Not for the first time this season, and for that matter previous seasons, we have lost a game due to lacking in some fundamental areas of the game:

[uForwards[/u
Too many times this season our pack has been annonymous. We have been outmuscled and dominated in the big games and the forwards have not set the platform. Our starting props are just not good enough and I think we need a little more size and menace there. Looking at our props for next season no one particulalry stands out as the player that other teams will fear and we have no prop who will win us the forward battle, particularly against the likes of the Warrington forwards. We have plenty of good 3rd and 4th line, as well as reserve, props bit no real enforcers to start the match.

[uNo direction from half back[/u
Again in every big game this season we have played like headless chickens with absolutely no direction. As poor as we were last night that game could, and should, have been easily won with more direction and organisation. Too many stupid decisions and stupid plays at key times. I cant say I have seen enough of Green but hopefully he can provide this.

[uBrainfarts[/u
Too many of our players panic and do stupid things at the wrong times. Hock with his stupid offloads and kicks like last night, Finch and Leuluai with their loose passes and interceptions that result in tries. Even Tomkins losing the plot when decisions go against him such as in the semi final. Players need to learn how to remain composed, not panic, build pressure and grind out the wins. Leeds are the masters of this, as was shown last night and as they have shown in previous seasons, and we need to take a look at this. We lose too many big games due to certain individuals panicing and not sticking to the gameplan.

[uNo kicking game[/u
This is fairly obvious and has been for as many seasons as I can remember. Our long kicking game is woeful and in a close game it puts us on the back foot from the off. Even when our forwards are holding their own and going toe to toe a Sinfield or Briers wins the kicking battle and we slowly lose the territorial battle and get pegged back further and further into our own half. Our last tackle options are generally poor with no building pressure, no trying for repeat sets, just meaningless kicks to no one that often give the Wigan chasers no chance. Hopefully Matty Smith, when he is playing at scrum half, will be the answer to this.

[uA positive[/u
Despite these glaring deficiencies we have only just lost the big games that we have. This is despite playing poorly for long periods, mainly due to the areas above, and if we had been a little better in any of them we would not have lost the games we did. With the right recruitment and coaching all of the above can be sorted out, bring on next season!

Coaching staff and players to keep gob shut in run up to big games!

Completely new attacking game, instead of dummy runner, dummy runner, dummy runner, Sam loops round the back. Its become both boring and predictable, the fact we finished top points scorers proves just how bad Super League is IMO.

As Famous says the front row they have been woeful no threat whatsoever that would be my priority,

Wane has learned a lot from Madges coaching whilst his assistant but the better teams in the comp worked out how to play against us towards the end of last season. All Shaun has done this season is put a bit more fire in their bellies and believe in the jersey more. Again though when it mattered we have come up short, it is all about doing the right things at the right time, players being clever. I saw three players in the second half deep in our half running towards the flanks on the second and third tackle. This was after O'Loughlin got up when he was ankle tapped and tackled, he tried to play on but was bungled in to touch. Hansen putting the knees into the tackle in front of the referee, just crazy. No wonder Wane was kicking hell of the stand.

This is true too, it only serves to motivate the opposition and sets you up for a fall.

Are you for real?

This would be the front row that completely dominated Saints, Leeds and Catalans in succession with different personnel in May/June?

We don't need wholesale changes to the team and attacking structure. A bit of composure, a better kicking game and some more 'game smarts' and we'd have been in 2 finals.

I seem to remember us both discussing this around a month ago. I agree now as I did back then.

1. Lee Mossops attitude - his defence at times in the last 3 months has been shocking. If you constantly try to put big hit in like a billy big boots you need to make sure that you are succesful. He has appeared unwilling to bend his back in defence.

2. A plan B in attack rather than the same move time after time.

3. We need a dedicated kicking coach, or if we have one sack him. Briers and Sinfield have shown how effective a varied kicking game can be.

