StephenP
ArnoldNRL Club Analysis for Season '08 - St George-Illawarra
March 12th 2008 11:21
St George-Illawarra Dragons
Attack – 8/10
Defence – 7/10
My prediction – 14th
Defence – 7/10
My prediction – 14th
It’s a do-or-die season for St George-Illawarra coach Nathan Brown, with pressure sure to mount if his underperforming Dragons again fail to deliver. With his head allegedly on the chopping block, coach Brown will again take the reigns of a youthful but exciting squad, with the joint venture hoping to improve on their disappointing 13th finish last season.
While the Dragons forward depth looks threadbare, coach Brown has no such worries in the outside backs, with Mark Gasnier and Matt Cooper set to reunite their lethal centre partnership. If St George-Illawarra can finally steer clear from the dreaded injury curse, than given their attacking talent, they may just challenge for a semi-final berth. While the Dragons may run out of puff this season, look to them to be breathing fire cum 2009!
Strengths-
With Gasnier’s return to the centres, the Dragons will once again have a potent backline capable of shredding any defence. In Soward, the Morris twins, Cooper and Stanley, the Dragons have potentially the quickest backline in the competition, but that all boils down to nothing if their forward pack cannot lay the foundations. On their day, they can run up a cricket score!
Weaknesses-
The Dragons starting pack may be full of talented individuals, but if injuries hit (as they so often do for the joint venture), then it could be another long season for the red and whites. Creagh, Young, Woolford and Ryles aside, the cupboard is pretty bare in terms of experienced and talent amongst the forwards, with the Dragons pack also lacking the size of seasons past. Like Penrith, St George-Illawarra are still going through a rebuilding period, which signals a long year for both coach Brown and the clubs long suffering fans.
Best Team-
1- Josh Morris
2- Brett Morris
3- Mark Gasnier
4- Matt Cooper
5- Jason Nightingale
6- Ben Hornby
7- Jamie Soward
8- Justin Poore
9- Simon Woolford
10- Jason Ryles
11- Beau Scott
12- Ben Creagh
13- Dean Young
14- Rangi Chase
15- Stuart Webb
16- Kirk Reynoldson
17– Lagi Setu
2008 Gains and Losses –
Gains –
Kirk Reynoldson (Newcastle), Stuart Webb (South Sydney), Jon Green (Canterbury), Jarrod Saffy (Wests Tigers), Jardine Bobongie and Joe Falemaka (North Sydney)
Losses –
Wes Naiqama, Danny Wicks, Chris Houston and Keith Lulia (Newcastle), Ashton Sims and Tom Hewitt (Brisbane), Corey Payne (Wests Tigers), Adam Peek (Cronulla), Charlie Leaeno (Canterbury)
*Please join me tomorrow for my Analysis of the South Sydney Rabbitohs 2008 season.
Cheers,
StephenP
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