wdnicolson.com: The Postman's Round 3 NRL Mailbag

The Postman on Round 3
2017 National Rugby League Premiership
By W D Nicolson - March 21, 2017
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The Postman is back for Round 3's NRL Mailbag...

📸 Can't add anything to just how good this photo from Robb Cox is... and it's 18 months old!

➤ Quote of the Round:
|-| "Jason (Taylor) has overseen significant change within the Club over the past two seasons and we thank him for his efforts..."

Wests Tigers Chairwoman Marina Go as she announced that this change wasn't quite the kind of change the Tigers were after... Taylor lasted just 51 games as Head Coach at the Tigers and was let go after his team was outscored 82-8 in the Rounds 2 and 3.

➤ Try of the Round:

|-| The Raiders go 60m to practically end their clash with the Tigers just before halftime - significantly Austin had pulled off a try-saving tackle only a few minutes earlier and the Raiders ran away with the game in the 2nd Half.

Watch how the try unfolds for yourself below...

➤ Email your thoughts/questions on the footy for The Postman's Mailbag here

➤ 5 Things I Think:

|-| You should listen to NOT The Footy Show Episode 158...

Shameless plugola here - Download Episode 158 (or right click save target as) - NRL Photographer Robb Cox joins Warrick Nicolson (aka The Postman) for a look at the NRL after 3 Rounds and a little bit about the Jason Taylor sacking... it's time well spent with nothing else to occupy your time on the way to or from work.

|-| Huge fines for breaching concussion protocol...

The game was strict on players getting temporarily dazed from head shots last year - but after 3 Rounds it appeared like there were more and more players staying on after being dazed... now perception is reality for the NRL it seems after SMH's Peter Fitzsimmons went on a crusade over the weekend... the fines to the Titans, Knights and Dragons may yet be suspended but the issue that rises to the top out of this action is the club doctors/trainers are going to have to battle it out with head coaches as much as players on the field as it is their reputations that cop the most impact of these fines. Good luck to these professionals who now have to stand up to coaches who want their players staying on through almost anything as a rule. Now if only the NRL would crack further down on the lifting tackle rules we might see the end of that tackle altogether...

|-| Manly's defence...

Was desperation personified v the Cowboys in Townsville. North Queensland weren't bad in this game by any stretch and had plenty of the ball in good field position to get back into the game after halftime - but Manly kept turning up in defence and the Cowboys kept dropping the ball when things got tough. With no Matt Scott for the season and no Jason Taumalolo for this (or next) game - the Cowboys for sure weren't carrying all their ammo but how they bounce back against the Titans on the Gold Coast is going to be watched very closely by those of us who had the Cowboys as our Premiers at the beginning of the season... and again, great job Manly.

|-| Parramatta's switch off job...

You see it every so often in the NRL... one team explodes out of the blocks and the other team gets exposed by ability and then injury to compound things... but then something changes. That happened on Friday night when the Titans were dead and buried early and got a bevvy of injuries on to of their horrible start... then won the game. Parramatta didn't do a heck of a lot of wrong outside of perhaps thinking the job was done and the Titans couldn't come back with so many injuries... but come back they did and pull off a famous victory for the Gold Coast fans who turned out. What was most annoying after the game was certain 'experts' heading to Twitter after the game pointing to the absence of Jarryd Hayne as the reason the Titans won... please get your head out of your rear ends and realise that not everything is about you... Hayne makes the Titans infinitely better - it's total dribble to suggest otherwise.

|-| The Dragons are 2-1 and last year's Premiers are 1-2...

Yeah I can't believe it either... and get this the Dragons get the Warriors at Kogarah and Cronulla have to face Parramatta with Corey Norman... what world are we living in?.
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Josh McCrone's ladies and gentlemen.