I think that is a concise summation of the situation if a little on the harsh side. But I do have this feeling you maybe don't rate the coach?

not sure many of us do really and I have to say, he brings a lot of it on himself.

i think mcdermott is good at individual game plans but i dontthink he is great at player/skills development. His stubborness and his inability to accept he gets things wrong does him no favours with fans. His inability to learn from his mistakes is a major failing in my eyes

I don't think the other teams have upped really apart from Castleford. The others have had similar form throughout the year 2/3 good showings followed by 1/2 poor showings and repeat over. Their's still a lot of inconsistency in the other top 8 teams.

Foot off the gas perhaps wasn't the correct term but you should be able to understand the jist.

Teams can't expect to keep a certain level all year long and teams have clearly targeted certain parts of their seasons to peak in recent. It's been discussed on here in years past of preparing your team to peak come playoff time or peaking early to try win a WCC so teams clearly don't push exactly the same all year through.

i doubt any side is peaking to play at the top of their game right now. Which makes Leeds' inability to win more alarming. As i have said before leeds are playing as well as they can given the injury position it just isnt sufficient to compete at the moment. Leeds should not be losing to teams like Cas at home and Widnes away regardless of peaking etc.

That's about as clear a post on the situation as there is. It is also worth noting that the only two teams Leeds have beat in the league in last seven games, had many players out missing. So when we talk of injuries ours was nothing close to their positions.

Should teams like Warrington & Wigan be coming away from Widnes without a win too? Are you writing those 2 clubs off this season? No, thought not.

Have you looked at their respective forums recently? Total meltdown! You'd fit right in.



If we were to listen to the likes of you, the perennial pessimist, on every club's forum then all the trophies would be handed out now, to Saints.

I am a realist prepared to accept the team has some shortcomings. Unlike who believes everything is rosy in the garden. Just think where Saints might be if they could ever get Walsh fit.

There are very few on here who share your blind optimism about Leeds given their recent run of form. Did i read you were offering a bet on leeds finishing top going into the play offs?

I don't believe that the club are targeting the cup because they don't see the league/GF as a realistic goal. The only thing this team hasn't done is win the double. If we lose in the cup, it's over so I do think we'll see peaks in the cup games which is all well and good, but we need to be doing enough to win the league games too. No point winning the cup if we've dropped out of the 4 and face an uphill battle in to make the playoffs.

McD comes across as stubborn to a fault, and so should we expect him to review his substitution policy? Would be nice but can't see it. He certainly feels like a coach lacking in ideas. When teams work us out he has nothing to counter it.

So apart from that he's ok then?

He has been very lucky to inherit a club with a great team, solid structure and sound finances. Have we won stuff inspite of his coaching - who knows. Would he have had the impact at say Cas that Powell has had I doubt it.

"All right but apart from sanitation, the medicine, education, wine........etc etc...what have the Romans ever done for us?

Widnes at home beat Warrington, us and drew with Wigan this year. They beat Warrington, Wigan, Saints and Hudds there in 2014. Infact Warrington haven't won there in their last three visits. Hardly the "shouldn't be losing to them" scenario.

As for Cas, they moved up to 4th on Thursday night so they must be doing something good ATM. As soon as I heard about the 4 day turnaround and Cas moving their game forward 2 days I thought this game had a red flag next to it. If GH hadn't tried to take some moral high stance of refusing to ask Wakey to move the game against us then I reckon last Thursday goes differently. We effectively gave ourselves another Easter style period and how often has the 2nd game of an Easter weekend been a good performance? Very very rarely and our opponents this time didn't have to face the same turnaround.

I was disappointed we didn't beat Castleford but I realise we put ourselves at a significant disadvantage with that short turnaround that needs to be taken into account as we won't be doing that again this season. It was a key factor in the result.

How many times have Leeds lost at Widnes since they were awarded their franchise. If Leeds have aspirations to win the GF they should not be losing to sides like Widnes who are 9th in a table of 12.

