Re: Am I missing something? : Sun May 05, 2024 7:49 pm  

KaeruJim wrote:

Stats are just numbers - if you’re poor in one area it has a knock on effect in others. I keep banging on about errors and that’s been my biggest issue with the side this season.

Fundamentally I wasn’t expecting or demanding us to be top 4 this season. If some people were then you’re likely to feel disappointed if course. It’s not like we all agreed that we should finish 3rd this year or else we’ll form a picket line around HQ.

I would say that if you cannot see we are moving forward compared to any time since Brian Mac years then I’m equally exasperated. We’re still not where we should be if course.

If we don’t make at least 2 impressive signings for 2025 I’ll join the voodooing myself.

I don't think you're too far off in terms of the missing pieces. The question is, even if they arrive for 25 is Rohan capable of finally completing the jigsaw. An objective assessment of performance this season would suggest not. He has to change that over the coming weeks or (I think) face the consequences. I'm definetely not in the "anyone but Smith" boat, that's just lunacy. But if a target (like Rowley) is available they'll have to move quickly and without sentiment.

Re: Am I missing something? : Sun May 05, 2024 9:13 pm  

I’m thinking he has most of this season to save his seat for 2025, unless we get a really bad run.

I’m not a sycophant, I didn’t agree with retaining Bentley or signing Goudemand (solid players but not what we need IMO). I was not blown away by Olpherts or Frawley signings. I don’t like how we ask small backs to take yardage carries. It’s a tactic that works IF you have the right players.

However some players are in good form under RS, Miller, Mom, Croft, Ackers, McDonnell, Ruan all good signings and I think the coach is very good with the the young players.

So personally I’m still on the fence. I know other clubs have injuries too but we have too many to achieve our potential at the minute.

Things aren’t cataclysmic. Appointing a new coach is a risk too.

Re: Am I missing something? : Sun May 05, 2024 9:46 pm  

ArthurClues wrote:

I don't think you're too far off in terms of the missing pieces. The question is, even if they arrive for 25 is Rohan capable of finally completing the jigsaw. An objective assessment of performance this season would suggest not. He has to change that over the coming weeks or (I think) face the consequences. I'm definetely not in the "anyone but Smith" boat, that's just lunacy. But if a target (like Rowley) is available they'll have to move quickly and without sentiment.

Fully agree. I wouldn’t replace smith at all this year unless someone high quality becomes available. The worry for me is that we’re as yet, not seeing any progress at all on the field. We don’t look like a team heading in the right direction. We’re no better than last year from what we’ve seen so far and that’s a huge concern

Re: Am I missing something? : Mon May 06, 2024 5:29 am  

KaeruJim wrote:

I’m thinking he has most of this season to save his seat for 2025, unless we get a really bad run.

I’m not a sycophant, I didn’t agree with retaining Bentley or signing Goudemand (solid players but not what we need IMO). I was not blown away by Olpherts or Frawley signings. I don’t like how we ask small backs to take yardage carries. It’s a tactic that works IF you have the right players.

However some players are in good form under RS, Miller, Mom, Croft, Ackers, McDonnell, Ruan all good signings and I think the coach is very good with the the young players.

So personally I’m still on the fence. I know other clubs have injuries too but we have too many to achieve our potential at the minute.

Things aren’t cataclysmic. Appointing a new coach is a risk too.

Miller is not a good signing , he is a seven aside player and it shows , as for Mom , he is just ok but not a patch on Neme .As for Ruan he is a work in progress so that leaves Croft , Ackers and Mcdonnell as the decent signings .

Re: Am I missing something? : Mon May 06, 2024 9:33 am  

Miller was the best player on the field last match. I think he is adapting still: if he tightens up his game he’s great to have.

Mom is very different to Nene, apples and oranges there. Also in context of your constant criticism of RS, didn’t he try to sign Nene for 4 years but the player had a brain fart?

Still too many poor signings/decisions. All those criticising Fus but ok with resigning Bentley on 2 years… their appearance ratio is very similar and Fus is clearly the better player.

Re: Am I missing something? : Mon May 06, 2024 12:34 pm  

KaeruJim wrote:

Miller was the best player on the field last match. I think he is adapting still: if he tightens up his game he’s great to have.

Mom is very different to Nene, apples and oranges there. Also in context of your constant criticism of RS, didn’t he try to sign Nene for 4 years but the player had a brain fart?

