Dunamis Lui notches up 150 NRL matches

[greeneyed]

Dunamis Lui: The journeyman who found a home

When Dunamis Lui was asked to talk about reaching his 150th NRL game this week, he politely declined because he wasn’t interested in talking about himself.

"He doesn’t get all the accolades that he deserves but he’s like Alan Tongue, he does all the little things behind the scenes. Knowing Nami, he probably doesn’t want those accolades anyway. He doesn’t have to but for some reason, he always makes my lunch,” Josh Papalii said.

Read more: https://www.raiders.com.au/news/2020/08 ... nd-a-home/

[Northern Raider]

Been incredible the 2nd part of this season. Career best form. Came after getting dropped too.

I've always been meh on Lui. That's completely changed and a big fan now.

[Botman]

It's been awesome to see him step up so much this year when our middles have been decimated.
I was always pretty critical of him as a FGer, though i always respected that he had a good role to fill in the squad because he was to my mind then the perfect squad filler, I genuinely didnt think he had this level of play in him and he's made me eat my words.

He's playing awesome footy this year and quite frankly without him the middles this year would be in HUGE strife. We've got a lot of competition for spots next year in the pack, but some of these kids and guys like James... they might find it harder than expected to get a 1-17 jersey off him.

Congrats to Dunamis on game 150!

[greeneyed]

Been incredible the 2nd part of this season. Career best form. Came after getting dropped too.

I've always been meh on Lui. That's completely changed and a big fan now.

He’s been very impressive since being dropped. He was correctly dropped, but he also deserves congratulations for how hard he’s worked to get back and for the impact he’s made. He’s been terrific since coming back. He also seems like a hell of a nice guy.

[zim]

That's **** adorable.

[BadnMean]

Been incredible the 2nd part of this season. Career best form. Came after getting dropped too.

I've always been meh on Lui. That's completely changed and a big fan now.

He’s been very impressive since being dropped. He deserved to be dropped, but he also deserves congratulations for how hard he’s worked to get back and for the impact he’s made. He’s been terrific since coming back. He also seems like a hell of a nice guy.

He un-ploddered himself. Not an easy thing to defy expectations.

[Dusty]

How old is Lui?


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[BJ]

I’ve heard nothing but good things about Lui around the club.

Many fans don’t see his value, but expert rugby league watchers can see how he covers the ruck near the line, doesn’t miss many tackles, covers potential offloads with a body hug tackle and he often takes the hard hit up when others don’t want to.

These are the little things that don’t get noticed in the Stats but teammates and the coaching staff know and appreciate the one percenters.

I’ve also enjoyed the out the back pass, occasional offload and key steal just when we’ve needed it this season. He’s only had six missed tackles, conceded one penalty and made four errors for the entire season. Some players have more than that in a single game.

He was running at almost no errors last season and then he had a pretty poor final third of the season and a number of errors.

[Roger Kenworthy]

Yeah I thought his contract last year was a big mistake - but I'm ecstatic to have been proven wrong. I have him well ahead of Ryan Sutton in our middle rankings nowadays.

[bonehead]

How old is Lui?


Sent from my iPhone using The Greenhouse

30

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[BadnMean]

I’ve heard nothing but good things about Lui around the club.

Many fans don’t see his value, but expert rugby league watchers can see how he covers the ruck near the line, doesn’t miss many tackles, covers potential offloads with a body hug tackle and he often takes the hard hit up when others don’t want to.

These are the little things that don’t get noticed in the Stats but teammates and the coaching staff know and appreciate the one percenters.

I’ve also enjoyed the out the back pass, occasional offload and key steal just when we’ve needed it this season. He’s only had six missed tackles, conceded one penalty and made four errors for the entire season. Some players have more than that in a single game.

He was running at almost no errors last season and then he had a pretty poor final third of the season and a number of errors.

Just had a quick look on foxlabs. Slightly different actual numbers on their stats but the result is similar- especially by comparison to the rest of the forward pack so it's a consistent idea. His tackle efficiency is very good, error count and (importantly) penalties conceded are very low. Near the best in the pack in all 3 categories. That's what you want from your Mr Reliable type budget prop.

The fact he as added a bit more aggression and oomph to his play lately + the offloads and strips makes him very effective now.

[greeneyed]

He's very under-rated, but certainly not by us: Jarrod Croker

Green Machine captain Jarrod Croker says journeyman forward Dunamis Lui is very underrated - but not by the people at the Canberra Raiders.

Lui, a "quiet achiever", is set to play his 150th NRL match this weekend, when the Raiders travel to the Gold Coast for a meeting with the Titans.