Cas are now fifth and if results go against them - they have Saints, Catalan have Wakey and Warrington have Hull KR they could end up 7th. Leeds should not be losing at home if they are to go on and win the GF.

They played Sunday against Wakefield - seriously that wasn't even a training run to say they were fatigued after that is a nonsense. Leeds never looked like winning the played at the level the have been capable for weeks now. Injuries are a problem because the squad doesn't contain sufficient quality and an injury to one of Peacock, Cuthbertson or McGuire and the season will very quickly unravel. Sinfield will start on Sunday its a game they cannot afford to lose with Wigan at home to Salford.

Yes and Saints shouldn't have lost at Widnes last year if they had aspirations to win the GF, but they still did lost and still won the GF.

Wigan shouldn't have lost at home to Castleford in 2013 if they had aspirations to win the GF that year.

Not one team challenging for the title hasn't dropped points against teams you wouldn't normally expect them to lose to, so you're basically being critical of Leeds' chances based on something other sides have been guilty of too?

Wakefield may not be the toughest opponent but you're still out there for 80 mins, making tackles, getting hit. Still not the best phyiscally preparation to have such a short turnaround regardless of the opponent. It's also not the fatigue side, you effect your preparation time in terms of game planning too. Sounds like most work between Sunday and Thursday was spent just getting them physically right with their conditioning and not enough on being out on the training pitch working on stuff for the next opponent.

Yeah, so you keep saying. I think what you really are, is someone who just loves a good moan TBH. You seem to thrive on negativity.
Forget Saints, just think where we might be if we get our injuries sorted. I'll tell you where, we'll be where we were a few weeks ago when you and your cronies were backtracking left, right and centre





Ah yes, all those 1000s of Leeds and RL fans who post on here. Are these the same fans who've been writing Leeds off since the dark days of 2006?

I wasn't offering any bets at all, no. One of your fellow grumptons mentioned a bet but quickly disappeared and moved on to moaning about something else when I offered to take him up on it.

Yes you were offering a bet - who is backtracking now!! Suggest you revisit your posts

?

Saints injuries have been far worse than ours so let's not get on that hobby horse - nobody is backtracking Leeds were playing some attractive rugby and were in a good position. Unlike you who thought it would go on forever some of us knew it couldn't - that is just realism. The standard of play at the moment is poor, even you have to admit that - you cannot keep saying all is OK when it quite clearly isn't.

We are just polarised in our opinions. You are entitled to your view but it is no more valid that mine.

You mean this?





Wasn't me who brought up that bet and it also wasn't me who disappeared when I offered to take him up on it....




Is this the Saints that along with Leeds are getting weaker, whilst Wigan and Warrington are improving? That's what you said a few weeks ago wasn't it?



And no, their injuries haven't been worse than ours at all.

As for the rest of your post, I think you're just making things up now to make yourself feel superior, or something. I never claimed Leeds would go all season unbeaten but I also haven't written them off after a mid season run of poor form that's coincided with quite a few injuries.

Now's who being a realist?

Careful now, you'll do yourself an injury.

I don't bet.

The question was whether you had money on it, not whether you wanted to make a bet on it with me. Not my fault your comprehension skills are lacking.

Not surprised!

Injury lists aren't always about how many are injured but which ones. In 2010 we had 3 players missing at the end of the season which isn't a huge number, but two of those were Pescock and McGuire so it was as significant than having 5/6 other guys out.

Saints have got injuries but crucially not to Roby, Amor and Wamsley. They can get by losing a few backs because that's not the key to their teams chances. If we're to be successful we need our starting back 5. You don't have most neutrals calling them the best back 5 in the competition and then not get impacted when you're missing a few of them for periods of time.

The other point you and a few others keep going on about. Nobody is actually the performances have been good of late or that everything is ok at present.....difference is some of us haven't thrown the towel in and decided we'll play this way every week up until Round 30.

I am not convinced that has happened the other way either. It's just that if anybody comments on what they have just seen and it is criticism, the usual come out changing it to some other view. For some reason you are a doom mongerer purely for criticising (and rightfully) a performance just watched.