Again Dave, go look at the highlights freely available for last season (and 2008 but it's not relevant here) on the superleague website for all teams. Watch them again closely now there's no emotion involved, and you might find a different perspective on several of the views held on various players.

It's the bits inbetween the highlights that can be more telling !!!!!!!!, a game lasts 80 mins not just the few shown on the clips.

I personally mentioned Richards as Ainscough is really pushing for a first team place, and sits third rightfully so behind Richards and Roberts, but Richards had a stinker vs Wakefield where Ainscough looked very lively.

All established players if it is a 50/50 call in my opinion have earned the right to benefit of the doubt, my only concern would be if Richards had as poor a game as he did vs Wakefield against Wire then he should rightfully so be under real pressure to perform early door or should rightfully so be looking at a spell on the sidelines.

I think the back 3 and secondrow players are all under massive pressure to perform, if they do not there are SL standard players ready to step forward and take a chance, nobody in these positions can afford a 2 maybe 3 game loss of form, if they do then I think they will be the first to be dropped.

Maybe i'm wrong in thinking this way but I just see a select few players places being safe even if they hit a bad patch of form because they've earned that right over a sustained period. I wouldn't put many in that bracket but there are a few. I'd include guys like Richards, Leuluai, S Tomkins and O'Loughlin in that because I know they've got great attitudes and they're sure to find form at some point.

After that though I totally agree about the second rowers and the other 2 bar Richards of the back 3 being under pressure. I do belive they all deserve at least 4 or 5 competative games to be judged though. If after 5 games or so they're not preforming then guys like Ainscough, Pryce, Farrell etc will really come into contention but I don't think there quite there yet.

As much as we all want to see players being picked on form we've at least got to give the lads with first crack at a shirt the chance to find that form. We can't just expect them all to hit the ground running and put them under that much pressure to preform in there first games in 3 months that they fall to pieces.

I fully agree that Phelps form does not currently mean he deserves to be looked at as the "Long Term" option for FB. If he doesn't improve defensively over the next 3 months or so then we will need to look at other options.
As it stands though I believe Phelps/Richards/Roberts is our best option & the extra dimension that Phelps brings to out attack provides far more positives than the negatives in his defence for me.

With regards to the H/B's & Hooker then as far as I see it Riddell has been in the pre season & IMO last season a far more effective "Starting 9" than Leaulia so for me that picks itself.
Bearing in mind Deacon has only played 40 mins of a reserve game so far then for me that means Tommy has to start at 7, leaving Deacon looking for a Bench spot.
Wether Long term Deacon can force himself in fron of Tommy I don't know, but if he does then Tommy will have to improve his game at 9 to push Piggy out of the starting line-up although that does not mean he doesnt provide that something extra moving into 9 against tiring defences ala You know who.
As for MM then I belive he is still injured? Once he's back in the fram then we really are blessed for options.

Prescott is recovering from an op but in theory so is O'Carroll?
MM should IMO pick the best player to play on Friday and IMO that is Prescott.
O'Carroll has done ok (Not brilliant BTW) in both pre season games but then again so has Prescott!

Leuluai 7
Riddell 9

Deacon on the bench

Thats a no brainer for me. Theres not a cat in hells chance i'd ever have Leuluai on the bench. He may be more capable of adding impact from the bench then Riddell or Deacon but Tommy adds impact in everything he does from the first minute to the last.

Riddell's been very good in pre season and has worked very hard on his fitness by the looks of him. He gets us good early distribution from dummy half aswell so we can start on a solid footing.

What has to be taken into consideration is that Maguire has not yet seen us play a 'real' competative game, the pre-season games are not played with the same intensity of a league one, I'm sure he's watched DVD's of last season and has an idea of what he has to work with, but he needs to see us in action when he is calling the shots and his gameplan and tactics are being employed, he will see how players react to his onfield decisions when put under pressure of an actual match, I would expect him not to make to many changes to last years line ups until he's confident in his selections.

You have a pretty weak bench IMO.

Yeah Ok!

Our likely bench for next Friday is-

Prescott
Feka
Mossop
Deacon

I wouldn't call that weak tbh and is probably better then what 90% of superleague teams will be able to put out.

Spot on.

Yes but having seen the full game multiple times, the highlights there are really usefull, it's not a tries clip, they're more than 10 minutes long each one. Seriously have a look at them they're actually very good (just miss sound and commentary on the non sky ones).

Precisely. I am sure all the players who had fingers pointed at them in the off season as players who needed to improve did something good on occasion. It's the bad bits not on the highlights that are the concern and if they have or can eradicate those things this season then great because they need to for us to improve collectively as a team. That goes for Phelps as much as it does for any of the others IMO.

Dave

Have you ever actually watched a proper highlights clip? They aren't a happy positive try slide show you know. They're 1/5th of the overall game time catching the main turning points in play, tries and no tries, are pretty impartial to both teams, and reflect the good and the bad done by the players on both teams.

Still they must be useless eh?

Tbh I give up now, because you'll just keep repeatedly posting and won't every change your mind about anything ever until long long long after i've got bored.

Leeds had a cracking bench last night in Eastwood, Diskin, Ali and Kirke.

Eastwood = Mossop
Diskin = Deacon (Bearing in mind it would/could be Tommy who goes as impact 9 in reality OR McCollorum)
Ali = Feka
Kirke = Prescott

I don't see that much difference there? Considering the OP Said "It looks like a pretty weak bench"

Outside of that we have possibly Goulding/Ainscough/McCollorum/O'Carroll/Bailey & Pryce who could come in who all have decent or very good 1st team experience!
Doesn't look like a Bad "Squad" to me?

That's before we even mention the Dozen or so Reserve grade players that are "ALL" pushing for a Bench spot at least this season and would not let anyone down if needed due to injury/suspension inc IMO Vievers/Marsh/Thornley/Charnley/Howarth/Mellor(When fit)/Davies/Gee/Holland/Walker/Tuson/Farrell and things seems ok for me!
A couple of those aren't probably ready for extended runs but a couple of bench appearances if needed and they would survive no problems.

Deacon to play at 7, tommy on the bench as impact hooker, piggy to start at 9, Fielden and preccy to start at prop with Coley and feca on the bench.

Team:

Phelps
Amos
Gleeson
George
PAAAAT
Sam
Deacs
Fielden
Piggy
Preccy
H
Joel
Lockers

Bench:

Feca
Coley
Tommy
Mossop

Reserve: O Carroll, Goulding, Pryce.

You must be joking.

Feka when fit is the best impact prop in the league.
Mossop has been in great form.
Deacon is an experienced pro with a great kicking game.
Prescott was one of our best forwards last year.
Leuluai would give real impact off the bench.

Any of those could be on our bench, I would hardly call it weak.

I like the look of that.

So do I, but I would have O'Carroll on the bench in place of Coley, as IMO he has been the better of the two in the pre season games.

Highlights take things out of the context of the game even if they are a 1/5 of it. I dare say we didn't look half as bad against Hudds when only watching 1/5 of the match compared to having to endure the full 80!

Dave

No you're wrong, we looked in the hudds highlights to



But watching it again you get to see the perspective of what went wrong in the build up to the tries.

IMO Tommy's best position is at 9 so I'm hoping that once Deacs is fully fit we'll see Leuluai switch to hooker and use his quickness to scoot from dummy half, make a few breaks and get us on a roll. It will be a lot easier to see where we'll be going team-wise after Friday's game against Crusaders. Looking forward to it

Not for the 1st 25/30 mins I don't!