Will say this for the last time. If we get Wardle back he will be playing in the 2nd row not centres.

From an outsider looking in, whatever your coach did on arrival last season worked, he has had the chance to look at players and obviously is not keen, for whatever reason, on some who may have been well liked by fans. He seems to know what he wants and it may be more about player attitude, coachability etc etc rather than just ability. If he carries on getting the improvement out of your squad that he got last season I think you will be in for a strong season. Coach will have a full pre season with the players and obviously trusts the crop of excellent young players you have.

I'd be worried signing Wardle to play centre.

He's categorically told Cas he doesn't want to play there.


I am glad Jon Wells is at the club now so we are actually negotiating a swap deal. Baring in mind we paid a fee for Wardle. I'd be surprised if we agree to pay extra on top for Seb.

Straight swap would be an awesome deal on our part.

Ikahihifo will be at the HGSA Reindeer Race tonight. I'll let you know which clubs gear he is wearing!

Well some on the Cas forum saying giants players have told them the deal is already done and Seb is going to Cas with Wardle coming the other way.
Perhaps you can get a definitive answer tonight from the player himself about whether he’s staying or going.

If this is to make room for Ross that’s all well and good- but for all Seb had a very poor season in 2018 our forward pack looks lacking.....

Mamo had the potential to be a match winner, but more often was a match loser with his inability to tackle or catch a high ball

looks like rankin will be the only one to stay from these 3!

rankin to cas

joe wardle to giants

ikahihifo the only one left now!

Now official, Rankin and Wardle swap. Whats the thoughts of you guys on the deal?

Great move hated rankin but always been a fan of joe even if he isn’t as good as he used to be

Wardle played his best rugby for ya- hopefully that will spur him on- and I reckon the chance of playing at his brothers shoulder he will relish! Rankin has been solid for us, but I’m happy with the swap.

This is a great bit of business. Much happier than swapping with Seb, who can be a real Juggernaut if he gets back to his best. Just hope Joe can get back to how he used to play before he got distracted by his move to Aus.

Sounds like a decent move all round. For whatever reason, Wardle has never settled with us and never looked happy. Some players suit certain clubs. I hope he goes well for you, he hasn't been the same player since he left you.

Hated Rankin??? A bit over the top! He did a job for us but I'm happy with the swap.

Rankin was your classic journeyman player. Proficient in a number of positions but not exceptional in any. He did have some great games last season, but a lot of going through the motions one too. I'm certainly not concerned about losing him, but i would be if we had an injury crisis. He is perfect for Cas because of the Gale injury, he will do a job. Whether Wardle can recapture his form is another matter. I do feel he got carried away with himself once the Australian interest was shown in him whilst he was with us. Never been the same player since. Can he go back to doing what he did well? Has the best chance of doing that where it all started and alongside his brother and some of the players he earned his reputation with. I would still like to see him go back to being a hard line running centre, but i don't think that's going to happen unless we get injuries. I would say Wardle has the potential to have much more of an impact for us that Rankin , but it's whether he fulfills that or not.

meh

rankin wasnt really going to get game time at the giants with woolford not being a fan of him

had a bash at partenering brough at half back but didnt really impress much so moved him to full back where he was alot better, but he was very inconsistent. maybe brough didnt help him when playing half back as he always wanted to be the boss.

as for joe wardle... can he stay fit? is he even that good? seems to be on the downgrade last few years, remember he had awful defence for us and always felt he benefited greatly from playing outside ferres and brough in their prime which made him look better than he actually was. but willing to give him a chance to prove himself again

thought same , hated abit over the top, he had some really good games for us

seems woolford was unhappy with ikahihifo on his return to pre season training being out of shape but he has really knuckled down and worked hard to get back in shape so he is back in the good books again now which is good to hear

He has some very good game yes but he also has many awful games imo , I like him the half’s and at fullback but not on the wing

how many games did he play on the wing for us

Only a couple if I recall correctly

you liked him most of the time then and didnt really hate him

Really hope Seb stays with us, to me he looked like his old self in his stints against Bradford (Okay it was against Bradford, but still shows us he has the hunger), I think he will have a big year for us this year.

Rankin has been okay for us, a bit of a stop gap that can cover a few positions and is what we needed but was never really the quality we needed. Mixed thoughts around Wardle, wasn't his biggest fan the first time around to be honest and think he has gone downhill since, but I will give him a clean slate and hopefully he proves me wrong.

not to bothered about rankin leaving but happy about joe coming back really liked him 1st time around

Certainly liked his right hook on Ablett 5 years ago.well worth a card

mamo with a hat trick of tries yesterday......

will be stay fit?!