Crash Tackle: Robert Craddock’s likes and dislikes from NRL Round 5
NATHAN Brown’s cheap taunting of Wayne Bennett was a cold, premeditated barb designed to humiliate a man and his partner in the public arena, writes Robert Craddock.
Opinion
Don't miss out on the headlines from Opinion. Followed categories will be added to My News.
THE Courier-Mail’s chief sportswriter Robert ‘Crash’ Craddock reveals his likes and dislikes from another big round of NRL – and Nathan Brown’s attack on Wayne Bennett tops the dislikes list.
Broncos coach Wayne Bennett fuming at Newcastle coach Nathan Brown’s sledge
LIKES
KID DYNAMITE
KALYN Ponga is starting to resemble a teenage Darren Lockyer and the feeling of regret at not having his signature stretches across the codes.
The Cowboys must surely be ruing not retaining him and a host of rugby league clubs would be turning green as they watch him parade his mesmeric skills for Newcastle.
Don’t forget the Brisbane Lions.
They made a huge three year pitch to sign Ponga feeling he had the talent to be a success at any code he tried. Few would argue having seen the way he has started the season.
STIFF BRANDY
FOX Sports commentator Greg “Brandy’’ Alexander has ruffled some northern feathers by claiming Johnathan Thurston has stayed a season too long.
We are not sure whether he is right – hopefully he is not – but good on him for being brave enough to make the call.
That’s the sort of agenda-setting comment that senior commentators should be expressing and being the man he is, Alexander would have carefully considered the evidence before making it.
KEVVIE’S DILEMMA
WE are still not sure of the full story of Kevin Walters decision to quit the Broncos but it may work out to his long term benefit.
The convenient call when Walters returned to the Broncos was to suggest that would make him the pea to be the next long term coach but that wasn’t necessarily so.
If Bennett gets the side moving he could keep getting contracts and Walters would have stayed in the shadows as assistant coach. If the side fails then Walters career could have gone down with the ship. The clean cut could one day produce the job Walters craves – but nothing is certain.
STEVIE WONDER
WE keep expecting the Warriors season to go pop but with passing week they look to have September potential.
Former Broncos assistant coach now Warriors mentor Steve Kearney has been lauded for injecting spirit and steel in the club but don’t forget the contribution of another ex-Broncos staffer, conditioner Alex Corvo, who has made this team as fit as they have ever been.
The two clubs meet in a massive showdown next weekend.
CLEARY’S CALL
A FEW months ago Ivan Cleary looked like a man with an empty cupboard. Now he is an early contender for coach of the year.
His effort to turn the Wests-Tigers from a disorganised rabble into one of the most disciplined, well organised and competitive sides in the league has been outstanding.
So good in fact, you wonder whether many of their previous stars (Robbie Farah and company) who have left the club were over-rated.
DISLIKES
BELOW THE BELT
NATHAN Brown should be ashamed of himself over his cheap taunting of Wayne Bennett.
Say what you like about the morality of Bennett’s private life but I felt the reference to Bennett thinking with his “little head’’ was a worse dig than Quinton de Kock’s infamous sledge at David Warner.
Dreadful as it was, de Kock’s sledge was a spur-of-the-moment eruption from a normally sedate cricketer who never intended it to reach the public arena. Brown’s was a cold, premeditated barb designed to humiliate a man and his partner in the public arena. Rubbish.
HISTORY HURTS
RUGBY league coaches have long memories.
I wonder whether Brown’s anguish with Bennett stretches well beyond a pre-match taunt before the Broncos-Knights game to all the way back to when he was sacked at the Dragons before Bennett arrived back in 2009.
No matter what the reason, Brown, especially as a coach whose job it is to set standards, should have known better.
BENNETT’S CREED
IF in doubt, it generally pays to tap a player on the shoulder a year early rather than a year late – for his sake and yours.
That was the Bennett creed in the Broncos glory days and it is a dangerous one to break now.
Bennett has all but guaranteed Sam Thaiday, who has given such exceptional service to the club, will play out the season but his form suggests it could be a rugged winter.
BIG DEAL BLUES
LONG-term contracts are a necessary gamble of rugby league. But do they really work?
Ben Hunt’s $6 million deal looks a solid gamble by the Dragons but for every success story there are plenty of stories of players who struggle to deliver.
Sometimes it seems players take their foot of the pedal. Others, like Anthony Milford, seem to struggle with the pressure of it all.
BENJI BLUES
THE consequences of Ben Hunt leaving the Broncos have been massive but what about Benji Marshall?
How good would it have been in these times of need had Marshall still been around to help young halves Milford and Nikorima with their cohesion and being an extra option in a club lacking decent back-up troops.
Wests-Tigers only paid $150,000 to lure Marshall from the Broncos. Sometimes players justify their worth by what they do for others as well as what they do for the team.
Originally published as Crash Tackle: Robert Craddock’s likes and dislikes from NRL Round 5
Why the Tigers are right to laugh off Luai contract critics
The Wests Tigers have handed Jarome Luai a massive contract with almost no strings attached, but how else could the perennial cellar dwellers attract the most sought after star in the game, asks BRENT READ.
Weekend Read: Signs the tide is finally turning for Wests Tigers
The 2025 NRL season will start with plenty of hope at the Wests Tigers thanks to the arrival of some key signings, a soft draw and some new standards, writes BRENT READ.