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Message: [QUOTE="Thelmus, post: 3242641, member: 8988"] I was talking about niu with regard to the right side. Coates has the wing therefore Niu has to be a better defender than he has shown. I think he is still a good prospect, but he is a little hesitant at times in defence. I'd be tempted to put farnsworth on that side and then you have a fairly lethal right side with dearden to feed it, but he is still somewhat inexperienced and benefits playing alongside mead. As for Milford it is more about reducing returns. You always take a hit in defence from that type of player (look at Benji Marshall's defence). You just hope they put in when it gets tough and make up for it with their creativity and work ethic. He has improved with regard to last year on his effort but not his application, discipline or leadership (he is now 27 and should be a senior player, with the maturity to lead, not be expected to be led). That a 19 year old halfback and a couple of 20 year olds seem to show more out on the field makes me wonder how he has not progressed and why. As a 5/8 he will always be in a position to influence those around him whether with the ball in hand or just because he has more freedom than the regimented roles of second rowers, centres or props. In 6 years of playing that role it still hasn't been shown. Walters talked about him and the captaincy because it should be a natural fit for a mature play maker that is the teams premier player. It goes to a more troubling question about the mental toughness and the lack of resistance that is inherent in him and the players that developed with him. I hope Walters can root out the cause and a find a solution because we can't keep blaming youth and whilst it is a factor in some inexperience, should not be an excuse to drop heads. A player who doesn't fight harder when down shouldn't be there. Dropping Milford may be the first step in setting an expectation to never take success or failure for granted, be it on the field or off it. [/QUOTE]

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