In my opinion Trout, Spiers, Anakin, Kaye and Walshaw should have already played a few first team games this season. I think we have been slow in introducing these lads to the team. We have our SL life secured, now is the time to give these lads a go. Not all at the same time.

All have done very well at under 18 level, all have had a great season in the under 20`s. Only Walshaw will be eligible to play for the under 20`s next season without taking one of the three overage spots.

We need to see what they can do. What is the point of playing Griffin for example, a player who had a great start and then signed for Crusaders ( well done to his agent ) and his form and effort levels dropped of. ( his defence against Hull was pathetic ). I say play Walshaw in the centre and put George on the wing. Not because George is not a great centre but lets have a look at Walshaw, or indeed play Murphy at fullback and put George and Walshaw in the centres.

There is no point in us playing Lee and Smith again this season, we have seen that they are just not good enough. Lee`s defence is just the worst in Sl.

Last season I went to the last game away at Salford and had to watch Latu and Gleeson play for us when they were leaving after that game. Why ? Anakin should have played instead of Latu.

I hope I do not have to watch Smith, Hickey, Tony, Lee play for us again. Would love to see Walshaw and Trout get in the 17 this weekend then Anakin and Speirs for the next match etc etc.

Also no point playing Renaldi again, lets have Davey and Wildie as our hookers for the rest of the season.

We should play crusaders with our strongest team, SL survival or not I dont want us bottom come end of the season.

Excellent post belly !

However I don't think JK will think like that

Agree with the OP, there needs to be a clear path to the 1st team for our promising youngsters otherwise they are gonna get disenchanted and sign for someone else.

The coaching positions for next season need sorting asap, and we need these young players to feature in the last few games and be convinced by the new coach that next season they will have the chance to play in the 1st team if they continue to progress

I firmly believe that being an old fashioned coach JK has always believed that a first team jersey should be the hardest thing in the world for a young players to get. I fully agree with this theory and have never believed that a Junior should get a chance based purely on his performances in the reserves. He should get his chance when a senior player is injured or loses form and take it with both hands. This is done to instill the determination in young players to attain the standard of the first team players they hope to replace. This worked fine from 2007 to the middle of 2010 when I heard very few voices demanding young players be given a chance as we continually troubled the top six.

However due to the total deterioration in our first team exemplified by Hickey it's hard to see what young players are now aspiring to. In the case of some of our young players they would actually have to dumb down. Where as before many young players may have been frustrated by Kears policy they must now be utterly demoralised and bewildered which has no benefit at all IMHO.

Maybe it's been through his own apathy and general disillusionment with the game that JK has just taken the easiest option on this one - although in fairness it's not like he hasn't used a lot of young inexperienced players, just that most didn't come through our Academy. It's hard to know and easy to say from the outside when it's not your future on the line but that's how it looks to me.

Now however is the time surely.

I don't absolutely agree that Anekin and co should be given a run for the sake of it - if Kear really thinks they are not ready, he is after all still the Coach. FWIW what I would like to see is JK pick a first 13 of players who will be with us next year and stick with it for the rest of the season. This constant inability to settle on a team has been JK's biggest weakness for years, even when we didn't have a player crisis. He could argue that at the start of the season he needed to rotate players to find out what he had ant rest as appropriate. However by now he should know and I can't see how 5 games in a row can harm anyone.

His bench has also often appeared ridiculous, there is certainly no reason that during the remaining fixtures he can't pick a wild card for every game, what possible harm can that cause with all the pressure now off.

I also want to see some key combinations tried out. If he thinks Davey and Wildie might make a SL hooking partnership then let them go for it and drop Rinaldi. If he wants to make Moore his S/H then play Hyde with him and see how it goes. It may fail but at least we will know. If it does then we hit the ground running on game one next season which is vital. I think Kear as a Coach needs to drag himself away from the Aussie squad mentality and he's not alone there. Yes it has it's place but IMO English SL players by their nature are more suited to the TEAM mentality rather than the more structured SQUAD mentality.

If Kear is serious about staying as Head Coach he needs to drop the Professor of RL act and do the bl**ding obvious for once. He may be pleasantly surprised, I know I would!