Still too many poor signings/decisions. All those criticising Fus but ok with resigning Bentley on 2 years… their appearance ratio is very similar and Fus is clearly the better player.

I do not think you quite get it sometimes , its ok Miller playing well against London , but there is a reason he has played so few 13 a side games . Some one on here tried to compare him with Brent Webb

My constant criticism of Smith is only matched by your constant defending of him .

Regarding Bentley , he is only the right player if the rest of the pack is able to dominate or at least match the opposition as his work rate is fantastic , a bit like Graham Eccles . Certainly no point in signing a small Frenchman who could not make the Catalan 17

Another fault with Smith then on the Nene signing as he should have known him as he lived with him in Oz . More to it than meets the eyes in my opinion .

Re: Am I missing something? : Mon May 06, 2024 1:12 pm  

KaeruJim wrote:

Miller was the best player on the field last match. I think he is adapting still: if he tightens up his game he’s great to have.

Mom is very different to Nene, apples and oranges there. Also in context of your constant criticism of RS, didn’t he try to sign Nene for 4 years but the player had a brain fart?

Still too many poor signings/decisions. All those criticising Fus but ok with resigning Bentley on 2 years… their appearance ratio is very similar and Fus is clearly the better player.

My hope with Miller, Jim is that he clearly can do everything you want, he’s just very inexperienced in the 13 a side game. Given time I’d hope you could iron out some of his flaws and keep the bits of the 7s games you want.

Fair point on Nene. Mom I agree is a good replacement but a very different player. Given that we have some quality young 3/4 I’d rather have Mom who is more fundamentally sound for them to learn off than Nene who is an out and out athlete.

Re: Am I missing something? : Mon May 06, 2024 1:25 pm  

The next couple of games are quite important in terms of seeing where we're at. While we've won 6 games this year three of them were against awful sides, who are set to finish bottom three by some distance, including our last two. Our record against better teams is 3-4, and the highest team in the competition we've beaten is the fifth placed Cats, followed by Salford in sixth.

I don't expect us to beat Cats/Sts but we do need to start showing some better form. This time last year we were similarly patchy with 5 wins 5 losses in the league, but one of those wins was at Sts. It took a while for it to sink in that we were actually as poor as we sometimes seemed - I think a lot of us assumed we'd turn it around at some stage but it never happened. We also had a few false dawns - Sts away, Wigan away - where it looked like we were really challenging, but it all dissolved into mush.

For me personally the worrying thing is that we really don't look any better than last year despite a big turnover in the squad. I genuinely hope Rohan can turn it around, but I have little confidence at the moment.

Re: Am I missing something? : Mon May 06, 2024 2:01 pm  

I don't know how many threads we can have which get hijacked by the RS debate. Lots it seems.

I think we are a better squad than last year but it isn't night and day, which is showing in results this year. In seasons gone by we would be down there with Hull and Cas; so I disagree that we haven't shown progress. People are quoting table positions after 10 rounds like it's the be all and end all - there are 2 points separating the top 7 sides including us.

My main concern remains our error count, and we struggle to dominate possession, or the ruck, which makes us look worse than we really are. I'm not saying RS is blameless, if some on here are determined to blame. I've posted some other criticisms I have of RS in my own view, I'm not a mindless cheerleader like many on here try to paint out, just because I don't agree with them.

Frankly I just find the majority of arguments against RS illogical and inconsistent. It was right to retain Bentley, but we're too small and don't dominate. It was right to retain Bentley, but Fus was an awful decision. RS doesn't develop the youth, and yet clearly that's not true. RS doesn't develop players, but some that are in good form have had mystical help from other players (RS has nothing to do with it if they're in form, and everything to do with it if they aren't)... it's just bonkers on here.

If I write down our potential squad for 2025, add 2 really high quality additions (plus Hall of course), I think we are starting to get there finally. In the absence of any other magical mechanism, Leeds are going to have to spend some money short-term at least to re-establish themselves as a force. And they're going to have to spend it more wisely than we have at times in the past too; we have been out-recruited by most other sides in the league and it shows.

Re: Am I missing something? : Mon May 06, 2024 2:30 pm  

Not getting into the Rohan debate as it’s tiresome.

One thing Ive seen said on here and elsewhere is that we may be on 6 wins and only 2 points of top but we’ve played the bottom three who are as good as a bye, and somehow don’t count.

Does that only apply to us then and not the other 7 teams in the league?