We'll have him to replace Webster.

From that list, I'd keep Sutcliffe (to play in the forwards) and Lilley and that's it. I'd also pay off Delaney (how has he got a long contract?) and find Mullalley a Championship home. Nowhere near convinced on Golding either, but would like to see what he can do with an attacking game plan under a decent coach.

Priority is obviously a controlling half but don't see that many available. Widdop is inconsistent and probably wouldn't come anyway, nor would any NRL first teamer other than those towards the end of their career. Of those, Cronk or Thurston are not going to happen, and the only other one in that category is Blake Green. It's either that or a big transfer fee for Gale.

Other than Garbutt we have no punch in the middle either. If Adam Walker doesn't fit in at Saints I'd buy him and buy him now. Always quality for Scotland, and against us for HKR. Garbutt/Singleton/Walker/Cuthbertson/Galloway is a decent rotation for now.

McDermott also needs to go now not at the end of the season. We can't afford the players we have to keep regressing or it won't matter who we bring in next year.

He was terrible last year and has been dropped by Souths this year. Doubt there are a queue of NRL clubs queueing to buy him at the moment. He'd improve us though.

Arn't you suppose to do all this pre-season?

Erm.....yes

You think it takes 1 pre-season to re-build a title winning squad that's been stripped of it's greatest assests in modern history?
Throw in a new Coaching staff & new conditioning staff id say definately not we go back to 2002/03 it takes a fair bit of time.

I agree mark. i'm happy to get a whole new coachng staff in, plus a raft of new signings and have a season building with some good youngsters breaking through.
not that I think any of this will happen

If Caddick kicks GH's arris the blue prints are there & it's what surprises me most we not only have the formula we bleedin created it with GH leading the way & he was ruthless without flinching.

You mean like cronulla last year? Came from nowhere to champions, it can be done

Cronulla being able to sign a crucial spine of 1,6,7 and 9 (Barba, Maloney, Townsend, Ennis) over the course of 12 months certainly helped their cause.

The same cannot be achieved in SL due to insufficient player pool talent, a very limited salary cap and a moribund transfer market.

I wouldn't my James Greenwood from KR. Also if they do persist with BM I hope the bring in an attacking minded assistant coach.

After the Cas game I have taken a couple of days to let it sink in before posting,was it really that bad a performance?YES probably the worst for twenty years as for the future f**k knows but looking back to when Caddick&Hetherington arrived and did a root and branch makeover and made us the best in the business on and off the pitch.the bit they seems to have missed is that raising playing/coaching/stadium standards to a high level also involves a raising of expectation that those standards will continue,and that involves continuos review of things like the academy which a few seasons ago we were the pinnacle and A standard in this country.so maybe mr Hetherington needs a good hard look at himself and the whole club and become the guy who took over in95/96 instead of the supremo or el capitano of super league that he imagines he is.get back to basics Gary we as fans deserve the expectations you raised to be met

I think most of us are agreed on what needs to happen. For better or worse, the club often decides to go a different way.

I hope it is just a matter of GH wanting to behave in what he thinks is a dignified manner regarding the coaching situation. If not, barring an unexpected win against Catalans, the following fixture against Wakefield may well be seen as a must-win by the powers that be. I'd imagine we'd be firmly out of the top 8 in that scenario, with a difficult Easter period ahead.

Ward would be my shout for captain but I would want to see if he can remain injury free wouldn't want to jinx him.

I would keep Burrow not only as a sub , ( I cannot understand why on here and other threads people want to drop or let him go..crazy !!!! ) but for his coaching skills. He has nurtured some great kids in U16s.
Whilst I like Golding and think he has lot of potential I would buy back Judah Mazive ( Wakey are wasting him on the wing ) he has potential to be best FB in SL ..still in England Youth set up...brilliant hand skills and dazzling footwork. Let Burrow have a few sessions with him to bring out that creativity again.

