Raiders dealt huge blow as neck injury puts CNK out for up to two months

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manbearpig
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Re: Raiders dealt huge blow as neck injury puts CNK out for up to two months

Post by manbearpig »

julian87 wrote: April 12, 2021, 7:04 pm
greeneyed wrote: April 12, 2021, 6:56 pm
julian87 wrote: April 12, 2021, 6:51 pm I’d rather give Simonsson a shot with Valemei on a wing or a reshuffle accommodating Scott
I don't think Simonsson is a first grade fullback. He is too error prone. In fact, I think he's struggling to keep a spot in first grade on the wing.

That's why I think we should go with the specialist fullback.

If Scott is back, Kris should be on the wing.
I disagree with this entirely. I’m not sure Simo is a fullback but I think he’d be better than Aekins.

Also Kris is not a winger at all imo.
I don't.
He's not offering much at all!
Im just, bicking back being bool
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Re: Raiders dealt huge blow as neck injury puts CNK out for up to two months

Post by -PJ- »

Northern Raider wrote: April 12, 2021, 8:07 pm
PerthRaider86 wrote: April 12, 2021, 8:03 pm
Northern Raider wrote: April 12, 2021, 7:51 pm
PerthRaider86 wrote: April 12, 2021, 7:19 pm 1. Wighton
6. Hodgson
9. Starling
13. Havilii
Well that's left field. CNK so reshuffle the entire team.
Allows Wighton to play anywhere in attack and follow the ball where he would be more dangerous IMO
Ordinary fullback. Excellent 5/8. Shifting him there weakens 2 spots at once. Havili over Tapine at lock you've weakened 3 spots. Moving one of the best hookers in the game to 5/8 weakens all 4 spots.
Let’s just go with #1 Aekins.
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Re: Raiders dealt huge blow as neck injury puts CNK out for up to two months

Post by Northern Raider »

PerthRaider86 wrote: April 12, 2021, 8:08 pm
Northern Raider wrote: April 12, 2021, 8:07 pm
PerthRaider86 wrote: April 12, 2021, 8:03 pm
Northern Raider wrote: April 12, 2021, 7:51 pm
PerthRaider86 wrote: April 12, 2021, 7:19 pm 1. Wighton
6. Hodgson
9. Starling
13. Havilii
Well that's left field. CNK so reshuffle the entire team.
Allows Wighton to play anywhere in attack and follow the ball where he would be more dangerous IMO
Ordinary fullback. Excellent 5/8. Shifting him there weakens 2 spots at once. Havili over Tapine at lock you've weakened 3 spots. Moving one of the best hookers in the game to 5/8 weakens all 4 spots.
Havilii should be 14 not 13
Ok. That makes more sense. Still don't agree with the other moves.
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Re: Raiders dealt huge blow as neck injury puts CNK out for up to two months

Post by hobbsy »

Yeah no need for a major reshuffle. This is already a big blow without moving others around. Aekins gets it. That's why he is here.
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Re: Raiders dealt huge blow as neck injury puts CNK out for up to two months

Post by mobrulesall »

-PJ- wrote: April 12, 2021, 7:20 pm And I reckon 8 weeks is the extreme.

The medical staff have made an initial assessment and we’ll see how CNK heals.

Rest and rehab may see him back in 5-6 weeks.

Who knows.
This is important to consider. It could be a month, let's just hope.
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Re: Raiders dealt huge blow as neck injury puts CNK out for up to two months

Post by Bay53 »

This is exactly the situation we recruited Caleb Aekins for.

I rate him. He hasn’t been great in reserve grade for us but what I saw of him in his 12 games for Penrith including the 2019 game in Wagga and when they beat us at Penrith last year, I rated him very highly.
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Re: Raiders dealt huge blow as neck injury puts CNK out for up to two months

Post by FROG »

Wighton is an absolutely terrible full back. No coincidence that we've made consecutive pre lims since we moved him from there. His positioning is truely horrendous.

