NRL Notepad: Round 3 Preview

What's on the watchlist this week?

• Storm v Broncos

  • Broncos Left Edge Defence

• Rabbitohs v Tigers

  • A Wests Tigers Tap Set

• Content Offloads

Storm v Broncos

Broncos Left Edge Defence

The Brisbane Broncos left edge couldn’t handle the Parramatta Eels in Round 2. Down big and in a desperate search for points, Mitchell Moses and the Eels repeatedly targeted the Broncos left edge for regular success.

Gehamat Shibasaki has since been dropped for their Round 3 clash against the Melbourne Storm so here, we’re going to look at what went wrong with an eye for any changes when Grant Anderson steps in as his replacement.

Parramatta made the three-man their target for a lot of the match. Ezra Mam is a strong defender and doesn’t shy away from contact. That can be what hurts him when he sinks too far on a lead to protect his inside shoulder. A lot depends on how quickly his four-man can get across the field, too.

Kelma Tulagi took the game by the scruff of the neck to bust through and score an excellent individual try early. However, it’s the three later in the game that will have played a part in Michael Maguire’s decision to make a change.

With Aublix Tawha getting caught up on the lead as Moses swings early into Mam at three-man, Shibasaki is still on his way out. The disconnect between Mam and Shibasaki presents a gapping hole for Tuilagi to score his second.

The Eels went back to the well on the following set. On the momentum of a barnstorming Sam Tuivaiti carry, Moses pushes forward at Xavier Willison who has travelled to A on the short side.

Again, Mam is caught in an awkward spot, but it’s ultimately the triangle Shibasaki creates by failing to get up alongside his half that Isaiah Iongi steps through to score.

Out of the break having no doubt spoken about how they want to attack in their first opportunity on the Broncos line, the Eels are straight into the left edge.

Moses is once again the man to make the move, getting across the four-man and into Mam at three. This time, however, Shibasaki stays tight to his half. Too tight. Iongi is able to swing outside the centre on the Moses pass, and by the time he catches it, has already isolated Josaiah Karapani on the wing.

Iongi is too quick and there isn’t enough grass behind Shibasaki for him to make an effective scrambling tackle.

While Shibasaki isn’t the only player to blame for the Broncos’ struggles on the left edge, Maguire’s answer is for Anderson - a classic Mr. Fix It player - to come in and firm it up. He won’t be tasked with a lot beyond getting up in defence and making strong contact.

I’m curious to see the differences, if any, to how the Broncos approach their edge defence against a Storm attack that can score in a variety of ways.

Rabbitohs v Tigers

A Wests Tigers Tap Set

The Wests Tigers are a long time without finals football, and while they’ve displayed the odd promising period over the years, their success hasn’t come through repeatable actions. It’s in repeatable actions where we can judge their improvement and the potential for consistency and a chance of cracking the Top 8.

One tap set offered hope in Round 2.

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