Re: 2015 Leeds Rhinos Squad : Fri Oct 24, 2014 9:03 am  

In a sense we're victims of our own success. Because we're not at the standard we set a few years ago it seems we're going backwards - yet it's more a case of good luck & good management combining to give us these glory years. Only very occasionally will half a team of young players emerge at the same time, complimented by some astute (pre NRL mega salary cap) signings. Times have changed.

As a club I'm very happy enough with where we are. We've never broken the cap, we're about the only club that comes close to making a profit and we still have our own stadium. My concerns are more based around the lack of RFL leadership and detriment it's having on the game as a whole. Don't get me wrong, I'd like to see more transfer activity, but if the right players aren't available at a realistic price then GH does right to sit tight. With the exception of Dobson I don't see who we've missed out on to be honest.

I'd have liked to sign Clarke too, but the Wire deal was seemingly arranged behind closed doors a long time ago. Plus (cue the venom) I've yet to see him perform in a meaningful game!

Re: 2015 Leeds Rhinos Squad : Fri Oct 24, 2014 9:22 am  

AJC wrote:

In a sense we're victims of our own success. Because we're not at the standard we set a few years ago it seems we're going backwards - yet it's more a case of good luck & good management combining to give us these glory years. Only very occasionally will half a team of young players emerge at the same time, complimented by some astute (pre NRL mega salary cap) signings. Times have changed.

As a club I'm very happy enough with where we are. We've never broken the cap, we're about the only club that comes close to making a profit and we still have our own stadium. My concerns are more based around the lack of RFL leadership and detriment it's having on the game as a whole. Don't get me wrong, I'd like to see more transfer activity, but if the right players aren't available at a realistic price then GH does right to sit tight. With the exception of Dobson I don't see who we've missed out on to be honest.

I'd have liked to sign Clarke too, but the Wire deal was seemingly arranged behind closed doors a long time ago. Plus (cue the venom) I've yet to see him perform in a meaningful game!

We are not victims of our own success at all. Any team should be measured on it's performances against the rest of the competition it competes in, and not whether it was good a few years ago or not. In that respect, and only in that respect, we are going backwards. How anybody can be happy with a club going backwards I do not know. For example, Castleford won nothing last year, no success, yet went forwards massively. It measured up very well to it's rivals, and its fans quite rightly are happy with that. I am sure, that come next season, if they were to go back to previous, there fans would not be as happy.

You think there has only been Dobson who has moved who would have improved us? I suggest you take a look at the movement of players a little more closely, because there is plenty more that would have improved us.

Re: 2015 Leeds Rhinos Squad : Fri Oct 24, 2014 9:54 am  

William Eve wrote:

Obviously, this provides me with a more in-depth and meaningful perspective on the game as a whole whilst rendering me superior to almost everyone else.

Vintage. A welcome return to form.

Re: 2015 Leeds Rhinos Squad : Fri Oct 24, 2014 10:21 am  

A lot of you (in your 'season ticket confessions') have commonly seemed to talk about the social / shared activity side of it and that being a big part of either why you stopped going (ie. the others you went with slowly did) or why you keep going (ie. the main part of the fun is the routine / habit of meeting up and spending time together).

Now I was wondering (as someone who attends alone each week and will continue to do so going forward unless I happen to make a new Rhinos-attending mate in the future) to what extent is it about the 'product on the pitch' (ie. the team and season ticket value for money) and to what extent is it 'the overall package' (ie. knowing you will meet up and having a laugh with mates, a few drinks, a laugh and hopefully watch a good game)?

I suppose personally it is 90% the 'product on the pitch' - the other 10% being the cycle there and back, weaving between people on their way to the game, having my bar of chocolate once I get there and in the SS.

Admittedly, I have never had the whole 'social side' that comes with doing a fortnightly activity with other like-minded mates. I've not had like-minded friends! Though I did wonder for those that did / have this, what percentage of the overall expereince / decision to renew does this provide for you?

Re: 2015 Leeds Rhinos Squad : Fri Oct 24, 2014 10:42 am  

Gotcha wrote:

We are not victims of our own success at all. Any team should be measured on it's performances against the rest of the competition it competes in, and not whether it was good a few years ago or not. In that respect, and only in that respect, we are going backwards. How anybody can be happy with a club going backwards I do not know. For example, Castleford won nothing last year, no success, yet went forwards massively. It measured up very well to it's rivals, and its fans quite rightly are happy with that. I am sure, that come next season, if they were to go back to previous, there fans would not be as happy.

You think there has only been Dobson who has moved who would have improved us? I suggest you take a look at the movement of players a little more closely, because there is plenty more that would have improved us.

The league as a whole is going backwards. Thus, my greatest concern is with the RFL as a whole, not any particular club. Cas and Widnes are the ONLY clubs to have improved last season yet they won nothing and more so were spectacular failures in crunch games. Neither Cas or Widnes of 2014 would have been anywhere near the top 5 a few years ago. We improved exponentially in the 2000's and cannot hope to sustain that rate of improvement. Now we are not improving as quickly (if at all) we are going backwards.

