The contrast between the first half of the season and the second half clearly suggests that the age of the squad affected the 'staying power' of the team. First half of the season the team came strong in the second half whilst the last few games we have lost out particularly at the end of the game. Mental and physical fitness is open for debate.

I agree we need to blood new players and draft a couple in - Mainly at the expense of Kirke, Bailey and Maguire but we cannot lose the experience that can change matches when things do get tough.

Finally, I still dont get why we dont make full use of the bench - That surely adds up the level of fatigue at the end of the season?

The reality of 2014 is that we lost 10 league games and finished 6th, totally not good enough !!! The defence has been good this year but at the expense of our attacking side. I believe we have the best backs in the competition but I dont believe the coaching is good enough. We were only 7th in the try league which with backs like ours is indefensable. We need an attacking coach urgently. Every team but the Bulls kicked more 40/20's than us. When you also realise we made more tackles than any other team it just shows how much defending we've had to do !!! Our attacking flair is simply poor. When we have a scrum, there doesnt seem to be any plan whatsoever, no set moves,lack of imagination, our only success seems to come from kicks to the wingers on last tackle. Please unshackle these brilliant backs and allow them to show their class

Some posters really need to have a think when saying things like 'Stevie Ward hasn't shown enough, we should get rid'.

Stevie Ward isn't yet 20 years old, has made a total of 54 appearances. This year was his *most involved season to date* and most productive in terms of tries. For reference, at the same point in his career Carl Ablett had yet to make a start or score a try in a Leeds jersey.

Even Clarkson (not yet 25) is well short of where you expect to see a forward's best years come out, and has never had the run in the second row to demonstrate his talents. Singleton's not yet 22, Sutcliffe 19. To say they should be cleared out for youngsters (especially the likes of Tonks, Baldwinson & Foster - who couldn't get into the Bradford or London teams) is lunacy.

Achurch was impressive early doors when given a run starting in the second row - something he's not had since then. SR is actually somewhere we're pretty strong with JJB, Ablett, Delaney & Achurch - there's an argument for moving Delaney to the front row (his play at LF has basically been as a third prop anyway) so that Sutcliffe can play loose and Achurch in the SR.

We face a task in transitioning the pack, but those calling for wholesale replacement of the forwards are wrong. Kirke must be gone end of this season, Peacock & Kylie follow end of next and JJB the year after (at latest). But in Stevie Ward, Ablett, Delaney, Bailey, Clarkson, Achurch, Sutcliffe, Singleton, Walters & Cuthbertson we have the basis of a pack that'll be good for several years yet.

Kirk,Clarkson,Singleton, hardly put the fear into the opposition forwards;Stevie Ward(injuries) and Sutty who is played out of position I am willing to give the benefit of the doubt .We need a couple of aggressive forwards,and a decent half back,maybe GH can dip into the CC chest and splash out on Kieran Foran since he is available perhaps?

Brad Singleton isn't yet 22. Jamie Peacock didn't make his *debut* for Bradford until he was 22. Singo's shown a lot of promise and him not being the finished article so early in his career is understandable. No-one is saying he'll be a first choice prop next year. But he might be in 2-3 years when, at 25, we should be able to get a handle on his career.

Kirke I've already said should be on the way out. Clarkson I'd give 2 more season to at most. Again, he's only 24.

We've already signed Cuthbertson who'll be a starting prop next year, and I agree a new stand off is needed. I'd be delighted with Foran but can't see it - I think Ratchford is likely to be the best available.

On the forwards, Singleton is 21. He's shown, for me, enough this season to suggest he'll be a good player, and he should have got a lot more game-time than he did. He was certainly our best forward against Wigan, and was rewarded with being the only pack member dropped. We've already lost a pair of very good young props in Amor and Luke Burgess under McDermott's tenure, I wouldn't be keen to lose another.

Clarkson is nowhere near Super League level and never will be. Ward is worth another year to see if he can kick on. He was a star as a creative player at U-18s and I'd like to see him at 13 and given some playmaking responsibility rather than running into brick walls in the 2nd row (which in our set-up means running like a prop).

On which, move Delaney up to the front row. There's no point pretending he's a wide runner and the team certainly can't carry two similarly straight-ahead inside runners as JJB and Delaney in the same back row. What we lack is strike and offloads out wide. Lauititi types don't grow on trees, but that's the whole in our pack (other than hooker). If Achurch can do this then great, but wish we'd have signed Whitehead when we had the chance. Kirke and Bailey will hopefully have takers in the championship. I'd offer them and cash to Bradford for Gaskell who can cover pretty much all the positions in the back line and could still make a very good half-back.

For props next year our first four should be:

Peacock
Cuthbertson
Delaney
Singleton

with cameos from Kylie and integration of Mulhern/Yates

Second row

Ablett
Achurch (or new player)
JJB

with Walters and Baldwinson developing

Loose forward

Ideally Sinfield, easing Sutcliffe (or Gaskell) into stand-off, but Ward/Sutcliffe if he's not going to move back there.

And if Burrow plays he plays at scrum-half or as an impact player off the bench. But that's been obvious for years.

Eh?Gaskell no way hose;such a bad injury record,only surpassed by Gary Wheeler.We would have to strengthen in the physio department if we were foolish enough to sign that crock.

It was a suggestion because I don't know who's available and he's versatile, has a good kicking game and would tick a lot of boxes (and hopefully also allow us to palm some Championship-level dross off on Bradford). Not sure his recent injury record has been that bad either?

