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Thread: BUBBLE, BUBBLE, TOIL AND TROUBLE ...

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    Legend Contributor fulvio sammut's Avatar
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    BUBBLE, BUBBLE, TOIL AND TROUBLE ...

    It's a brave man or a fool who'll make predictions of the season's outcome at this time of the year, and not particularly being either, I won't be doing that.

    However the indications are there that this will be a season which will be remembered for the quality of players taking part, and for the closeness of the overall competition.

    From what I saw and heard of the Bankwest Cup, there is little between Nedlands, UWA, Associates, Wanneroo and Cottesloe. Kalamunda are a little further behind, and Perth somewhat struggling after them.

    Of course, we have yet to see Rockingham, Wests Subiaco and Palmyra, and Rockingham may well be the dark horse of that trio.

    Here's how I see them at present.

    ASSOCIATES
    A good, well balanced squad. They will miss the services of Zac Holmes to international sevens, but having Dreyer back after his unsuccessful venture into European rugby will be a positive. The only weakness I see is in the second row where they appear to lack bulk and height. This will be remedied before the season starts by judicious recruiting.

    NEDLANDS
    As has been the norm over the last few years, Nedlands appear their usual pre and early season lugubrious and slightly unfit selves, particularly in the forwards, but the bulk, skills and reputations are all there and they will be hitting their straps after the first two or three games. They don't seem to have lost many top flight players from last season, and have acquired quite a few new ones.

    COTTESLOE
    A fine local pool of players, and some quality recruits. Couple this with 13 Force Academy players in their roster and they will be very hard to beat.

    WANNEROO
    Too far away for me to go spying, I'm afraid, and my old mate Billy Watt is keeping stum. They have a huge, fast running backline which will be a handful for any opposition, as Cottesloe found a few weekends ago.They have secured the services of Kalamunda's late season star fullback and are incredibly potent in attack, although less impressive in defence. I didn't see much of their forwards, but they seemed adequate.

    UNIVERSITY
    Uni did exceptionally well to make it to the Bankwest Cup final, but I haven't seen more than a few minutes of them playing so far. On the basis that they displayed little in the way of talent or desire last season (other, perhaps, than some glimpses of form from their Force and Academy players), there must be some remarkable change of attitude taking place under new Coach Holden (he of spying on the Springboks fame), coupled, no doubt with some active recruitment.

    KALAMUNDA
    Their best player in the Bankwest Cup was their number eight, who last year was Palmyra's star hooker, Nate. Kalamunda will suffer from a lack of height in their forwards, and their backline was not impressive. If the rumour that they are not importing players from NZ this year as a matter of club policy is true, that may make things even more difficult for them.

    PERTH
    Perth will struggle. Enough said.

    WESTS SUBIACO
    Very little information is coming out of the Wests camp this year. They have apparently adopted a policy of not paying for their players, whether through desire or necessity, and this will deny them access to some of the players they will need. Having said that, their Annus Horribilis last season forced them to blood an exceptionally talented group of youngsters, who will be all the better for the experience and the maturity it brings. And Gibbo is a mighty fine coach.

    ROCKINGHAM
    My informant tells me that they have put together an excellent backline this year, courtesy partly of their well connected Kiwi coach, some welcome extra funding, and no doubt a modicum of luck, which they have sorely lacked in recent years.. Their forward pack however is reported to be just adequate, and they may need to throw a few sponsorship dollars in that direction to become competitive.

    Incidentally, there is either a schism in the club, or ,more likely, President Ross Cardy and former president Ash Sewell are respectively playing good cop bad cop in their dealings with Council over the condition of their playing surfaces and field facilities. Ash has been screaming blue bloody murder in the local press over the state of affairs, and Ross is playing the diplomat and praising the council for what they have done for them. If you know the character of the guys as well as I do, you'd think they are each playing the exact opposite role that they should be!

    PALMYRA
    Pally have kept most of last years premier team intact, with the notable exception of the second row, where Jake Ball is likely to be out for most of the season, and the huge Irishman, Liam, has returned home. However they have recruited wisely in a few positions, and some of last seasons colts, who were appropriately introduced to first grade last year, are stepping up. Numbers at the club have been good, if not outstanding, and the club is quietly confident it will acquit itself well in the competition. The return of Taj Mailata, after a stint in the NZ NPC, is a huge bonus.

