Latest news with #JacobKiraz
News.com.au
04-07-2025
- Sport
- News.com.au
Calls to change State of Origin 18th man rule as Reece Walsh, Bulldogs dudded
It's Canterbury's curse they can't escape, and the Broncos might be catching it. The highly controversial 18th man rule in State of Origin has once more cost the Bulldogs a star for this week's important Round 18 clash against the Brisbane Broncos this Friday. FOX LEAGUE, available on Kayo Sports, is the only place to watch every game of every round in the 2025 NRL Telstra Premiership, LIVE with no ad-breaks during play. New to Kayo? Get your first month for just $1. Limited-time offer. The side have been constantly burned by the problem, losing key players like Matt Burton and Kurt Mann previously without them even getting a run of rep footy. Mann was the Maroons Reserve in Game 1, while Burton was the same for NSW in Game 2 and other occasions in past years. This time, its metre-eating winger Jacob Kiraz whose selection by coach Laurie Daley as a precautionary back-up for Brian To'o will cost the Dogs significant yardage carries and a pair of safe hands. The Penrith winger played through a knee injury in his sides tight win over Canterbury last week, but scan results have cleared To'o of any concern, meaning it is highly unlikely Kiraz will take to the field come Wednesday. Brisbane find themselves in a similar problem, running out against the Bulldogs without superstar Reece Walsh who fills the Maroons 18th man slot and has been in great form since returning from injury. 'It's Kiraz and Reece Walsh, they should be allowed to play in their club teams,' Mark Geyer said on 2GB. 'We don't play (Origin) until next Wednesday. In fact, I think it's time in Origin for us to bring in an 18th and 19th man to sit on the bench — a forward and a back. 'Come on, we've outgrown that '18th man can't play' thing. 'It's just a bit of a bug bear of mine. The 18th man should be allowed to play for his club team. Coach Billy Slater's decision to shift Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow to fullback to replace the injured Kalyn Ponga leaves Michael Maguire with their own equally devastating Origin casualty list. In Game 2 it was Ezra Mam. 'It's interesting the 18th man rule, I don't think anyone agrees with the way it is,' Daley said on the Sky Sports radio on Monday. 'Matt (Burton) I think has been selected as 18th man five times, missed club games and hasn't played a part in the Origin games themselves. 'The reason why I picked Jacob, we've got one bloke who is in a bit of doubt and that's Brian To'o. 'We want to give him every chance to play and because the Bulldogs are playing on the Friday night we want to make sure if Brian is ruled out than Jacob has had a full 11 days preparation with us.' Team performance manager Frank Ponissi on Triple M weighed in on the topic, suggesting on Wednesday that picking an 18th man solely from a team with the bye isn't solution for picking the optimal player. 'What makes it difficult is the draw is unbalanced, so you don't know who's going to play. Some weeks that situation … it may favour NSW more than QLD because there's more NSW players not playing that weekend compared to QLD,' he said. 'We've got to get the draw right before we get this particular issue correct. 'Origin has to be played in the middle of the season, it's so big and massive for our game. It's what we do with the NRL around the Origin period, we've got to get that right. So when we can sort that out, I think the 18th man and everything else will fall in line.' Whether the NRL makes any changes to the 18th man rule following the series is yet to be seen as the discussion grows.
