Yup was an amazing transformation, I was gutted when he left. Hooper is probably the closest we have come to a like for like replacement for him.

That try when he tore the pies apart and slipped that pass out to cooper.

Ropati was the best 6 I've seen at saints in that one season. He's was so strong upper body. I actually modelled myself on his style if play as a youngster.

He could play there if needed, but I don't see Turner as a stand-off personally. I just don't agree with going into the season with one real kicking option, and I don't want to see us force Lomax or Wilkin into taking on that extra responsibility. That's the big thing IMO.

Either way, I'm yet to hear anything to suggest that our back line will be different to what most expect/expected.

I'm still mystified about this after reading through the thread. Btw, the comparison to Leon Pryce is completely fanciful atm!

Btw, I was at the Batley game last week and Lee Briers was there watching us. Is he on the first team coaching staff at the wolfs now? Is Brown just trying to make them lot guess for that first game?

Anyway, it's nice to have something (FINALLY) to debate properly!

I have been reading the comments on the last 8 pages.

I think this would/could be a stroke of genius be Mr.Brown. Think about the balance of the team, in particular the backs:-

1. Lomax
2. Makinson
3. Percival
4. Jones
5. Swift
6. Turner
7. Walsh

(Use Hiho as utility bench player)

Young with pace and power, plus our new forwards makes me feel very optimistic for the New Season. We have strengthened everyone else is either the same or weaker.

Come on you Saints for 2014.

I`m looking forward to attending the Auckland 9s Mid Feb, has that had much advertising in the UK or is it even televised?

That's a very young back line!!! It's also really good to see 5 homegrown players making it up (if only we had kept any of the halfbacks we produce!)

If that's how we see the longterm line up of our squad, then turner needs to find a new place to fit in the team (it's not like he's a dinosaur!), if that's at 6 then it kills 2 birds with 1 stone - brown appears very good at developing halfbacks so let's wait and see, I just hope everyone is given time to adjust!

Lomax
Makinson Percival Jones Swift
Turner Walsh
Amor Roby Laffranchi
Wilkin Manu
LMS

Hohaia Soliola Masoe Walmsley

Looks good to me!

Joking aside, I thought Wheeler was going to be staking his claim to 6 this year. He seems to be on the outer in this plan. That is a shame for him, as I've heard so many good things about his talent for so long, but have never seen him play enough games to form a view on him.

I don't think anyone doubts his talents, but even me as an eternal optimist is losing faith in the ability of his body to take it.
I hope (I've said this for about 4 yrs) that he proves us all wrong and has a wow of a season , injury free!

I would think the plan is being formed as such, because his injury record is against him. If he manages to play a lot more games this year, I'm sure we'll see him at 6 at some point.

Hardaker
Hall
Moon
Jones-Bishop
Briscoe

Just to put it into perspective. Leeds are a team most people seem to think we're going to be better than. Their backline seems better than ours however. Two genuine international wingers and far better centres (Moon is the best centre in Super League). There is only really Lomax where we can hold a candle to Leeds and it's not like Hardaker is a bad player.

More comments from Brown here: saintsrlfc.com/news/256 Jones due to play right centre.

More comments from Brown here: saintsrlfc.com/news/256 Jones due to play right centre.

You've missed out Watkins who is potentially the best of the lot. Lomax is your only outside back with any proven quality and he's not been in his position for long at all.

I agree up to a point. I think I'd compare Swift or Makinson reasonably with Briscoe, who I've always seen as competent and solid, rather than a match-winner. But apart from that, I agree that Leeds are stronger in the centres and on Hall's wing.

However I do think our pack is now stronger - on paper - than the Leeds pack, and that should compensate by giving their lads less space to work in.

And who knows, maybe Percival will step out on to the field having shot up to 6'2 and filled out to 15 stone.

So you don't think Swift proved his qualities last year? He did enough to have Cronulla sniffing around.

Percival has definitely bulked up a bit (perhaps not 15stone!) but has done so without losing any of his pace. If he gets an extended run like turner to 6 implies, he'd be my (early) shout for young player of the year - another saints lad who seems to have all the potential in the world.

