www.warringtonguardian.co.uk/spo ... army_camp/ This is uplifting news. No wonder they were sluggish on the friendly. Hopefully we will make this a permanent feature of the pre-season and the players will embrace it rather than dread it. Should focus the mind for the coming season and maybe the same old excuses won’t be rolled out for the Easter period with the two games close together. Let’s just get on with it now... not expecting an amazing season with any silverware but some solid defensive performances and competing for that top 4 will prove to me we have put the right structures in place.

www.warringtonguardian.co.uk/spo ... army_camp/ This is uplifting news. No wonder they were sluggish on the friendly. Hopefully we will make this a permanent feature of the pre-season and the players will embrace it rather than dread it. Should focus the mind for the coming season and maybe the same old excuses won’t be rolled out for the Easter period with the two games close together. Let’s just get on with it now... not expecting an amazing season with any silverware but some solid defensive performances and competing for that top 4 will prove to me we have put the right structures in place.

Vs Canary Islands for 10 days!?

The Easter excuses Easy came from TS.
No complaints from Shaun Wane.

Good. I always thought the players were cosseted and mentally fragile under Smith. Hence 4 lost finals on the bounce.
We need a never say die culture.

It's OK training with the sun on your back and doing the odd stressful exercise that lasts an hour or so(Sand Hills).

You find out the character of a person when they are cold, wet and exhausted. I can tell you from experience that there is nothing like being on your knees and being asked to go again. This exercise would have given Steve Price an indication from those who attended of who has the metal he is looking for. They will have found out who the leaders are, those who are prepared to slug it out for the team and those who melt into the background, want to be the grey man and hide.

This sort of exercise will benefit the team when on a cold night in October, your down by 4 and there are 5 minutes left. You keep on banging on that door until you break it down and you don't lose your cool and try and make miracles happen, because invariably they don't.

Playing 2 games over Easter is too much, they are not robots. The argument that it is the same for all teams is irrelevant. The argument that in the "old days" players with real jobs had to do it is equally irrelevant. This is about player welfare.
I'm not convinced that a day in army camp will make much difference but I can't say it will do any harm so am neutral on the whole thing.

Anyone know if Tyrone Roberts is back in the UK yet? Hoping that the rumours arent true about him reneging on his contract

Hes been in training for weeks and is at the press day at peckforton castle as I type.

But rumours can’t be wrong can they? What about his dream of becoming a miner and street-fighting in the bush?

He was here before xmas, saw him with Sitaleki Akauola in Stockton Heath.

This kind of stuff is good for getting a populist cheer from the fans "the army camp will make men of them" but is it the best way to prepare an elite sporting team?



Sounds a bit of a risky way to treat players - what happens if a couple of first teamers break their legs? As its the pre-season are we able to deregister them and get freed up salary space to sign replacements? Does the club have insurance to cover medical treatment for players? Surely you have to pay a higher insurance premium if you're going to be doing this sort of thing.

I can't imagine that Melbourne Storm will have Billy Slater and Cameron Smith running around rocky hills in the pitch black as part of their pre-season.

Some good points, but did Melbourne Storm nearly get relegated last year? And did all the other NRL teams stroll through their tissue-paper defensive line?

I can't think of a better way to mentally toughen up a group of lads short of confidence and self belief when the chips are down in games.

It'll do us the world of good for that fact and the way a group of people bond through those sorts of experiences. So I'd say yes, it's the perfect way to prepare an elite sporting team.

Quote ="sally cinnamon"This kind of stuff is good for getting a populist cheer from the fans "the army camp will make men of them" but is it the best way to prepare an elite sporting team? Sounds a bit of a risky way to treat players - what happens if a couple of first teamers break their legs? As its the pre-season are we able to deregister them and get freed up salary space to sign replacements? Does the club have insurance to cover medical treatment for players? Surely you have to pay a higher insurance premium if you're going to be doing this sort of thing. I can't imagine that Melbourne Storm will have Billy Slater and Cameron Smith running around rocky hills in the pitch black as part of their pre-season.'" I'm not biting on the other comments but will say the Army Camp seemed to work well enough for Wigan ahead of their title winning 2016 season. www.skysports.com/rugby-league/n ... ining-camp. When you have not won the title in 60 odd years I think we should be open to new ideas.

