As there seems to be so much interchange between front and back row these days, it's easier to do this by simply picking your best set of forwards, rather than just limiting players to a single position when they have played several. Here's a possibly exhaustive list of forwards from the era. Some instantly forgettable players amongst this lot. It's a long list but I wouldn't be surprised if the same names keep cropping up because there's some genuine chaff amongst this lot.

Adam Sidlow
Andrew Brocklehurst
Andy Coley
Andy Gorski
Carlo Napolitano
Chris Charles
Craig Makin
Craig Stapleton
Damien Driscoll
Danny Barton
Danny Lima
Darren Brown
Darren Treacy
David Berthezene
David Gower
David Highton
Gareth Haggerty
Greg Ebrill
Ian Sibbit
Jack Spencer
James Smith
Joe Faimalo
John Clough
Jordan Turner
Lee Jewitt
Luke Adamson
Luke Ambler
Luke Swain
Malcolm Alker
Mark Corvo
Mark Edmondson
Mark Lee
Mark Shipway
Martin Moana
Matthew Leigh
Michael Korkidas
Mike Wainwright
Mitchell Stringer
Nathan McAvoy
Neil Baynes
Neil Harmon
Neil Lowe
Paul Highton
Paul Southern
Phil Leuluai
Ray Cashmere
Rob Parker
Ryan Clayton
Sean Rutgerson
Simon Baldwin
Simon Finnigan
Stephen Nash
Steve Bannister
Stuart Dickens
Stuart Littler
Tim Jonkers
Vinny Myler
Warren Ayres
Warren Jowitt
Warren Stevens

I really think you should've done a separate poll for hookers




For now (although I may change my mind) I'm having;
- Rutcho
- Alker
- Stapo
- Highton
- Coley
but can't make my mind up about a loose forward yet.

Would've love to include Darren Brown (if only for [ithat [/itackle against Withers) and Adamson (too 'new') as well.

Know Korki, Haggy and Baynes were all popular but I never really rated any of them that highly.

Have no recollection at all of Matthew Leigh?!?

Ok,
8, Rutcho
9, Malc
10, Cashmere (Yep, even after a single season.)
11, Coley (Loved it when he ran over the top of blokes out wide as well as doing the donkey work up the middle. I know it ended badly but lets be honest, he was a cracker.)
12, Darren Brown
13, Chris Charles/Finnigan (Attitude of the former, ability of the latter.)

For me you have to have Rutcho, Alker and Stapo in the front row as the hardest working trio we've had.
The 2nd row i'm going for younger players who run and tackle hard in Gower and Adamson (and for me they should be both be still the starting 2nd rowers).
And i'm going to pi$$ some off by going for Finnigan at loose forward as in his first season with us think he was outstanding and a real effective runner and ball handler which for me are the main traits of a loose forward.

Good shout re Finnigan based on his 1st season. Give him the attitude of Chris Charles and wow, what a player.

That's why I couldn't pick a 13 - the best of both would've been an awesome player!

Andy C*ley Malcolm Alker Ray Cashmere
Sean Rutgerson Luke Adamson
Chris Charles


C*ley lost the plot after he left us


Alker what other choice is there
Cashmere NQC first choice prop ull do for me
Rutcho say no more
Adamson bit of raw quality could progress ala Burguess
Charles well I think he wore the shirt the most and never let us down.

Coley
Alker
Rutgerson
Adamson
Swain
Finnigan

Baynes Alker Highton
Coley Wainwright
Brown

Baynes and Highton at prop by a long way. I can't understand people picking Cashmere and Rutgerson - Highton did the same thing for 10 years and neither of them got MOTM in an international involving Australia. As for Baynes he was on the Forever Reds logo for a reason, remember the game against London in the relegation season "Baynes is fit to wear the shirt".

Coley was superb at times but i was loath to nominate him for his exploits in his final season. I had trouble picking another 2nd row as they were all garbage (Treacy?! What a waste of money), but Wainwright did his bit and got through a fair amount of tackles and at times looked almost skillfull!

Brown at loose for me, he was at the end of his career and the legs were going but he had class.

And even though i'm not his biggest fan there can only be Alker at hooker.

Because despite being much loved at the club, Cashmere and Rutcho are just better players than Baynes and Highton. Baynesy couldn't tackle and Highton rarely broke them!

Can't argue with this selection at all

i would go for

8. cashmere
9. malc
10. rutcho
11. coley
12. swain
13. brown

Mine would be
8. Cashmere
9. Alker
10. southern
11. rutcho
12. coley
13. The one and only SIR CHRIS CHARLES.

Rutgerson - Just a quality prop that worked his *rse off
Alker (Malcolm

) - Legend.

Still think at his peak he should have made a GB squad.
Cashmere - Big mo fo and a great off loader. Hopefully more to come from the big man.
Coley - For 5 seasons outstanding. Pace to burn for a prop/2nd rower. The least said about his last season the better,


Adamson - Have seen enough in the last 3 years to know he is the real deal. If he continues his form of last year he'll be playing for England by the end of the year (better than Ben "Buzz Lightyear" Westwood by a country mile). Potentially a Salford "great" IMO.


Finnigan (1st season) - Would complement the graft and tackiling in the pack with his running ability. Ditto Coley regarding his last season though.

Reckon there's a nice mix of steel & style in that pack. A couple that narrowly missed out were Gower (on potential because he didn't play half as much as he should and I wish he'd stayed) and Sibbit (who IMO was, on his day, one of the best 2nd rowers in the league).

BTW, WTF were Matthew Leigh & James Smith???

James Smith was the Aussie loose forward (that Carolyn Derbshire had a bit of a soft spot for IIRC?!) who played for us for a year in the early part of the decade.

Seem to remember him being a bit of a character who fancied himself as a bit of a 'performer' on stage?

Mark Lee

never saw that first glance at the list


would be in my all time Salford 13 in [uany[/u position (ok, apart from winger

)
absolute pure class, and would love to see him back one day in a coaching capacity of some sort

therefore......

Coley
Alker
Cashmere
Rutgerson
Adamson
Lee

...aaahhh but he only stared 4 games and was a sub in 3 in the "Naughties" matey and didn't score a point.

I will add however that I was a massive fan of Mark!

Almost my friend, he was a second rower. He was only here a year (2000).

Stats*:
P: 25
S: 3
T: 7
G: 0
DG: 0
PTS: 28

Position: Second Row Forward.
Born: 25/10/72Young N.S.W
Height: 6' 1"
Weight: 97kg
Signed From: South Sydney
other Clubs: Easts, Wests (Shame he never played for Norths really!

)


*[size=85Sorry but you know what I'm like![/size

Quite chuffed with my self, considering how bad my memory is normally.

Can even picture him (always thought he looked more like a Union player the League).

Any stats on Matthew Leigh - I have absolutely no recollection of him at all???

And so you should as I doubt many recall him at all

. I thought he was a decent player.

Yes but this is a bit tougher, he was a loose forward (IIRC) who left us and joined Barrow.


Now for some (More) stats, he started once and was sub 7 times in 2000 (Again oddly enough

)

rucho
Alker
Cashmere
Coley
Brown
Charles

A mixture of pace, power, magic hands and hard graft

I'd agree that Baynes is a fan favorite but still can't understand why a player thats played 1 season (Cashmere) can be in the team of the decade?

As for Highton compare his 2006 with Rutgersons 2005 stats (because they both played 25 games) and you will struggle to tell them apart (Highton broke 6 tackles and made 16 tackles more but Rutgerson made 100 more yards), so as Highton played nearly the entire decade i believe he should be first choice for prop of the decade on merit and no other reason.