I think the appointment of AOB is great. I think for Keys he should be left alone to manage the game and play his
Game instead of the extra pressure of having to captain the side too but I’m sure they will both do a great
Job. Vice captain to Fairbank as we all know he plays well and being vice captain should make him think twice before commenting stupid penalties that he sometimes does

If Greg n his friends need some council after todays upcoming announcement I’m available 24/7 , let the moaning commence .

Widdop obviously still a very good player at this level if he can stay fit - just no idea where he plays unless he can slot in at centre where we are desperately short. I suppose it worked out well with Greg Florimo who came as a stand off and then was brilliant at centre - hope we've not just signed him as a probably very expensive name.

A good signing for the press as it will give us a bit of limelight for while in RL press. May get a few more through the gate. What does need to happen is Widdop to play and play well all season and make that little bit of difference that will upset opposition and give us the winning edge. If he doesn’t perform then it’s no more than giving him a retirement wage.

Agree with both what Ilkley and Faxlore have said, its certainly a signing that will get people talking although the timing when most RL writers are on holiday might not see that much press about it. I think its great that we can have a player with so many honors in the game playing for us and his profile and experience should be a big boost for the changing room. Obviously I have said before if it were up to me that money would have been spent on areas of the team that we do need strengthening rather than spend money on a player in a position we are strongest. My worry is that for everyone that is declaring it as a great signing, maybe they did not see that much of him in his last season in SL, but a change of scenary and the opportunity to play for his hometown club can be mutually beneficial and he can once again raise his game because there is no doubting his attacking prowess when he is on his game.

He mentions in his interview that he lost his son last week. I don’t don’t know anything about his son but if has been ill over the last season that Will probably be why He Didn’t have a good season at Cas. Understandably so. May be after the very sad Passing of his son he feels he can now Give one more season to the RL game And that club is us. Heartfelt love to him and his wife and family if their son had passed away.

Credit to him putting on such a brave face such a short time after. Hopefully things get easier for him over the coming months.

Good luck to Gareth and Fax. Brilliant signing, well done to him and the club

With all he's achieved in the game playing for his for his home town club was the last honour Gaz could achieve and the only club he would have pulled a shirt on for.

It's been on the cards for a while now and was rumoured to be going to happen when the new shirt was launched with him wearing it.

There's no big mega money involved just a big heart and a big commitment.

There's been odd stand out performers such as Martyn Ridyard who at this sort of age have shown what class and experience can do for a side both on and off the field and Widdop is a step or 2 up from him.

Let's hope he can stay fit and do the same for Fax.

Welcome aboard Gaz and all the best to you and yours.

Very sorry to hear about his son passing that is terrible for him and his family to go through. Personally i think he could be a very good signing as long as he can stay fit. I think he got scapegoated at Cas playing in what was one of the worst Cas sides i have seen. That is no excuse for the part he played for them but i think there was bigger problems down the lane last year than him. And from a playing point of view for us one of the issues that Grix mentioned on a number of occasions last year was someone stepping up and leading the side around the park plus i think his kicking game should benefit us because ours last year left a lot to desire. All that said i do agree that we need strengthening in other areas too.

Brandon Moore gone- while I'm happy to have Inman and O'brien as hookers, Moore has been a fantastic servant to the club, and in his pomp was probably the best hooker in the division. Don't know if it's injuries but seems to have lost his zip out of dummy half over last couple of seasons- his defence remained fantastic. He will be an excellent signing for another championship club - could see him ending up at Bulls,Batley or even Fev who are still very light on numbers.

Glad he went out having a deserved winners medal but absolutely the right decision.

This should give Inman more game time he needs. Also Obrian is a far better hooker for him to learn from.

Hope this frees up money to bring in some where we are lacking

Exactly,a very good early read from Finny on a potentially difficult situation.

To start with he has been a fantastic servant to the club and the ex-players commenting about him shows the type of guy he is and like Ilkley says at his best he was the top hooker in this division. That said there really isn't any room for sentiment in pro sport and I think a big chunk of Fax fans were already bemoaning that Inman was not getting picked over him last season. My take on it is that it was a big mistake for him to be made captain and this seemed to coincide with his form dropping off that along with him having to add minutes to an already ridiculously tough role by playing as a hybrid loose was as crazy as it was bizarre and Grix certainly did him no favors in that regard. Last season certainly looked a season too far for him but Grix had to stick with him as he couldnt be seen to drop his captain ddespite having two players in the squad whom we looked a lot better as a team when they were on the pitch.

