Clearwing wrote:A few thoughts.
Firstly congratulations to saints. Pretty much better across the park. If we had to lose I'd rather we did it going down swinging in the way we did. At least we walk away knowing that the rubbish during the build up didn't affect the outcome.
I know there's a lot of optimism but I suspect next year might look like a step back rather than a step forward. Our end of season has been a fabulous turnaround. Even the most parochial saints fan would admit that some of last night's goal line defence was good, hurrells try excepted. That epitomises what Rohan has brought to the group. Is it sustainable through an entire season? No. Or if it is, I've never seen it done. We need reinforcements otherwise we'll only see a toll in injuries and suspensions arising from the desperation needed to halt bigger, stronger men.
I also question whether our spine has the quality needed to lead us to the big prize. Big question marks over 6, 7 & 9 for me. Good enough for a top 4 side, definitely. But title winning? Given it's what we have, Smith has to elevate their collective level. Which in fairness he may be able to do, given thi will be his first preseason to work with them. My worry is that next season is a reversal of this, i.e. start like a house on fire only to fizzle out like a damp squib.
Despite immediate concerns over next year I remain optimistic. The end of this season has seen players and fans alike regain their pride. I've been to a lot of grand finals and while I've heard victorious fans make a lot of racket, I've not heard fans of a beaten team equal ours last night. That has been brought about by the players, good, bad and indifferent, and the coaches. It's been a memorable ride.
Great post this - thought your fans were magnificent throughout.
