The difference a week makes

Been letting the dust settle on the Storm result, and to be honest, I'm still kinda floating.

Penrith have had an epic last few years, but for mine the Storm remain the gold standard in the NRL. Over the last 10 seasons, they've twice been premiers, 4 times been runner up, lost 3 prelims, and their worst year in the last 10 was losing at the elmination final stage. 

So knocking off the Storm is a big deal. Especially with them coming off a loss the week prior. 

I think more pleasing than the win was the way we played. There was a crispness to our footy that we hadn't seen for quite a while (as in since 2022 crisp). I most noticed it on our shifts wide. Everyone was hitting the ball at pace and the Storm were always under pressure as a result.

It's a result that gives real hope to our season. If we can play at close to that level consistantly, we'll win a bunch of games.

Clifford had his best game since the Canberra game in 2024. In the buildup Payten had told him to run. And he was a real handful as a result. Maybe that's the secret sauce for Clifford - he needs to run rather than distribute. Drinky effectively plays like a five eighth in attack when we go wide anyway.

Re: Drinky. He did come up with a couple of bad misses, but he also came up with 5 line break & try assists. That's gold, especially when you're playing someone with a strong defence like the Storm. The ability to create is such a rare skill in footy.

It's also worth looking at the stats of some of the the fullbacks in the NRL last weekend (I only put up games I watched). Drinky's stats actually look pretty solid.

Tom Trbojevic:    33% tackle effeciency, 2 handling errors

James Tedesco:    33% tackle effeciency, 1 error

Reece Walsh:        100% tackle effeciency, 3 errors

The Hammer:        80% Tackle efficiency, 3 handling errors

Dylan Edwards:    100% tackle effeciency, 2 errors

Isaish Iongi:          75% tackle effeciency, 2 errors (in 43 mins)

Scott Drinkwater:   75% tackle effeciency, 1 handling error

Sualavi Faalogo:     80% tackle effeciency, 1 handling error

And keep in mind none of the fullbacks (other than Drinkwater) contributed more than 3 line break & try assists (most only managed 1 or 2)