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       #Post#: 112410--------------------------------------------------
       Re: Smiffy playing at FB, maybe?
   DIR By: never sleep
       Date: August 24, 2023, 4:49 am
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       Smith got injured when playing for England vs Japan when playing
       out of position. (He may have had "10" on his back, but was
       playing "12").
       I wouldn't be surprised if this were to happen again.
       15s can get tackled pretty hard - that is why you often see 15s
       with the physicality of Mike Brown or Stewart.
       The skill of a 15 is running at full speed into contact and then
       quickly turning their body position to present the ball at the
       ruck for the scrum half to use and exploit holes in a
       disorganised defence.
       Or to jump and take a high ball knowing full well that there is
       a player waiting to smash you in the ribs as soon as you land.
       Whereas a good half-back should be avoiding tackles.
       I suspect that playing Marcus at 15 on Saturday will mean that
       we probably won't see him play again for many months.
       #Post#: 112411--------------------------------------------------
       Re: Smiffy playing at FB, maybe?
   DIR By: Quinky
       Date: August 24, 2023, 5:19 am
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       --- Quote from: Le Tiss link ---
       >
       > Marcus would be wasted there and when tries get scored he will
       be the whipping boy.
       >
       --- End Quote ---
       Perhaps Marcus' position in the England squad should be renamed
       "scapegoat".
       Besides, they need a reason to instantly recall Farrell
       post-ban.
       #Post#: 112412--------------------------------------------------
       Re: Smiffy playing at FB, maybe?
   DIR By: poorfour
       Date: August 24, 2023, 5:37 am
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       Since you mention him, never sleep, I gather Mike Brown is still
       playing professional rugby and is in pretty good form at the
       moment...
       #Post#: 112413--------------------------------------------------
       Re: Smiffy playing at FB, maybe?
   DIR By: never sleep
       Date: August 24, 2023, 5:57 am
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       --- Quote from: poorfour link ---
       >
       > Since you mention him, never sleep, I gather Mike Brown is
       still playing professional rugby and is in pretty good form at
       the moment...
       >
       --- End Quote ---
       I' not sure on his current status.
       But, his deal at Tigers was reported to be "beyond the current
       season". So, I suspect that he is still planning on playing.
       #Post#: 112414--------------------------------------------------
       Re: Smiffy playing at FB, maybe?
   DIR By: MaidstoneQuin
       Date: August 24, 2023, 6:00 am
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       Awful idea. Play your players in the position they are best at.
       I'm not sold on Steward at FB. He's good in the air but really
       dosen't offer much going forward and isn't world class in
       defence. I'd prefer to see Malins/Watson given a go. Even
       Arundel
       From what we have without any new faces id have a backline of
       9. Mitchell
       10 Smith
       11 Daly
       12 Lawrence
       13. Marchant
       14. Watson
       15. Arundel (Lets see what hes got)
       #Post#: 112415--------------------------------------------------
       Re: Smiffy playing at FB, maybe?
   DIR By: J Scott
       Date: August 24, 2023, 6:00 am
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       Seen this spoken about on a few blogs as an idea, personally I
       don’t think he will suit FB. He has some but not all te
       essential attributes. I also struggle to understand why Steward
       is no not good enough, he’s the best option we have so play him
       there. Watson or Malins would be more likely back ups.
       Play Marcus at 10.
       #Post#: 112417--------------------------------------------------
       Re: Smiffy playing at FB, maybe?
   DIR By: FatQuin
       Date: August 24, 2023, 6:29 am
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       Play Farrell at 10, 12 & 15 (when he’s banned, play no one as
       they will never be good enough to replace him.  He “drives
       standards” remember.  And he does it both “on and off the
       pitch”.  What a guy.
       #Post#: 112418--------------------------------------------------
       Re: Smiffy playing at FB, maybe?
   DIR By: never sleep
       Date: August 24, 2023, 6:31 am
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       FB is a specialist position.
       If you doubt this, then maybe look up what happened when Ugo
       played at FB for England
       #Post#: 112419--------------------------------------------------
       Re: Smiffy playing at FB, maybe?
   DIR By: poorfour
       Date: August 24, 2023, 6:53 am
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       --- Quote from: J Scott link ---
       >
       > Seen this spoken about on a few blogs as an idea, personally I
       don’t think he will suit FB. He has some but not all te
       essential attributes. I also struggle to understand why Steward
       is no not good enough, he’s the best option we have so play him
       there. Watson or Malins would be more likely back ups.
       >
       > Play Marcus at 10.
       >
       --- End Quote ---
       Steward is good under the high ball (something we'd been lacking
       with Daly there) and a solid strike runner in counterattack, but
       he's slow to accelerate and change direction, and his defensive
       positioning is not good enough (at least not yet) to compensate.
       He got away with that while he was an unknown quantity, but
       other teams have worked out his flaws and developed strategies
       that have exposed him in defence repeatedly - and worse, led to
       him picking up cards because he can't adjust fast enough.
       It's potentially fixable - I've been saying for 2 years that his
       running patterns are like Mike Brown's when he was first picked
       for England in 2007. Brown went and worked with Margot Wells and
       developed a much better running style for rugby - and was always
       a brilliant positional fullback even from his first games for
       Quins. Steward hasn't improved enough on either front. I am
       tempted to think that he may have let the hype and MOTM awards
       get to him, and neglected to work as hard on his weaknesses as
       he could.
       Right now, and assuming he still has the form he had at the end
       of last season and hasn't lost too much pace, Brown would
       arguably be a better option for England.
       #Post#: 112424--------------------------------------------------
       Re: Smiffy playing at FB, maybe?
   DIR By: Man From LA
       Date: August 24, 2023, 7:14 am
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       --- Quote from: FatQuin link ---
       >
       > Play Farrell at 10, 12 & 15 (when he’s banned, play no one as
       they will never be good enough to replace him.  He “drives
       standards” remember.  And he does it both “on and off the
       pitch”.  What a guy.
       >
       --- End Quote ---
       Don't forget 'test match animal'.
       (The animal being a carthorse)
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