing. I described it this
Speaker 1: morning as they are playing like the Fijian drawer of
Speaker 1: the NRL. They will attack you from fucking anywhere. They
Speaker 1: will spin it wide on the first in their own twenty.
Speaker 1: They will just have a crack at anything. They're very
Speaker 1: exciting to watch out a car back on the weekend.
Speaker 1: They're going from strength to strength the dogs, aren't they.
Speaker 2: If you'd told me the Dogs will be involved in
Speaker 2: a Stonker of the Round last year, no way. They
Speaker 2: are back to back Stonker of the Round. I think
Speaker 2: Stephen Crichton is the best center in the competition. His
Speaker 2: try where he fended then sort of bumped off Jordan
Speaker 2: Rappana and then got over the line. He makes really
Speaker 2: hard plays seem very easy.
Speaker 1: He gave them both the business Chris and rap on
Speaker 1: it in the same play.
Speaker 2: Rappin is a bit of a punisher.
Speaker 1: I don't know what you've had a see.
Speaker 2: I sort of love him and hate him at the
Speaker 2: same time as he's hardcore grubby.
Speaker 1: He looks like I think we talked about it on
Speaker 1: the podcast last year. He looks like Waluigi, you know,
Speaker 1: the evil Luigi.
Speaker 2: Oh yeah, if Waluigi sort of mixed up with one
Speaker 2: of those more eastra Island stagues.
Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, he's got a bit of that going on.
Speaker 1: But this game, like I said that, they've they've found
Speaker 1: something in the Bulldogs.
Speaker 2: And when I was talking about the Warriors kicking game,
Speaker 2: then you see the opposite Matt Burton when you're kicking
Speaker 2: off your own thirty and he just lobs it down
Speaker 2: to their ten meter. Yeah he's kicking. And also he
Speaker 2: can kick the ball so high all the chasers have
Speaker 2: time to get down there.
Speaker 1: Yeah, so you can contest from anywhere. The other thing
Speaker 1: that they were talking about in the commentary was he
Speaker 1: kicks it higher than the lights. So the lights at
Speaker 1: the ground they were playing it last night. When he
Speaker 1: kicked it, it went above them. So for one mad
Speaker 1: moment you lose track of the ball. It's just a shit.
Speaker 1: I've seen one in the flesh and it is terrifying.
Speaker 1: It's just pure chaos.
Speaker 2: And it also has that weird wobble to it.
Speaker 1: It can shift about ten meters on its way down
Speaker 1: to you trying to catch it, and they know that.
Speaker 1: So as soon as that goes up, like every player
Speaker 1: on the field is like fucking here we go.
Speaker 2: And I where I've got a lot of re speak
Speaker 2: for the Dogs beginning of the season. They built themselves
Speaker 2: on defense. Now they're just playing entertaining football, and they
Speaker 2: forced you to play the way that they play.
Speaker 1: When they were the stonker of the round last week
Speaker 1: against the Broncos, the Broncos were having to do chip
Speaker 1: and chases out of their own end because they just
Speaker 1: to try and compete with them, and so they drag
Speaker 1: you into a ship fight. I think what they've figured
Speaker 1: out they seem to me like a PlayStation team. They
Speaker 1: traded all of the players in that they needed. You know,
Speaker 1: they got the Fox, they got Burton, they got Kriton,
Speaker 1: they went and got Kickout, they brought Red Mary. They
Speaker 1: brought all these dudes in over the last two years.
Speaker 1: And it was always going to be a little bit.
Speaker 1: But you could see Carez come out of nowhere. Now
Speaker 1: they got Bronze and Sherry back from four years of
Speaker 1: rampant steroid abuse. And they allegedly and but.
Speaker 2: You're not alleged that he actually was.
Speaker 1: Reported reportedly alleged. But you could see on paper all
Speaker 1: of the players, you know, they had.
Speaker 2: Well it's hard out PlayStation where they recruited all the people.
Speaker 2: Then they used all their stats points on.
Speaker 1: The average ones like Carrez bring him up, yes, yeah,
Speaker 1: and then they maxed out certain things, like they took
Speaker 1: the Fox and they're like, we'll max out his speed rating,
Speaker 1: Matt Burton, We're just going to max out his whole
Speaker 1: running and spiral punt and then like that's it, and
Speaker 1: then we're going to max out Reed Marney's pissing people
Speaker 1: off ability.
Speaker 2: And also how they everyone was mocking them as they
Speaker 2: bought like ten utility players. Yeah, but it's worked out perfectly.
Speaker 2: And ship the Liamy kick ou put a shot on, Yeah,
Speaker 2: could can plain footy, yeah, but he does exactly what
Speaker 2: you need and enforce her to do. He scares the
Speaker 2: Beejesus out of playmakers, yeah, exactly, and not illegally, just
Speaker 2: hits them hard on.
Speaker 1: Offense and on defense on both sides of the ball.
Speaker 1: And he had a really quiet year last year, but
Speaker 1: he is still really only kicked out And there is
Speaker 1: no substitute for just having a dude that big with
Speaker 1: magie noodles for here. Yeah, it's just terrifying. It's frightening.
Speaker 2: A sheepskin vibe as well.
Speaker 1: Yeah, like an old sheepskin, yeah, graggedy sheepskin, yeah, like
Speaker 1: a yeah.
