The Cumberland Throw

From The Stands – It’s Who We Are

I am not even going to try to describe what it was like sitting in the stands last Sunday because if you happened to be there you will never forget it and if you could not get in no words can describe what it was like.

I have been thinking about why it was so special even before the 58 points went up on the board and possibly it is because of the fact that this squad is a carbon copy of us the supporters.

There are those who have been with the club through thick and thin. Those players like Tim Mannah and Manu Mau who have protected and shielded our club when all the fireballs have rained down.

Then there are the players who have shown resilience in the face of pain, disappointed and or embarrassment like Gutho, Moses and Michael Jennings, who have stayed in the fight and maintained the faith.

Reed “Cash” Mahoney

Of course then there are the Parra kids, like Reed and Dylan, the ones who don’t carry all the scars and disappointment but simply love being part of the game.

There are the ones who are new to the club, like Lane , Fergo and Blake who are starting to realise that having a strong army behind you, who will happily follow and defend  you, is a wonderful arsenal to have at your disposal. 

Finally there are those kids from Western Sydney, like Junior and Tepai. The ones who have had to do things the hard way, have had to break open doors and fight to keep the dream alive.

Our team, our club and our supporter base is beautifully diverse. Last Sunday we celebrated those talents. We watched and cheered the crunches in defence and the beautiful kicks and offloads. We walked back to the train station or to our cars chatting to strangers from all different walks of life who we will probably never talk to again but they are part of our club, they are part of the blue and gold and therefore they must be alright.

Brad Arthur

This week a big task awaits.

We need to keep the faith. I am no fan of the style of play the Storm exhibit but I can recognise and acknowledge the consistency with results they have achieved.

Can we beat them in Melbourne?  Of course we can.

Will we beat them? That depends on the courage and execution our team plays with.

Offload, be aggressive and kick well will give us a chance. As Brad Arthur said beautifully against Manly in Rd 25 back yourselves boys.

I expect my team to go out and play our type of football, to play with passion and to compete. Do that and you will always have the blue and gold fans support just like you did last Sunday.

 

Shelley

If you liked this article, you might consider supporting The Cumberland Throw.

5 thoughts on “From The Stands – It’s Who We Are

  1. Darryl

    Great read. Back yourself and attack, attack, attack both in defence and with the ball. The legal aggression on Sunday was amazing. No need for rubbish, just hit them hard and in numbers and watch the oppositions inner timidness appear. Loved every moment of the game.

    1. Shelley

      The defence was amazing. There is a simple truth to our team, if we can hold a team in the ruck we will win. Our attack, across the field is so very dangerous. I was so proud of everyone, players, supporters and coaches on Sunday.

  2. pete

    Great read Shelley, it’s been great reading your articles. How awesome was that result. I and many others have been critical of our defence and I have even called for the sacking of Kidwell. But, after that demolition it really has restored my faith. We always knew if we controlled the middle we could outscore any team and that’s precisely what we did to the Broncos. It seems the team is peaking at the right time of the year and how good was Tepai, his best game for years and no errors…and an awesome try. I really was worried about him on the bench but he showed a glimpse of his capabilities.
    Now the Storm will be out to prove a point and the NRL admitted duding them against Raiders. I hope it’s not a home ground stitch up to make up for last week. I’m confident that the boys can make their own luck and take the officials out of the game.
    Control the middle and completions and we will outscore the Storm.
    All the best

    1. Shelley

      I was so nervous before the game, not because I rate the Broncos but I was worried that the boys would not have the courage to play our game.
      After 5 minutes I new we would win. The moment Reed wrapped up Milford on the 5th showed me they had the right defensive attitude. Nathan Brown made it his mission to stop Fafita. He will be so important this Saturday. We have a better attack we just need to get into the game and get an even share with possession.

  3. BDon

    Well said Shelley. In the first half I noticed the Broncs not moving up on the blind side, they gradually failed to embrace their lack of ball. They were ripe for the long pass switch. I think Siebold spotted it, their line speed in 2nd half on both sides of the ruck was actually better, but their resilience/teamwork/second effort fell away as each set unfolded. We did brilliantly with what a team should do with good completions/low errors. Can you bottle that?

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

%d bloggers like this: