Exactly - and if Houli returns to his pre-finals ways when the real stuff starts then I'll start being concerned, but yeah blokes who stood up when sheep stations were on the line get a bit of leeway clearing out the cobwebs in the first practice match of the year.
Conca on the other hand has proven nothing so far apart fron the ability to turn the ball over at crucial times, give away frees, kill momentum, get suspended and injure himself at regular intervals. Blokes like him need to start showing something in the pre-season. Good evasive skills and hardness at the ball he has always had but he conistently undermines those attributes with the above stated flaws and I saw nothing new nor improved from him on Saturday.
Can he turn it around? Well if Houli can nearly win the Norm Smith, Edwards can be top 3, the likes of Grigg & BEllis can stand up in three consecutive finals and Townsend can come from the verge of delistment to play an important role in a flag then then anything's possible I guess but for now, talking up yet another mediocre effort from a list-clogger is the very definition of setting the bar low.
p.s. I agree with The Machine that if he plays it should be in the guts.
