Rookie relishes licence to attack
ROOKIE half Jake Clifford has vowed to embrace his attacking instincts as the Cowboys look to combat Cronulla’s patient, grinding style at Shark Park tomorrow night.
The Sharks are built for the arm- wrestle as they use their big forward pack to wear teams down before finding opportunities for their attacking weapons like fullback Valentine Holmes to strike.
It was the blueprint they used to topple the Storm in Melbourne last weekend and it could be just as effective against the Cowboys, who have struggled in the attacking zone this season.
The Cowboys have enjoyed more success by throwing the ball around in recent weeks, scoring 20 points or more in their past three matches, while Clifford is also finding his feet at NRL level.
Clifford had the best game of his fledgling first- grade career against the Broncos last weekend, coming up with a late try assist and two line- break assists to steer the Cowboys to a 34- 30 victory.
Cowboys coach Paul Green has urged Clifford to play with that confidence from the opening whistle and the Tully product said it was his intention to come out firing against the Sharks.
“We can’t hide away from that. I think playing some footy straight away ( against the Broncos) really benefited us as the game went on,” Clifford said.
“I feel a lot more comfortable and a bit more confident. I had to get used to the speed and the physicality for the first couple of weeks and I feel like I’m starting to get used to it all now.
“Getting the win at home and the way we played as a team felt really special, so hopefully we can get into Cronulla and give them a redhot crack.”
Co- captain Matt Scott said the Cowboys were prepared to chance their arm tomorrow night, but he stressed the importance of still playing controlled footy to keep up with the Sharks.
“They’re very good at completing their sets. They complete sets, they grind out, and just use their size and their speed to wear teams down and come over the top of them at the end,” he said.
“They did that to Melbourne, so we’ll have to play a pretty controlled style of footy, but also some good attacking style which we showed against the Broncos.
“We’ve never been a side to not chance our arm a little bit. That’s the way ‘ Greeny’ coaches and we’ve got guys in our side that are very good attacking players.
“It’s that balance. We’ve got to complete high or we won’t go with them, but we also need to throw some attack at them.”