The Bradford game and the squad number had rumors flying about and you can't blame him for seeking a release. On the plus side for Fax there is no doubt that Brandon was one of the biggest earners in the team and it frees up some money to look to strengthen in areas that we need it. I still don't think the Inman fan club will be that excited when the season starts as O' Brien is a genuine 80 minute hooker and will have no problem playing a full game at a high level if needed. I also think this sees Finn put down a statement that there won't be favorites in the team like we saw in Grix's reign but only time will tell in that regard but its a good start.

A very early candidate for post of the season is that..

I think Greg as pretty much covered what i was going to say. For me a player that commits in a way that Brandon did on and off the pitch deserves all the praise that is due. And as others have already said he did seem to go a bit stale in terms of his attacking threat out of acting half which seemed to come to a head when he was made captain but his effort and defence could never be questioned. It does free up some funds to strengthen in other areas like a new centre so hopefully the club have some irons in the fire on that front.

I doubt if much money is freed up with Brandon's departure as he'll probably get a decent pay off to terminate his contract. It had to be done, he's 3rd choice behind 2 very good hookers. Great servant to the club, all the best for the future.

Now the similar dilemma re the half backs to solve. Widdop, Keyes and Jouffret. Widdop is probably the first choice mid field general. But wouldn't like to see neither Keyes or Jouffet leave. Maybe Jouffret to be used as an impact sub, but in what context he could be brought on I don't know.

As i read it Moore wanted game time which was not guaranteed so he asked to be released so i doubt he would be paid off. Hopefully some money may be freed up.

As for the half backs we found out last year when Keyes was injured that not having a third half to step in can cost you dear. We tried to cover it and eventually moved probably the best full back in the championship nullifying him to a large extent.

Let us wait and see what the coaches come up with.

Hopefully our new coach handles such situations better than the last one did.

I don't think the club can really afford the luxury of having a "quality" cover sitting in the stands on the off chance of a long term injury - Keyes' injury was an exception rather than the norm. I think Woody covering at half back was more a case of trying to accommodate Pickersgill.

Friends at other clubs Keyes played at said to me when he arrived at Fax. " A good signing for you if he can stay fit". Apparently he can be injury prone according to them .
He certainly played more games for us in his first season than I think he has anywhere elseI.

Quite interested to see how it pans out team selection wise on multiple levels. Woodburn hall , Keyes and jouffret are candidates for being the best in their respective positions throw into that widdop who can play in all three positions and at championship level surely a quality addition, given the injury stats on woody n Keyes then team selection may happen organically, if not then that is where Liam Finns man management comes into play . Despite the loss of Brandon Moore who as given is all to the club at 27 it looks to me his body is paying the price the two hooking options of obrien and inman again we look strong , overall the spine is very strong. We have the ever reliable salty and super league quality greg Eden on the wings , crooks who really came to form at the back end of the season then tibbs n McComb who are great offensively but unproven defensively imo . The pack is pretty good if calcott incremently improves again , Murray finds is 2022 form and Douglas remains injury free , lannon who was in my opinion one of the signings of last season is again one of the best in the division. Fairbank is usually pretty consistent, tangata and larroyer really need to reign it in discipline wise or it could be another frustrating season. Kav , gee and Olly davies who looked good against Bradford look pretty solid . The new lad Sam cambell is an unknown. I liked the look of Ben hursey hord , if we could get him on loan that would add strength in depth to our pack . Still need a centre in my opinion then we’ll be good to go .

Keys and Jouffret will keep their positions Widdop centre with Eden on his wing. Crooks the other centre and Salty. I do think we need to looking for another winger to replace Salty as I feel he is coming to the end of his time on the wing. He just isn’t fast enough these days.

Na more chance of woody at centre ( strong offensive and defensive great distribution and pace ) widdops kicking game is his strength at his age ( something that we lack ) so he plays in the halves or fb . Agree on salty great carrying game but seems to have lost his pace and was exposed defensively ie barrow at home . Honestly another aggressive forward and a quality centre and fax are a top 4 side imo .