Lui played in the inaugural National Youth Competiton in 2008 - facing the Raiders in a classic golden point Grand Final, won by Canberra. He made his NRL debut with the Brisbane Broncos back in 2010 - a Round 5 loss to the Dragons - before moving to the Sea Eagles in 2014 and the Dragons in 2016.

Lui, who turned 30 earlier this year, joined the Raiders in 2017 - and he will play his 70th game in green on Saturday. That's more games than he's played at any other of his other clubs.

"Obviously, 150 is a massive achievement," Jarrod Croker said today.

"We really have a big emphasis on milestone games at this club. This weekend's going to be no different."

"Nami has been outstanding, I think since the absence of Sia [Soliola] especially, Nami has really stepped up."

"Not only his game but his leadership and his drive off the field. He's really taken ownership of the forward pack, and doing the little things that you know Sia would do off field and on field."

"It's a massive game for him. I know he's very proud the club is very grateful for the things that Nami does. So we're looking forward to hopefully repaying him with a win."

Lui has had his injury problems, and suffered an ACL injury in his first year with the Raiders. But his determination to come back from that set back impressed everyone at the club.

"He's been through a lot. He's had a couple of ACL injuries that a lot of people would have found very hard to come back from," Croker said.

"Nami is that sort of guy. He just puts his head down and does the work."

"He's a quiet sort of bloke, but he's one of those blokes... when he speaks everyone listens. He's really lifted that over the last six weeks and led that forward pack."

"He is very underrated, but certainly not by us. We know what Nami brings to the team and we know what he brings to the club as well."

Hooker Siliva Havili played with Lui at the Dragons, and now at the Raiders. He says that Lui's contributions can be sometimes overlooked, but not by his team mates and coaches.

"He does a lot of work for us in the team, many that we'll only understand, us as players and as a club," Havili said.

"Many of the fans don't see what the does off the ball and what he does away from footy. But he has a big imprint on our team and that just goes to show what he's about and the respect that all the boys show him."

A report for The Greenhouse

Canberra Raiders forward Dunamis Lui primed for 150th NRL cap

Outside of Raiders headquarters, Dunamis Lui is considered an underrated journeyman. But inside the club's four walls, you would struggle to find a more respected and loved member of the playing group.

"He's that sort of person he's willing to put others before himself," hooker Saliva Havili said. "[It's] his team first values that he holds, he's a hard worker most definitely. He lets his actions talk more than his words."

Read more: https://www.canberratimes.com.au/story/ ... /?cs=14239

VIDEO: Teammates pay tribute to 'hard worker' Lui: https://www.raiders.com.au/news/2020/08 ... te-to-lui/

PODCAST: Behind the Limelight: Hudson Young: https://www.raiders.com.au/news/2020/08 ... on-young3/

PODCAST: Canberra Times sport: 'Bloody-minded' John Bateman holds the key for Canberra Raiders: https://www.canberratimes.com.au/story/ ... /?cs=14239

[Seiffert82]

At 5'11" and 100 odd kilos he's not the biggest unit going around. I guess that's why he doesn't get noticed as much. He's not going it to break the line on a regular basis or put on a massive hit.

When he's at his best he is error free with the ball, doesn't miss tackles and keeps that middle tight. I can totally see why Stuart has a history of starting him in games, even when he doesn't always play big minutes.

It's players like Lui that embody the culture of a club.

[BJ]

I’ve heard nothing but good things about Lui around the club.

Many fans don’t see his value, but expert rugby league watchers can see how he covers the ruck near the line, doesn’t miss many tackles, covers potential offloads with a body hug tackle and he often takes the hard hit up when others don’t want to.

These are the little things that don’t get noticed in the Stats but teammates and the coaching staff know and appreciate the one percenters.

I’ve also enjoyed the out the back pass, occasional offload and key steal just when we’ve needed it this season. He’s only had six missed tackles, conceded one penalty and made four errors for the entire season. Some players have more than that in a single game.

He was running at almost no errors last season and then he had a pretty poor final third of the season and a number of errors.

Just had a quick look on foxlabs. Slightly different actual numbers on their stats but the result is similar- especially by comparison to the rest of the forward pack so it's a consistent idea. His tackle efficiency is very good, error count and (importantly) penalties conceded are very low. Near the best in the pack in all 3 categories. That's what you want from your Mr Reliable type budget prop.

The fact he as added a bit more aggression and oomph to his play lately + the offloads and strips makes him very effective now.

On the Stats I use Zero tackle. But I should check Foxlab as well. I went off Fox Stats when they had a few doozies that didn’t match the eye test.

