Teams Dolphins

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The 4th Queensland team should be Central Queensland based out of Rocky.
Funny you should say that because the Dolphins play their first ever NRL trial match tonight against Central Queensland. You can watch it here at 7:00pm tonight:


For what it's worth, I think the next NRL expansion team will be Ipswich. South east Queensland is absolutely exploding in population at the moment and the NRL know Queensland is their best bet for expansion due to the sport being historically popular in Queensland.
 
The Dolphins are officially undefeated. Try scorers were Harrison Graham, Setu Tu, Brenton Baira, Valynce Te Whare, Rodrick Tai and Mason Teague.

 

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I watched the game, they were just OK. Long way to go to be competitive in the NRL.
They were far from full strength. Neither Bromwich brother played, no Milford, no Kaufusi, no Wallace, neither Lee cousin, no Nikorima etc.

You'd expect them to be a lot better when some of those names run out on the field.
 
They were far from full strength. Neither Bromwich brother played, no Milford, no Kaufusi, no Wallace, neither Lee cousin, no Nikorima etc.

You'd expect them to be a lot better when some of those names run out on the field.
Bennett seldom/never coaches a bad team. But it'll be baby steps even at full strength.
 
Funny you should say that because the Dolphins play their first ever NRL trial match tonight against Central Queensland. You can watch it here at 7:00pm tonight:


For what it's worth, I think the next NRL expansion team will be Ipswich. South east Queensland is absolutely exploding in population at the moment and the NRL know Queensland is their best bet for expansion due to the sport being historically popular in Queensland.

Yeah. It was in my town. I considered going but the team the Dolphins put on the field was basically their reserves so i didn't bother.
 
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From that opening trial game and then the preseason game vs Cowboys, this team looks like it is going to be a hard hitting and mostly capable defensive team, as per Bennett coached teams. Very impressed with their level of hitting and they did damn well with 30% possession only in very humid Cairns climate to keep the Cowboys score so low, the amount of "red zone" defense they had to do. Shame about the last second try tho to tie the game :p
 
From that opening trial game and then the preseason game vs Cowboys, this team looks like it is going to be a hard hitting and mostly capable defensive team, as per Bennett coached teams. Very impressed with their level of hitting and they did damn well with 30% possession only in very humid Cairns climate to keep the Cowboys score so low, the amount of "red zone" defense they had to do. Shame about the last second try tho to tie the game :p
Dolphins remain undefeated. Titans up next and if they play like they did against the Cowboys then you'd have to think they'll remain undefeated going into round 1.
 


Herbie and now Flegler from the Broncos. Very good signings, especially Herbie. Pressure on the hammer to perform at FB otherwise Herbie will get a good shot at it next year. Flegler has great potential imo, great size and mobility. A modern day forward, imo Bennett will do wonders for his consistency. 2023 is just about figuring out some pieces & getting team chemistry. 2024 is their real season imo.
 
Interesting little snippet on choice of name. QRL wont allow an NRL club name in Qlnd cup. Also NRL requirement for, presumably just QLnd clubs, to be affiliated with more than one Qlnd cup club. They wanted Sunshine Coast and ended up with CQ after Falcons extended with Storm.

“We weren’t allowed to be called Redcliffe or we wouldn’t be allowed to play in the Queensland Cup,” Reader said. “[NRL clubs] must have multiple affiliates in the QRL competition, so we have got Redcliffe and the Capras.

 

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As some have said on LU....

Doesn't make sense when other teams don't have multiple affiliates.

Also, option could be to change the name of the QLD cup team so the NRL team can be called Redcliffe. Or, the NRL team could be renamed Moreton Bay Dolphins.

There was a dispute between them and the Moreton Bay Regional Council over their name. The MBRC wanted them to be the Moreton Bay Dolphins. They provided significant sponsorship to the club

If the NRl strategy is to reintroduce a full NRL reserve grade, and it looks like it is, then I hope they have a strong strategy for what a second division comp looks like and how they'll support it. It would be a shame not to have a decent semi-pro level second tier in Qlnd and NSW anymore

If reserve grade happens it will be irrelevant as Redcliffe Dolphins will no longer play in QRL top tier.