    Good luck to all clubs, especially Perth, who will need it more than most, I suspect.

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    Last edited by fulvio sammut; 08-03-11 at 23:50. Reason: Forgot Uni, and miss spelt Springboks. Now fixed.

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    Fire burn and cauldron bubble!

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    Quote Originally Posted by fulvio sammut View Post
    Incidentally, there is either a schism in the club, or ,more likely, President Ross Cardy and former president Ash Sewell are respectively playing good cop bad cop in their dealings with Council over the condition of their playing surfaces and field facilities. Ash has been screaming blue bloody murder in the local press over the state of affairs, and Ross is playing the diplomat and praising the council for what they have done for them. If you know the character of the guys as well as I do, you'd think they are each playing the exact opposite role that they should be!
    I was thinking exactly that whilst I was reading fulv!

    Maybe it's a carefully planned tactic, I can't imagine it's any easier for Ash to blow his stack than it is for rosco to keep his stack unblown!

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    C'mon the

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    I suppose this is Rugby's equivalent of the NAB cup. Hard to read too much into it, but good to take form into the season.

    The BankWest final will be between Soaks & Uni @ Uni this Saturday.

    PS. To correct an error, Coach Holden is the Uni u20 coach.

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    A good summary Fulvio.

    Here's some supplementary info on the current status of the respective clubs for your adoring fans:


    ASSOCIATES
    Despite 6 months of internal turmoil, Soaks are cashed up and have recruited well including staying quiet on how many WF squad members they have on board, reportedly 4-6. Should finish in top 4.


    NEDLANDS
    Confident. Considerable recruiting over the off-season despite this being down played by their Committee. And yes, money has changed hands even at Neddies. 4 WF squad members on board. Large player depth should see them winning a few trophies this year.


    COTTESLOE
    Recruiter of the Year Award Winners. Significant importation of players as well as somewhere between 12 and 15 WF squad members mysteriously aligning themselves to Cott - must be the view! Some existing players disgruntled. Same coach, same attitude.


    WANNEROO
    Silver medal winners in the recruitment stakes but their strategy is all wrong. Should start with a bang but the wheels will wobble from mid season onwards. I shouldn't say that you can't buy a premiership because Cottesloe have proven that you can!


    UNIVERSITY
    Larger than normal player numbers including an Under 18 side for the first time.

    Should be competitive in the first round but booze and wild women will get the better of the students and they will fade to about 7th on the table as the season progresses.

    Good bunch of guys though and should be competitive in Under 20's and 4ths.


    KALAMUNDA
    If there was ever a ticking time bomb, Kalamunda is it.

    Poor recruitment strategies over a number of years has resulted in an unhealthy club culture and an explosive mix of raw talent, ego's and a fractured player group.

    Tick, Tick, Tick.......


    PERTH
    Its all over before its started; they just don't know it yet.

    Administrative problems and a lack of quality volunteers may see PB struggle for a few years yet. Some renewal required.


    WESTS SUBIACO
    The dark horse of the competition. Good player depth and some talent that should rock some boats this year. May not make it all the way in Premier Grade but will cause some damage as they go.

    Should be good in Under 18's and 20's.


    ROCKINGHAM
    Talking their recruitment up but will fight it out with PB for the wooden spoon again. The first round fixture between the clubs should be interesting. If I'm in town I may go to watch this one.

    Word is that their Under 18's and 20's could be no-shows which does not auger well for the future.

    Lets hope for the sake of their dedicated team of volunteers that they have some wins along the way.


    PALMYRA
    Reasonable player depth and should be top half of the draw. Unaware of any notable players.

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    start serving beer Fulv - might help

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    Chuck Norris has the greatest Poker-Face of all time. He won the 1983 World Series of Poker, despite holding only a Joker, a Get out of Jail Free Monopoly card, a 2 of clubs, 7 of spades and a green #4 card from the game Uno.

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    Legend Contributor fulvio sammut's Avatar
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    Alcohol is the Devil's tool.

    Abstinence is the road to Salvation.

