Johnson, Green hold key: Johns
The Warriors can make a big run in the playoffs because of Shaun Johnson and Blake Green in the halves believes Matthew Johns.
Speaking on NRL 360 this week, the former Kangaroo praised how well Johnson and Green have combined this season, rating them as one of the best pairings in the NRL.
Johns believes Johnson is able to bring his flair to the game and allow Green to worry about game management.
‘‘That’s why I like the combination of Blake Green and Shaun Johnson,’’ Johns said.
‘‘That’s why Green’s great, Green sits in the middle of the field and he just fishes.
‘‘He puts the line in the water all the time and he’s just dropping blokes under, hits a bloke short, and he’s just sort of fiddling around and keeping the ship on the rails, and all of a sudden he goes dink and he shoots the ball to Johnson.
‘‘They rush Johnson when he’s up nice and flat, and he’ll just go bang, bang, beat one, beat two, and then all of a sudden when that sequence ends Green puts the ship back on the rails and gets the structure going again.’’
Because of how the Warriors attack with Johnson and Green, Johns says he can see the Warriors going all the way this year.
‘‘When the Warriors find the balance in their football they are so dangerous, and Green allows that because when the Warriors just play principle or structure-based football they look predictable,’’ he told NRL 360.
‘‘Their beautiful football is off the offloads, and the reactive stuff, and the fast stuff.
‘‘But they were never good at getting themselves back on track because you can’t play that way for 80 minutes, where Green can. That’s why they’re a very dangerous team.’’