Do you think Roy Asotasi is pushing it?

Question

I'm a fan of Roy but should he be bad-mouthing the coach like that? It just undermines the whole structure of the game. Coaches are meant to be the leaders.

Do you think captains have too much power now-a-days. Seems like they can control who get to coach them! But much if you ask me.

Answer 1

Roy Asotasi did the right thing by speaking his mind, he said exactly what a lot of the players/fans alike were thinking.  If the players are not happy with the "Coach" you are not going to be playing as a Team and if the whole Country is not happy.."hhhheeeeyyyy"...better to speak up now and not have to suffer another demoralising loss as a representative side for your Country.  Rugby League in NZ needs to pull its socks up, change the Board members, bring in new ideas, Gary Kemble was not the best man for the job, he's a dinosaur, never did look like a leader, doesn't hold any "Mana" in my opinion, you need someone all rounded, who is focused, not afraid of/to change, speak his mind, kick arses, someone who is able to walk into a room and there is a genuine mutual respect/recognition for/from the players/board/fans etc and who will tell the NZRL Board when to butt out.

Answer 2

It often seems to be the coach that gets the blame for bad performances & sometimes it is.But instead of shooting his mouth off to the media & making problems worse,maybe he should be focused on  trying to turn the kiwis into a winning team,Instead of bagging the coach.If they let the players openly defy the coach,how can he do his job properly & control the team.Maybe we should be giving some of the players the *** & actualy get some that want to be part of a team?

Answer 3

When was the last time a player was right and are these guys particularly bright?

I think there are too many dummies answering who think like the players.

This has been stirred up by the media men who have no understanding of coaching and are really supporters disguised as writers or commentators about the game.

Answer 4

I think Roy has done the right thing and go to the media if he did not we would not be here today discussing this issue.

Graham Lowe WAS a good coach but oh how the time have changed Lowe could not handle todays coaching,and the only good thing that Lowe is good at, is he is a drama queen I get sick of listen to him later on about Asotasi he should of been at the Kiwi Aussie game in wellington fan left long before the game finished would we not all be happy to see Bennett in the role and bennett would make sure the kiwis beat the aussies he has an big issue their I say sack kemble bring on Bennett and put Lowe in the stockades at a Warriors game

Answer 5

The fault is with the NZRL they dumped Bluey and now they are going to repeal the residency rule for coach appointments. Appoint Wayne Bennett and let Gary Kemble learn from one of the best in the game.

Answer 6

i think when players start thinking they are bigger than the game its time to hang up the boots   comments from a guy that plays 2  15 min spells in a 80 min game  if Steve price had any comments i would   listen more  as he plays 80 Min's  most of the time

Answer 7

I am sick and tired of players badmouthing coaches and the like.The coach AND a selection panel sit down and pick the best team from the AVAILABLE players. Crayfish (kemble) had a few old heads in the team for the Aussie and GB games, but also injuries, unavailability, and retirement meant that new caps were thrown in to the heat of test rugby league.Roy Asotasi in my mind is NOT a captain. A captain should lead from the front, and from his play he's not doing it.In the modern game of rugby league it's all about the money, not the pride in wearing the jersey as it was in my playing days.If the best AVAILABLE players get a hiding on the field,cop it ,take it on the chin don't winge about the coaching staff.

Answer 8

If Asotasi and Kidwell are truly expressing the opinions of all senior players, then only a Lowe-down fool would refuse to listen.

Answer 9

I beleave Roy should have a saying about who coaches the team, because he has earnt that respect. the board should of sat down and talked with him but instead they have made a big thing about it Roy will play 100% no matter who's the coach

If you look at the kiwi side there something wrong with the team maybe its the coaching who knows. Wanye, how much would that bring to the side think alot more

Answer 10

I think Roy has done what or good captains should do, take the concerns of his team mates and bring it to the forefront for all to see.  Administrators and the likes love to keep everything behind closed doors so they can frolic in their own self centred agenda with out the public seeing what a bunch of tosses they really are!  After all it's not the coach that's out there directing the team it's the captain so he wears just as much c**p as the coach does but spills his blood on the field with his men so his opinion should matter and matter a lot!

Answer 11

The island players have said that they will switch allegiences to their island nations, if Kemble stays.

If that happens heres a very strong Toa Samoa side.

1.Carmichael Hunt

2.Matt Utai

3.Willie Talau

4.George Carmont

5.Malo Solomona

6.Benji Marshall

7.Nigel Vagana

8.Roy Asotasi

9.David Faiumu

10.Iafeta Paleaaesina

11.Sonny Bill Williams

12.Ali Lauitiiti

13.Harrison Henson

14.Tony Puletua

15.Evarn Tuimavave

16.Afa Lesa

17.Chris Lei Sam

Answer 12

i think asotsi has had to much to say  he wants to look at his own form before  knocking others

hes one of our  weakest captains weve had and only looks good when wraped around aussie players

none of the kiwis should have to much to say as they were all pretty  poor

Answer 13

Not at all. He obviously is not being respected for his and nearly everyones' opinion, about how bad Kemble is, as a coach. His only recourse when the NZRL, i.e. Graham Lowe, won't listen to reason, is to go public. I hope this signals the demise of Lowes' influence.

The NZRL keeps making dum decisions.

