Player Lewis Dodd

[Bruster]

While on the subject of kicking ... I have 2 issues for 25...
1. Who is our goalkicker? Trell 72% this year...we need better than that especially in the close games where it is crucial.

I think Trell is it. I agree that 72% is a bit low for a first choice goal kicker. Even more so after we were accustomed to the goal kicking of Reynolds. I hope he practices a lot in this offseason. Also Humphreys is quite a good goal kicker but he has to get into the starting team.

2. Now that Graham is back, he was our best jumper for our short dropours in attack an defence. I think he is right up there with best.....BUT ... with dropouts from our line, we really need to make better use of his arial skills and Trell has proved marginal at this task at best ... so either he puts in a lot more practice (which doesn't appear to be the case from what I have witnessed) or can we please please get someone else???? Some of his efforts were so painful to watch...

You mean the short dropouts that finished behind the try line or into row 3 on the full. I wouldn't mind never seeing them again. I hope Latrell practices this kick a lot in this coming offseason too.

 

[Pplspoet]

Trell kicked at 78% in 2022. Hopefully he can get back closer to that mark.

Maybe we can score a couple closer to the posts for him.

 

[Training_The_House_Down]

You’re spending ~$600k and banking your season on a guy that either has to play on the side of the field that your current star half does, or has to shift to the other side (where for all we know, his passing, step, and kicking could be diminished).

It’s not that you can’t gamble with this stuff, but at that price, it would be nice to have a little more certainty.

Say you don’t buy into side of the field stuff all you want. The proof is in the number of players who struggle on their non favoured side. Especially for an organising half who may have a stronger pass one side (considering he’s played his whole career over there), a running half (who’ll have a preferred foot to step off), or a kicking half, who needs to kick across their body.

I agree, sitting on the couch, it doesn’t bother me. But it does some players.

And perhaps Dodd will play right and not miss a beat. Or perhaps Cody will play right and everything will work out.

But there’s no existing proof point for that. It’s a punt. And a punt our season largely rides on.

It’s such a modern thing
Left & right, we have centres that never pass to each other & halves that don’t either
If only players dprr e’d by more time practicing to pass both way
Kicking shouldn’t matter much as long as your body is facing where you want the ball to go

 

[Noah]

Ellison has had some blunders, but jeez if he went and spent 600k on a half from England without a coach's recommendation thats ridiculous. I really hoped Wayne had some input or we will have a 600k burden.

 

[Bruster]

Ellison has had some blunders, but jeez if he went and spent 600k on a half from England without a coach's recommendation thats ridiculous. I really hoped Wayne had some input or we will have a 600k burden.

So what is the difference if Dodd was Wayne's call or not? He is still the same player with the same abilities and same potential isn't he?

 

[Bruster]

Oh yeah, I agree.

Having another option with some pedigree puts us in a better position than this year.

It’s Hawkins for Dodd. That’s an improvement.

But you’ve paid a premium to achieve that roster improvement.

Like you say, you have to do something, but it makes you wonder, was it legitimately Dodd or bust (given on the surface, it doesn’t make a lot of sense)?

Hopefully he fits in really well and makes the position his own for the next 3 years. But that’s far from a guarantee, because on top of asking a young guy to transition competitions and take charge of a team full of superstars, you’re also asking either he or Cody to play in a different part on the field.

And if it doesn’t go well, it’s your problem for 3 years.

I would be a lot more comfortable if he had a standout base skillset (like when you watch Gray with his running, or Sam Walker early on with his passing and 1% stuff).

As is, he’s a solid sort of half (playing in an inferior competition), so there aren’t a lot of clues as to how successful it’ll be till he gets here.

I will say though, there are players who get a lot of mileage out of just support play. So maybe that becomes Dodd’s fallback in the NRL. And then yeah, hopefully his short kicking plays enough to keep the pressure off him.

At the end of the day, the side of the field thing is just another little wrinkle in what is already a difficult assignment.

I think you are assuming that he will not improve. At 23 and under Wayne he has every opportunity to expand his playing skills. His game requirement will be different here than how he was used for St Helens, where mostly it was as a kick option on the Left. There is a lot we haven't seen as Wellens had St Helens attack go up the middle or mostly to Lomax on the right. We do know that he can kick, tackle, short pass, back up, has 4 years ESL experience, has won a comp, is only 23 and was expensive. As there were not a lot of top quality options on the market and considering our present halves situation I am good with Dodd coming to Souths.

 

[Pplspoet]

So what is the difference if Dodd was Wayne's call or not? He is still the same player with the same abilities and same potential isn't he?

