Is it any coincidence though that the comments made initially were at Hull KR last year? Personally I thought Hall put us under a lot of pressure on Friday by been too cumbersome and slow getting back for kicks this week, and I notice similar comments made by posters for the same fixture last year.

Hall can make mistakes sometimes but who doesn't?

To be fair the kicks were coming sometimes 3-4 tackle, you cant drop both wingers back every third tackle that would be suicide.

Good reading and play by Dobson & Murrell IMO.

If anyone put us under pressure on friday personally I thought it was Smith.

yes, but the comments weren't restricted to Hall's specific performance, rather his abilities or potential to make it as 1 1st choice player at Leeds or in SL in general.

Hey I'll hold my hands up - I thought Hall would take longer to mature than he has, I was wrong.

hall has really developed well.lets hope the other youngsters do the same

The caveat is even simpler.

What SL side wouldn't Hall get in?

Crusaders but only because hes [uNOT[/u an Aussie

I'll hold my hands up and say Hall has become better in 2 years than I thought he would ever become when he first broke onto the scene. Bringing on youngsters of that quality is vital in order to win things in these salary capped times.

I originally thought his apparent lack of pace would stop him becoming a high quality winger: I was wrong.

Is there still not a case for him now swapping wings with Donald on a more permanent basis ? (the new Alan Smith and John Atkinson). I still think Donald is better on the left.

The more knowledgeable posters saw his undoubted potential and refrained from slagging the lad off.

Like this contribution from earlier this season, after Hall had already proved any of his previous doubters wrong:

The same knowledgeable posters who thought Brent Webb was a New Zealander?

I know I know the answer. Visited his home town when living in Townsville (just down the road tha knows)...where I had the pleasure of watching the great Mr Thurston and Mr Bowen etc on a regular basis.

Who funnily enough - as a similarly exciting FB - was born in the same town.

Seems like a valid contribution from a knowledgeable poster on a specific aspect of Hall's game. Just as any knowledgeable poster would have rightly critcised Hall's handling last Friday.

What the less knowledgeable posters do is very different. They over react and say things like

"I still believe that the step up to Super League is a step too far for Hall."
"I’ve never believed that Hall has the skill set to cut it in the SL at the moment. Another year in the reserves if I had my way"
"I think he has potential just not quite there yet."
"He'll never be more than average, SL perhaps, but average within that standard"

Not to mention these pearlers.

At the time that comment was made I'm fairly sure it will have been an accurate appraisal of his performances to that point.

That he has improved in the areas highlighted is a testament to his dedication and is something he has rightly been praised for since.

Whatever

You just gave yourself away.

I noticed you were online and was counting the seconds until you replied - predictable?

Everyone is sooooo touchy on here these days.

It's been a long day and TBH I just can't be ar[size=100s[/sizeed rising to your bait tonight Gareth.

Hence why you have your dick out.

Less predictable than you being one of the ones slagging a player.

I would agree. I had concerns regarding Halls handling abilities which were justified at the time. However he has worked hard on the weak areas of his game to the extent that he is now one of the very top wingers in SL. I even forgive him his lapse against Hull KR!

Were any of those quotes from me G1? They certainly reflect my opinion of Hall when he first came onto the scene, he was hit and miss, regularly out of position (often looking for the intercept) and hadn't had an opportunity to show his pace. There were some flashes of excellence, such as a long range try away at Huddersfield in 2008 from a tap restart, where he left the defence trailing.

I'll happily hold my hand up and say that I underestimated how good Hall would be, by quite a long way, and I'm delighted to be wrong. However such instances are not going to stop me voicing my opinion of a player in the present, because that's what this board is for.
Oh and you can add JJB to the list of players that I've woefully underestimated in the past, I know I won't be alone in that though!