Mercury
03-07-2025
- Sport
- Mercury
Calls to change State of Origin 18th man rule as Reece Walsh, Bulldogs dudded
Don't miss out on the headlines from NRL. Followed categories will be added to My News. It's Canterbury's curse they can't escape, and the Broncos might be catching it. The highly controversial 18th man rule in State of Origin has once more cost the Bulldogs a star for this week's important Round 18 clash against the Brisbane Broncos this Friday. FOX LEAGUE, available on Kayo Sports, is the only place to watch every game of every round in the 2025 NRL Telstra Premiership, LIVE with no ad-breaks during play. New to Kayo? Get your first month for just $1. Limited-time offer. The side have been constantly burned by the problem, losing key players like Matt Burton and Kurt Mann previously without them even getting a run of rep footy. Mann was the Maroons Reserve in Game 1, while Burton was the same for NSW in Game 2 and other occasions in past years. This time, its metre-eating winger Jacob Kiraz whose selection by coach Laurie Daley as a precautionary back-up for Brian To'o will cost the Dogs significant yardage carries and a pair of safe hands. The Penrith winger played through a knee injury in his sides tight win over Canterbury last week, but scan results have cleared To'o of any concern, meaning it is highly unlikely Kiraz will take to the field come Wednesday. Brisbane find themselves in a similar problem, running out against the Bulldogs without superstar Reece Walsh who fills the Maroons 18th man slot and has been in great form since returning from injury. Jacob Kiraz has been named as the NSW Blues 18th man in in the event Brian To'o can't take to the field. Photo:. To'o is carrying a knee injury but has been cleared to play in Game 3. Photo: Colin Murty/AFP. 'It's Kiraz and Reece Walsh, they should be allowed to play in their club teams,' Mark Geyer said on 2GB. 'We don't play (Origin) until next Wednesday. In fact, I think it's time in Origin for us to bring in an 18th and 19th man to sit on the bench — a forward and a back. 'Come on, we've outgrown that '18th man can't play' thing. 'It's just a bit of a bug bear of mine. The 18th man should be allowed to play for his club team. Coach Billy Slater's decision to shift Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow to fullback to replace the injured Kalyn Ponga leaves Michael Maguire with their own equally devastating Origin casualty list. In Game 2 it was Ezra Mam. 'It's interesting the 18th man rule, I don't think anyone agrees with the way it is,' Daley said on the Sky Sports radio on Monday. Reece Walsh was expected to be named in the fullback role after Kalyn Ponga's injury but Maroons coach Slater instead shifted Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow to the position, leaving the Broncos full in limbo as 18th man. Photo:. 'Matt (Burton) I think has been selected as 18th man five times, missed club games and hasn't played a part in the Origin games themselves. 'The reason why I picked Jacob, we've got one bloke who is in a bit of doubt and that's Brian To'o. 'We want to give him every chance to play and because the Bulldogs are playing on the Friday night we want to make sure if Brian is ruled out than Jacob has had a full 11 days preparation with us.' Team performance manager Frank Ponissi on Triple M weighed in on the topic, suggesting on Wednesday that picking an 18th man solely from a team with the bye isn't solution for picking the optimal player. The ultimate losers from the situation are the Bulldogs and the Broncos, who will lose both stars ahead of their clash at Accor Stadium on Friday. Photo:. 'What makes it difficult is the draw is unbalanced, so you don't know who's going to play. Some weeks that situation … it may favour NSW more than QLD because there's more NSW players not playing that weekend compared to QLD,' he said. 'We've got to get the draw right before we get this particular issue correct. 'Origin has to be played in the middle of the season, it's so big and massive for our game. It's what we do with the NRL around the Origin period, we've got to get that right. So when we can sort that out, I think the 18th man and everything else will fall in line.' Whether the NRL makes any changes to the 18th man rule following the series is yet to be seen as the discussion grows. 'If the clubs come to me about it, we'll put it in the end of year review,' NRL's CEO Andrew Abdo said. Originally published as Calls to change State of Origin 18th man rule as Reece Walsh, Bulldogs dudded
News.com.au
01-07-2025
- Sport
- News.com.au
NRL Round 18: Teams Talk and Live SuperCoach Q&A