According to most of you lot CNK being out should help our performances right. I mean he is in large part to blame for our stuttering attack.... If there is one good thing to come of this it's hopefully so people can learn to full appreciate what CNK does for our team. I for one think we'll struggle to win without him. I really hope aetkins does a job for us. Time will tell
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Re: Raiders dealt huge blow as neck injury puts CNK out for up to two months

Post by gerg »

Rickmando wrote:Aekins can play... he might surprise a few people
From memory opinions were fairly evenly divided on Edwards v Aekins at Penrith.

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Re: Raiders dealt huge blow as neck injury puts CNK out for up to two months

Post by Bay53 »

I also reckon CNK has been carrying this injury for a couple of weeks.
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Re: Raiders dealt huge blow as neck injury puts CNK out for up to two months

Post by Seiffert82 »

Aekins will likely get it, maybe Simonson (bad mistake), but if it were up to me I'd be putting Wighton back there and either bringing Sammy W into the halves or rolling the dice on Hodgson at 6, for Starling to come in.

Havili can stay on the bench.
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Re: Raiders dealt huge blow as neck injury puts CNK out for up to two months

Post by Seiffert82 »

Bay53 wrote: April 12, 2021, 8:39 pm I also reckon CNK has been carrying this injury for a couple of weeks.
You reckon the club has been rolling him out with a bulging disc, or he has been hiding it?
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Re: Raiders dealt huge blow as neck injury puts CNK out for up to two months

Post by casta66 »

casta66 wrote: April 12, 2021, 6:45 pm Gutted more for Charnze than the Raiders team.
This guy has just given all of himself every game. Feel sorry that's he's gotta have some time on the sidelines. Hope he comes back fresher and better.

EDIT
Sorry GE not sure what I did wrong there? Might have been misunderstood, I was referring to Joey doing his neck then being on the outer and getting dumped a few weeks later.
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Re: Raiders dealt huge blow as neck injury puts CNK out for up to two months

Post by casta66 »

I love seeing Rapa at number one! Pretty sure that's where he started for us. It's exciting all the time! He attacks the ball had, and you know you're always a 70-30 for a drop ball. Keeps me on the edge of the seat.

But serious opinion, gotta give Aekins a go.
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Re: Raiders dealt huge blow as neck injury puts CNK out for up to two months

Post by Canberra Milk »

FROG wrote: April 12, 2021, 8:39 pm According to most of you lot CNK being out should help our performances right. I mean he is in large part to blame for our stuttering attack.... If there is one good thing to come of this it's hopefully so people can learn to full appreciate what CNK does for our team. I for one think we'll struggle to win without him. I really hope aetkins does a job for us. Time will tell
Lol no. The argument is generally that he's an excellent defensive fullback, but that to really go the next level and win a comp, we may need more attack from our no 1. No one disputes what he brings. There is nuance there.
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Re: Raiders dealt huge blow as neck injury puts CNK out for up to two months

Post by rayden83 »

It’s not awful news. It gives a proper chance to take a gander at Aekins, who apparently at one time was Panther’s preferred fullback. If Aekins sucks then we can try Hopoate there. If they both suck CNK should be back well before finals.
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Re: Raiders dealt huge blow as neck injury puts CNK out for up to two months

Post by Botman »

Can we rule out the charnze that that Aekins at 23 isnt better than Nicoll-Klokstad at 23?
I cant say that.
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Re: Raiders dealt huge blow as neck injury puts CNK out for up to two months

Post by rayden83 »

Seiffert82 wrote: April 12, 2021, 8:40 pm Aekins will likely get it, maybe Simonson (bad mistake), but if it were up to me I'd be putting Wighton back there and either bringing Sammy W into the halves or rolling the dice on Hodgson at 6
No, no and no
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Re: Raiders dealt huge blow as neck injury puts CNK out for up to two months

Post by rayden83 »

Botman wrote: April 12, 2021, 9:34 pm Can we rule out the charnze that that Aekins at 23 isnt better than Nicoll-Klokstad at 23?
I cant say that.
Its not just who’s better, its the human element. Is he capable of being Ricky’s guy? These are the critical questions that need to be answered.
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Re: Raiders dealt huge blow as neck injury puts CNK out for up to two months