I don't think many people doubt Leeds back line saddened, the question mark will be how much time and space the rest of the team can give them, if a platform is laid by the forward and the distribution is good they'll go great, otherwise they will struggle (paraphrased from several quotes I've read on the Leeds board)

Otherwise, we lost by a point in one of the matches of the year last year, and we seem to have improved more so who knows



Out of the top 5 it can really go in any order

Quote ="The Yellow Giraffe"More comments from Brown here: saintsrlfc.com/news/256 Jones due to play right centre.'" What's wrong with Beaumont? Anyone know?

Quote ="The Yellow Giraffe"More comments from Brown here: saintsrlfc.com/news/256 Jones due to play right centre.'" What's wrong with Beaumont? Anyone know?

Groin I think, but not 100% certain.

I think everyone agrees that the Leeds back line is an exceptional group. Hopefully the recruitment of Walsh and our forward reinforcements would swing the battle in our way.

Lomax, I wouldn't swap for anyone. Most would agree on that. He could be man of steel good.
Percival will hopefully be great, but needs time and we should let it happen naturally rather than throwing a very skinny kid in at the deep end.
Swift I a lad that think could be very, very good this coming year and Jones is a player that isn't quite appreciated fully imo
Despite your posts, I think Turner finished the season very strongly in the centre showing really good plays to get makinson over in the corner. I also don't share your derision about his defence. I am, however, similarly unimpressed by his, as you put it, gay skip and thought he was poor in his games at 6 last year. Moving him is a mistake.
Makinson is pretty good and improved last year after stuttering, but until he finds a way to unleash his pace, will never be in the running for any sort of rep honours.

Moving Turner to 6 confirms what a lot suspected, that Brown can't decide on what he wants to do from one week to the next. Looney Tunes.

Superleague's best centre, in my contraversial opinion, has just left Saints for Salford.

Another career ender

?

It's interesting to note that Percival has bulked up significantly over the off season, he is now:

4kg lighter than Jonny Lomax
The same weight as Lance Hohaia
1kg heaver than Luke Walsh
1kg lighter than Gary Wheeler

So he's not as skinny as we think him to be anymore, admittedly he is slightly taller than the others but not by much. It could be a good year for him.

Didn't makinson play for knights last year - aka rep honours

I do fear he will go the way of Gardner ... But the Wigan home game has gone someway to dispel my concern.

Melis defence is too weak to be considered "best super league centre" - his tackle to missed tackle ratio is shocking! (97:30) - turner, who saddened claim is dire in defence is (465:49) roughly 3x better! Jones, who I'd call a defensive centre is (640:20). There's no doubt Meli is great in attack, but it's easy to be when you do so little defensive work!

I'm genuinely struggling to name someone who would be a standout contender for best centre ...

I don't think his size was a problem. He could do with being bigger but I don't think it was a major concern.

Brown took him out because he was missing tackles but imo he was just being targeted as he was young and wasn't just ready at that moment in time. We know he can tackle as he was exceptional in his first few games against big clubs but like I said, he just wasn't ready at that time and Brown was correct to get him out.


With ball in hand, he was our go to back.

From the St Helens Star:



He does look like he's beefed up a bit.

Looks good.
A raised a point a couple of years ago that the skinny/wiry kids like Foster and Gaskell, Tomkins from the other side and Roby going back a few years seem a lot more durable than the chunky lads like Eastmond, Lomax and Wheeler (all of whom were having injury periods around that time).

Going back to the Turner to Stand off.
I think most would say that Turner has done a good job at Centre. Far better than the much vaunted Shenton.

Now if you look at his skills as a player and the skills that Kevin Brown had when playing centre. Brown (the coach) has taken a somewhat shakey but decent centre in Kevin Brown and moulded him into a Stand Off.
If he can do that there is an arguement that he has form for taking players from one position and finding them a better one.

Even with Lomax last year he showed that he can take a player who has played one role and find a better position that matches their skill set.

I think benefit of the doubt should be given on this one as his form for moving players is good. It does worry me that in the Centre's we will be at bare bones.