*** Official Rugby League SLXXI Thread ***

[physichull]

Here's the new thread for the Rugby League Season SLXXI and the usual Q&A:

1. Your team?
2. Your highlight of last season?
3. Your expectations this season?
4. Your most anticipated new signings?
5. Who you think will win the league leaders shield?
6. Who will be the dark horses of the competition?
7. Any updates from your club, new ground etc?
8. Final league position of your club?
9. What (or who) will be your clubs weakness next year?
10. Here's what the bookies think, is it fair on your team?

Wigan 10/3
Leeds 3/1
St Helens 4/1
Warrington 13/2
Huddersfield 10/1
Catalans 10/1
Castleford 20/1
Hull 16/1
Hull KR 25/1
Salford 25/1
Widnes Vikings 33/1
Wakefield 50/1

FORUM MEMBERS AND THEIR TEAMS

• physichull - HULL KR
• Evil^ - BRADFORD
• kidloco - WARRINGTON
• Fuggan - LEEDS
• Wonder_Lander - HULL KR
• TonyM19 _ WIGAN
• PudWud - WIGAN
• hoppyintheuk - BRADFORD
• kefkef - WARRINGTON
• Dave26 - WIGAN
• Viper2 - WIGAN
• cheets64 - WIGAN
• hargi - CASTLEFORD
• Vanquish-Storm - WARRINGTON
• Landy - CASTLEFORD
• Xinn - LEEDS
• Lefty - WARRINGTON
• Serverman - WIGAN
• SMN - WIGAN
• gumbald - HULL KR
• ristac - LEEDS
• Gilly - LEEDS
• Kemik - WIDNES
• Funktopus - WIDNES
• shawsy109 - BRADFORD

My answers:

1. Hull KR.

2. Knocking out Warrington in the Challenge Cup at Headingly to reach the final for the first time in yonks. The final ten minutes of that game was one of the true highlights of being a Rovers support in the last 10 years. The final....less said about that the better!

3. Not really an expectation, more of hope, but again to finish in the top 8.

4. I think Ian Thornley will certainly be one of our better signings of the year, tough I can't really say at the moment as our two pre-season friendlies were abysmal defeats. Its not boding well for the new season to be honest so I am a bit worried!

5. I think Wigan will have it this year. I think Leeds won't quite manage it given the big playing names they lost to retirement last season.

6. Hull FC. I hate to say it, but they've got some really big players now and will be a handful for most sides, perhaps even top 4 challengers. Pritchard being the best of their bunch with Minichiello not far behind. They annihilated us in the pre-season friendly.

7. I suppose getting Jamie Peacock in was a bit of a coup for our club and hopefully he can bring a bit of that winning mentality and never say die attitude to the club as it badly needs it. I don't expect things to change overnight though, it will be a slow process.

8. Hoping 8th, but we definitely need Terry Campese back and fit for all of the season to achieve that.

9. Forwards. We just don't have that aggression and bite and the same old defensive frailties are there. We have point scorers with the likes of Kelly and Mantellato, but I really fear for our pack this year.

10. Yup(!)

 

[Gilly]

We've got an excellent kicker at fullback and two awesome players that look to be playing well in burrow and McGuire but with the retirees/leavers from last season - especially sinfield - it'll be a tough ask for Leeds to hit the heights they have in previous seasons.

They've always been underdogs you couldn't write off and actually fully expected to be in the mix. This time perhaps they're just underdogs.

 

[TonyM19]

1. Wigan

2. Not a Wigan highlight, but England winning a Test series.

3. The usual slow start on the heavy pitches when our relatively lightweight pack get pushed around a bit. We like to give youth a chance, but I'm just not sure about Tierney at full back until the prodigal son returns.

4. We only made two, and it's not Willie Isa

5. One of the usual suspects. I know Leeds have lost some experience, but they've made some good signings, as have Sts.

6. Not really dark horses, but Warrington can't be as bad as last season. Catalan away will be a tough game for everybody. If they could string some away form they could get into the Top 4.

7. Nothing major. A lot of youngsters blooded in the pre season games.

8. Top 4 hopefully

9. Slow start. Lack of size in the pack (not as important in June/July though). Away form.

10. I wouldn't back at those odds. Hurts me to say it, but I think Sts will go well this year

 

[Gilly]

Now a proper response:

1. Rhinos
2. Highlights are many, in a normal season it would probably be Ryan Hall's last minute score to take the league leader's shield, but in reality it has to be beating them in the grand final for Peacock, Sinfield and Leuluai to retire on the highest of high notes - the securing of the treble
3. Top 4 finish and a semi final/final in the cup
4. Looking forward to seeing how Cuthbertson and Galloway team up together Cuthbertson has added whole new dimensions to our play with his offloads but Galloway looks much more of a Jamie Peacock, run through the opposition type.
5. Wigan
6. Catalans. Pat Richards FFS?!
7. Our club are planning on changing standing areas to seated, it has not gone down well!
8. 5th
9. Probably Warrington again, they always tend to pox results against us
10. Those odds aren't long enough for Leeds. You cannot overstate the loss of Sinfield.

 

[Kemik]

1. Your team? Widnes Vikings
2. Your highlight of last season? Needed a decent kicker then would have been top 8
3. Your expectations this season? Top 8... hopefully
4. Your most anticipated new signings?
5. Who you think will win the league leaders shield? Leeds
6. Who will be the dark horses of the competition? The way the bookies are going, hopefully us!
7. Any updates from your club, new ground etc? Nope - all is the same.
8. Final league position of your club? 7th / 8th
9. What (or who) will be your clubs weakness next year? Kicking again! It'll probably cost us 8th at the end of the day.
10. Here's what the bookies think, is it fair on your team? No! We had a lot of injuries last year. A fair bit of new talent come in over the winter.

