Here we are then start of the new season. What's your team to start? Assuming no new injuries and everyone is fit
Walker
Mac
Tuime
Sutcliffe
Martin
Hoy
Smith
Ese
Houghton
Pele
Oku
Ashworth
F Brown
Subs
Sao
Fash
Brown
Scott

Walker
McIntosh
Tuimivave
Sutcliffe
Martin
Smith
F brown
Ese ese
Houghton
Pele
Okunbor
Sao
Fash

Subs
Balmforth
Ashworth
Scott
Cator

I’d go with this team too.

Walker v HIKU
Mac V EVALDS
Tuime V GILDART
Sutcliffe V OPACIC
Martin V HALL
Hoy V MIKEY LEWIS
Smith V MAY
Ese V KING
Houghton V PARCELL
Pele V WHITBREAD
Oku V BATCHELOR
Ashworth V TANGINOA
F Brown V MINICHELLA
Subs
Sao V SUE
Fash V LITTEN
Brown V HADLEY
Scott V AYDIN/FISHWICH OR TENNISON

Think this shows that rovers are ahead of us at the moment. But it’s down to 80 minutes where anything can happen. Their backs are electric but lack a certain balance for me. I’d be targeting gildarts poor D and making Hiku run (I’m not sure he has the engine but time will tell). Lewis Martin will need to be on form to keep Ryan hall at bay. Their backrow is tidy but apart from that, I’d back our pack

If everyone is fit I'd go:

Walker
Martin
Sutcliffe
Carlos
Mcintosh
Smith
Brown
Ese'ese
Houghton
Pele
Okunbor
Ashworth
Fash

Sao
Brown
Cator
Scott

Question marks over Scott, Fash and Carlos though.

Don't think we can do with that bench or it will be a repeat performance of last week.

I'd go with

Walker
Mcintosh
Sutcliffe
Carlos
Martin
Hoy
Brown
Ese ese
Houghton
Fash
Ashworth
Okunbor
Cator

Smith
Pele
Sao
Brown

I'm really not a fan of Cator at 13, but even less a fan of him at 9.

Gives us a big starting pack and some real impact off the bench

Smith there allows us to change halfback, hooker and Loose forward.

Scott a bit unlucky to miss out, wonder mind him on the wing instead of Mcintosh, but that won't happen.

Rovers have a better 17 for sure, buy not as good as their fans think.

I don't mind that team, just think Smith will go as big as possible for the starting pack. Shows we're at least one forward short with us asking Sao and Ashworth to probably do a stint at SR and prop.

Hoy is wasted in the halves and should be nowhere near them, hes better from full back linking in. We havent won one game with him in the halves. Lets not move him for the sake of it.

Hoy
Martin
Carlos
Sutcliffe
Macintosh
Smith
Brown
Ese Ese
Houghton
Ashworth
Okunbar
Sao
Fash

Subs
Pele
Brown
Cator
Lane

How many games did Hoy play 6, I remember the cup and Hudds at home, where he played pretty well in both.

Think we will likely see Walker at FB with Hoy in the halves alongside Brown, though I wouldn't rule out a Smith/Brown halfback pairing.
We still look weak in terms of second row options, Lane has been disappointing for the last 2 seasons at least and just can't see him improving enough to warrant being in a SL 17, which means we would need Ashworth or Sao & Ockunbor in at 11 & 12.
LF is another area where we lack any real genuine threat so possibly Smith/Hoy in the halves with Brown at 13 could be an option though unlikely.

A few permutations

Hoy/Walker
Martin
Carlos
Sutcliffe
McIntosh
Smith/Hoy
Brown/Smith
Ese'ese
Houghton
Sao/Ashworth
Ockunbor
Ashworth/Sao
Cator/Fash/Brown

Pele
Fash/Cator
Brown J
Scott/Smith

Difficult to predict a 17 with such a high turnover of players and lack of games to base our first team selection of the season

Martin and Hall both on left wing so opposite sides. Martin will be up against Evalds