Speaker 2: But I mean even it was the first time in
Speaker 2: a press conference I've seen Ricky Stewart actually just be
Speaker 2: that was a pretty cool game, yeah, because the vibe
Speaker 2: was so hostile.
Speaker 1: So yes, at the ground, it was a massive crowd.
Speaker 1: What is going on out there at Belmore?
Speaker 2: They so they have a traditionally very passionate They've always
Speaker 2: had a heavy Lebanese fan base. You've had your hairs
Speaker 2: and male masaries, those sort of players, Anthony Mundane. Yeah,
Speaker 2: passionate fans. Yeah, you know, and outside of any country
Speaker 2: that people are from, all those dogs fans are so passionate.
Speaker 2: And it felt like I got heavy European football sort
Speaker 2: of vibes with that crowd. And then they're shaking a
Speaker 2: van after the after the scenes afterwards, I thought, so
Speaker 2: they started doing the rounds of social media. The pants
Speaker 2: Man's putting them in our group chat. I was looking
Speaker 2: at the videos and I was like, I thought that
Speaker 2: they were I thought that they were videos from back
Speaker 2: when Willie Mason and them were winning cops. No, no, no,
Speaker 2: this was from the weekend.
Speaker 1: It's going on. They're trying to flip a van over.
Speaker 1: They just going ape.
Speaker 2: Apparently I expected Seal Team six to come in. At
Speaker 2: one point it had a real downtown Gander sort of
Speaker 2: vibe about it, that anything could happen at any time.
Speaker 1: Yeah, it was. It was out of control and it
Speaker 1: was just like our game in round twenty two, Round
Speaker 1: twenty three.
Speaker 2: I was like, this is out of out of control?
Speaker 1: How are you going on there?
Speaker 2: I would never say this before. I think the Dogs
Speaker 2: could be you know how you pick a team you
Speaker 2: like in the finals, The Dogs could be that team
Speaker 2: for me.
Speaker 1: They are for me last week. I've seen enough. They're
Speaker 1: my team. I'm following them.
Speaker 2: They just play a really enjoyable brand of football.
Speaker 1: Yeah, they have a crack. And you know, we're talking
Speaker 1: about what we want the Warriors to look like. This
Speaker 1: has always been it for me. Just a team that
Speaker 1: has a crack, win or lose heart out, Yeah, and
Speaker 1: then play loose football, have a.
Speaker 2: White hot crack.
Speaker 1: You got Bronson Sherry, chip and chasing and Durrell Skelton
Speaker 1: coming out of absolutely nowhere.
Speaker 2: That's technically how you think the Broncos would play. Yeah,
Speaker 2: but they sort of have been in a similar state
Speaker 2: to us. Yeah, they've just picked the bunch the Bulldogs.
Speaker 1: They've just picked the bunch of like footy players and
Speaker 1: this year they finally got to the point where there
Speaker 1: just like we trust you to go for it.
Speaker 2: And if anyone wants to knock Gus Gould, I was
Speaker 2: a bit of a knocker.
Speaker 1: Yeah.
Speaker 2: He they said, he rebuild the club. He did a
Speaker 2: phenomenal job. Knows a bit about rugby league football, he does.
Speaker 2: He can he can analyze that kid, yeah he can.
Speaker 1: I reckon.
Speaker 2: He's got a big future in the game, that guy. Yeah,
Speaker 2: you know, I reckon. Even if he wasn't at the Dogs.
Speaker 2: I reckon another club would hire I reckon. They might,
Speaker 2: I reckon, they might remember he was it the Warriors
Speaker 2: for two months well just before lockdown. Yeah, and then
Speaker 2: he got the gig at the Dog Yeah, well could
Speaker 2: have done with them.
Speaker 1: So that's our stoker of the round. Just before we go,
Speaker 1: before knock this one on the head, I've got a
Speaker 1: random NRL.
Speaker 2: Stat to throw at you if I could.
Speaker 1: Congratulations to Isaiah Yongie on his winning debut, more importantly,
Speaker 1: becoming a first ever NRL player with the initials I I.
Speaker 1: There's never been a player in the NRL with those
Speaker 1: and he becomes the first new initials of the year
Speaker 1: and as noted by NRL odd Stats on Instagram, it's
Speaker 1: an alliterative name. So I I he making it the
Speaker 1: twenty first letter to be completed in the NRL. Wow,
Speaker 1: the only letter is yet to be done. Unsurprisingly, Q, Yeah, U, X,
Speaker 1: Y and Z. He is the sixth illiterative name to
Speaker 1: debut this year, joining Samuel stone Street, Trent Toylou, Liam LeBlanc,
Speaker 1: Luke Lowell, Lily and Harry Hayes this year.
Speaker 2: So Street stone Street, it's a real honest name. Good
Speaker 2: God's honest rugby league name. So I just wanted to
Speaker 2: share that one with you. That is a phenomenal stat
Speaker 2: isn't it.
Speaker 1: Yeah, we need a QQ to get in there. I
Speaker 1: can't see it happening anytime soon, all right? That it
Speaker 1: does for this week on the Mad Monday podcast will
Speaker 1: be back again on Thursday. Myself and Chris Key, who
Speaker 1: have not commentated a one together, We are commentating the
Speaker 1: Dolphins game this week in Sunday Sunday four pm.
Speaker 2: We broke the curse. We break the curse. We'll see
Speaker 2: you then. And Australia without rugby league is not Australia, right,
Speaker 2: Astralia right,