Not sure what sort of game we are going to get on Sunday but after that 'the youngunes' need game time

My team for Sunday would be (injuries dependent)

Blaymire
Morton
Murphy
George
Tadulala

Liam Kay
Moore (not sure on his injury and when due back)

Amor (Still think we need to try and persuade him his future lies here and not at Headingley)
Davey
Johnson
Mariano
Morrison
Annakin

Higgins
Wildie
Dean
Spiers


Hopefully (with the odd exception) those players can form the basis of next years side.

think Morro will still be injured, plus Anakin needs another game in 20`s after his shoulder injury.

I would go with :-

Murphy

Johnson
George
Walshaw
Morton

Hyde
Moore ( Kay if Moore not ready )

Amor
Wildie
Korki
Spiers
Johnson
Mariano

Davey
Higgins
Dean
Trout

Anybody know when Howarth is back.

The above team will never beat Crusaders but they will give 100% effort.

sorry Kaye is not close to SL, and there is no way on this planet that JK would play him this season instead of smith, hyde or Lee that is fact. Secondly a huge game in relation to not wanting to finish bottom so he will have his most experienced team possible for this one. Also Moore back from injury will be lacking a bit of match fitness and hardly likely to run with him and throw in kaye for the sake of it........

Tony

Morton
Murphy
George
Griffin

Lee
Moore

Korkidas
Davey
Amor
Morrison
Henderson
Howarth

Mariano
Wildie
Higgins
Johnson

Is Tony really the future?

Spot on with your post belly, as you would expect for someone who spends as much time down there watching the kids as you do, jack hit the nail on the head though when he said it would never get past Kear, it does not matter how well they're playing if the head coach does not go and watch them he won't pick them and Drury might as well talk to the wall for all the notice Kear takes of him.

Strongest team available for Sunday please. After that, throw as many young 'uns in as we can.

Agree with the OP

No but I think he's the best option at FB

Well I think it's Blaymire personally, at least he's more likely to play next season but that's just my opinion. Perhaps give Hyde another chance to redeem himself in that position.

IMO the position is quite clear. Kear stays and we might as well forget the Youth development work and look forward to a raft of players on inflated salaries who are approaching the end of their careers with their best days behind them.

Kear goes and a more forward thinking coach comes in and a proper RL conditioner and hey presto, the good youth development work can continue and the good prospects we have will probably remain with us, as they see a good chance of 1st team rugby.

blaymire told me he was going at the end of the season irrespective....calling time apparently

Bit young isn't he to retire?

Kear is a strange one when it comes to youth policy. When it comes to young players languishing in other clubs reserves he is truly enlightened and has had great success with these players. When it comes to homegrown players he seems reluctant in the extreme. It doesn't appears Kear is against young players just not willing to trust his own.

I must admit I can't quite work out the problem. I can only imagine that we have a sligtly younger under 21's than most and that's why.

He has blooded Wildie and Davey this year a has allowed George and Murphy to cement their places so it's not all one way. Seems to have more of an issue with forwards. Kear is like most coaches, you can't get inside their heads and as Kear has two skulls it's twice as hard.

29 I believe so not the spring chicken anymore. I'd agree but he's not going to get much better. That said if he were an Aussie a whole new career in SL would be opening to him at that age NGB4C would be demanding we signed him

It is but it depends on the injuries and the toll it takes on body, or maybe he's got another job.

Blaymire has missed a fair few games through injuries in the last year and this has had an effect on his performances. He's still good under a high ball but the rest of his game is going downhill. Maybe his body is telling him it ain't up to fulltime rugby anymore?

If it's true, I'd say it's probably a good decision - he is indeed safe under the high ball, but hasn't really got the ability to do what's demanded of a FB in the modern game; look no further than RL's new pantomime villain to see what a modern FB should offer - he needs to have the vision to join the line in attack and the skills to trouble defences.

I believe that if the Ryan Tongia deal comes off, he will bring that dimension; young Veivers, sadly, never will.

I always liked Blaymire because when he failed to make the grade in our Academy he picked himself up and went to Oz to learn how to play properly. He came back and was for a while the best FB we have had since Holland who got similar stick.

I wish some of the truly gifted players we produce had the same determination to make it. Blaymire has one real problem and that is he has no pace and never has and in the backs nothing beats pace. Just imagine if Blaymire had been given the same gifts as say Tansey - lifes not fair.