Post by Botman »

rayden83 wrote: April 12, 2021, 9:39 pm
Botman wrote: April 12, 2021, 9:34 pm Can we rule out the charnze that that Aekins at 23 isnt better than Nicoll-Klokstad at 23?
I cant say that.
Its not just who’s better, its the human element. Is he capable of being Ricky’s guy? These are the critical questions that need to be answered.
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Re: Raiders dealt huge blow as neck injury puts CNK out for up to two months

Post by Bay53 »

Seiffert82 wrote: April 12, 2021, 8:41 pm
Bay53 wrote: April 12, 2021, 8:39 pm I also reckon CNK has been carrying this injury for a couple of weeks.
You reckon the club has been rolling him out with a bulging disc, or he has been hiding it?
I reckon he has been playing sore. Whether it was this injury that has flared up I am not too sure.
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Re: Raiders dealt huge blow as neck injury puts CNK out for up to two months

Post by tommyhud9 »

Be interesting to get a look at Aekins. I thought he was impressive at Penrith in his short stints.

If he impresses I doubt he will leave the 17 the rest of the season given our lack of ability in 2-5.
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Re: Raiders dealt huge blow as neck injury puts CNK out for up to two months

Post by Roger Kenworthy »

This is exactly why we bought Aekins and people want to chuck in a struggling Simonsson. I remember Bailey talking about his fullback aspirations prior to his one game there in 2019 and promptly having a bit of a clanger. As mentioned he's struggling to hold his spot over Valemei at the moment.
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Re: Raiders dealt huge blow as neck injury puts CNK out for up to two months

Post by zim »

Aekins straight in. When CNK is fit Aekins straight back out.
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Re: Raiders dealt huge blow as neck injury puts CNK out for up to two months

Post by Roger Kenworthy »

Seiffert82 wrote: April 12, 2021, 8:40 pm Aekins will likely get it, maybe Simonson (bad mistake), but if it were up to me I'd be putting Wighton back there and either bringing Sammy W into the halves or rolling the dice on Hodgson at 6, for Starling to come in.

Havili can stay on the bench.
I still wake up in a cold sweat over JW's positioning at fullback. If there was a way to avoid catching a ball on the full or fail to defuse a repeat set then he'd find it. I still think it's a better option than Simonsson or Rapana though, I'll give you that.
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Re: Raiders dealt huge blow as neck injury puts CNK out for up to two months

Post by FROG »

Roger Kenworthy wrote: April 12, 2021, 10:57 pm
Seiffert82 wrote: April 12, 2021, 8:40 pm Aekins will likely get it, maybe Simonson (bad mistake), but if it were up to me I'd be putting Wighton back there and either bringing Sammy W into the halves or rolling the dice on Hodgson at 6, for Starling to come in.

Havili can stay on the bench.
I still wake up in a cold sweat over JW's positioning at fullback. If there was a way to avoid catching a ball on the full or fail to defuse a repeat set then he'd find it. I still think it's a better option than Simonsson or Rapana though, I'll give you that.
I'm the same. Wighton can obviously play. But he is a lousy full back. Rapanas positioning isn't a whole lot better, I guess he at least attempts to catch balls on the full. The one benefit with Simonson is that he is the safest under the high ball. Id have Simonson ahead of the other two but would give aetkins first crack
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Re: Raiders dealt huge blow as neck injury puts CNK out for up to two months

Post by Northern Raider »

FROG wrote: April 13, 2021, 5:45 am
Roger Kenworthy wrote: April 12, 2021, 10:57 pm
Seiffert82 wrote: April 12, 2021, 8:40 pm Aekins will likely get it, maybe Simonson (bad mistake), but if it were up to me I'd be putting Wighton back there and either bringing Sammy W into the halves or rolling the dice on Hodgson at 6, for Starling to come in.

