So we go into the first game of the season without Anderson, Bailey, Cashmere & Boyle, 4 forwards and 2 of them new signings and 3 of them being overseas players...wonderful



Massive emphasis on our forwards to get on top early and stamp their authority on the match, don't let them get a head of steam up and give our backs a chance to play the game in their half.

Is this the team to beat them, yeah, why not?

Yep - I'd have gone with something like that. Seems the best we can put it out with the injuries and suspensions we have. With Parker coming off the bench, Jewitt has to really step up although Sidlow should be able to help ease the load.

I'd imagine Smith will go to hooker at some point and Ratchford will come on in the halves.

Looking forward to it. Come victory or defeat, I just hope they play their best and with pride and passion. Anyone got ideas how the Crusaders will be lining up?

Looking at it, thats a very young pack/set of forwards and indeed a young team altogether with an average age of just 24!

Crusaders (from) - 1. Clinton Schifcofske, 2. Gareth Thomas, 3. Tony Martin, 4. Vince Mellars, 5. Stuart Reardon, 6. Michael Witt, 7. Jarrod Sammut, 8. Ryan O'Hara, 9. Lincoln Withers, 10. Mark Bryant, 12. Jason Chan, 14. Adam Peek, 15. Jordan James, 16. Ben Flower, 20. Gil Dudson, 21. Paul Johnson, 22. Richard Moore 23. Peter Lupton, 26. Rhys Williams

I wonder how times we or any other SL team will have an all English starting pack this year???? Or how often it has happened over the last xx years?

Obviously Cashmere is a massive miss, I'd have Boyle there ahead of Parker (although his experience will be useful in that team) and Anderson would probably be a better player to have than one or two others but I'm really excited by that team. I know it's heart over head stuff but I always get excited when I feel we have a lot of young promising home-grown/recently nurtured team rather than older journey men

I've been feeling a bit pessimistic after the friendlies and I wasn't too excited by some of our signings (Bailey, Anderson and Feka - all steady and improvements on what we had but by no means spectacular). But I'm glad to see my irrationality is setting back in now we're getting to the crunch - Dave Woods' positve write up for the BBC and lots of youngsters in the pack has got me all excited again

I think I need some help

Bailey, yes I'd give you that he is a bit of a steady eddie type player. Still not sure why we've signed him either!!!!

Anderson and Feka are hardly steady, though. Anderson has scored some great tries over the years and Feka, well we don't even need to go there. I'm just hoping we can see him at his wrecking ball best, some stage this season, at the very least.

As for the team, if the pack has potential get on top early doors and create some confidence, then the game should be ours. Jewitt is one of the most powerful props around, he just needs to believe in himself a little more, and Neal looks quick for a prop. The only changes I'd make if we had our first choice 17 out would be Cashmere and Anderson, in for Parker and Spencer.

no Gleeson in the 17??

Instead of?

i think it will be a struggle with that pack it is poor we will struggle to get out of our own half as usual. i hope im proved wrong

Ste nash!!!! are you a city reds player by any chance????

Maybe steady is the wrong word. I know Feka and Anderson have had great games over the years and are great on their day and I hope they can recreate their best days for us this year. I was just concerned about Anderson's injuries and Feka's fitness so wasn't as excited as i would have been had they both been in their prime. Like I say, I hope I'm wrong and I don't want to overstate it, if we'd been great in friendlies I'd have been over it by now. I was much more impressed by the signings of Patten (obv!), Wild and Godwin and I'm really looking forward to seeing them in full flight

Okay, I agree with everything you say there. Not sure about Anderson, I'm more than a little worried about his fitness after the winter period. Feka, on the other hand, well he just needs to hit the ball at speed and we've got one heck of player on our hands. For the life of me I can't understand why Bradford went after Diskin, when they had Godwin on the books. I'm sure they could have spent their money more wisely. Similar to us with Bailey, unles we're lining Bailey up as our next head coach?



A little harsh, don't you think? I give you, we need to get on top from the word go. If not, you'll, probably, be proved correct.

19 man squads as posted on sky;

Crusaders squad: Schifcofske, Thomas, Martin, Mellars, Reardon, Witt, Sammut, O'Hara, Withers, Bryant, Chan, Peek, James, Flower, Dudson, Johnson, Moore, Lupton, R. Williams.

Salford squad: Patten, Broughton, Henry, Nero, Gibson, Ratchford, Holdsworth, Neal, Godwin, Jewitt, Anderson, L. Adamson, Wild, M. Smith, Sneyd, Parker, Paleaaesina, Sidlow, Gleeson.

No Spencer in there.................

ste nash is not normally wrong! looking at them 19 man squads though i hope anderson does make it in, in place of spencer.

why would spencer be in there? he is very average and i can't see him playing unless we are down to the utter bare bones!

Whoa, go easy. He's only a kid still. Give him time and he'll come good. Bloody hell, I hope he hasn't read your post.

If you look through KMT's Post's alls he does is slag the players off throughout. Nothing positive to say....

Why don't you feck off down to Leigh as I'm sure they are needy of more moaning fans.

People with nothing constructive to say should shut up or ship out - take all the time you need to make up your mind.

Exactly !

If he told you that.....he'd have to kill you



The game is there to be won for me, its a pressure cooker out there lets see if our players can rise to the challenge

I have to ask 1 question hasn't Ratchford been our form player pre-season and if so why is he not in the 13

CRUSADERS 42 12 SALFORD A VERY BIG NO.

Just like last year, and the year before, the selection of the team is out of order.
The team played just like last year’s team, and the one before it,
We had 7 new players in the team, so what is the same????????????

Just two over paid Australians

So the next question should be who will be the next coach, we cannot waste any more time with Dumb & Dumber