Jamal Fogarty open to criticism after meteoric losses

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Canberra’s Jamal Fogarty is ready to take the blame for the Raiders’ poor record of losing games and has even encouraged manager Ricky Stuart to be more critical of his half-time performances.

The Raiders have won seven of the last 10 games, but their three losses have been a combined 91 points, with the seven wins totaling just 33.

They responded to each of the three home bombings with wins, but Raiders fans are wondering why their team continues to capitulate in Canberra.

Fogarty says he doesn’t look any further than him, admitting his handling of the game as a halfback remains a work in progress.

“We’ve seen patches where what (I’ve done) personally has been good and then obviously other times games have slipped away from us, and as a half I’m taking it pretty personally.” he declared.

“That’s the biggest area I can grow in, especially when the game is on the line and we’re going tit for tat with other teams, we’ve kind of fallen off and it probably comes down to my management of game, whether it’s the choice to kick or give directions to the boys.

“It’s something I really want to take to the next level over the next few weeks, and something I’m going to work very hard on with the coaching staff.

“Defensively too, that’s something I would like to be proud of, when I tackle well and do all the other things really well, they kind of go together.”

Fogarty has compiled an 18-10 win-loss record in 28 games since joining the Raiders at the start of last season and believes he can take further steps by learning from Coach Stuart, one of the game’s great halfbacks throughout his playing career.

“To be honest, ‘Stick’ (Stuart) lets me be myself,” Fogarty said.

“We’re having side conversations and he’ll come up with some ideas and we’ll sort of get together more, but he’s not saying ‘I think you should do this, I think you should do that’.

“He’s been really good to me, and that’s one area where our relationship could probably be a little bit better, if he’s just a little bit more critical of my game and that would benefit the team moving forward. Before.”

Canberra travel to face the Sydney Roosters on Sunday, after a long 16-day break between matches.

“Feeling fresh physically will be the most important thing (but) our job is to go out there and give our best, represent the Raiders and our club in the right way,” Fogarty said.

By Alex Mitchell in Canberra

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