For me i think we should give Gleeson a rest this week and move Smurf into his place.
I also think JD needs to take a rest during this run of games, and this in my eyes is the easiest, so JD can take a well earned rest.- His spirits as strong as ever but the body is slowly beginning to show signs of tiring.
So if i were JK i would be going for something along the lines of.

1. Blaymire
2. Morton
3. Murphy
4. Millard
5. Blanch
6. BJ (if fit)
7. Obst
8. Tronc
9. Davey
10. Korky
11. Fergy (if fit) Hendo otherwise
12. Morro
13. Cooke

14. Moore
15. Kirkmond (if need be he can cover 3 or 4 and move Smurf to the wing)
16. Gledhill
17. Latu

If BJ isn't 100% (and for me thats the important detail, he may want to play but we need to get him back to 100 before bring him back) i would move Cooke to 6 and play Kirkmond at 13 and move Southerwood into the subs. If Cooke is struggling in terms of fitness then a move 13 and to bring on a nippy no.6 ala CS could be a masterstroke.

Totally depends on who is fit. If I am honest I wouldnt care if Kirmond plays or not, I read and listened to a number of interviews regarding his move to the club and I am certainly under the impression he doesn't care.

What exactly had he said that gives you that impression? I doubt any pro sportsman " doesn't care " about playing or not.

He said he was "shocked to find out he was part of the Brough deal" but was relived to find out "Browny said I was a part of the team in the long term".

Why would he get his place back with a string of "I don't care" performances? There are at least 5 players in front of him at Shudds, so if he wanted to be there, and be first choice, wouldn't it be in his best interests to play and play well.
Take Ainscough as a benchmark; down the pecking order, could be seen as out of favor, yet playing VERY well at his loaned club in order to make his boss see what he's missing.

Danny will do a very good job for us, JK must agree, otherwise Kirkmond would have played for the Shudds U20's on sat at the YMCA....

DK sounds enthusiastic to me www.wakefieldexpress.co.uk/wildcats/New ... 6181908.jp

DK sounds enthusiastic to me www.wakefieldexpress.co.uk/wildcats/New ... 6181908.jp

He also said

"I wish all my mates at Huddersfield all the best, but their season is not something I'm thinking about now."
"Once I thought about it I knew it was a good move, and I'm grateful to Wakefield for giving me the opportunity to play first-team football. I am really looking for a good year here."
"It's a different experience. I've moved to a new club but one with similar goals. Everyone at Wakefield has high aspirations. WE have made the playoffs in the last couple of seasons and WE want to do that again. That's why I was HAPPY to come here, because of that ambition."

Quote from interview in League Express.


The use of the word WE is quite significant in my opinion and indicates he is comitted to Wakefield for this season. That will do for me.

Whilst he didn't crack any pots on Friday night he certainly didnt appear to "not care" to me. No more than the rest of them of course.

Why would you drop Hendo. He got 55% of the vote for MOM, and was easily the most effective player against Wolves. He should start second row
Also, although I agree Gleeson will have to make way, I think JD should play there. Needs an older head in the backline to manage the defense if you ask me.
Don't think BJ is fit but we'll see
Need to have two hookers so agree with bringing Davey back.

Thought George was fit now. Would play him instead of Morton, but maybe they'll think about busy easter weekend and spread the wealth across both games.

I see the rationale moving JD to centre but there is a question mark in my mind as to whether he is up to it anyore. Who is Cas's left centre and wing partnership?

Perhaps I am looking at stuff in far too much depth then, but it is my opinion- perhaps I will be made to eat my words. If that is the case i'l hold my hand up and say I have got it wrong. Its just the impression I have got from the various media reports out there.

We have 2 perfectly good centres in Murphy (or so we are told) and Millard, along with 2 perfectly good wingers in Morton (should be freshened up now) and Blanch - why would we want to play a tired looking, lacking in pace and out of form converted back rower anywhere near the 3/4s?

I think the key to Easter will be getting the likes of King and Johnson available for the second game, we look a bit threadbare and if we need to go 2 games with 2 days between them we need some numbers back. For me it picks itself:

1 Blaymire
2 Morton
3 Millard
4 Murphy
5 Blanch

6 Cooke
7 Obst

8 Tronc
9 Latu
10 Moore
11 Ferguson
12 Henderson
13 Morrison

S Korkidas
S Gledhill
S Kirkmond
S Davey

Don't know where Cas are playing him but Ainscough played on the left the last time he was at BV and I think Shenton is left centre! If the right side is not tightened up Cas will definitely get some joy down that channel.

