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.

We did have a very good scrum half in Luke Gayle who we had to let go due to the mismanagement of the club. I'm confident that we would now be in Super League had we been able to retain him. Since his departure, the recruitment of a suitable replacement has been a shambles. I feel that Ferris and Co are severely undervaluing the importance of a good scrum half and seem unwilling to put aside a decent enough chunk of the salary cap to secure one.

We've been linked with plenty of scrum halves recently but still haven't been able to lure one to Odsal. The only reason that I can possibly give is that they won't pay the asking price. That pot must be a lot smaller now we've signed Mather's and Lovegrove. I'm expecting a bargain basement signing if they ever make one.

We did have a plan A, and it worked, and we signed a great scrum half from Warrington. Then we had (correctly imo) an attack of nobility and let him go back. We've been scrabbling around for a plan B ever since then.

Since Robbie Paul moved to hooker/FB in fact....

Indeed. Did the right thing by the player but has left the club up a certain creek.

Good point, well made.

Hopefully these arguments will be put to bed when we announce our new top quality scrum half (hopefully before 2020!)

I think Addy is coming off worst in all of this - I've heard a few fans getting on his back the last couple of games but I honestly think he's doing his best. He has had more games at half back than in the pack but he's still a forward. I know a lad who is quite close to Addy and he does not see himself as a 7 by any stretch of the imagination but will continue to do whatever is best for the team.

I feel sorry for Addy and hope he can ignore the knockers, they'd be off his back if we had a 7 as we should do, and that lad will do whatever job the coach asks so you can't say fairer than that. It's hardly his fault that he's not a specialist 7 nor ever will be.

Agree about Addy. If he could get a sustained run at 13, I think he'd be brilliant. Instead, he's constantly asked to do a job that he's not 100% up to doing, but never fails to put as much into it as he can.

I really can't understand the morons that slag Addy off for playing poor at scrum half, the guy is a FORWARD end of story.

Who else could you play there ?

Surely to god, the club will address the scrum half issue soon? I can't believe we didn't manage to find anyone of the right quality during the off season and we still haven't sorted ourselves out now.

Saints have two players in Fages and Burns who I assume aren't injured but still don't seem to be getting picked, what's the situation there?

Think getting someone like that would prove difficult. Only way I think saints would let either go would be a loan, but then there's always the risk of then being called back so signing a HB on loan would be pointless.

Just got to hope we have some luck for a change and a player becomes available. Poor that we've still not got a HB.

Why didn't we just see what Jacks could do. He wouldn't have cost a huge amount and if he didn't work out, we could still be on look out for another.

Unfortunately I can see us going into the middles with Addy at 7.

Glen Morrison article today saying his heart is still at Bradford. How many Bulls fans will now be hoping Green is listening and this gives him an option in October.
Also as a talking point, do people agree that Wakey making Kear their D.O.Rugby is a very good choice and would have been my choice if Jimmy goes in October followed by Ferres after some unconvincing signings over the last season of players who cost us plenty of cash to hardly or never play for us.

We should have appointed Glenn at the first opportunity.