NRL off-season talking points: Barba’s limits, Benji or Reynolds, Ponga positional change
AS NRL clubs prepare for a return to pre-season training, there remains plenty of unanswered questions across the competition. We take a look at some of the key issues clubs face leading into the new season.
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TRANSFER CENTRE: Panthers lock in key piece
AS NRL clubs prepare for a return to pre-season training, there remains plenty of unanswered questions across the competition.
Off-season player transfers have thrown up a number of uncertainties over the make-up of starting rosters prior to Round one.
We take a look at some of the key issues clubs face leading into the new season.
1) Who are Melbourne’s halves and fullback?
Craig Bellamy’s exceptional planning towards the future gifted Melbourne halfback options in Jahrome Hughes, Brodie Croft and Ryley Jacks to replace the departing Cooper Cronk at the beginning of 2018. All were given a shot at the vacant role and all tasted success. With Billy Slater retiring, the general belief was that Cameron Munster would revert back to his preferred fullback position in 2019. Bellamy’s view is likely to have changed as a result of Hughes’ form when given a start this season. While Hughes is more than capable of deputising in the halves as we’ve seen this season, Munster appears a better fit in the playmaking role alongside Brodie Croft. Scott Drinkwater will provide invaluable cover to the spine at various stages of the season.
2) Zac Lomax, Tim Lafai and Euan Aitken? Who gets the gig? And does Jai Field have a future at the Dragons?
Paul McGregor has a delightful conundrum on his hands heading into the new year. He’ll be forced to choose between three gun centres in Tim Lafai, Euan Aitken and young star Zac Lomax to fill the two positions for Round one, with the odd man out likely to fill Nene Macdonald’s (Cowboys) vacant spot on the wing. Despite producing an underwhelming back half of the season, Aitken is probably the safest pick to win a starting berth. Should Aitken start at centre, Lafai or Lomax would be forced into a positional shift. Still just 19, Lomax may continue his NRL apprenticeship on the right wing outside Aitken which seems the best fit for the balance of the backline. Alternatively, Lafai could be shifted to the left wing, pushing Jordan Pereira to the right wing. Jai Field is an enormously talent five-eighth/fullback, but while Matt Dufty, Gareth Widdop and Ben Hunt are at the club it’s hard to see a scenario where he starts for the Red V. The extremely versatile Kurt Mann is likely to remain as a bench utility.
3) Fullback or five-eighth for Kalyn Ponga?
Newcastle star Kalyn Ponga has been strongly linked to a switch to five-eighth next season after dominating at fullback in 2018. The move makes minimal sense, with regular halves Mitchell Pearce and Connor Watson both excelling in the playmaking roles when fit in their first season at their new club. Ponga’s rise to stardom was rapid, he proved he could handle anything thrown at him when playing in the forwards in State of Origin II. But we shouldn’t forget he’s still only 20 years of age, so there’s no real reason to heap additional defensive pressure on him in a new position. If Nathan Brown is to play Ponga at five-eighth as has been rumoured, Watson would switch to fullback.
4) What remains of Ben Barba?
On the face of it, Ben Barba is a perfect fit for the North Queensland Cowboys.
The Townsville club lacked spark in the backline this season, and the fleet-footed fullback looms as a perfect injection of creativity to solve the issue in 2019.
Still just 29, Barba bolted in the Man of Steele award as the English Super League’s best player having excelled for St Helens this season.
In 2018, Barba was ranked first in the Super League for tries (28), third for try-assists (24) and second for tackle busts (141).
Barba can return from his UK stint and bring renewed success to the Cowboys. The Sharks 2016 grand final winner may not possess the electric speed we’ve seen in the past, but his ball-playing has reached new levels since we last saw him on Australian soil.
5) Benji Marshall or Josh Reynolds?
Benji Marshall’s return was a feel-good story for the Tigers before he even played a game and then he turned back the clock and played some of his best footy in years.
It would have been a wonderful way for one of the club’s greatest ever players to finish but Marshall has decided to go around one more time.
There’s no doubt Marshall can still do the job – his combination with Luke Brooks was a big part of the Tigers’ early-season success – but there’s a difficult conversation looming regarding fellow 2018 recruit Josh Reynolds.
Injuries restricted Reynolds to just five games, three of which were off the bench. Reynolds is the sort of player who would lie down in traffic for his team, but he’s on a hefty pay packet and was brought to the club to be more than a utility.
Finding a way to get the most out of both players will be an interesting challenge for coach Ivan Cleary – that is, if Cleary stays.
6) What to do with Kieran Foran?
Canterbury made the tough decision to cut bait on Moses Mbye and Aaron Woods midway through the year after several seasons of investment in the former and dishing out a hefty contract for the latter. It might seem like a paradox but in moving these two talented players on, the Bulldogs opened up their options again.
The blue and whites now have more cap space to work with and their salary cap hell is far more manageable. Woods and Mbye are both good players but getting rid of those contracts will benefit the club in the long term.
Which brings us to Kieran Foran. The 28-year old managed 12 games before injury struck again and the club hit a winner with rookie five-eighth Lachlan Lewis and have Jack Cogger joining from the Knights.
Foran is an experienced hand but his body is breaking down – the last time he managed more than 20 games in a season was in 2014. The Kiwi international’s whole-hearted and physical style is catching up to him and the club might have another big decision to make.
7) Can Michael Morgan replace Johnathan Thurston?
On the surface, Morgan seems well suited to taking Thurston’s mantle as the King of the North. A loyal and effective lieutenant for many years, Morgan proved he can run the show in 2017 when he took the Thurston-less Cowboys to the grand final.
This year it seemed as though the transition from Batman back to Robin was difficult and his 11 games before injury ended his season were not his best work. Next year, with rising star Jake Clifford beside him and Ben Barba at the back, Morgan can once again fully embrace the task of being the top playmaker.
But replacing a legend is never as straightforward as it seems. Ask Jarrod Mullen, who collapsed under the weight of being The Next Joey. Or ask the 10,000 halfbacks who have been The Next Peter Sterling. Morgan has every chance in the world to become the next North Queensland legend but it’s never a sure thing.
8) Ash Taylor or Cash Taker?
Let’s get this out of the way now – there is no young half in the league with as much ability as Ash Taylor. Nathan Cleary is more composed and consistent, but in terms of raw talent Taylor leaves him for dead.
The difference is Cleary does so much more with less. Taylor signed a big-money deal to stay with the Titans but his 2018 season was patchy. There were weeks he looked like the halfback messiah and other weeks where he barely looked interested. After Taylor missed selection in Origin III he turned it right up.
Taylor is 23 years old with three full seasons of first grade experience. He doesn’t have to be perfect every week but the Titans need him to show more consistency to become the player he’s always promised to be.
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