Cant disagree with that. blanch and millard to be the experienced players of either 3/4 pairing. Cant see JD being dropped though. Hope davey plays, i think it was a mistake to leave him out friday unless he wasn't fit/ill as has been mentioned as a possibility

I'd like to see Murphy given a shot in the centre's. He's looked comfortable at fullback and when on the wing. Gleeson might need to be shown that his place is by no means certain within the team and he needs to up his performances by some margin. Davey for me might not have changed the outcome of Friday's game but he would have improved our performance and should hopefully return.

I agree about JD also, he's been cracking for us and you know what you get with him but i think JK has to be careful how he manages JD to ensure we get the best out of him. He may need resting once in a while regardless of whether he likes it or not.

No one has mentioned Luke George, he is fit, played a good game in the reserves.

Murphy to centre is a must and George on the wing.

The problem is we are all talking about young guys who although good, are inexperienced.

I disagree that JD is washed up. He is playing in the forwards so is bound to look tired when moved out to centre during a game. He is not a fast a he was but we are talking about shoring up the defence. He will do that. He is also our best line breaker so that can't hurt.

I wouldn't be offended with Murphy at centre but would have preferred not to throw him into a (recently) unfamiliar role with a recently dropped young winger. Cas will attack that side straight away.
Moving Grix all over the place was what did him in too. Lets give Murphy a chance at sticking to one.
If we intend playing him at centre from now on then great but not just as an experiment in a big game like this one.

Based on friday night i wouldn't want Blanch in the seventeen...not saying that long term he won't earn his keep, but thought his defence was awful and he looked well short of match practise....

NB Thought Warrington were very good and really pressurised Obst who for me struggles as a scrum half in the tougher games........I would go with Obst and davey (bench) at Hooker, Latu in the backrow, Southernwood at 7 and jeffires if fit at 6 (if not cooke).

Still happy with the way we've gone so far,,,our defeats have been to good teams...

some weeks we hardly have any halfbacks (starting with JD/Morrison at 6 vs Salford) and now people seem to want half a dozen hlafbacks/hookers in the team (SO, BJ, PC, TLL, JDavey, CS) which isn't really a sustainable plan.

Once Cooke gets sorted and everyone is fit i suppose our plan is to play Obst, BJ and Cooke at 6,7,13 with TLL and Davey sharing hooking duties with TLL playing a running role if required. But this reduces the number of running back-rowers we have in the team if JD is going to play.

I prefer BJ playing 6 instead of 7 but i also prefer Obst at 9 rather than 7, so i am torn whether to play BJ/Cooke as HB pairing with Obst and Latu hooking or the option with Cooke at 13 described above.

Just think we are in danger of having too many playmakers and not enough runners if we are not careful.

Don't think anybody has called JD "washed up" - but we can probably all agree he is out of form and appears as though he could do with a rest. As you say playing in the forwards when you have spent the majority of the last few years in the backs must take its toll.

Reference Murphy - I think the point is those in the know who watch the A team say his preffered position is centre, and we are currently playing him in an unfarmiliar role on the wing (and before Byalmire's return at full back). We have a centre who is struggling for form, and appears massively exposed defensively who will no doubt be targetted on Friday, its no secret that we struggle down his flank. Murphy is just about the most defensively reliable back we have in my opinion, so I would have no worries at all him moving inside. We also have a specialist winger who has played extremely well in all bar 1 game this year (he took the fall for Gleeson's poor display against Hudds in my opinion) who has been rested recently, why would you not swap it round? I agree about the 2 relative youngsters on the same side, so swap the wingers round and pair Blanch with Murphy and Morton with Millard.

Reference Grix, I think the big difference is that Muprhy does have a specialist position, and Grix didn't. Strangely I think Grix's greatest strength (his versatility and utility) was also his greatest weakness - a problem that Murphy will not have if what the lads who watch the A team say is true.

I agree to an extent with Blanch - but given the defensivley/positionally weak Gleeson was inside him I am prepared to give him the benefit of the doubt and let him have a few more games to prove himself. I don't think its any coincidence that he played outside Gleeson, and so did Morton - I reckon the problem is inside him and he deserves a bit more time.

why play southernwood who seems to be destined elsewhere if the earlier thread is true against cas? a local derby, you might as well just put a target on him ! couldn't make friday so can't comment but who was the centre inside blanchey please?

That would be my team for Cas game as well, we need to sort out the right side defence pretty quick and IMO that line up should go some way towards doing it.

jd should never play in the centres ever again! his position is in the back row(if chosen over several other good back rowers) ryan atkins walked around him without him even being able to put a hand on him. murphy for me and poss george on the wing in place of a clearly unfit blanch, also davey back in is a must

davey was a bit upset about being omitted last week.

Just watched wakefield highlights on bbc and would have to say if Luke George fit would replace Blanch as well as Gleeson being dropped. Both showed equal defensive frailties. It could be that the pairing doesn't work but looking replays both players were out of position and didn't even get a hand on the oposition at times. Both can show that they are more than capable at high level but think they need to be replaced for friday.