Havili can stay on the bench.
I still wake up in a cold sweat over JW's positioning at fullback. If there was a way to avoid catching a ball on the full or fail to defuse a repeat set then he'd find it. I still think it's a better option than Simonsson or Rapana though, I'll give you that.
I'm the same. Wighton can obviously play. But he is a lousy full back. Rapanas positioning isn't a whole lot better, I guess he at least attempts to catch balls on the full. The one benefit with Simonson is that he is the safest under the high ball. Id have Simonson ahead of the other two but would give aetkins first crack
Wighton at fullback did well as ball player on the sweep plays. Good enough to suggest he'd make a decent 5/8. :)
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Re: Raiders dealt huge blow as neck injury puts CNK out for up to two months

Post by Azza »

Season over.
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Re: Raiders dealt huge blow as neck injury puts CNK out for up to two months

Post by GreenMachine »

zim wrote: April 12, 2021, 10:54 pm Aekins straight in. When CNK is fit Aekins straight back out.
Pretty much this.
Not sure why there’s so much overthinking about the issue.
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Re: Raiders dealt huge blow as neck injury puts CNK out for up to two months

Post by Seiffert82 »

Wighton had a few issues at fullback, but to suggest he was lousy back there is a massive stretch. He was regularly one of our best. Tough defender, ball playing ability, solid kick returns. He'd be even better now. His hands were his biggest issue...still are TBH.

I appreciate the fact that Aekins was brought in for this situation though, so I'm completely backing the guy if that's the way Stuart goes.
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Re: Raiders dealt huge blow as neck injury puts CNK out for up to two months

Post by BadnMean »

Aekins in for the duration.

No Frog I don't expect him to suddenly improve our attack since a) we have stopped running FB sweep plays b) he'll take time to gel. If he doesn anything more than hold steady and keep our attack at the same level in his first 2 games, it'll be to his credit.

If he's in for a month then we'll have a chance to see what he can do.

Can't see him staying in the 17 beyond that though, unless he does something amazing. Hard enough fitting Kris in who has impressed every outing.
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Re: Raiders dealt huge blow as neck injury puts CNK out for up to two months

Post by Botman »

I agree with FROG and Roger, when it came to positional play, Wighton was absolutely lousy as a fullback
He had his strengths too, but we just couldnt get out of our own way with him at the back because we were constantly getting turned around and picking the ball off the deck and conceding line drop outs
It's actually probably lucky he is athletic as he is, and he was able to move so fluidly laterally and has really good acceleration out of his change of direction. It allowed him recover and save a lot of tries when he was so poorly positioned
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Re: Raiders dealt huge blow as neck injury puts CNK out for up to two months

Post by Mickey_Raider »

Anyone who has watched a decent amount of Aekins:

Does he have the sort of game/quality which could see him transition to 2-5 if he impresses in the fullback role?

If he turns out to be a handy replacement for CNK it would be a nice little bonus if he has the ability to improve our backline when he returns.
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Re: Raiders dealt huge blow as neck injury puts CNK out for up to two months

Post by Botman »

Like most fullbacks, he can certainly play wing.
Dont know that centre is the place for him but yeah if he comes in and absolutely kills it, he could easily play wing if the coach thought he was "undroppable"
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Re: Raiders dealt huge blow as neck injury puts CNK out for up to two months

Post by BadnMean »

How is Aekin suddenly getting in the top grade if we can barey fit Kris in?

He's not quick, so would be a pointless winger in our current set up- might as well play Simo who is bigger and solid yards or Semi who might be more dynamic.

We have too many centres already and I doubt Aekins would make a better centre than CNK anyway, leaving aside Kris, Croker, Scott and Timoko..

He's a FB or bust situation for him. He'll need to kill it at FB.
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Re: Raiders dealt huge blow as neck injury puts CNK out for up to two months

Post by Botman »

Simo might be technically bigger (i havent looked at the profile pages) but he certainly doesnt play big
I think there is a chance that if Aekins comes in and absolutely kills it that he could challenge Simo for the wing spot, it's unlikely but it's a chance
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