I actually prefer Ligi in 2nd row or loose man alongside Okunbur. Stronger than last years IMO, Don't see why people keep putting Brown 13 he will play 7 or 9. Team depending on fitness of Smith, Carlos and Scott toss of a coin.
Walker
Macintosh
Carlos/Scott
Sutcliffe
Martin
Hoy
Brown
Pele
Houghton
Ashworth
Sao
Okunbur
Fash
Subs
Scott
Smith/Cator
Brown
Ese'ese

As usual Rovers will score first early in probably a tight first half
Second half similar to Wigan where their fitness and pace will take over

You may be right. But come on don't be such a defeatist before we start. Let's at least give the lads a chance. You never know they might surprise you

https://www.hulldailymail.co.uk/sport/r ... fc-9090618 Sounds like Sao, Carlos and Smith will be fit. Less sure on Fash and Scott

https://www.hulldailymail.co.uk/sport/r ... fc-9090618 Sounds like Sao, Carlos and Smith will be fit. Less sure on Fash and Scott

Think those three are more important than Scott and Fash

Wishing ang hoping just like you but in reality just cant see where our points will come from unless HKR make some glaring errors near their line or throw a couple of interception passes.
It would take a near error free display from us and near perfect discipline so that we dont run out of gas having to defend more than we should to make a full 80 minute game of it

Fairly obvious I know, but a win next Thursday would be a real tonic for the troops!

It's always nice to get a win first game, and doubly so when it's a derby, but more importantly from our perspective a win would put some energy into the fanbase which, as we all know, isn't feeling exactly optimistic about the months to come.
If we lose this game, then take a bit of a pasting at Wire the following week (although it's anyone's guess how Wire will go under Burgess) we run the danger of everyone feeling the season's almost gone by the time we've arrived at week 3!

Smith has a number of crucial decisions to make, that's for sure. Does he put all the big guns in the pack to start with and knock rovers out of kilter from the off? but that runs the risk of our level dropping alarmingly once we start interchanging.
In the halves, I suspect he'll go with Hoy/Brown and Walker at FB, not convinced it's ideal but likely to be what he settles on.

It's always difficult to predict opening games, there's no real form guide to go by, but think we need the win more than them for the reasons stated above. A defeat for rovers isn't going to derail their campaign, but for us it will probably increase the downbeat air surrounding us, so I'm hoping that might give us an extra push, especially if it's a close game.

I've been going to derbies since the 70s and I've watched too many where beforehand it has seemed so obviously slanted towards one of the sides only for it to go completely the other way on the day, so who knows really? Let the fun commence, eh!!

My team, which I imagine will be different to the one Smith picks.

Walker
MacIntosh
Tuimavave
Sutcliffe
Martin
Hoy
F Brown
Ese'ese
Houghton
Fash
Ashworth
Okunbor
Sao

J Brown
Pele
Scott
Smith

Well balanced, big, and gives us options to mix things up if things aren't working or we need a spark. 1-17 on paper Rovers look better, but I think we can beat them down the middle, and in early season games that is generally where its won and lost.

I too worry about how we are going to score, and last Sunday didn't do anything to allay those fears. Apart from Brown scooting around a bit, there didn't seem to be much in the way of constructive play throughout the whole 80 minutes.

I know it was a pre-season testimonial and it was raining for a fair portion of the afternoon, but watching them with ball in hand felt like a worrying foretaste of what may be to come.
Let's just hope something clicks somewhere over the coming few days.

Can't rely argue with most of that but I'm hoping we have a cunning Baldrick plan up our sleeves .

Nobody wants to lose a derby and everyone wants to start with a bang, but with a number of signings in both and pretty disjointed pre seasons really i don’t see a classic.

Defeat will be insufferable for a few days but nothing won or lost game 1. Hell we turned Wigan over last year in a dominant display and they went and won it with mad form at the end of the year (we both obviously aren’t Wigan, but the point stands)

Hoping for some decent weather and the pitch holds up as I think a forward battle suits you better. If we can release our backs then I think we could have too much

Enjoy the game and the day, good to have some rugby back. If we can top 20k rugby league in the city firmly alive and well!

Don't know about enjoying the game

unless we're 20 points clear with 2 mins to go.

We've won nine out of our last ten opening round games and in four of those seasons we won the second round too. It generally hasn't meant much in terms if how the season panned out, in fact in 2019 we lost the first two league games but finished sixth.