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    Legend Contributor fulvio sammut's Avatar
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    Oracle, sadly my dog doesn't read this forum ...

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    Confirming the Oracle on Rocky pre season game against Pally no 18s no 20s no 3rds / 4ths but will field 2nds and 1st.

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    Uni

    Very well coached in their structures for this time of year and will certainly be a force this season. They do have a number of new face with 3 academy players

    Soakes

    Recruited very well and with the combo of home grown Soaks boys like Alex Rovira, Tom Hobbs you know they will be pushing for top 4 again. They have about 7 academy boys with more that plays Gold.

    Baysie

    A few new faces and certainly think they will be heaps better than last season. After all the score against Soakes was 15 - 5 which is a good indication of improvement

    West
    Got a number of new players but also worked hard last year to develop the younger talent - they will upset a number of teams and might perhaps find themselves in or close to the top 4 if they don't loose may to injury

    Neddies
    What can you say with a loose trio of Jonno Jenkins, Will Brock and Luke Doherty and almost the rest of the team Perth Gold players you expect them to be in a class of their own.

    Rocky
    Have not seen anything but heard they have spent good money for some good players

    Cott
    They have heaps of Force players aligned with the club that helps with mentoring etc. Players that will actually play some footy they have 4 in the academy and a possible 2 Force boys that might play from time to time.

    Pally
    Must have done well in recruitment to get veterans like Joe Savage with loads of NPC experience and they would have heaps of confidence getting guys like Taj back into the side. The gun in their team is Rayzor the 8 and they might find it a bit harder possibly loosing him to Fiji as he is a great player and leader. Well balanced team with loads of experience in JT

    Kala
    You never know with Kala - I know they have a fair few new boys as their academy players told me and with their unique style of play they can upset anyone at any time. If they can be consistent to start the season they will do very well

    Wanneroo
    We have spent our $750 000 budget on buying a new team so will be unbeatable this year!lol

    The dogs in fact has not recruited as per previous seasons but decided to put some money back into our own through better kit etc. We obviously have filled a couple of positions but we have put our efforts into securing guys that has played for the club in previous years and players in our catchment area. Our focus will be to improve culture and work ethic in the club. With the entire field setup revamped and new lights people feel exited to be apart of the club again and wants to improve on past season's result.

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    Legend Contributor fulvio sammut's Avatar
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    My praise for Ella's post should not be construed as an endorsement of the veracity of it's contents or agreement with the sentiments expressed therein.

    It's just nice to have some one outside of the usual suspects contributing something to the Metro Club forums.

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    Legend Contributor fulvio sammut's Avatar
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    Ella, this year Pally won't just have guns, they'll have cannons.

    By the way, you got the Force guys club distribution email yet?

    Care to post it?

    It should make interesting reading.

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    Associates (5)
    Paul Ali-Emile
    Kyle Godwin
    Tom Hockings
    Siliva Siliva
    Justin Turner

    Cottesloe (9)
    Mark Bartholomeusz
    Richard Brown
    Nathan Charles
    Gene Fairbanks
    James O'Connor
    Nathan Sharpe
    Brett Sheehan
    Mark Swanepoel
    Ben Whittaker

    Kalamunda (4)
    Cruse Ah-Nau
    Mitch Inman
    Ben McCalman
    Willie Ripia

    Nedlands (4)
    Pek Cowan
    Pat Dellit
    Tim Fairbrother
    Jono Jenkins

    Palmyra (1)
    James Stannard

    Perth Bayswater (3)
    Alfie Mafi
    Cameron Shepherd
    David Smith

    Rockingham (1)
    Kieran Longbottom

    UWA (5)
    Nick Cummins
    David Pocock
    Ted Postal
    Rory Sidey
    Sam Wykes

    Wanneroo (3)
    Phoenix Battye
    Matt Hodgson
    Tevita Metuisela
    Wests (1)
    Matt Dunning

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    Legend Contributor fulvio sammut's Avatar
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    I see Sharpie's gone to where he's needed the most ...

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    The competition's over before its started. What a disgrace.

    With the academy players not mentioned in the above list but also heavily slanted towards the western suburbs, why don't they just play the Grand Final (Cottesloe vs Nedlands) in April and not go through the charade that will unfold over the next few months?

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