With weeks to prepare for the final big bye round of the season the vast majority of SuperCoaches should be sitting pretty heading into round 18. That's even with the Jacob Kiraz and Gehamat Shibasaki Origin selection curveballs. All of which is leading up to a surprise confession - I'm not trading this week. Which is not to say that there are no good buys this week. Those of you who own Luke Metcalf can choose from one very good half, two somewhat risky five-eighths and one very risky five-eighth/fullback. Elsewhere, in the popular trades to dissect there's a CTW I very much like (but possibly prefer others later), a second-row I very much like (but definitely prefer others later) and a CTW cheapie who I think buyers may regret. Let's dive in! BUY/SELL ANALYSIS The very good CTW - and the guys I'd possibly prefer to wait for … Mark Nawaqanitawase: The Roosters 'rookie' keeps doing spectacular things in attack, has scored nine tries in his past seven games, and has match-ups against the battling Wests Tigers and Dragons in his next two matches. So, 'why do you prefer others', you might ask - and even if you didn't I will tell you. How many CTW do we need? Let's start with the fundamental question - do we need more CTW. By this stage of the season I am willing to bet (all are in over 80% of teams currently ranked in the top 10%) you own the following CTWs: Dylan Lucas, Reuben Garrick, Herbie Farnworth and Jacob Kiraz. You also almost certainly own late season Broncos money maker Josiah Karapani. That leaves two CTW slots to fill. And, perhaps more pertinently, you also almost certainly have three gun fullbacks, at least three gun halves and almost certainly eight, but at a minimum seven gun FRF/2RF combined. We only have four reserve slots. Assuming your fullback is largely locked into one, then that leaves three. I'll almost always want my half to take another. The gun forwards are doing their job providing a safe 70 (ish) PPG - let's assume you have Terrell May/Payne Haas locked into FRF and Eliesa Katoa/Keaon Koloamatangi/AN Other locked into 2RF. That's your five starters. Around those you'll have others - and I think there are two forwards we should definitely target post-Origin - but with the CTW cohort performing so well I think it is fair to suggest that you will be saving two reserve slots for them. So in answer to my own question: I think we definitely need five and strongly desire six quality CTWs. Is 'Marky Mark' one of the CTW we need? This hurts me to my Rooster Booster core - but I say no. Barring injuries I have Nawaqanitawase outside my top-four CTW. That means I am playing him as a reserve based on match-ups. And the match-ups are not great. After the aforementioned Tigers and Dragons the Roosters' draw toughens right up. From round 20 onwards the draw goes like this: * Rd 20 Sharks (Away) * Rd 21 Storm (Home) * Rd 22 Manly (Away) * Rd 23 Dolphins (Away) * Rd 24 Bulldogs (Home) * Rd 25 Eels (Away) * Rd 26 Storm (Away) * Rd 27 Souths (Home) The Sharks are not travelling great, but still have the sixth best record defending against CTW. He's a play there but with risk. The Storm are never a great team to play against. Rounds 21 and 26 are No Play. Manly at home is tough, and are equal 9th at defending CTW, I'd still say he's a play - but again with risk. The Dolphins can be a little hit and miss but I feel the injuries have finally become too much - play. The Bulldogs have the best defence in the league - no play. They will still win games but I expect teams to score okay there. Even away he's a play. The Eels are a play. Which leaves round 27 against Souths. This game is always a, pardon my french, shitshow. There's be high hits, sin bins and no matter their respective places on the radar either team could win. Play - but risky. That's two strong plays, three risky plays and three no plays. Not great. Chuck in rounds 18 and 19 and that's four plays, three risky plays and three no plays. That's better. But I prefer the two men below. Once Origin is over I will be chasing one or both of Zac Lomax and Val Holmes. I'm already waaaaay over Tom's laughable 300 word limit for this story so won't do a deep dive into their respective draws. But rest easy knowing that in my opinion they have roughly the same number of Play/Risky and No play games as Mark N. But the crucial difference is that both Lomax and Holmes are goalkickers. That job provides a 10-12PPG buffer for each men and so makes them more reliable even in 'risky' games. Holmes has scored 60+ in 85% of games. Lomax has scored 60+ in 80% of games. Nawaqanitawase has scored 60+ in just 67% of games. Conclusion: As tempted as I am by Nawaqanitawase, I really do think we're better off waiting till after Origin III and buying Lomax and/or Holmes to finish the position. The very good 2RF - and the guys I'd prefer to wait for … Jacob Preston is the second most popular buy of the week. And while I do not oppose it - it's hard to knock a forward who has scored five times from his past seven games and has the fifth best average at his position - I still think that the better option is to wait until after Origin III and target either Hudson Young or Angus Crichton. Young has a better base than Preston and at least as good a try scoring potential. The Canberra left edge has scored triple figures four times (Preston once) and 85+ three other occasions (as has Preston). Unavailable for selection this week due to Origin, then on a bye in round 19, Young then has an enviable draw (though the round 24 bye is not ideal) with five matches against bottom-eight teams, four which are at home, and three of which are against cellar dwellers the Knights, Tigers and Eels. Crichton is more of a gamble. Currently averaging fully 13PPG less than his 2024 output, the Roosters left-edge forward has scored just one try so far this year. That will change. Available