Other signings I would have looked at have been made already. Clark, who I was screaming to bring in two years ago when Lunt left, obviously. Bateman, Whitehead last year. But also I've seen a bit of London this year and even in an awful team there were three players who would have obviously improved our squad. Caton-Brown, who fair enough probably wouldn't have wanted to come as back-up, McMeekan, who's going to be the next Ferres/Whitehead offloading second-row that we needed and is going to Cas, and most of all Vea, a younger, fitter, faster Kylie who Saints have signed. You snooze, you lose. And I have a feeling someone will be going for Gaskell.

Watching Gaskell throughout the second half of the season he is definitely over his injury problems and playing some fantastic stuff, for me I would be quite please if he came in, he would definitely add to our attacking plays.

Does anyone think that Ward would make a better stand off than Sutcliffe who I think is a better ball playing SR or LF.
The slowness of our half backs this year is only going to get slower next year.
Our pack who struggled to make in roads or run at pace towards the second half of the year will struggle even more next year.
We need to play Aiton at hooker and either play Robbie Ward as back up or Burrow.
If we don't start bringing players in next year we are going to find it hard to get into the top six.

Certainly, a ballsy approach for McDermott to take would be to retire McGuire & give Sutcliffe the 6 shirt, starting Ward at LF with Achurch & Ablett in the second row and Cuthbertson starting up front alongside Aiton & Peacock. Leaving Burrow, Leuluai, Delaney & Jones-Buchanan on the bench.

If we look internally for a replacement in the halves then if Ash Handley can press forward a claim to become a starting centre then put Moon in the halves.

That's a pretty big if.

Ward may deserve another year, but IMO that's about it. If the future for him is as a second row I really don't think he'll ever make much unless he changes his style dramatically - check out Boyd Cordner, Ryan Hoffman etc for a how a smaller second row can be incredibly effective, which he as yet is not.

If he wants to be a ball-handler then his best option is more likely to be a year playing somewhere else to get experience - he's hardly going to be given that role at Leeds. He may be yet to turn 21 or whatever but he's played more than 50 games.

I'd say the same for Singleton too. He's played almost 50 games (albeit not many minutes in many), but I've yet to see much evidence of anything other than an undersized prop.

I'd really expect a quality young fringe first-teamer to put in at least the odd display that screams at the coach to pick them ahead of someone else. Hand on heart, how many games have either Ward, or Singleton (or some of the others) actually done that?

the reason I mention it is because how often do we hear comments about "giving players time to develop" etc etc and yet they never do. For every quality late developer like Peacock there are hundreds who if anything go backwards.

We should have gone for Todd Carney. The opportunity to sign world class half backs very rarely comes about.

Agree with everything above,spot on.
With regard to Todd Carney,quality player,but with a poor disciplinary record is he the type of player we want,don't know if he would get a visa over here anyway?

That visa requirement is something many of us overlook...getting one for the UK is tough. Obviously more tough than getting one for France thus giving Catalans greater opportunity to sign the NRL reprobates. (didn't Huddersfield try to sign Carney but fail because of the visa? Leeds also had all sorts of problems with Eastwood too along these lines)

As a matter of interest do the Catalan Aussies need to apply for a work visa each time they fly up for their away matches? Even as 'visitors' on their passports i would have thought it was tricky to be entering a foreign country on so many occasions each season???

I'm presume once France have issued them he Visa, EU law means they're then permitted into the UK - though that could be totally wrong.

Leeds wouldn't have got a visa for Carney, but Salford could - as per the Rangi Chase situation where Hull couldn't get him a Visa, but the Doc could. I have a feeling the Doc might be 'off shoring' contracts to get round the issue somehow, or he's got a very willing 'contact' somewhere.

It certainly would be, given that there have been few indications (yet) that Sutcliffe can do anything that McGuire can't. TBH, Sutcliffe looks more of a LF to me. That's not to say we don't need change at half back, just that I don't see Sutcliffe as the man for the job.

More or less.

Catalans will have 'sponsored' his visa. In simple terms, his visa allows him to travel to the UK if the nature of the business that Catalans Dragons operates in requires him to work temporarily in the UK.

Totally agree with this. Sutcliffe has done nothing to suggest he is our future yet.

McGuires cut out pass is the best at the club. He is our main playmaker, he may be slow and can't get through the gaps he used to, he will still be hard to replace until we find someone who can work the wider players well.

As yet, Sutcliffe looks to be more of a runner, though not as dangerous as the likes of Burrow and McGuire, though the platform has not been there for him. McGuire developed his playmaking over the years, and Sutcliffe still could.

its a dilema, as we could bin McGuire and throw Sutcliffe / Ward into his spot, and see if they thrive on the situation. It could work, or it could fail massively.

The alternative is that we keep McGuire around and try to transition. The problem with that is that neither player gets what they want, and Sutcliffe doesn't get the chance to be the main man he thinks he needs. McDermott seems to have favourites, and if McGuire was in the squad I'd expect him to be playing. In reality I think the best solution would be to give Sutcliffe or Ward the starting 6 shirt, and leave McGuire some time on the sidelines. We then have the opportunity to bring him back in if things aren't working out

Ratchford has just signed a New Deal with Warrington, keeping him there until the end of 2018.

If you really need a prop, I suppose we could let you have Dudson.