The GRL Phantom believes Brett Kimmorley will bring the curtain down on his future teammates in round 11 of the NRL when the Sharks play the Bulldogs.
The GRL Phantom believes Brett Kimmorley will bring the curtain down on his future teammates in round 11 of the NRL when the Sharks play the Bulldogs.
Canterbury Bulldogs v Cronulla Sharks
ANZ Stadium (7.05pm)
Referee - Tony Archer
Cronulla:
They are hard working, superbly drilled and a highly athletic team which play to a stringent game plan.
Their defence is outstanding, they kick-chase well, tackle in numbers and don't make a lot of mistakes.
In attack, Greg Bird and Brett Kimmorley, Brett Kearney and Brett Seymour call the plays.
The forwards have a simple approach. March forward and get to their feet for a quick play the ball.
Then Bird, Kimmorley, Kearney and Seymour get involved. Centre Ben Pomeroy is a real handful and quite fast with good footwork for a big man.
I don't subscribe to the belief that the Sharks lack pace or strike power. Their problem is learning to finish off the half breaks and get their ball runners to hit the defensive gaps at the precise time inside the opposition 30 metre area.
Sometimes the runners are too flat and overrun the inside players' passes.
Bulldogs:
Canterbury have had their share of turmoil in the boardroom, coach Steve Folkes is gone at the season's end, Sonny Bill Williams, their best player, is rumbling about his future while new coach Kevin Moore is working on next year and trying to get the pieces of the jigsaw puzzle to fit to keep the Dogs barking in 2008.
The Dogs were robbed by a bad decision in last Friday night's game against the Titans.
Michael Sullivan scored in the final stages and the pass was level.
The Dogs are a work in progress who are trying to find balance between their ''rough and tumble'' style and the clever, crafty and smart way to play the game.
Ben Roberts is back to half and Holdworth at five-eighth. That is where the pair should have been playing from game one not the other way around.
Reni Maitua played well against the Titans. He's a starting forward not an impact footballer off the bench.
Michael Sullivan gives the team creativity and strike power around the play the ball.
When he got injured and missed several weeks, the Dogs were incohesive around the play-the-ball.
Verdict:
The Sharks will win this one by seven. They usually win or lose by a margin of 1-12 so the Dogs will be gallant.
Ironically, Sharks halfback. Brett Kimmorley, a Bulldog playmaker in 2009, will be the decisive player in this game and has my money to land a 77th minute field goal to wrap up the match.
Canterbury - Cameron Phelps, Hazem El Masri, Daryl Millard, Tim Winitana, Matt Utai, Daniel Holdsworth, Ben Roberts, Jarrad Hickey, Corey Hughes, Chris Armit, Sonny Bill Williams, Andrew Ryan, Reni Maitua Interchange - Lee Te Maari, Nick Kouparitsas, Michael Sullivan, Brad Morrin Coach: Steve Folkes
Cronulla - Brett Kearney, Misi Taulapapa, Ben Pomeroy, David Simmons, Luke Covell, Brett Seymour, Brett Kimmorley (c), Adam Peek, Isaac De Gois, Luke Douglas, Paul Gallen, Greg Bird Interchange - Terence Seu Seu, Kade Snowden, Bryan Norrie, Danny Nutley, Dustin Cooper, Ben Ross Coach: Ricky Stuart
