Hello, so I was sitting down thinking about what to write today. Two referees has been covered and will be reviewed everywhere over the next few weeks, we have CEO’s at the Sharks and Bulldogs arguing, contract issues between the Bulldogs and Roosters, Bulldogs players fighting, Roosters players drinking, Todd Carney in the papers (again)...so plenty happening. But for me the big story this weekend was the return of Wayne Bennett to Suncorp Stadium tomorrow, until I looked out the window.
It is pouring rain and has been all day. I worked late last night and it was just starting to sprinkle at 1:30am when I went to bed. I woke up at 4:30am to shut my window because the wind picked up. Pounding wind and rain woke me up at 7:45am, I went back to sleep and pounding wind and rain was still going at 9:30am. I’ve been working on an assignment most of the day, it’s now nearly 5pm, and there’s STILL pounding wind and rain. We might be getting a wet, wet weekend of football in Brisbane.
We don’t get a lot of real wet weather football anymore. I mean sure, Round 1 saw a few soaked games in Sydney and so did Brookvale Oval the other night but I’m talking the REAL wet weather football. The sort of game where you can’t see the halfway line and the whole centre of the field is simply covered in mud from 50 pairs of boots chewing up the surface in the two games before hand. The games where a flying winger can snaffle a runaway intercept and dive on the ten metre line to slide the rest of the way into the in-goal area.
Those were the days...so much mud you couldn’t see the players numbers after the first five minutes. The days where you wait for that fresh reserve to run on only to see him get pummelled into the mud after 30 seconds. Minor flash floods occurring at the ends of some grounds...they were the days!
I remember around about the time of Super League; Leichardt Oval on a Saturday night. Conditions were below atrocious...they were shocking. There was mud everywhere, puddles in most players and it was pouring rain from start to finish. And there were fights in that game too. It made for some good, hard football and something brilliant to watch from the comfort of the lounge room. I remember the referee calling out the two captains after another fight. We didn’t get to quite hear what the ref’s point was because when he started with, “Look I know the weather’s f*cking sh*thouse but,” before the TV crew cut him off.
These days the grounds are so good that there’s not one in the NRL that will be underwater unless there was at least 3-4 days off solid non-stop rain. I spose that’s a good thing...well, is it? Just a couple of weekends a year it’d be nice to see the mud return and remind everyone at home about the times they’d pray for rain just so they go outside and slide around and play in the mud all in the name of football!
Working with cricket I can vouch for the fact it rains a lot at the Gabba when we don’t want it to! In fact Michael Kasprowicx reckons we should roll a pitch at Wivenhoe Dam and play a few games there to end the drought. Let’s just roll out a pitch and put it out near some of our NRL grounds just a few times in the year so we can get a good old fashioned wet weather game!
* Another thought...how will the two referees work within a wet weather game? Everyone agrees the game is faster now and that has a lot to do with the new system. But wet weather games are always a slugfest...will be interesting to see the effect of a lot of rain.
*Yes Wayne Bennett is returning to Brisbane this week and it has been talked about. But it hasn’t dominated news really. It did at the start of the week with Wendell Sailor in Monday’s paper talking about it but following that was just pretty standard match preview stuff. It is going to be good to see him around tomorrow night and I don’t think there’s any animosity out there. He might get a few boo’s when he’s on the big screen but I think they will all be in good fun...Wendell will get plenty too but we do love to see him play. Should be a great game tomorrow and no one should write off the Dragons especially if (as predicted), it’s a wet weather game.
Tips this week: Broncos, Roosters, Tigers, Melbourne, Warriors, Bulldogs, Manly, Canberra
Last Week: 3/8 (Total: 13/24)
Winning Percentage: 54%
I have absolutely no evidence to base it on but I have a feeling Scott Prince may return for the Titans this week. If he plays they are a real chance in Melbourne. The Bulldogs and Sharks game should also be interesting with a number of players against their former club.
As always feel free to contact me at http://keytonrlhits.blogspot.com or email me at andrew.keyte@gmail.com. My match reviews and Queensland Team articles along with heaps of good stuff from the other hard workers up at www.sportsaustralia.com too.
Enjoy the rain,
Keyto
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