Recap the latest round of NRL action with the Repeat Set: Talking points, highlights, lowlights and the Play of the Round.
Here’s your Repeat Set for Round 7 of the 2021 NRL season:
- Marshall Masterclass
- James Fisher-Harris
- A round to remember for…Reece Walsh
- A round to forget for…Gold Coast Titans
- Play of the Round: Brisbane Broncos
- Graham Annesley’s Briefing Summary
Marshall masterclass
Well that call back in January was wrong…
As it turns out, the best case is for Benji Marshall to play the full 80 minutes in Round 7 and orchestrate a comeback from 24-10 behind to win 40-30.
Marshall played an absolute blinder as he picked the Titans right edge defence to pieces. Everything from the big step to subtle ball movements featured as the Kiwi turned back the clock to produce what was quite simply a jaw-dropping performance. Three plays, in particular, offer a lot of confidence for South Sydney’s season as they navigate another three weeks without Latrell Mitchell and possibly a difficult State of Origin period.
Souths used a similar shape three times and the Titans had no answers for Marshall’s decision making. With Kevin Proctor occupied inside, Marshall has his pick on the left edge and hits Keaon Koloamatangi with the short ball before Cody Walker trails inside to score.
Souths ran the same action from a similar spot in the second half for the same result. This time, Jamal Fogarty makes the right read to come in on Marshall but the veteran half holds him up for long enough to see where Brian Kelly is looking. With Kelly drawn to Walker out the back, Marshall once again hits Koloamatangi short and collects this try himself.
This try will be remembered for the Benji flick, but it’s how the Rabbitohs trained the defence and exposed them once again that is most impressive. Fogarty is wary of Marshall taking the ball from Reynolds out the back having already been stung a few times. Cameron Murray runs a superb line and skips to Proctor’s outside shoulder just as he takes possession, and with Fogarty on his heels and ready to drift once Marshall takes the ball, Murray is able to get his head and shoulders through the line and release an offload to Marshall.
This one is just Marshall magic. You can see when this one went all wrong for the Titans. Marshall skips to the outside of his man forcing Kelly into the play. When Phillip Sami follows him, Marshall releases the pass and gets it back to cap off an incredible performance.
And to think we almost didn’t see Benji in first grade at all this season…
In saying all of that, Marshall wouldn’t be doing this at Wests Tigers. He’s playing in one of the best teams in the NRL and behind a dominant pack. He’s walked into an elite left edge attack that knows where to be and when. This is the ideal scenario for Marshall and Wests wouldn’t be providing him with that this season. He doesn’t fit the Tigers timeline which is looking more and more like a ground floor rebuild by the week. He’s playing great footy for the Rabbitohs, but the Tigers still made the right decision to let him go and focus on the future.
James Fisher-Harris is elite
I said in the Notepad that I’d be keeping a closer eye on James Fisher-Harris this week. He only went and ran for 192 metres on 19 carries including 134 metres in his first 28-minute shift.
That first half an hour IS Fisher Harris.
His carries dent the defensive line. This one here ends with a set restart as he goes to ground in on his elbows and knees promoting a quick play-the-ball. The defenders will already be aware of how quickly he gets to his feet so, in this position, they squeeze for just a little bit too long and give up the set restart.
Fisher acts as a decoy two tackles later which is something I’ve mentioned a few times before. So many props will take their tough carry and sit back for the rest of the set. Not Fisher-Harris. He’s constantly around the ball and playing a part in pulling the defence into a shape Nathan Cleary, in particular, wants it to be. He hung around Isaah Yeo two tackles later before getting his hands on the ball again. This time, he shapes to pass – another consideration for the defence – before taking the line on. In this case, motioning to play short to Yeo kept Jayden Brailey out of the tackle and promoted another quick play-the-ball.
Defensively, Fisher-Harris isn’t somebody any ball-carrier wants to see standing in front of them. Bradman Best is one of the hardest runners in the game but the Kiwi international barely moves an inch in contact and puts an end to this run relatively quickly.
Fisher-Harris is 25-years old and still getting better. His ball-playing isn’t up there with Junior Paulo just yet and probably never will be. However, it’s an area to Fisher-Harris’ game that is developing nicely. With the way he carries the football, his fast play-the-ball and even just the threat of a pass right now is enough to consider him a top-three prop in the game at the very worst.
You’ll get no argument from me putting him as #1.
A round to remember for…
Reece Walsh isn’t going to spend a lot of time in reserve grade this season…
Making his debut against the Melbourne Storm at AAMI Park in what is always one of the biggest games of the season for the New Zealand Warriors, the 18-year-old didn’t look out of place in the slightest.
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