Ah ok, thanks for the clarification! Shame.

Interesting discussion on last night's podcast, Phil Caplan saying Cas rated Mclelland as the best half back at their club, better than Trueman, before he left. Also stated he thought in 2019 Mclelland will play stand off and Lolohea centre.

Not sure he was rated better than Trueman but he was highly regarded. I know Cas were certainly interested in taking him back.
Could be a great signing for you and he is a top lad to boot.

It is good to have 3 halfbacks to choose from and McLelland can cover both half back positions and as Lolohea can play 1, 6 and wing then I do not see why he cannot play at centre too especially as his strength is as a runner.

I presume this probably seals the end of Jordan Lilley's time at Headingley now.

Hopefully. Lilley was never good enough. Time to move on.

I believe Lilley is still contracted for the 2020 season. He needs to spend the full 2019 season playing in the Championship, if he improves significantly he could have another shot at the Rhinos in 2020.

Saw quite a bit of Callum while he was at Cas. I'd compare his style to a young Kevin Brown. I'm not saying he's idle but his laid back languid style can make it look that way especially in the academy side as he was much bigger and faster than most of the opposition so didn't really need to try too hard.
I remember Powell saying he saw Callum and Trueman as the future of the club for the next 10 years. Callum was probably rated highest of the 2 but whether he would have kicked on as well in the first team as Trueman has I'm not sure as Jake seems to show more mental and physical toughness.
Looking forward to seeing his progress and if he can make the step up he'll be a joy to watch.

If he is as good as Trueman I would be happy with that.
He can learn his trade alongside Myler and Lolohea and kick on from there.
Then again we said that about Sutcliffe when Sinfield, Burrow and McGuire were there.

Sutcliffe just doesn't seem to have the right mentality for a halfback. They have to want to own the game, demand the ball and know what they're going to do with it. You can't stand around waiting to get a pass like a kid in the U9s.

Serious question though mate, do you think he would learn more from coaches who have played half back or half backs he is playing alongside.
The reason I ask is Trueman said in an interview that playing under ex half backs Powell, Sheridan, and Orr persuaded him to sign for Cas. My own opinion is that its hard for a current half back to learn a new one if the team is constantly under pressure as he has too many other things to think about. Much easier if the team are doing well.
I think a lot will depend on his pre season and friendlies before Sinfield decides what to do.

Don`t dispute what you are saying there and even a class stand off can look poor behind a beaten pack.
My only hope is the likes of Sinfield and Burrow alongside Myler will develop him over the coming years.
For now Leeds need experience and class not project buys.
Don`t get me wrong McLelland looks a great prospect but the squad we have needs it now not in two years time.
Let`s see what happens.
I`m ever hopeful. Maybe he can make it at the same time as Walker.

Barry Eaton was a half back too, is he still involved with first team coaching?

I think Powell, Sheridan & Orr were classic types of half backs, where Burrow & MCGuire were more individualistic, though McGuire did develop into a more creative player. Sinfield was more a creative 13 playing 6. The only natural HB at Leeds is Eaton, though his experience at high level is severely limited. Teams in SL do seem to have been coached by sluggish forwards in the past few years.

Winning teams in SL*

Not to mention a fair few losing ones

I noticed half back Ase Boas has been named in PNG Hunters side. I presume this means he has left Featherstone.

While this is a shame as I like to see PNG players playing over here, this could be good news for the development of Callum McLelland, who needs to get a decent number of Championship games under his belt, before been thrown into Super League.

He left about 3 weeks back to go back home. His brother is still here.

I'm not so sure he's ready for the Championship yet never mind Super League. No need to rush him.

Strange that this thread has been merged with one from August 2018.

I'd definitely look at him for Workington. He might be the sort of player who looks better in the first team. I'm fed up of hearing how great halfbacks look in the academy across all of SL, only to find out they're complete duffers.

Trueman has gone really well for Cas since his elevation. I'm going to bet that McLelland will make the cut, because from what I've seen he has a strong all-round game. Some kids come through and they just can't tackle, or have no pace, or whatever. Callum is strong in lots of areas, and as he physically matures and gains experience, should get better still.

I do think McLelland offers things which the current first team are missing. If he is fit then the Workington game could be a good chance to look at him yes. We have cover in the 19s too.

You're also right that we need to be careful not to overload the CC team with youngsters and disrespect Workington, it's a losable fixture.

McLelland has been selected in the 19-man squad for Fev's game at Toulouse on Saturday. Whether he plays or not we'll have to see, we have Ben Reynolds on loan at the moment but we started Jorge Richardson, who is one of our newly-formed reserve squad, in the Cup against Swinton last week, so with Watson Boas injured you'd think McLelland will play.

Good to see him rising through the ranks and taking the next step following Furner's comments.

Could he seriously be worse than our current options?