for less than $600K, in under 5% of teams and with a pedigree of going big when he scores, I think the Mighty Angus is the 2RF POD who could win you a H2H battle late in 2025. A DISCLAIMER Now, I realise that maybe those buying Preston or Nawaqanitawase this week plan to ALSO get the likes of Lomax/Holmes/Young next week. In which case go for it. But if it is an either/or scenario then you know my position. The Luke Metcalf replacement options … Jahrome Hughes: The Storm halfback has been rather rocks or diamonds this year with three tonnes (and one 90+) to his name but also three under 50 in the past five games alone. Melbourne's medium-term draw is great (Cowboys (without Origin stars), Knights, Manly, Roosters and Eels. But their draw to finish the season - Broncos, Panthers, Bulldogs, Roosters and Broncos - is not. MEDIUM BUY Ethan Strange: The Canberra five-eighth has the second-best 3RA of any 5/8|HFB and as mentioned above the Raiders draw (other than still having two byes left) is good. I do feel that Strange has made the most of what has been a very soft recent draw. RISKY BUY Ezra Mam: The Broncos five-eighth has been good on his return from suspension. Good not great. I prefer Hughes or Strange. PASS Kaeo Weekes: Speaking of rocks or diamonds, the Canberra fullback posted his third triple-figure score of the season last weekend. However, in the weeks before that big score, Weekes went 25, 45, 24 and 29. PASS The CTW cheapie we don't need … Jed Stuart: 'Ricky's son' has scored a try in each of his NRL games so far which is a fair strike rate. He also upped his workrate last week making 16 runs and 11 tackles (with two misses) both numbers a big lift on his debut. What I don't love is that despite scoring tries in each match Stuart has scored just 45 then 44 points. Despite the negative BE and the aforementioned draw, I just don't think Stuart has the SC game we need from a late cheapie. PASS
News.com.au
30-06-2025
- Sport
- News.com.au
‘Not a boil': Jarome Luai clears air on health scare as Blues teammate races clock to be fit for Origin decider
Blues coach Laurie Daley says strike winger Brian To'o needs to start doing 'decent' training by Saturday to prove his fitness, with Jacob Kiraz to do the majority of sessions this week to ensure he's ready to go if there's a late switch for the Origin decider. To'o overcame a hamstring concern to score a hat-trick in game two in Perth, but he appeared to injure his left knee during Penrith's epic win over the Bulldogs last week. That he finished the game is a good sign, but NSW won't risk him if he's not fully fit and able to train properly by the weekend. 'Bizza's (To'o) scan was a good one, but (he'll be on) restricted duties because you can't afford to take any chances,' Daley said. 'That's the reason why Jacob's 18th man. Jacob will train the majority of the sessions so he won't miss a beat. 'If we need to make that change then we will because we've got the flexibility there and it won't disrupt our preparation. 'More importantly, Bizza can try to get right, and if Jacob plays, he'll have a good 11-day prep before he makes his Origin debut.' To'o wasn't the only injury concern heading into Blues camp on Monday, but he's the only one still in doubt with halves Nathan Cleary and Jarome Luai both overcoming recent setbacks. Cleary battled a groin complaint in Perth and didn't do the goalkicking that night or for the Panthers last week, but that didn't stop him from coming up with the game-winning play when he charged down a Matt Burton kick to score. 'Feeling good, it was a bloody tough game on Thursday night but pulled out of that really well,' he said. 'In terms of the groin, it's feeling better every single day. I even compare this time last week and it feels a lot better. I'm happy with that. 'It's mainly just the goalkicking (that I can't do). I haven't even tried to goalkick yet. It's one of those things that you don't want to try too early and get another setback, so I'm mainly focusing on making sure I don't have any disruptions in actually playing. 'I think it's something that we want to speak about quite early in the week so it's not something that gets chopped and changed too late.' Cleary is looking forward to lining up alongside great mate Luai one more time after the Wests Tigers co-captain was a late scratching for their game against Manly. Luai picked up a nasty fever and his whole chest went red, but the star playmaker stressed the injury wasn't what was first reported. 'It was just a wound, not a boil,' he explained after spending three days in hospital. 'When I saw the word boil I was like 'oh man, the boys are gonna roast me'. They're all giving it to me. I'll cop that on the chin, but I am just happy I am back feeling a lot better. 'I was probably a bit rundown from backing up after Origin, you start to catch things a bit easier. I got a bit of a staph infection. I went to hospital after the captain's run and tried to get those antibiotics into my system and be right to play the next day. 'I got there and the doctor said it was a lot worse than what we thought it was. I am feeling a lot better now, I am grateful for that. You take for granted sometimes when you're in good health, so good to be back now.'