4. An end to Shaun Wanes repetetive pre and post match spouting that keep the tub thumpers happy but make most cringe and provide the opposition with things to pin up on the dressing room door.

5. A week on week strategy to ensure that the players are fit and firing at the right end of the season. Bitcon did wonders at the start of his reign with Maguire but we have not been 100% at seasons end for 2 years now and I wonder whether this has anything to do with the training, strength and conditioning strategy.

6. Discipline - Too many send offs and bans this year

Kicking game is a must. Leeds' tactics were just better than ours, they came with a well organised game plan, which worked. Sadly it was quite simple. Play field position and possession, don't let Wigan get into a position where they can attack and score.

How did they do this? Uses Sinfields excellent kicking game to pin us in our own half. Leeds knows we can't do anything with our kicks on the last tackle, so once we made our way up to the 40ish we kicked, often the wingers or fb could catch the ball on the full and keep us pinned in.

What baffled me is how we played into their hands with this, by putting an inexperienced FB v Sinfield and Smith (who's the only one who has something that resembles a kicking game) at 9. On the 5th he's be a dummy half rather than in a position to return a good kick.

Good post.

Mossop was slightly better in the SH last night but I think he has dropped off. Been saying this for weeks. IMO Fielden would have got in after his performance v Saints.
Everything else is pretty much spot on.

I agree with everything that has been said. For me the priorities are:

1. Kicking game on last tackle is atrocious. We would have done the double with a good kicker.

2. If Scott Taylor has signed great, but we need another experienced top class prop as well.

3. We need someone to replace Carmont. I don't think we will know how good he has been until we miss him.

4. MM is my favourite player but he needs to calm down a bit and we need another decent hooker to play some game time.

I think we're in the need of experience in the team. Ideally a prop, but we're looking at a young team for next season. Always good to have a mix of youngsters coming through, players in their prime, and experienced players for well... experience.

I also thought Waney commenting on the mcGuire disciplinary was very poor and would act as extra motivation for the Leeds team. Our coach needs to learn to keep it shut.

Wane is still a rookie in the role. Hopefully he's learnt from some of decisions in the media and as a coach. FWIW, I agree.

That young full back...Murphy is it?

You do know he is from Warrington don't you? Agent Murphy we call him

Gary Connolly was from St Helens, was he agent Connolly?

We need to make 1 improvement.

We need to be smarter in big games (in all games for that matter).

We had the home tie with Wire won and blew it.
We had the game at Widnes won and went to sleep.
We blew the Bradford and Saints games when MM was stupidly sent off. No excuses for either red card.
We had last night won and blew it with dumb plays and then a discipline brain fart on our own line.

We were league leaders, one point from GF and CC semi finalists. We have not had a bad season but let ourselves down in the big games. We need to learn from those games.

SW has introduced a great attacking flare and yes, it's built around the same structure but its worked a lot more times than it hasn't. Hopefully, he will learn a lot from this season and kick on for next.

I'm really not too worried about the structures but our kicking game needs to improve massively.

I also think its massively unfair to question Lee Mossops attitude. The lad has had a cracking season and run his blood to water.

We need more creativity in attack, with more 'off the cuff' rugby rather than the expected out the back to Sam. Sam's attacking threat from FB has been nullified because it's completely predictable now, so I'd move him back to the halves.

We need a kicking game.

We need bigger stronger pack, we're too lightweight and got thrown about like rag dolls against Leeds, barely making any yards.

But earlier in the season our pack destroyed whatever was in front of them! Leeds away, saints away are just 2 examples. We can't change the whole pack because of Fridays game. It has to be taken in context of the whole season.

Perhaps Tony Smith got is right in resting key players at the right time? We had far too many players who suffered injury setbacks in training etc. too many bans, too many penalties given away. Discipline can improve and so can kicking.

That was months ago, and since then our forwards have looked a shadow of what they were earlier in the year.

We need to be smarter.

Its as easy and as hard as that.

Correct