Quote ="sally cinnamon"This kind of stuff is good for getting a populist cheer from the fans "the army camp will make men of them" but is it the best way to prepare an elite sporting team? Sounds a bit of a risky way to treat players - what happens if a couple of first teamers break their legs? As its the pre-season are we able to deregister them and get freed up salary space to sign replacements? Does the club have insurance to cover medical treatment for players? Surely you have to pay a higher insurance premium if you're going to be doing this sort of thing. I can't imagine that Melbourne Storm will have Billy Slater and Cameron Smith running around rocky hills in the pitch black as part of their pre-season.'" I'm not biting on the other comments but will say the Army Camp seemed to work well enough for Wigan ahead of their title winning 2016 season. www.skysports.com/rugby-league/n ... ining-camp. When you have not won the title in 60 odd years I think we should be open to new ideas.

In his first radio interview, Price said the number one thing he wanted to bring is a "hard edge and resilience".

You don't get that from running laps of Padgate Campus after a Costa Coffee.

Without wanting to sound all new-age quotey -

If you always do what you've always done, you'll always get what you've always got.

Get Phil Chadwick on them, beasting them round Vicky Park or Loushers Lane on a cold Tuesday night under 2 flood lights.

Exactly right. That was the missing ingredient from Smith’s teams at Warrington and probably the difference between two wins against Wigan in Grand Finals and our two defeats.

I’d also hazard a guess that the players had become too comfortable under Smith for such a camp to have the necessary impact to make the desired difference.

For Price I’m sure the dilemma must have been the timing of the “beasting session”. He obviously wanted to test the players in that environment as early as possible in the pre-season to create the bonds between the players and for him to see how the individuals react and to understand the character of his squad.

Unfortunately due to internationals returning late after the world cup it has meant that senior squad members missed the session and let’s be honest it is those players you’d be looking to be the leaders when times get tough and it’s these players who have fallen short in that respect previously.

As it is Price made the call to run the session without those players as he must have decided all things considered that was the right time. He will no doubt have all the squad together for the skills camp at a dedicated sports complex in January.

.....no problem!
Send a full squad back again!!

Why didn’t they run up the 3rd hill? Is Price going soft already?

Price seems to me to be doing everything right so far from the press we are hearing and the players reactions. He's quickly identified the cultural and mindset change required. Like you say I bet he has identified the skills shortfall too and will address this.

I did wonder if the captaincy would change from Hill too, I don't see him in that role personally but let's see.

I too have wondered about whether we could do with a passionate motivator as Captain a la Andy Farrell. I’ve got the utmost respect for Hill but when the chips are down in a Gramd Final and we’ve just gone behind with minutes to go I’d prefer someone who could stoke fire in the bellies of the players.

On press day it looked like Ratchford was sat in the usual captains position in the team photo I saw.

Easy solution is to make Hill club captain and Roberts team captain.
Hill has the call on trophy pick up.
Or is that just too easy?

Well I'd go with that.
Ratch team captain and Hill club captain.

I don’t think Price has seen enough of Ratchford to know whether he is the Captain yet. They’ve only just returned to training. If I had to guess I’d say it’s Hill in Price’s thoughts until we near the start of the season and then maybe he’ll lump for someone he thinks might add a bit more towards the resilience he’s craving for. Ratchford is a good communicator with a good rugby brain but I’m not sure he’s a leader of men. He didn’t look commanding when in the halves in the big games. Currie is probably on the cards for the future though with his history. Wonder if Clark has the right stuff?