Well considering we haven't signed a 7 (and we all know we need one including yourself) and we have approx 4 months before the 8's begin, id rather we signed a player at least a couple of months (at the latest a couple of weeks training with the squad) before they start so may/june they would at least have a chance of making a difference to the squad otherwise what's the point in someone coming in to our first game cold that's a recipe for disaster.

IMO we needed to have someone signed up in the off season but we signed a load of back rowers (fair enough they are better than what we have had) but then we signed Mathers listening on the radio he had a shocker against batley when he was put under pressure we also have Campbell and Thomas (who has looked good when i have seen him at FB) seem to have scatter gunned the squad without addressing the real issue, fair enough there might be a shortage of decent 7's but all we needed where someone better than Seijka that couldnt have been to difficult to find.

Id like Lovegrove in at 13 (alternating with Addy), Pitts/Ferg/Olbison make a good trio in at 2nd row, don't think he is big enough at prop although the will do for now until we have everyone back fit.

Strange as it sounds id be willing to try Lauaki on friday along with some untested players like Campbell, if we go out we go out more time to focus on the league.

Once Easter is out of the way, more SL clubs will look at their roster & think their 3rd or 4th choice halfbacks may need some game time on loan.

We did look at halfbacks this season, we didn't keep him on after his trial

And of course, we had our half back problem sorted 18months ago, but Wire decided they wanted to keep him after all and we graciously let him go back. It was probably morally the right thing to do, but I am certain it cost us promotion last year, and last year was our best shot.

Hopefully you're right Highlander, there must be someone on the clubs radar, Jimmy and Ferres have to know we are getting desperate for someone to lead us round the park as we do look lost sometimes.

Even more so now that the league seems to be more competitive than last year (I don't agree with the view we only need to finish in the top 4 that's bonkers).

I would have Brierley if we do have limited options, fair enough he isnt a text book 7 but he will take alot of pressure off Gaskell and add some flow to our flanks which with Addy can be stagnent.

Brierley and Gaskell would mean Gaskellt at 7 and Brierley at 6.

That's not leading us round the park.

If we signed Brierley it would allow Gaskell to lead us around the park. At the moment he's doing everything. If we wanted someone to just lead us a round we might as well have kept Siejka or Jacks (who i still think we should have persisted with)

Both their strengths are as broken field runners. Gaskell has a bit more to his game, but he's still a natural stand off capable of exploiting gaps. It would look great in the Championship but for me it'd be papering over cracks that would still persist into the M8s. We still wouldn't have a kicking game to speak of.

Sorry probably didnt describe it very well, meant to say failing a 7 who can take charge having another player like Gaskell (Brierley/Sammut) that would give us some creativity on the field, as someone has mentioned on the other thread that when we passed to Addy he just gave it to a stationary player and didnt add anything.

At least with another similar player we could utilise both sides of our attack and not just one, thing by watching the games this season i have been able to attended we rarely use our full squad when attacking, one side might be extremely quite, usually the side Addy is playing on or more the fact (as he plays more central) we lose some creativity on the opposite edge to Gaskell.

Think we should have persisted with Jacks more also, thought during the friendly vs Leeds he played very well and took the line on something Seijka rarely did, we also dont know what JL wants the players to do that might be his gameplan all the time, id rather have to off the cuff players who can make things happen.

If I see this suggestion many more times I will explode.... We don't want or need him.

I went to Batley v Workington - he was totally outplayed for the full 80, poor kicking and zero impact in every aspect.

He is playing at the correct level where he is - or possibly lower if he plays many more games as badly as the ones I have seen.

Let's be honest though, that's always been Sammut. He'll either practically win you the game on his own, or practically lose you the game on his own. Never a shade of grey with Jarrod, he was brilliant or awful.

Was that the game where he dropped a goal when his team were losing by 6 points

He's since admitted that he lost count of the score and he thought they were level at the time

To those who disingenuously ask whether I'd like someone like Siejka for the sake of it, there's no decent scrum halves available and all the rest of the defeatist claptrap, I say this:

Name ANY other club in SL, NRL, Championship, Championship 1 or even the French league which plays all season with no recognized scrum half.

Don't ask me who there is available, or whom we should sign, or whatever, EVERY CLUB IN THE WORLD has a scrum half, except us, and it isn't my job to find one or sign one. Advancing the pathetic and weak case on behalf of the management that "Well, there's nobody about" doesn't therefore wash - we've been in this mess for about a century now, it's not a problem that happened today. Every other club copes with this incredibly difficult concept, we need to stop making absurd excuses and sort it out, now. Or, frankly, pack the season in.

LOl - I have nothing against Wakefield. For what it's worth my dad came from there [Lupset and supported them as a kid, so why should I?

IIf you can't see the irony in finishing bottom and holding a celebration, well fine, you don't have to if you don't want, it isn't compulsory.....and incidentally, [iyou're[/i the one who mentioned late recruitment, not me. In any case, as you say, since we recruited too, there would have been little point. Personally, I've filed last year as one to be largely forgotten - maybe you should do the same and give up thinking of posts bemoaning the system as being complaints against Wakey?

Agree, need someone sooner rather than later, i do expect us to panic and some someone e just for the sake of it if im honest.

Its not just about the organising/leading around the park that's missing... Has anyone else noticed that our support play is fairly poor once we have made a break? Gaskell was pretty much the only person who was in support of every break at the weekend. Brierley is that sort of instinct player who is in support majority of the time, like most natural 6's or 7's!

Having instinctive support players create a lot more opportunities and more importantly- try's!

I'm not suggesting Brierley is our target but just highlighting another aspect that is missing from our side and helping us achieve promotion.

Brierley is off to Hudders.

TBF to Sammut Workington lost by 40 odd at Batley which probably means the Batley pack got on a roll, a problem that would mean most s/h will struggle in that game

Also in my opinion neither Sammut or Brierley are perfect solutions but one thing they will give us is a threat to worry the opposition, something we currently lack big time when Gaskill is marked out of the game

yeah I have seen that... my point was more on the instinctive support play by half backs which is another area we lack.

I'm certain there are people about. It doesn't mean they will improve the side and if they won't then why sign them.

I'll be as disappointed as anyone if we play the full season without a scrum half but equally I'm glad Jimmy or Steve have learned from the Siejka mistake. We did bring a half in on trial and he wasn't deemed good enough, should we have signed him up simply because he was the best of a bad bunch?

I think there's a difference between being defeatist and being a realist.

If true, once they get bodies back, perhaps Kyle Wood will be available. I know we were linked with him pre-season, and he would be behind Brough, Brierley & Ellis when everyone is fit.

So, realistically, there is some reason why, alone amongst all rugby league clubs of the world, Bradford Bulls has no scrum half.

I agree with that, I just think the reason is incompetence. The problem has for years been plain to see and solving it should have been number 1 on our list. Instead since we've needed a scrum half we have instead signed I guess 30 or so players who are not scrum halves, several of whom for no apparent reason, and spent a huge amount of money doing so, a fair proportion of which has been and is being wasted.

We needed to get an immediate grip of this, do whatever it took to get our man, and work from there. Maybe to pay his wages we might have been deprived of the services of 5 or 6 of the other signings we are still paying for but who never play. But we didn't.

And it's not Lowes, it's Ferres.

Was Ferres the RFL's choice? or Marc Greens? I saw him at the time as a safe pair of hands when we needed structure off the field. But player recruitment has been erratic at best. And that has to be shared between him & Jimmy.

In general, maybe, although it seems to me Ferres is basically in full charge of signings, but re a scrum half, I don't believe Ferres has suggested signing a scrum half which Lowes has refused. And it doesn't sound likely either.