TBH, it is a very difficult decision, however we had money he was given his chance to build his team etc..surely he must have considered that Long will miss game time. I agree with Paul M I think he will use Horney & Washy again I am not happy about this but all we can do is hope for a big improvement in their performance.

I think we would have gone for another decent half as well as Long if one had been available. Obviously not someone on the same money as that would have been impossible. Also not someone without real potential as that is just a waste of time. The fact we held off signing Moa for so long suggests we were certainly looking at other options overseas but if the right quality or potential isn't there at the time you need it I suppose you have to wait. Wouldn't be surprised if we are looking in the halfbacks for next year though - particularly a British player.

Hope so

We must have some spare dosh for Raynor, hopefully we are actively looking now.

He doesn't seem to have bothered for the past two years, why should this week be any different?

your not wrong, some of the knee jerks in here must have kicked themselves in the head!!

The fella spent his money on building a pack that the rest could play behind , I am sure that Agar didnt think that long would be crocked so early and the club have already said publicly that they are looking for a young apprentice as we speak .... cmon guys were three games in and lost to a good side to to being complacent nothing else....

I know we spoke to Witt before we signed Long but that would not have solved our 7 problem. However he and Long together would have been frightening.

Also rumoured around January time that we were keeping an eye on Ratchford.

Our pack was not the problem last year, it was the h/backs. It was obvious Longy would pick injuries up at some point, we will be lucky if we get 50-70% so a plan B should be available, not just reverting to a plan which failed last season.

Is it the same Witt we signed a couple of years ago and binned and he went to Union?

We never signed him, we were in talks with him before he left NZW, he went to Union in the end and is now at Crusaders.

Oh right thanks, some-one at work thought we had signed him a couple of years ago.

Our pack was a large part of the problem last year, second only to the lack of a Scrum Half. Signing new half backs without fixing the pack problems would have left us with problems.

Much as I lack confidence in Agar as a coach, I don't have any real problems with his recruitment and retention during the off season. A back up SH would have been good but there really weren't any affordable and available options of the required quality.

doesnt matter who plays there without long, we just look poor and we really aren't. Where do the dummy runners go for example? I get the impression we need to focus more on the basics in training because we've proven consistently that we are poor at them

I agree with that, and I am happy with who he shipped out and brought in, but for me the biggest problem was and had been since Judas did one was our lack of scrum half.
What Sunday proved was a pack is a pack they will drive the ball forward 5 & a kick no matter how talented they are (the same as the pack did last year) unless you have a decent h/back to organise & create to move them around. Without creative h/backs, the best pack in the world will just drive because that is their jobs.

You are right



Makes you wonder what is going on at training

I'm not sure the problem is simply down to no depth at half back, the problem to me is a little wider. We don't have enough (and haven't since 2004) ball handlers at the club. We are packed full of runners, some exceedingly good runners to be fair, but nonetheless runners.

Just read on Quins board we got

Ganson.

OooH dear...Ganson and the Sky cameras.really bad mix..........."Look at me Look at me...I am in charge....

"

Yep, just hope Hame's discipline is better on friday otherwise Ganson wont hesitate in showing him a card.

I can see it already tbh.

Hopefully Mr Agar has had a word threatening with detention or lines........."I Must Not Banjo The Opposition"....1000 times boy.

Apparantly you can't teach these players basic skills

I know - it's like trying to teach basic spelling skills in schools.

1 Whiting
2 Calderwood
3 Hall/Turner
4 Yeaman
5 T. Briscoe
6 Turner/Hall
7 Tansey

8 Dowes
9 Berrigan
10 O'Meley
11 Burnett (Tickle in if fit)
12 Manu
13 Fitzgibbon

14 Washbrook
15 Lauaki
16 Cusack
17 Moa

I'd quite like to see Hall play at SO. Either way Tansey HAS to play SH and I hope to god they will be training like mad this week with Tansey learning the calls and the players showing a willingness to listen to him.

He is.. I Smith VR two numpties together