News.com.au
26-06-2025
- Sport
- News.com.au
‘I don't think Brian's got too much to worry about': Panthers winger not fussed about high shot or knee injury ahead of Origin decider
Panthers winger Brian To'o faces a nervous wait for the match review committee charges to drop after he was placed on report for a high shot in the final few minutes of Thursday's epic win over the Bulldogs. The Blues star was penalised for a high tackle on Bulldogs centre Bronson Xerri, with the blue and whites turning down a shot at goal that would have levelled the scores if Stephen Crichton had been able to convert from 30 metres out on the sideline. The initial contact appeared to be with the chest before the arm bounced up and caught Xerri high, with To'o confident he will avoid a serious charge that would rub him out of the Origin decider on July 9. 'I asked him if he was all right, he said he was sweet,' the Panthers winger said. 'It is what it is but I had to check on 'Brons' and see if he was all right.' To'o received support from Bulldogs coach Cameron Ciraldo who backed powerful winger Jacob Kiraz to do the job if he was required to make his debut at Accor Stadium. 'I don't think Brian's got too much to worry about. There wasn't much in it so he should be right,' he said. 'If Jacob got an opportunity, he's not going to let anyone down. He's been one of the form wingers in the comp and he was brilliant again tonight.' The MRC isn't the only thing that could stop To'o from lining up in game three, with the hat-trick hero from Perth appearing to injure his left knee in the first half. The four-time premiership winner carried a hamstring injury into the Perth game but that didn't slow him down, with To'o requiring strapping and constant attention from Penrith's medical staff on Thursday night. 'It's good,' he said in the sheds as he left the ground with a big ice pack on his knee. 'I think it might've happened during the game, either way I'm all good. 'I'm still walking, that's the main positive sign.' A Nathan Cleary masterclass! ðŸ'¥ ðŸ'° Watch #NRLPanthersBulldogs on ch.502 or stream on Kayo: âœ�ï¸� BLOG ðŸ'¢ MATCH CENTRE — Fox League (@FOXNRL) June 26, 2025 While the Blues sweat on his fitness, NSW officials would've been cheering after influential halfback Nathan Cleary got through the game unscathed. The world's best playmaker was troubled by a groin issue in Perth which prevented him from kicking goals, with Cleary unable to take any shots on Thursday night. But it didn't stop him from coming up with the biggest play of the night when he charged down a Matt Burton kick to score the decisive try against the ladder leaders. 'I didn't really have any scares at all,' he said, unsure whether he'll be fine to kick goals in the decider. 'This week I had two solid training sessions in and felt confident. 'I'm very grateful to the NSW physios and also the Penrith physios because they put a lot of work into me and helped me get into a headspace where I was confident to play. 'Goal-kicking is the next box to tick, but I was happy with how it went.' His try was the difference on a night where the Bulldogs learnt some valuable lessons against the team that has been the benchmark for the past five years. 'I thought we played great, but we came up against a great team who did enough to win,' Ciraldo said. 'We did so many things great tonight, but not enough to win. There were enough lessons for us there that hopefully in big games at the end of the year, we can use those lessons to become a better footy team.'
