The Niche Cache

View Original

The Rabbitohs Cast - The Halves

There was a time during this season when I questioned Adam Reynolds and pondered over where he would fit in to this Rabbitohs side. It looked like Luke Keary was the favourite, with Reynolds filling the void until Keary was truly ready to take over. Obviously, I'm pretty dumb. The way the Rabbitohs finished the season with Reynolds and Keary in the halves and John Sutton out on the left edge, gave the Rabbitohs so much attacking prowess. Reynolds has well and truly brushed that dirt of his shoulder after many people questioned whether he was an old Toyota C-Rolla without a clutch, while Keary he's a gun and he's going to continue to spark a messy battle between NSW and QLD for his services.

Luke Keary - There's something about a half who has the first instinct to run the footy. When Keary gets the ball, you're always prepared for a dummy and a dynamic little burst which bodes extremely well for this young lad. He's not big, but he's tough and tough halves who are prepared to get smashed usually go well. We didn't see Keary control a game this year, but we didn't need to as his halves partner did most of that, but Keary offers up crisp ball playing, a decent kicking game and a threat every time he's got the footy. However, his influence on the Grand Final came at dummy half. To give Apisai Koroisau a spell, Keary shifted to hooker and John Sutton slid in to the halves. I must admit, the Bunnies looked much better with Koroisau at hooker, but Keary's time there was crucial in allowing Koroisau a break as well as offering something that the Dogs probably weren't prepared for.

Adam Reynolds - What a season for Reynolds. He's a hearty Redfern native, a long time Bunnies fan and here he is leading the Rabbitohs to such a historic premiership. My everlasting memory of Reynolds in the GF will be him dribbling kicks in to the in goal and getting repeat sets. Simple huh? Besides the obvious super awesome halves we have in the NRL, Reynolds is possibly the best halfback in that he does exactly what a halfback should do. Reynolds is able to control games of footy, he can dictate where the game is played, what tempo the game is played at and he is able to correctly pick and execute the right plays at the right time. He does so while appearing to not break a sweat, he's always calm and composed and well, he only really gets flustered when the Rabbitohs win premierships.