It does as we can sign someone else if he gets crocked. horne was going nowhere but a PAYP deal wasn't an option in his case anyway

like who, Widnes?

Good news

To some of us Rich is a talisman, brought with us since our early super league appearance. Went through the Lloyd era with us and was seen by bomber as a future star, which he has become. Lets not forget the neck injury that has ended many players careers, couple that up with Diabetes and we have a player who has overcome much adversity. He has been looking like his old self of late, gaining in confidence and taking on defences like he used too.

Was he worth another contract ?

Time will tell one thing for sure is Rich will give it his best shot as he always has, loyalty has to be worth something even in today's game.

great news....i did have my doubts about whether we should have kept him on or not but i think hes proved over the last few weeks hes still got some class and one of the form players at present for me.

at last some sense......

The side benefit of the Horne deal is the amount of angst being generated by certain posters. Put a smile on my face reading this thread.

He hasn't been at his best in recent years but he has shown some glimpses of his old self this season from what I've seen. Hopefully with more players to take control of games and direct the side he can play his natural running game.
Also just who else better could we have signed? We'd really struggle to replace our 6 and 7 with comparable quality in one off-season IMO.

[uAngst[/u-fearful/anxious.....I have re-read the thread and fail to see any posters who are fearful or anxious to Horneys extension ?...some happy and some not happy but fearful

Fair point, however which other clubs in SL do you consider would give Horney a 2 year deal ?...

Some good points Ian, and you know my personal opinions about Rich (which I am sure would surprise a few on here

), he is a great bloke, however the question I pose is do the likes of Wigan & Wire show loyalty ?.....I would say no they want sportsman who are consistently at the top of their game, also mixed with youth, they achieve this and win silverware...sorry but if you want a winning team there is no place for sentimentality imo.

Sorry - was using our own family definition which amounts to something along the line of slightly drama-laden annoyance.

How many others need a 6?

Who would you have replaced him with?

Oh right....annoyance I will give you, but drama laden on this board...never






At least I am allowed to be a drama queen if I choose...I am a female!, not sure about other peoples excuses though

I seriously dont see horney been offered a 2 year deal anywhere else tbh apart from lesser ambitious clubs than ourselves. I'll make no bones about telling anyone im not his greatest supporter, which im not. I think people get too sentimental about rich cos he's been at the club for a long time but i for one hoped that he'd be replaced by someone fresher with a higher level of skills who could breathe new life and different attacking ideas into the team. I think sometimes especially in the specialised positions within a team change is good or you have the fear of becoming too predictable and stale.

I would not have replaced him yet, I would as stated have given him another year to see how he goes, he has improved this season however he does not have the speed any more to reach his previous heights, also I am interested to see how he fairs with our new signings (who will take the kicking responsibilities, an area which is not Horneys strengths)...
We know he is playing with another injury so it is a time bomb situation again (injuries have plagued him for the last few seasons), people will be gutted if we lose him at the crucial point of the season. Two years suggest to me we are not in a rush to bring the youth through either, something I feel we should be doing.
My point about other SL clubs are he would not get in most, as compared to many other h/backs Horney is now very average.

too much sentiment when it comes to Horne, I'm glad he is staying, a year would have been right in my opinion, but then we tried that with Radford and we've got him next season as well.

It's difficult to comment on the length of the deal without knowing how much it's worth. A two year deal on a relatively low wage per year doesn't offer that much risk for the club while providing Horne with reasonable security, for example. Just looking at the length of contract doesn't tell the whole story.


I'm not so sure TBH - and I was someone who had pretty much written him off a few months ago. He's been as good a 6 as many this season and better than some. He'll never be the best in the league but he's above average and there really aren't any better options to replace him with right now.

Like who? And we've signed players who will bring higher skills and new attacking ideas in the other pivot positions so it's not as if we'll be lacking in that department.

With a new 7, 9, and 1 next season keeping Horne makes a lot of sense. If we hadn't replaced those players then getting a more creative 6 would have been a better idea. It's all about the balance of the team and Horne does bring some good skills to the table that will be valuable when combined with a creative 7 next season.

1 yr with a yrs option for me....would hve liked to see anothe S/O come in for 2013,with seymour settled in by then we could have had a good attacking half back pairing.............but,lets just plod along like we have been doing.....

Can also have a creative 6 along with a creative 1 7 9 and 13......doesnt stop wire,wigan and Sts does it

I suspect he has taken a cut in wage, and if rumours are to be believe FC only offered him the one but our neighbours offered him 2 (no surprised there then

)..
The deal is done and as an FC fan I have to accept that, I really hope I can say it was the right deal in 2 years time as I will have no qualms eating humble pie believe me!!...
I pray he answers his critics like me, and starts by hitting his straps in the next 2 games

Weve been plodding along because weve failed to recruit properly since Judus left and Horne has been injured or getting through his diabetis. Now weve got Seymour coming in plus Heremaia and Ellis to compliment a Horne whos showing lots of signs of his best playing days so we should massively improve. Stick Westerman in the mix whos really finding his feet now and i dont see us just plodding on anymore. The only issue, and ive said it previously, is whether Agar can gel what will be an excellent side together into proper contenders. Potentially next years sides will be the best weve had for years, its just whether it can reach its potential.

We could have Slater,Marshall,thurston,smith and Gallen as the pivots and Agar would still screw it up.

not doing bad recently though, you have to admit it.

Who's to say Horne will still be a first choice in 2013?