You back up my point with regards to Cas. They've been consistently towards the bottom of the league in seasons past then this year finish 4th. So should fans now be expecting that they'll finish in the top 4 next year too? Or should they accept they had a one-off great season and be thankful for witnessing it? Have to admit my approach to following Leeds is to enjoy the good times, but never expect them! Even if we hadn't fluffed it in the last minute against Catalan, and dare I suggest, gone on to win the GF (which wouldn't have been a complete impossibility) I'd still have mixed opinions on the season as a whole.

For once I agree with William - until the regular season has a meaningful reward for coming 1st (in my opinion it should be automatic qualification for the GF with a 2v3 play-off) then the regular season will remain insignificant dross, with the continued regression of most clubs. Over to the RFL (I won't hold my breath give the play-offs are such money spinners.........NOT!)

PS who would you be signing if you were GH?

Re: 2015 Leeds Rhinos Squad : Fri Oct 24, 2014 11:02 am  

Going forward from where we've been for the last few years (or from 2003-2012) is always going to be difficult. But nobody who thinks that means we should blithely accept it not happening should be nowhere near the business end of a sports club, or any business for that matter.

Same applies to Cas. They've set themselves a high bar this year. But anyone who wants to accept that it's a one-off and not drive themselves on to match it or better it next year deserves to be on the losing side for ever more. You can be thankful for what you get without settling for it.

As for signings I think GH should have made, that's quite difficult without being privy to a lot of talk from agents and knowing what the sums of money involved are. I suspect, for instance, that Wire are paying a lot for Clark, and I don't think, while he would be an improvement in that position, he's the kind of hooker we most need, so I wouldn't have spuffed huge amounts of cash on him. If it is true that Shaun Lunt is potentially available, then that is something I would want to look at. As mentioned, Michael Dobson would have been a very good signing. Craig Huby obviously leaps out in the forwards. Again, we don't know what the finances were, so internetsters like me can't judge the value for money, in individual cases. But if you put a lot of things together it should be possible to get a picture of what the market is like, and your view of value for money has to be informed by market prices.

Those 3 are just players who have moved. Those better plugged into the right networks will know who else might be available, or temptable at "smaller" clubs, or who might be unsettled by new arrivals at those clubs.

We also, on the flipside, don't know what deals might already be done for 2016, when the problems we currently have are likely to become more acute.

Re: 2015 Leeds Rhinos Squad : Fri Oct 24, 2014 12:31 pm  

Clark (hooker) Dobson, Burns, Kelly (halves) Huby, Vea, McMeekan, Casty (forwards) are all players who have already moved this year who would have improved us, while we sat on our hands, just as we did with Whitehead, Taylor and Batemen.

Re: 2015 Leeds Rhinos Squad : Fri Oct 24, 2014 2:39 pm  

We have all said over recent years that we must enjoy this while it lasts because it may be a long long time before a period like this comes round again .I am also thinking about GH's statement about the Squad for 2015 when said something like 'this will be the last season they will play together and the end could come quite suddenly,just remember how Keith Senior left' .I know we have to take what he says with a pinch of salt.

Re: 2015 Leeds Rhinos Squad : Fri Oct 24, 2014 3:14 pm  

craigizzard wrote:

Clark (hooker) Dobson, Burns, Kelly (halves) Huby, Vea, McMeekan, Casty (forwards) are all players who have already moved this year who would have improved us, while we sat on our hands, just as we did with Whitehead, Taylor and Batemen.

Clark and Huby and the biggest misses for us out of that lot imo.

Dobson and Burns have proved to be decent halves in SL but would they really be a lot of an upgrade on what we have at the moment with Mcguire and Sinfield? Kelly is an unknown quantity and he could turn out class but equally could be a dud like Keating was.we will see on that one.

we have loads of backrow options and when the likes of Whitehead and Bateman moved a year or two back, Ward was playing well and looking the real deal with Sutcliffe pushing too.Didn't see too much uproar over us not moving in at the time although since Whitehead has proved to be a good player.

The likes of Casty,Vea and Taylor- i.e any decent props - are certainly ones i agree we should have been looking at whilst also moving on 1 or 2 fringe players who are not going to be able to step up once JP and Kylie are gone.Sadly, don't look like happening till next year at the earliest.

Re: 2015 Leeds Rhinos Squad : Fri Oct 24, 2014 6:27 pm  

these are the signings that i would have liked at the rhinos to help in our clubs transition

dobson for scrum half
burns for 6
lunt for 9
amor and walmsley as direct replacements for kirke and bailey
scott taylor
scruton would have also been a great signing imo

how good does this side look for 2015/2016

1 hardaker
2 briscoe
3 watkins
4 moon
5 hall
6 burns
7 dobson
8 amor
9 lunt
10 walmsley
11 delaney
12 ablett
13 sinfield
14 sutty
15 s ward
16 scruton
17 taylor