So you would give him a contract extension on reaching those goals as a minimum THIS season?

Personally, unless we reached the GF this season, I wouldn't even be considering an extension - if he completed your goals, I'd give him next season, but absolutely no further until at least midway through next season.

I was both pleased and annoyed with last nights performance. Pleased, because we looked like a rugby team with desire and a good work ethic against most peoples competition favourites. Annoyed, because of the run of awful performances in the last couple of months (or more), why did they choose to turn up last night. Bullock was excellent, but Dudson is a liability. I just don't get why he's pressing an opponents head into the turf with his knee, and should cop a ban for that.

Hope I see another Warrington try this season that's as good as the one scored by Dufty last night, that was a superbly crafted score.

I think we need to look at the bigger picture here. We’re actively recruiting right now, it’s likely that whoever we bring in their contract will outrun the coaching staffs. The same for the end of season turnover.

If I was a top class player being hunted by a number of clubs, am I going to join one where the coaching staff aren’t confirmed. Where there’s a rolling “6 weeks to prove yourself” mentality. Realistically, the only people joining on those scenarios are those with an affiliation to the club itself, or if we are the highest bidder. So it’s stacked against us to get good value for money and secure the best players out there, we’ll end up with journeymen and pre-retirement tourists, particularly without the safety net of a long term contract during which you can blood the youth and battle harden them, at the short term expense of results (missed that boat last year!)

We either need to make a call and lock in the coaching staff, publicly back them. Or go the other way, start linking up with the next coach and recruit and retain who they see being a part of the club long term.

That game highlighted the importance of front foot play in defence. The last few weeks the team have stood back in defence & allowed opponents to mount attacks at will whereas last night we strangled many at birth. Walmsley was kept very quiet last night & if we'd had a few more tricks up our attacking sleeve it could have been a different result. We hear about sliding defences & i'm sure a sliding attack would work very well for us. A couple of time when trying to get off our own try line, the Saints fullback was right up with play & perhaps a Briers type kick could have released Ashton to score at the other end.

I thought we did OK for the most part on walmsley last night, but someone else on here reckons he and paasi tore us apart

No I mean assess this criteria in May 2024. If we bomb out of the playoffs or miss them this year he can go in November. Hw would have had long enough. What is he going to do in year 3 that he has not had chance to do in the previous 2?

I don't realistically think we can win a GF this season or make the final. We are not mentally tough enough by a long measure.

I have a horrible feeling that yesterday may be a false dawn. I hope not.

Walmsley made a massive difference when he came on in the closing part of the 2nd half. Even Powell concedes that.

Ps how good is Clark going to be for them off a quick ptb.

Don't get me wrong, I'd be delighted if you do (I've mentioned before that the girlfriend is a Wire, we were there last week). I just feel currently that come the business end of the season the likes of Catalan & Saints will win any home fixtures they get in the play offs so unless Warrington turn their season round quickly and finish in the top two they will be somewhat disadvantaged. I recognise you have beaten Catalan twice but watching recent performances that feels like a long time ago.

Saints wouldn’t want us in any knockout game we are their bogey side when it comes to crunch matches.

You talk about the end of the season. If we lose the next two (Wigan and Wakefield) how could the board justify not sacking him then?

I was at Wembley in 2019. They certainly didn't see that result coming.

Absolutely. Realistically, if it proves that last night was a flash in the pan, and we don’t turn up next week again, there’s justification to act swiftly, use the week off wisely and try and get off on the right foot with Wakefield.

There’s still the very real possibility that we’ve been “cat fished” by that fast start.

I’d be surprised if he doesn’t get a 1 game ban grading.

But do we then point the finger at the coach or the team ?

Got to say neither did we

I think they could have every right to as we would be out of the top 6 which is my trigger point for Powell in his 2nd season. If we are out of the top 6 with this squad then the experiment has not worked.

My point was about renewal criteria in 2024 which presupposes he is not sacked in the meantime.

Well, given that other than Daryl Clark (and maybe Riley Dean), every member of the squad has been signed or given a new contract by the current coaching team. So unless we propose we rebuild the rebuild, then it’s the leadership that must change.

Exactly.

The performance buck stops with Powell.
The continued, persistent, failure to reliably compete at the top of SL across the last decade stops with the board of directors and CEO.

You can't question his effort, he's certainly putting his hand up for work. I thought we kept him to far less metres than that, we seemed to have Lees and Knowles tasked with stopping him specifically and distract him from Walmsley and it seemed to work well. He made absolutely no metres after contact and was easily dealt with. Bullock seem to cause us far more problems and had a far more impactful game than Vaughan.

I often wonder if you actually watch the games enough to understand, or whether you are just a bait merchant.

Your theory here is that, to counter one player, two of your best forwards were allocated to him? But at the same time Vaughan wasn’t effective? That makes zero sense. Rugby league is a simple game of number manipulation, a better team would have exploited that (we already did, you were obviously short on multiple occasions, particularly on your right). Vaughan did his bit.

Maybe that was in part because the rest of your pack was focussed on Vaughan, as you admit? Vaughan inevitably attracts attention because he is effective, but that should give others more scope.

Our problem of late has been that, Bullock aside, no-one else has stepped up.

If we carry this same performance into the Wigan game except not losing then fine. Let’s keep judgement till that.

What are we going to discuss all week, then?

Anyone know what Amos Brierley is up to in Emmerdale these days?

Kind of strange to see the content over this performance. Yes, it was a huge marked improvement, but all it does for me is make me even madder that they have had that in them but chose to clap crap in their hands for the past 2 months instead. Made mugs out of themselves and all the people paying to watch it. The only ones during that period who I've no qualms with are Ashton, Thewlis, Bullock and Walker. Maybe Clark too. Ratchford I can see is trying, he's in for the cause, but he's past it. He never beats that last man to break away.

The rest been taking the michael.

Hoping to keep his job as coach of Woolpack Wolves long enough, that he'll be in charge at the much anticipated derby with the Malt Shovels Saints.