 

[TonyM19]

Wayne Bennett as new England coach.

How's that going to work having the coach based at the other side of the world working for an NRL cl ..... Oh.

I'd have gone for Daryl Powell. I hope he gets a chance to work with Bennett

 

[physichull]

I think everybody wants Daryll Powell as their head coach...

Always thought the England job was a bit of a non-job anyway, given how few times we play over the course of the season. It can hardly be a full time job anyway, can it?

Never thought much of McNamara anyway, he hardly pulled up any trees at Bradford.

 

[physichull]

Jordan Cox straight into Warrington side. I'm surprised by that.

 

[TonyM19]

Pretty straightforward kick missed to level the game up. Its a shock to the system when an ultra -reliable kicker leaves. It makes the close games so much tighter

 

[TonyM19]

Wigan v Catalan was a real grind. Instantly forgettable but 2 points.

I can't recall a team making as many unforced knock ons as Catalan. Wigan lost all their intensity when McIlorum went off. I don't get the rotating hookers idea.

 

[physichull]

Wigan v Catalan was a real grind. Instantly forgettable but 2 points.

I can't recall a team making as many unforced knock ons as Catalan. Wigan lost all their intensity when McIlorum went off. I don't get the rotating hookers idea.

It was a pretty dour game that and I struggled to keep paying attention to it. Awful conditions though. Hull smashed a hapless Salford, I really do think they could be the ones to watch out for this year.

 

[physichull]

Clutching a draw from the jaws of defeat but probably deserved it on balance. Dreadful playing conditions as usually with the wind howling off the Humber as it often does. Post second half hooter conversion by Mantellato salvaged a point when all the odds were against him. The ball even blew off the tee!

Not the greatest game of RL but exciting nonetheless. On the board!

 

[TonyM19]

Wigan weren't sparkling on Friday, but looking at the other results (Sts & Leeds), their run in to the World Club Challenge games has been ok. They only won 4 away games all last season.

I'm predicting an Aussie whitewash next weekend. Sts have the easiest game on paper, but they'll have to improve about a million % to have any chance at all.

Rumours that the Wigan v HKR game is an 8pm ko on Easter Monday, following the football team kicking off at 12 noon the same day. The pitch got relaid last week, but that might be pushing it a bit

 

[Kemik]

<--- that is all!

P.s. anyone who blames the iPitch for Leed's injury crisis should look to the fact that we've been playing on it for a lot longer than one game and it doesn't take out three players a game for us...

 

[physichull]

<--- that is all!

P.s. anyone who blames the iPitch for Leed's injury crisis should look to the fact that we've been playing on it for a lot longer than one game and it doesn't take out three players a game for us...

Nice victory! and it kept us from being bottom of the table!

I worry for Rovers now (already I know!) but our squad just isn't physical enough. Hull FC have got off to a storming start and I really do think Rovers are years behind them now (saw that coming last season).

Good win for Salford last week too, couldn't really believe how awful Saints were!

 

[TonyM19]

Interesting video from the Wigan Chairman explaining all the processes they had to go through leading to having to switch the Salford game to Thursday night. The RFL tried to get them to move the game to Blackpool/Widnes/Rochdale. Sounds like Dr Koukash has stepped in to save the day by agreeing to bring the game forward. Doesn't make me any happier as a season ticket holder who is working next Thursday night and leaves a massive question mark over the Easter Monday game v HKR.

I thought long and hard about renewing my season ticket this year. Looking like quiet an easy decision next year - I'll save my money and pick my games.

 

[TonyM19]

Ouch!

The worrying thing is that's the best Wigan have played this season and would have beaten most SL sides. Its like they're playing a different sport. How may SL teams have half backs who can take it to the line and then put a runner into a gap? The last British player I can recall is Lee Briers.

McIllorum out for up to 3 months.

 

[Kemik]

Paid my money to get the train from Reading to watch the Salford v Widnes game on Sunday. The first 30 minutes made me regret that decision... Salford were quicker to get it out to the wings and we didn't get a touch of the ball. Two very quick tries just before half time gave me some hope.

Second half we dominated a lot of the game but it wasn't due to any of the special plays I saw against Leeds the week before. At 22-20 I could see us maybe scoring a final try but Salford playing to the ref meant they got one in to finish the game.

We really can not be giving teams a 22 point head start and we really need to be more active in playing to the ref like Salford was. They were worming on the floor so we got done for holding down, yet there were many times they were doing the same but because we just laid there we didn't get anything. Quite a few high tackles going in from Salford with few calls from the ref. Then the final, very weird event whereby the Salford player dropped the ball in an attempt to score a try over the line and Hanbury was left holding it meant the ref called that Hanbury ripped it out! It should have either been a knock on or play on. Penalty was given and they scored.

Too many mistakes from Widnes, giving away easy penalties and not switching on for 30 minutes cost us the game.

 

[The Funktopus]

Good wins against Leeds and Huddersfield though....

Me being out of the country and at work for three months at a time, and thus unable to go the match seems to do wonders for Widnes' form.

 

[Gilly]

Ouch!

The worrying thing is that's the best Wigan have played this season and would have beaten most SL sides. Its like they're playing a different sport. How may SL teams have half backs who can take it to the line and then put a runner into a gap? The last British player I can recall is Lee Briers.

McIllorum out for up to 3 months.

McGuire and Burrow are both fully capable of running the ball and then adding a bit of magic, even now their legs are mostly shot