I actually recorded the Broncos and watched the game twice today. No, I am not a desperate Broncos supporter, I did it because I was thinking of putting a very sizable bet on them to make the 8. And if I were going to put as much money as I was thinking of I wanted to have a close look at them.
After watching, I have decided to keep my money and spend it somewhere else. They may make the finals or even the top 4, but at this early stage of the year, I see some SERIOUS problems with the side. I know it is only a trial and things change, as we saw with the Warriors who were dreadful last year early on. But, after watching, this is what I thought:
* Forwards - I was really disappointed with them. I have never seen a broncos pack so flat footed in defence. They were on their heels so often and hardly moved up in defence. No wonder Johnson found so many cracks in their defence. Luckily, this can be fixed and purely an attitude.
* Ben Hunt - Unfortunately, the Broncos will not succeed if he is the half all year. His defence alone is a MASSIVE problem for the side, especially when teams wake up (which they will from round 1) and realise that there are SO MANY easy metres down his side. He makes the defenders around him very nervous which forces them to make bad decisions. Even at one point in the game, the Warriors targeted his side, caught him at marker and went the short side again and Hunt very lazy and the Warriors made a 50m break. You can't fix this in a game or two. Also, his kicking game is patchy at best and he takes too many poor options in attack to be a "successful" first grade half.
* Strasser (five eighth)- I am sorry, but if he is going to be the 6, bye bye Broncos. I don't care what he does in attack, which wasn't much today, but his defence is not even close to first grade standard YET. There is no way he will play a lot of first grade. Dreadful in defence! If Hunt is on one side and Strasser on the other, they will leak points.
* Nikorima (five eight) - has potential!!! But definitely not ready for 6 in first grade. Looks great when returning the ball at fullback, but apprehensive at 6 which is to be expected for a kid. He let Hunt control all of the play which is normal for a young kid, but if he is to play 6, he can't be like this.
* The back 3 - Obviously the Broncos have Hodges, Barba and possibly YY to come back, but are in trouble if they get injuries. Today they looked like boys playing men.
* McCollough - good rugged hooker, but defensively gives the attack/other side a piggy back way too often. Every time he goes high or tries a "ball and all" tackle, the defence makes cheap ground and gets a quick play the ball. And because there are no dominant halves, he overplays his hand too often in attack.
* Todd Lowrie - will be a very good buy for them.
* NO direction - Major Major downfall! When teams don't have a dominant half, they lose direction. What happens if they have no direction???? They make stupid mistakes and players (other than the 6 and 7) start to overcall and feel forced to ball play themselves when it is not their natural game.
Overall, the Broncos are in trouble! They may make the 8 off the back of their forward pack, Hodges and Barba firing. But, if they do, that will be a big achievement. Of course they will bounce back, that is a given, but they have no halves!!!! They can't win a comp!
They have no 5/8 at all! Ben Barba might have to play 5/8 to ensure there is a dominant personality in the halves, but you don't want to go into the season no knowing. Ben Hunt took on the senior role of the halves and dominated the attack. He is just not up to it yet in attack and defensively he is a 'spot' player (target).
The forwards need a massive kick up the a... for today. They seriously let down the young halves. They will improve a lot with attitude, but will it be enough?????