Not keen on Mullally but think Ormondroyd might develop into something useful

Of the youngsters would keep Cameron Smith, Joshua Jordan -Roberts and Mikolaj Oledzki all three very promising but want to see them get more senior time...though that not going to happen soon ..another reason why I want to see a reserve squad..the next best thing to SL standard. To that list add Harvey Whiteley very talented hooker though got injured in 2016 and lost out on been first choice hooker...got the build and tenacity of Shoey with Burrow's footwork ..would like Burrow to have a few one on one sessions with him to bring out best in him.

Having watched young Mazive throughout our scholarship respectfully i disagree mate he had potential but imo Golding is way ahead in every facet as a FB he just needs time to settle into first team SL Rugby which of course isn't helped in a struggling team under a Coaching regime out of date.

I agree with a lot of what you are saying. But having watched Mazive through his junior days also, there is no way he is fullback standard at this level. And again, also watched Harvey through his junior days to now, and posted last year, a big fan but don't believe he will make it. He wasn't injured last year, he just wouldn't have been up to it. Brady is a better bet in the under 19's.

This in response to RhinoMark as well....the Judah Mazive I know was in U16 squad ,I think in 2014 coached by Burrow...he scored in every match he played in...for some reason he did not continue on into the U19s and got picked up by Wakefield's academy in 2015...up to that point I felt even then he was potentially better than Golding...Wakey then ruined him...so not surprised he not as good..since been with them I agree has not scored as many tries. Im saying if he was back with us..Burrow was his coach again would be a different story.

The same is true for Harvey Whiteley...in U16s was brilliant but when went up..was not the same player I agree..mind Plume had a habit of picking players out of position. Are you sure I thought first part of 2016 he was injured along with a number of others in U19s squad..came back in second half of season but only on the bench. I note though he has been selected so far this season as starting hooker by Moz...so maybe he can recapture his old form that made him appealing. I would still like Burrow to spend time coaching the youngsters at least once a week..he has a positive effect.

I know exactly where i saw Mazive mate that's why i said id seen him throughout our scholarship he wasn't offered an u19 deal iirc.
Wrt Whiteley i agree he was electric in the u16's & i too thought he was injured a lot last year.
Wrt this year i also agree Moz seems to rate him so i wont be writing him off just yet.

A major headache for a coach is a good player at the back end of his career, when do you show him the door. Do you let him go too early or permit him to potentially struggle on. Saints made a good decision regarding long, he wanted a long term contract they declined. Having left saints he did not perform so well. The giants thought hodgson was past it, unfortunately for them he was a success at Warrington.

If cap issues are preventing us strengthening in the halves and in the pack then I'd move on a couple of the more redundant high earners. Hall and Watkins. Decent centre and wing that are of no earthly use with current shortcomings elsewhere. This assumes that talent is available to come in; I'm nowhere near as sold on Widdop as some are. Thinking about it, I'd make an offer for Williams. Wigan are always up for a fee.

In previous years though we've moved on B. Mcdermott Senior Webb Ali Mckenna Bai etc etc & on the Coaching front T.Smith & Bluey Cummins Poching so it's nothing new to GH.
In fact id say it's part of the Blueprint to our sustained success now we are back at the start of that cycle i.e early 2000's where the cull & rebuild began.

Yes, but I'm not so sure GH is that same person he was with the same drive and desire for the club he had circa 2000 as in getting down, dirty and ruthless. Hopefully i'm wrong. Guess we will see soon enough.

I'd say the evidence suggests GH has fallen asleep at the wheel, buying into excuses for last year when he should have done more, at least in the off-season, to make sure it wasn't repeated. The fact that after a mere 4 games he's had to email fans to try to placate them may at least be a sign that he's waking from his slumber.

He may be, he's also shrewd enough to know that the people who are now grumbling (and rightly so IMHO) about lessons not been learned from last year will soon be aiming their ire and questions at him if he doesn't nip it in the bud with an open ended fluff piece.