[raiderskater]

Well, I've been big on Lui for a long time. Every team needs a player like him, the one who maybe isn't the sparkling shiny star but quietly and conscientiously goes about his work to the best of his ability, and that's always been where he fit in. I thought he came back much much stronger after the ACL and his improvement from there was absolutely marked.

Unlike others I didn't actually think he deserved to be dropped but it clearly lit a fire under him and he's gone absolutely beast turbo mode this year, and I love it.

If he wants to stay, we should make sure he stays and sees out his career in the lime green. He has a value that's more than just what's on the field.

[BadnMean]

On the Stats I use Zero tackle. But I should check Foxlab as well. I went off Fox Stats when they had a few doozies that didn’t match the eye test.

Never seem to be able to find their stats on there. I just find foxsportslabs easy to use search and filter for team/ player/ position/ category /total or average per game over a season all really easy.

I use NRL for matchday stuff.

[Riaan]

Yeah I thought his contract last year was a big mistake - but I'm ecstatic to have been proven wrong. I have him well ahead of Ryan Sutton in our middle rankings nowadays.

Really? Sutton has been awesome this year IMO

[-PJ-]

How's the size of Lui's legs ?

They're huuuuuuuge !!

Very happy for the guy, he's been impressive.

[greeneyed]

@TheGHRaiders on Facebook

"He's very underrated, but certainly not by us." - Jarrod Croker

VIDEO: Hear from Canberra Raiders captain Jarrod Croker and Siliva Havili on Dunamis Lui's upcoming 150th NRL match and preparations for the meeting with the Gold Coast Titans. WIN News Canberra reports: http://ow.ly/DC9U50B3mmp

#NRL #WeAreRaiders #wearecbr

[Brew]

I’ve always been a massive fan of Lui. Unsung hero


Sent from my iPhone using The Greenhouse

[Neeeegz]

Yeah I thought his contract last year was a big mistake - but I'm ecstatic to have been proven wrong. I have him well ahead of Ryan Sutton in our middle rankings nowadays.

Really? Sutton has been awesome this year IMO

Sutton has more mistakes in him

[Roger Kenworthy]

Yeah I thought his contract last year was a big mistake - but I'm ecstatic to have been proven wrong. I have him well ahead of Ryan Sutton in our middle rankings nowadays.

Really? Sutton has been awesome this year IMO

I was more up on him this time last year. Just doesn't seem to do anything with great impact to me this year - I see him being a journeyman at NRL level.

[Botman]

I think Sutton's a really good player. Not a superstar, but he's the type of guy who quietly racks up a good 150-200 NRL games as a #2-3-4 middle depending on the quality around him. Can be a #2 in a bad team, but ideally a 3-4 in a contender.
Just a good professional middle who does his job and works his **** off.

I hope we hang on to him, we've got 3 older middles on the books right now in James, Lui and Sia (eventually) and i think he's ideally suited to work with Hors, Guler and the back end of Papalii's career.

I always bet on upside so i've still got Sutton over Lui just because i dont really trust Lui's current form to hold. But it's a good problem to have if Sutton/Lui are a 5th middle

[greeneyed]

@CanberraRaidersNews on Facebook

He's very under-rated, but certainly not by us: Jarrod Croker

Canberra Raiders foward Dunamis Lui set to play 150th NRL match. Read more: http://ow.ly/y77750B3lcZ

#NRL #WeAreRaiders #wearecbr

[Jake]

He has humble pied me many times. His game against the Roosters a month or so ago reignited my excitement for the machine this year, it was special for a bloke who has been regarded as bog average for so long.

Congrats Dunamis

[Seiffert82]

Not sure how you objectively assess this, but our periods of good team form typically reflect Lui's periods of good form.

[amiafish]

I think Sutton's a really good player. Not a superstar, but he's the type of guy who quietly racks up a good 150-200 NRL games as a #2-3-4 middle depending on the quality around him. Can be a #2 in a bad team, but ideally a 3-4 in a contender.
Just a good professional middle who does his job and works his **** off.

I hope we hang on to him, we've got 3 older middles on the books right now in James, Lui and Sia (eventually) and i think he's ideally suited to work with Hors, Guler and the back end of Papalii's career.

I always bet on upside so i've still got Sutton over Lui just because i dont really trust Lui's current form to hold. But it's a good problem to have if Sutton/Lui are a 5th middle

Agree. Sutton's got a bit more upside left in him. If he can learn to put on a bit of late footwork at the line (instead of barreling straight into the chest of the defender in front of him), he might be able to pop his head through and get some more post-contact metres. Also, a bit more care taken in playing the ball and ball handling to get the (seemingly) inevitable 1 or 2 errors/game.

[afgtnk]

Not sure how you objectively assess this, but our periods of good team form typically reflect Lui's periods of good form.