 
Great debut win. Reckon many would've said they'd be competitive from the outset given the Bennet factor, but a win on debut was unexpected.
Now the question becomes - can they make the finals? Play like they did today for the rest of the season and they will definitely play finals but it's a long season so you never know. Should be interesting to follow.
 
Now the question becomes - can they make the finals? Play like they did today for the rest of the season and they will definitely play finals but it's a long season so you never know. Should be interesting to follow.
They won't play finals IMO. Don't underestimate the psychological factor of getting up for the first ever game, but with a larger sample size I think they lack the overall quality to win enough games to play finals this year.
 
Now the question becomes - can they make the finals? Play like they did today for the rest of the season and they will definitely play finals but it's a long season so you never know. Should be interesting to follow.
Injuries or lack thereof will probably be a big factor in that. Also, how well can they travel and play in hostile environments. The win today, there was a clear emotional surge due to the home crowd, that pushed them beyond the pain/fatigue barrier, so how will they cope when the crowd is hostile and they're behind in a game.
 
They won't play finals IMO. Don't underestimate the psychological factor of getting up for the first ever game, but with a larger sample size I think they lack the overall quality to win enough games to play finals this year.
That win was on emotion. Expect a flat line next week

We don't have a huge amount of recent evidence to compare it to but the Titans, Suns and Giants all lost their first games. Next week against the Raiders should be telling as they'll like to go in as the favourites for the first time ever. Also the first time they've ever played at their traditional home in Redcliffe.

Injuries or lack thereof will probably be a big factor in that. Also, how well can they travel and play in hostile environments. The win today, there was a clear emotional surge due to the home crowd, that pushed them beyond the pain/fatigue barrier, so how will they cope when the crowd is hostile and they're behind in a game.
We're going to find out and that's what makes it so interesting. It's genuine unknown at this point in time but I think in a situation like this you take it back to the basics when it's a new team and make sure you win your home games, which they've done so far. Then you try to jag a few away games and suddenly you're in the finals. Just keep in mind that of their 24 home and away games this year, 17 of them will be in Queensland so the travel factor isn't as bad as some might think.
 
Bennett's Dolphins 23 looking to resembling Bennet's Dragons 19....beating you with their defense.

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That's definitely what I'm picking up on watching this team. They are brutal on defense, really hit hard and also mongrels in the process of wrestling a player down, bit of taunting too. They want to beat you up every game....loving it. The Roosters had a lot of ball in the Dolphins half and couldn't put them away. Like that preseason game vs Cowboys when they tied, Cowboys had like 70% possession. Being a stifling bruising defensive team is the brand Bennett's putting in. Still a way to go before they reach that ceiling of completely shutting a team down from start to finish. Work in progress.

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Broncos opening game 14k
Dolphins opening game 32k

Also, seemingly all actual Dolphins fans, lot of "redcliffe" chanting going on

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Good to hear also how the news reports and commentators during the game often referred to them as "Redcliffe Dolphins" and even things like "first QLD club to progress to the NRL" when apparently "the Dolphins" as a business set up is a subsidiary of Redcliffe Dolphins.

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As for the uniform, finally seeing it properly....

Most dissenters find it's grown on them.

For me.....i wouldnt say grown on me, still dont like it, but not so hateful as i was before.

Would still prefer something like.... Jersey (all red, white numbers, touch of gold here and there).....Shorts (all gold, thixk red stripe, thin white stripe).....Socks (all red with gold/white stripe at top).

It's not that i hate the colors but the jersey design itself, the bottom half thing.
 
They ought to play all their home games at Suncorp, Brisbane central. Their training facilities/headquarters can be Redcliffe, and they can even officially call themselves Redcliffe or Moreton Bay Dolphins but still should be playing their games in Brisbane central, representing a second Brisbane team, collecting fans along the way who didn't support Redcliffe in the QLD comp
 
Also, seemingly all actual Dolphins fans, lot of "redcliffe" chanting going on.
I found this part very interesting. If they've got approximately 30k dedicated fans heading down from the Moreton Bay with huge potential to grow their fanbase into the northern suburbs of Brisbane as well as the Sunshine Coast then we're potentially looking at a juggernaut of a club in the making.
 

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