Seasons, and series results, can be decided a decision.
A recruitment decsion, a personal switch, a change in gameplan.
Sometimes these decisions lead to glory. Other times they lead to disaster.
"Disaster" may be hyperbole here but today we are going to focus in on those decisions that didn't pan out particularly well.
These are not meant to be "I told you so" type of moments. Just a look back at five decisions that didn't go the way they were designed.
With that said, here of the biggest mistakes during the 2025 season:
5. Cowboys shift halves despite having semi-successful combination
Heading into the season it looked as though Tom Dearden and Jake Clifford were the best possible halves pairing for the Cowboys.
I don't blame coach Todd Payten for running with young gun Tom Duffy to start the season. It did become obvious though that the team was much better upon Clifford's return.
The Cowboys would chop and change their halves combination throughout the year, shifting Jaxon Purdue from the centres into five-eighth occasionally.
Tom Dearden played 13 games at halfback and nine games at five-eighth. I know the roles are very similar in 2025 but that shows a lack of planning.
Surely your Origin level half is just that, your halfback. Then you rotate the players around at six if required.
Seven of their nine wins, including their first four, came with Clifford beside Dearden.
I know injuries play their part in switched but Payten dropped Clifford in mid-May and the team never regained the momentum they did have for a month.
Like other entries in this list, it was not the only reason a season derailed, but it certainly didn't help.
The Galvin spin is so easy and Lazy. Dogs haven’t had a dominant 7 outside a role player since Trent Hodgekinson. Toby lost his short kicking game and while he had every intention to run the footy in 2025 he got belted on about 4 occassions where he coughed up possession. His biggest attribute was funnily enough his defence on bog bodies but his reads were often criticised by his captain.
The common play from coaches under pressure like Payten, Obrien ( who doesn’t make this list ridiculously) and many former coaches is to scapegoat their halves. Ciraldo at 9/2 record starts a plan to bring in Galvin and treated like he’s made the biggest mistake. Galvin was clearly the 7 in our last match and the dominant half as far as touches go, in every game he started. Multiple repeat sets earnt and had on average triple the amount of touches on left edge as what Sexton did or could. Not to mention, Galvin barely got to play with Burton in the halves. The last 3 games Burto spent less than 20 minutes total in the halves position due to injuries to Xerri, Montoya, Crichton and Tuala. Had very little platform from a tired and interupted pack and both he and Sexy were gonna struggle against the best sides.
Had ypu of said biggest mistake was not to rest players in rd 27, that is closer to the truth.
DCE drama fair to say but still not announced..hilarious.
Atkinson wasted on the bench, but that didn’t wreck the Sharks season – they made the prelims.
Galvin/Hayward for Sexton/Mahoney ? Michael says “no”, but I think swapping half the spine when the club is going well is “probably”.
DCE ? A “no” from me. The business didn’t help, but he’s a pro and I didn’t see his form falling off. Manly missed the eight primarily because of injuries and because of poor recruitment/retention from previous seasons.
Laurie Daley ? YES ! !
Cowboys ? Don’t know. Don’t follow them.
Newcastle not punting AOB after Round 8 when Newcastle fell to 15th on the ladder. I think at that point the writing was on the wall, and getting in _anyone_ fresh would at least have shown the club was serious. Something that Michael and I can agree on.