The club has lost a lot of the good will they had generated regarding recruitment and retention.

There was a time (circa 2021) when if a signing didn’t make sense I would have given the club the benefit of the doubt - they’d earned it.

They navigated the loss of Burgess, Inglis and Sutton with aplomb. Hot off the heels of replacing Isaac Luke and Luke Keary with bargain finds in Cook and Walker.

They were replenishing the roster well, and at the same time jumping from coach to coach without missing a beat.

That good will capital has eroded over the last few years across a number of calls (the halfback, the outside backs, the edges, some odd middle signings, Wighton out of the blue, the coach, etc).

So while you hope they are making good calls, it’s fair to be more wary of them at the moment.

On the other hand, Bennett I trust.

So to your question, on one hand it makes no difference. He’s signed, he’s here, this is the team.

On the other hand, while we navigate this off season period of no football and only expectation, if this was a Bennett call, I’m optimistic. If it was a club call, I’m more wary.

 

[Bruster]

The club has lost a lot of the good will they had generated regarding recruitment and retention.

There was a time (circa 2021) when if a signing didn’t make sense I would have given the club the benefit of the doubt - they’d earned it.

They navigated the loss of Burgess, Inglis and Sutton with aplomb. Hot off the heels of replacing Isaac Luke and Luke Keary with bargain finds in Cook and Walker.

They were replenishing the roster well, and at the same time jumping from coach to coach without missing a beat.

That good will capital has eroded over the last few years across a number of calls (the halfback, the outside backs, the edges, some odd middle signings, Wighton out of the blue, the coach, etc).

So while you hope they are making good calls, it’s fair to be more wary of them at the moment.

On the other hand, Bennett I trust.

So to your question, on one hand it makes no difference. He’s signed, he’s here, this is the team.

On the other hand, while we navigate this off season period of no football and only expectation, if this was a Bennett call, I’m optimistic. If it was a club call, I’m more wary.

Well made points. I am looking at just the player and the results we may look forward to from the player. But yes I agree with your aspect. I also would be more confident if it was Wayne that saw something in Dodd that we needed rather than Ellison, (or Bruster). The recruitment has been a bit flat for a few years so I did like the way the club saw a need and did something about it. Finally a proactive move. Time will assess this but it was a step forward. It would be good if they can see the other needs like, another quality winger and another no nonsense prop forward.

 

[Callaway]

I hope Latrell practices this kick a lot

I hope he doesn't kick them. It's not the best use of his talents.
Instead he should contest the ball with Jack, Campbell and Tyrone

 

[Bruster]

I hope he doesn't kick them. It's not the best use of his talents.
Instead he should contest the ball with Jack, Campbell and Tyrone

Good point. Latrell can be an attacking option of the short drop out. Perhaps Dodd should be doing these kicks next season.

 

[Nifty]

Trell kicked at 78% in 2022. Hopefully he can get back closer to that mark.

Maybe we can score a couple closer to the posts for him.

I would rather score five out wide than two under the post!

 

[daRque]

Back on Dodd, not having a go at the poster who said it as I don't even recall who it was, but a comment was made that they would like to see more forced drop outs from his short kicks.

It made me go back and look at his highlights reels, what they show is that the vast majority of his short kicks seem to end up with a try, I'll take that over drop outs.

I was very sceptical about Dodd initially but the more I see of him the more I like.

Not as good obviously, but his style reminds me of Cleary.

 

[Pplspoet]

Back on Dodd, not having a go at the poster who said it as I don't even recall who it was, but a comment was made that they would like to see more forced drop outs from his short kicks.

It made me go back and look at his highlights reels, what they show is that the vast majority of his short kicks seem to end up with a try, I'll take that over drop outs.

I was very sceptical about Dodd initially but the more I see of him the more I like.

Not as good obviously, but his style reminds me of Cleary.

Yeah, the short kick looks good.

Plus with dropouts becoming a lottery, a guaranteed tackle 1 a metre from their line is probably as good as an attempt at a repeat set/possession turnover under duress at the 15 or 20.

More teams should probably chance their hand passing on last play and accept the turnover.

 

[yobbo84]

You'd think English halves should have the better repeat-set game given their 4m in goal areas...

 

[olBj]

Good point. Latrell can be an attacking option of the short drop out. Perhaps Dodd should be doing these kicks next season.

Personally, I dont wat Trell doing drop outs or even goal kicking if we have better option of course...just get fit and concentrate on attack and defence. That is what the team needs...Take the peripheral stuff away from him whenever we can..