1. Introduce a rule to remove Gary Freeman.

2. Enforce the same rule to remove the best coach we ever had, i.e. Bluey.

3. Appoint a hopelessly inexperienced coach, because all the really good coaches are always attracted off-shore.

4. Re-appoint a hopeless coach to prove how stupidly arrogant they are.

5. Talk about removing the Freeman rule so that a truly exceptional coach (Bennett) can play second fiddle to the incompetent Kemble! How insulting can they be!

I say good on ya Roy, for saying what we are all thinking, to people who refuse to listen to reason.

BRING BACK BLUEY

Answer 14

Maybe, he is the captain so he's entitled to an opinion and if he thinks the coach is going to make his team lose then he should say something. Maybe not to everyone, but he should say something.

Answer 15

You have the two most awesome rugby league players the kiwis have seen for a long time,with that they seem to have the backing of senior kiwi players in Australia,cmon people lets back these players they know what they want,as we do the world cup,these players live the life of rugby league,i would hate to see a revolt from these players before the world cup,bring in Bennett or bring back Buck...lol

Answer 16

He has the backing of the senior players, so I guess its his role as captain to speak out, from what I understand Roy raised some questions last year about the coach, which seems to have fallen on deaf ears, but everyone is listening now hahaha.  

Like I said it is his role to speak on behalf of the players, but the question is was publicly slamming the coach the right way to go about it?

They should scrap the residency rule, they only introduced it to prevent Gary Freeman from coaching once he moved to Aussie.

PEACE

Answer 17

NOT AT ALL!!!!

GRAHAM LOWE HAS A WAY TOO CUSHY JOB AND HE DOESN'T WANT TO GO ANYWHERE SOON!!!

ROY ON THE OTHER HAND HAS A LOT TO LOSS BY HIS WORDS...AND YET ROY DID IT FOR THE JERSEY, WHERE IS GRAHAM DID IT FOR HIS BIG BANK BALANCE!!!

GET RID OF ALL THE NZRL MANAGEMENT...08 LET'S START AGAIN...GARY KIMBLE SHOULD COACH THE WAINUIOMATA LIONS TEAM, WE'D TAKE HIM....NOT!

Answer 18

I'm not a big league follower but its seems the NZRL have brought this situation on themselves by making some very short sighted decisions.

Unfortunately there is a dearth of good quality coaches in NZ, so they were picking from a small pool of talent. The Kiwis need the technical and strategic qualities of a Bennett or a Bluey, to go along with their physical assets and passion. Roy obviously can see the writing on the wall with Gary, and is saying something now in order to remedy the issue before the World Cup, rather than get embarrassed any more than they did last year.

Answer 19

If the coaching staff are not doing there job at top level and there is someone better available why not use them. Players get first hand experience from coaches and at top level no what to expect from a coach so if they as a unit are not happy witht he coach there must be some just cause for the criticism. It is just not the captain criticising him but all the veteran players. Axe him and bring on Wayne Bennett as coach.

Answer 20

In normal circumstances, I'd agree completely; it's not the captain's place to comment publicly on the performance of the coach.

But these are drastic times. The Wellington test against Australia was the most feeble showing from a Kiwi side I'd ever seen - until the second test against Great Britain. Despite on-the-field evidence of incompetence, the administrators stood by their coach.

I'm amazed that the NZRL didn't consult any of the players during their 'investigation' of the tour. The players are clearly frustrated that they're labouring under a coach who doesn't adequately prepare them for test matches and that the administration doesn't value their judgement enough to ask their opinions at the end of a shambolic tour.

What else can they do but voice their thoughts to the media in the hope that public opinion will force the hand of the administration or Kemble himself?

Hopefully Kemble's conversations with senior players will clarify to him the fact that the players don't have confidence in his abilities and he will do the right thing: resign. I don't see any other satisfactory resolution to the situation. I can't see the bull-headed administrators - Graham Lowe in particular - bowing to player pressure, no matter how justified their concerns. Lowe was a fantastic coach, but he must realise that not everyone he coached absorbed his talents (see, for instance, his misguided loyalty to Mark Graham and now Kemble).

If the players do eventually get their way, they had better prove themselves right by lifting that World Cup at the end of the year.

Answer 21

this guy! with the list of players who switch allegiance to Samoa?? uh...at least three of those guys are not even samoan lol, Karmichael Hunt is Cook Island Maori mate and he playz 4 australia neway and Benji Marshall is a NZ Maori they're not samoan haha!!

Answer 22

if bad-mouthing the coach means getting a better coach then im all for it, no good sacking kemple after the world cup.

not to sure, but Roy Asotasi did voice opinions early last year, and wasnt heard, well guess what, they're listening now aint they.

its an ego issue with who ever hired kemple, and he seems to be roy's biggest attacker. ps, its lowie, lmao.

Answer 23

Roy is merely voicing what everyone is thinking anyway. I am a great believer in team unity and sticking together. But something has obviously gone wrong here and the NZRL by trying to put a muzzle on the players just inflames the situation further. The person who should be answering these questions is Kemble himself, he needs to stand up and be counted he needs to win back the confidence of the players and not rely on the NZRL to fight his battles. A team is only as strong as its leadership and Gary Kemble is the top dog so he needs to start barking.

Answer 24

i agree with what Roy Asotasi has said about Gary Kemble.I have been a league fan all my life and never have i seen such a lame coach.Way out of his depth.

Answer 25

Not sure if he is right or wrong as I have to admit I  dont have all the information on it but I do think that as Captain he has the responsibility to speak up on behalf of the team and he was right in doing that if the team feels the same