BY DAN

Development of players seems more art than science.

Noting our lack of expertise in the matter, it seems that there’s no fit formula for turning talent and promise into performance and permanence. What worked for one may not work for another. And the circumstances that thrust one player ahead of their skis may be the exact space another needs to find something they didn’t realise existed.

Canberra are facing that question with Owen Pattie and Noah Martin. Both are too good for NSW Cup football. Pattie has all the skills you could want out of a nine – beautiful passing, creativity and deception around the ruck, and a kicking game to boot. He has proven physical capable of the top line, and just needs more game time to get better at choosing his moments, learning when to deploy his prodigious talents.

Noah Martin is a beast – the nicest, most polite beast you may ever meet. The Henry McCoy of rugby league. He’s spent the best part of two seasons in NSW Cup running through defenders like they were gaps, and gaps like it was training. People with eyeballs are aware that he has the physical ability to play first grade – he’s already done it, and it’s not often you will see a human forklift (Fork Yeah!) move so adroitly.

There is not much more that either of these players can learn in NSW Cup. Many will, and have, note Pattie’s imperfect decision making. This is the hallmark of a player that can see, and take, any opportunity available on the field. He’s still learning which of these are mirages and which are real. More than once last season what seemed like a red carpet laid out for a try was swallowed by the athletic step-change the NRL is from Cup.

For Pattie, trying to improve his ability to read these moments won’t be improved in NSW Cup. This is about understanding what the elite are capable of, and working out how to move around that. It’s hard to see how you can get used to the pace and space of the NRL game from the lower ranks.

Related to this is sometimes it takes two to tango, and while Pattie can see opportunities that exist, his teammates in both Cup and first grade do not see it too. Call it the curse of the cerebral player; it was something that Josh Hodgson had trouble with. Sometimes all a rake needs is someone willing to run a hard line at his shoulder, not knowing if they’re getting the ball or not. But too often when he spots an opportunity, no one else does, and suddenly he’s dancing alone in the middle of the circle (you know, that circle) instead of with a partner.

Again that won’t likely be changed from NSW Cup. There’s only so much cohesion you can build on the training paddock. Getting used to what he sees is something that’s game situation. It requires Owen standing next to Huddo or Papa and responding and reacting together. It takes time, especially with someone with the unique talents of Pattie.

Similarly Martin’s challenge is understanding how his physical gifts match up to those across the league. In Cup footy he can steam-roll almost anyone in his vicinity. He also knows he has enough lateral speed to cover whatever is thrown at him defence, regardless of how he reads it. In some moments last season, he was able to recover from less perfect positioning simply by being bigger and faster than the opposition.

That’s not a luxury that can be afforded in NRL, and for an edge defender it’s an even bigger risk. The leap from Cup to NRL isn’t made in the gym, it’s making decisions at a pace akin to a Formula One driver or batsmen in cricket. Identifying decoys and threats when thoroughbreds are thumping the turf around you is a cool heads in chaos situation. I’m not convinced there’s a way to get used to that pace of thinking without having to do it.

This is a challenge for Coach Stuart. Last season he was forced into giving time to Pattie and (to a lesser extent) Martin in first grade. This came with lumps and learnings, as is to be expected. But those players are levelling up because of it, and now they need a fresh challenge in order to continue on their path to likely stardom in the coming years.

Sticky is trying to balance this against what the team needs now, and that’s a more complex matter. As I’ve said repeatedly, if I was in charge Pattie would be playing more and more first grade each week. Martin would be pushing that too. But Coach Stuart has other problems he’s solving and a solution born in fifty years of football thinking. How he manages the ongoing development of these two players is going to be interesting to watch. They’re already too good to waste.

The Sportress is transitioning away from Facebook and Twitter for distribution so sign up to the email below before we disappear from your feed altogether. Don’t hesitate to send us feedback (dan@sportress.org) or comment below if you think we are stupid. Or if we’re not.