You'd think with James Graham, Chris Hill, Alex Warmsley, Sam Burgess, Mike Cooper and, if they book their ideas up before the Autumn Tom and George Burgess, we'd give our halfbacks a good platform to work from for England with the quality English prop forwards we have.

Gale and Widdop for me. Widdop had a quiet start to the season but improved in April and Gale's been the best English, and one of the best full stop, half backs in Super League for two years.

Have you heard him talk?
I can't understand a word he says.
Spent most of his formative years in some place where they talk funny.

Lucas Gale and Richard Myler are so far ahead of all the other England half backs that it is inconceivable that Wayne Bennett would look beyond those two.

Matthew Smith seems like an earnest young man but he does not compare with the two whom I have identified above.

Fortunately Wayne Bennett goes into his team selection process without any of the "baggage" of his predecessors.

Myler????

Do you type this stuff with a straight face or have you been drinking?

Think The Hull lads Shaul, Taylor, Houghton and Sneyd should all be in contention for England after the Wigan game.

Richard Myler, who is English, has been outstanding this season. Haven't you been watching him?

Are you for real, Ive seen him play numerous times this year and for once the feux frog is right, he's way better than any of the other names suggested - get real, I mean Gale are people actually watching the game anymore - he's Liam Finn but faster and not quite as smart.

Yes i am for real,he is a decent club player but no more. He always went missing for Warrington in the big games, the Aussies and Kiwis would make him look a mug but hey hoy, only my opinion.

Gale i agree with, he should have had a chance last year.

He is playing well off the back of a dominant Catalan pack creating all kinds of space and getting rich pickings with his huge strength, his support game coming to the fore.Do you really envisage him controlling a game in the heat of intense battles against the Kiwis and Aussies? cos the thought of him in there would scare the hell out of me, i'd rather have Smith and that's saying something!

Luke Gale is Liam Finn but faster



Are you forgetting we have seen them both play for Cas together. Finn doesnt come close. If you watch Gale week in week out like we do. He controls games, he kicks teams to death and he can actually make breaks.

Quite right, Gale was great all last year and is again proving it to be no fluke, he has a genuinely rounded half back game.

I see the clamour for Joe Mellor has died down now too after he had a few good games early in the year.

I hear Liam Finn once KO'd Mike Tyson and Bruce Lee at the same time then when he got bored walked to the pub where he threw a 9 dart finish with only 8 darts.

I actually like Lucas Gale. I rate him. But Richard Myler has to be up there in the mix, way ahead of Matthew Smith.

Literally any half in any division in England must be ahead of Smith in the pecking order based on form. The first thing he needs to master is passing a ball over the distance of a yard or more without it hitting the floor or going over the mans head and then take it from there.

His confidence is totally shot.

So, it's Gale or Myler then.

For me, Gale has more to his game and a fair bit more guile.

and then popped in a 148 break on the snooker table?

Steady on - Finn has been great for us, but he's not quite Kim Jong Un.

For me it has to be Gale - from what I've seen, he is way more capable of running a game than Myler; and Smith is miles off both of them.

As good as Liam Finn has been for us this season there's a reason he's playing for us and not Cas and that's because Luke Gale is in a completely different league to him.

Gale and Finn - both at Tigers last year. I know who i would rather have in the England team.

Finn played for Ireland in the last WC, didn't he?

I like Finn and he's doing a fantastic job at my club, Wakefield but, he definitely shouldn't be anywhere near an England call up and if he is, then it's time to wave the white flag and retire our national side.
I belive that he is a long way behind Gale and if he doesn't get the gig, Brough is still a long way in front of Finn (bearing in mind that Finn and Brough are Irish and Scittish).

Some of the others in the frame will have to have big ends to the year to better Luke Gale. At the moment he's the frontrunner.

Who plays alongside him? I'd probably go for Tomkins, despite him having just returned. Class is permanent and he has a great pair of hands chiming in at 2nd receiver.

The other realistic option is Widdop. Sneyd has been great lately but I don't think is quite at Gale's standard yet, Smith has been awful, Williams might be in the frame if he has a good year.

Is there anyone else?


Assuming Tomkins in the halves, it has to be Shaul for the fullback spot.

I'm praying that Bennett puts Sam T in as 6 or 7 - he's completely wasted at full back imo...

kev browns injuries likely to see him not selected, just too prone for his own good

you would have to think gale is in with a big chance