Newlove used to score loads of tries without a hand being laid on him, jones try yesterday reminded me of that. If he has the natural ability to go round players, I hope that is worked on, rather than turning him into a battering ram.

I don't want him to be a battering ram, not at all!

I just think he could make more breaks if he run a little harder and faster, he's playing in his shell a little but that's expected as he's a young lad.

I must admit I've got high hopes of jones.

That directness will probably come with a few games under his belt. He'll have got some confidence from realising he can outmaneuvre and shrug off an experienced (if average) SL centre.

It probably will, he looks the best attacking centre at the club at the moment.

He looks solid, which is what you ask for from a young kid. Graham, Roby and Clough were all the same when they came through and a few years later developed their game. Wasn't he the U15's England captain? That suggests he has good pedigree at youth levels and I'm excited to see where he can go under Brown in the next 3 years.

Impressed with this lad so far. He looks to have a bit of everything about him and is a good build for an outside back. He may benefit from coming from nowhere as well rather then being hyped up over a period of time like guys like Wheeler and Foster were before they made their first team debuts.

I'd literally never heard of him before his debut for some reason.

Jones is unusual because he is one of those rare kids that flesh out quite early. His physique is that of a 21/22 year old. Which is very useful to us because he won't have to go through the customary two or three year transition stage which Lomax emerged from last season and Gaskell is still in the middle of. Juniors need to be carefully used - certainly not overused. But Jones just needs games. The last thing we want to do with this kid is send him back to the reserves after a few matches. He's physically ready now and the only thing missing is experience - which he can't get playing one match every four.

I think he is showing more worth for that centre spot than Shenton is on the other-side which leaves a big problem: where does Wheeler play when he comes back?

Wheeler plays centre with Shenton moving onto Ades wing.

I'd sooner go with Makinson, Swift or Foster on the wing. Shenton never looks like beating a man.

We can forget Swift in these decisions. He's no winger, he proved than in getting roasted several times against Widnes.

Wheeler doesn't come back is the answer for me. He can't be relied upon.

what is Swift's normal position? like you say, he didnt look like a winger on Saturday.

I think he's one of our many stand offs.

Totally agree - if he's physically ready there is no need to drop him back to a level where he justy runs riot and leans very little.

and lets face it i dont think anyone knows these kids better than mike rush, if this is the level he is able to play at he would know, if you take him out who would you replace him?

keep him in, if hes good enough hes old enough

I think the isse is that young players like Tyrer and Hall can look like world beaters by being bigger and faster than other u18s/u20s. Then when they get to a level when everyone is big and fast they have nothing else. They then have to try and work hard which is something they have never done before because everything has always come easy to them.

What he said.

But in that game v the Aussies at academy level Hall was up against the likes of Inglis and Fillau.

Was he a good player?

I agree about Hall, he can look like a world beater. I remember him scoring an unbelievable try in the challenge cup a few years ago and then getting dropped for the final against us

I was amazed at the time as he was one of the few players they had capable of something special. I still think he could be great with good coaching though

I do see your point, but these boys just got bigger and bigger, if not in terms of height then muscle. I have always been very unimpressed with the actually "rugby" skills of these two players, Isreal especially. They are just bigger and faster than everyone else. Saying that Inglis has actually matured into an actually rugby player than just an athlete in the last couple of years and he seems to be (strangely) not making the same impact because of it.

But going back to Hall, some players do just seem to fall away. Remember how good Stuart Reardon looked when he was 20.

Or Jamie Langley. Who looked a cast iron certainty for international level within weeks of his debut.

I think Hall's problem is poor coaching. He just never learned to defend.

The curse of Agar ...

It just goes to show - one bad choice of coach can set a club back the best part of five years.

Given that we don't have anywhere near the pool of athletic talent available to the Aussies we simply cannot afford to screw up those kids who genuinely do possess ability. Even the top sides find it hard to develop more than two or three above average quality players in the same number of seasons. But they are essential to any side with trophy aspirations. Which means a poor coach who sees out most of a three year contract can do an awful lot of damage.