Doesn't look good for Sao, hope it's nothing major

It’s a funny old game!!! Not so much Rugby League but more this being a fan business. The word itself depicts a fanatic and so we are all are really, because even after watching the club into my sixth decade I never cease to be amazed by how the pre-season hype, marketing and general talking up inspires me each year and convinces me things are back on track, a miracle has occurred and we will do well in the coming season. Last night we sat there and witnessed a visiting team as good as anything our competition has produced that would hold their own very well in the NRL. I’m not saying Wigan would win it but boy, they’d give it a good go and were they good last night? Stinging after a defeat as they were, it’s unlikely any other Super League club would have beaten them. However biased I am towards the club I love, however much I want a magic wand to have been waved you have to admit that and I have to be a bit more realistic as to just how far we have to travel to get anywhere near that level of performance. Had we kicked on from 2017 we could have been up there but it’s hard to see how our attaining that level again will not take several seasons of building a team and developing the squad. How far we have been allowed to fall is the real disgrace really and yet we pitch up in our absolute thousands full of hope for a new beginning yet with many of us knowing in our hearts, through bitter experience, that it very likely that disappointment will continue to haunt many aspects of the season ahead. I’m trying to not let the disappointment that comes with losing to a brilliant opponent on the night, colour our judgement for there were positives. We hung in, there the resolve to be better was there for all to see, the line speed was OK the ruck was a lot better we never gave up on what was a lost cause, we have tons of potential, we had some bad luck and tough calls but everyone tried. And at last facing a big defeat heads didn’t go down. I can hack it as long as that continues, but it’s a shame for those less case-hardened individuals who want to see a winning team and turned up fuelled by the hype and expectation, one win at a very average Catalan brought and who have not wintered and summered the almost unique experience of being an FC fan ‘till I die’. The team isn’t good enough is it? WE have signed as well as an ailing club could have, but it remains to be seen how signing older players for their experience will impact on out injury situation going forward. That was always a worry for me, but by and large we have recruited pretty well. I also think the coach is good enough (his post-match interview was succinct honest and realistic) and I’m of the school of thought that if he can’t do it no one can!!! I rate our football manager thus far too. In addition, anyone who has had a chat with the new owner will know that he is in it for the long haul really passionate about the club and very realistic about the task ahead. Some players we fielded last night wouldn’t have got anywhere near the 2016/17 squad 1 to 30, but we are building and we have to rely on those less gifted both in ability and size to do their best and let’s face it last night they all did. Brad Fash is a point of question on this front. He’ll never be a second row forward, he’s not tall enough, he doesn’t have the hands and he's short on speed. Nor is he big enough for a prop, but he put his hand up, he’s FC through and through he gave his absolute all and ran himself to a standstill. He’ll probably knows that he’ll be replaced in the fullness of time, but in the mean-time we can really ask for nothing more. I think that can be said for most of the others too, well beaten but certainly not unbowed. How a few more disappointments will impact on that resolve remains to be seen. But last night Wigan were just too good. When power was needed they had, it they showed patience, discipline, had pace to burn and so much skill through their spine. We chased the game throughout and weren’t at the races, but we tried and never gave in and that for me is a massive plus on last season. All we can now do is stick with the team as we always do, but let’s take heart in the fact that a lot looks different now and we have to take that build on it and move forward. It’s going to be a long hard season but the fact the players are hurting because they felt they let us down is proof enough that things have changed. Let’s just hope for a bit more luck than we usually get on the injury front!!

Great post. Reflects exactly my views on where we are and how I interpret what I saw last night

Well last night wasn't as bad as we've witnessed over the last few seasons, we now look like a rugby team at least, but last night was simply a team in transition against the best team in super league, Wigan were outstandingly good. Few points, why do we constantly use wingers to drive the ball in from tackle one, where the hell are the forwards - Wigan don't do it? We used to do it 20 years ago and it worked but we did it once the forwards had put a stint in, now they're stood around and we still use our wingers which I'm is having a negative effect on them, possibly resulting in why Barron got caught on his break. Looking at positives, Sezer is looking a great addition, Briscoe played well and I'm his biggest critic due to his age now, Fash not great first half but actually did better in the second half when I think playing second row. Salabio at times looks lazy, at times looks class, Barron growing in confidence all the time, Rapana you can see his quality but was a bit ineffective imo. Looking at negatives, Chamberlain was poor and doesn't lol a great signing, Aydin and Cust quiet but both got hammered defensively I didn't walk away too disheartened, just disappointed that all these fans who obviously want to support fc witnessed another tonkin, christ I've been taking my sixteen year old for a few years now and hes rarely sees a dominant class fc performance, surprised he wants to come tbh

Anyone know the completion rate and errors for Wigan? Wouldnt surprise ne if they were around 90-100% both halves, plus you could count on one hand the number of errors last night from them, not including penalties either....that how good they were.

[quote="number 6":2w99jxb0]Anyone know the completion rate and errors for Wigan? Wouldnt surprise ne if they were around 90-100% both halves, plus you could count on one hand the number of errors last night from them, not including penalties either....that how good they were.[/quote:2w99jxb0] According to the Super League website they completed at 99% whereas we completed at 66%. They made nearly 1000 metres more than we did.