Yeah, like our GF run last season when he was making regular errors and getting called to be dropped, right?

[-TW-]

I was highly critical of him for years, he repeatedly turned up junk performance after junk performance and somehow flew under the radar.

To his credit since he got dropped he's been a worthy starter, and is pumping out big numbers.

I was really worried when Guler and Horse went down that we were completely shot, he's stood up and proved he deserves his place.

Sent from my ELE-L29 using Tapatalk

[afgtnk]

Yep, credit to him. He's managed to turn it around and become a valuable contributor again.

No doubt he's worked hard on his game after that poor run late last season and early in this one, best evidenced by the way he's been able to go from one of the worst one on one strippers to possibly our best.

[Seiffert82]

Not sure how you objectively assess this, but our periods of good team form typically reflect Lui's periods of good form.

Yeah, like our GF run last season when he was making regular errors and getting called to be dropped, right?

He was getting pinged for some silly illegal strips at times, granted.

There's always fans calling for players to be dropped. It's often a kneejerk reaction to losses or as a result of tedious agendas against them. I usually don't take much notice of it.

[ALX22]

In the frame for SOO with injuries to a couple QLD forward contenders.

[afgtnk]

Not sure how you objectively assess this, but our periods of good team form typically reflect Lui's periods of good form.

Yeah, like our GF run last season when he was making regular errors and getting called to be dropped, right?

He was getting pinged for some silly illegal strips at times, granted.

There's always fans calling for players to be dropped. It's often a kneejerk reaction to losses or as a result of tedious agendas against them. I usually don't take much notice of it.

Lol. You're mostly notably forgetting the huge errors made deep inside our own half at crucial junctures in games, towards the end of last season and most of the first half of this one.

People loudly called for him to be dropped both times. After being deservedly dropped earlier this season, he's comeback as one our better players and played a big role in helping us through all the injuries to our forwards, which is a huge credit to him. As a result, you're seeing fans being happy with his selection and looking forward to seeing him play.

Unfortunately there does seem to be a contingent on here who bitch and moan about supposed agendas anytime a certain player is heavily criticised. Who on **** earth would have an agenda against a guy like Dunamis Lui?

Pure garbage which no one would buy and thus you shouldn't try sell.

[Seiffert82]

Not sure how you objectively assess this, but our periods of good team form typically reflect Lui's periods of good form.

Yeah, like our GF run last season when he was making regular errors and getting called to be dropped, right?

He was getting pinged for some silly illegal strips at times, granted.

There's always fans calling for players to be dropped. It's often a kneejerk reaction to losses or as a result of tedious agendas against them. I usually don't take much notice of it.

Lol. You're mostly notably forgetting the huge errors made deep inside our own half at crucial junctures in games, towards the end of last season and most of the first half of this one.

People loudly called for him to be dropped both times. After being deservedly dropped earlier this season, he's comeback as one our better players and played a big role in helping us through all the injuries to our forwards, which is a huge credit to him. As a result, you're seeing fans being happy with his selection and looking forward to seeing him play.

Unfortunately there does seem to be a contingent on here who bitch and moan about supposed agendas anytime a certain player is heavily criticised. Who on **** earth would have an agenda against a guy like Dunamis Lui?

Pure garbage which no one would buy and thus you shouldn't try sell.

I'm not talking about agendas against Dunamis Lui.

[greeneyed]

Milestone Man Dunamis Lui is Mister Reliable in the kitchen and on the field

Josh Papalii labelled milestone man Dunamis Lui the "Samoan Gordon Ramsay" this week, in the lead up to his 150th NRL match. Lui is the same man in the kitchen as he is on the field. Uncomplicated, uncompromising, selfless, and one who always gets the job done.

"I'm just really good at doing the basics, I'm not one of those who has all different types of ingredients," Lui said.

Read more: https://www.canberratimes.com.au/story/ ... /?cs=14239

He cares about his football, he cares about the club

Canberra Raiders coach Ricky Stuart today praised milestone man, Dunamis Lui, who will clock up 150 NRL games on Saturday.

Lui, a Samoan representative, made his debut for the Brisbane Broncos a decade ago - with stops at the Sea Eagles and Dragons, before arriving in Canberra. Lui plays his 70th game in the famous green jumper this weekend, more than at any of his other clubs.

"People don't hear a lot or know a lot about Dunamis because he's such a humble guy," Stuart said. "But we certainly know how effective and how important he is to this club."

Read more: viewtopic.php?f=2&t=34185&p=1752156#p1752156

VIDEO: Dunamis Lui had his 150th NRL jersey presented to him by Josh Papalii at the team meeting ahead of their captain's run this morning.