STEVE P

It's true that the defence is what is now letting us down, but I thought earlier in the season that the team put in some really impressive stints, especially close to their own line. Perhaps a lot was down to McShane organising things from the back.

Too true. Does anybody recognise the difference between coaching boys who play for fun and players who get paid for what they do? Never mind, it's a free weekend next week. Let's book a coach and all go to the seaside for a bit of a laugh. Worry about the week after later.

See the old half time talk has worked its magic again.

Can't say I'm happy to see York struggling, because they represent an option for everyone to achieve the upper echelons of the game given the right circumstances, but after the attitudes expressed by the Newcastle and York fans on this forum earlier in the year I am finding it hard to be too sympathetic. For me the simple root of the problem is that the players are over paid. That can be said of other sports too and the fault lies with the desperation to succeed of the competing clubs.

Once upon a time there was a game of rugby. At half time the coaches gave their half time talks. Talk no1 '' You useless set of bar stewards. Get your forking act together. We need to move up quicker as they play the ball, put more pressure on the acting half back. The sliding defence has to be faster and more alert. On the first 3 tackles, when we have the ball run harder and faster to take more out of their forwards as they defend........ Blah di blah di blah. Etc etc etc.... Now get off your fat answers and go out there and do it. Talk no2 Ey, that was alright then, wasn't it? Pass us a bit of orange eh!

Seems like everybody and their dog is getting to play at our ground. Except us.

The rules seem to get more complicated for the referee to interpret year by year. If we aren't careful it will end up with as many twists and turns as they have in the other code. Under certain circumstances they seem to be able to nullify a touchdown by just having a defender's finger under the ball. Presumably it has to be the correct finger on the appropriate hand? I wonder if this is why they are considered the posher of the two codes. In order to know and understand all rules the ref has to be an Oxbridge graduate. My personal favourite of their rules is where one set of forwards is stamping all over and kicking eight shades out of some poor devil on the floor then the referee blows his whistle and sends the bloke on the floor into the bin for 10 minutes because he touched the ball whilst he was down there. Cheating swine. Deserves all he gets.

Terribly sad to hear about John Kear. He was respected throughout the game and was one of the few coaches to prove that he could be effective at every level, with or without money to spend, and with or without big egos to manage. To me his genius was taking stock of the particular strengths of each of his players and building a style of play around the skills he had to hand rather than starting with a game plan then trying to mould his squad into it. He will be missed by everyone who cares about the game.

I'm amazed. Bet you couldn't stop him chattering about it in the car on the way home.

I have a brother whose initials are RPP. We also had an uncle who spent Christmas Day with us. I can't see that it is the same one though. Our uncle's idea of fun could be summed up in a couple of lines from Albert and the Lion. 'There was no wrecks and nobody drowning. In fact nothing to laugh at, at all. ' His favourite sport was Formula One, but only the start. when there was most likely to be a big coming together of cars at the first corner. After that his interest waned rapidly. I can't imagine anyone being able to persuade him to turn out for a post Christmas Dinner game of rugby. You would have had to promise him at least one carrying off on a stretcher and 2 or 3 gashes requiring 5 or more stitches to get him even slightly interested. You must be a different RPP.

I can't find the actual 'last game' that you are referring to. Further testimony to my inefficient Web searching skills. I am however amazed to see that the back to back Christmas fixtures throughout the league were largely phased out at the end of the 1960s. I was not quite qualified to buy a pint then, officially speaking.

Worse still, little or no chance for you or me BSJ.

Dewsbury played Batley at one venue on Christmas Day, with the return at the other venue on Boxind Day. I am sure this is true, although these days my memory sometimes remembers what I want it to, rather than what actually happened. I definitely remember one Christmas Day afternoon when Trevor Walker and a bloke called Shuttleworth, who propped for Batley had a real set to at the first scrum. It was just their way of saying Merry Christmas. Both probably played on Boxing Day with a nice big shiner. Sorry, I must sound like a real old giffer sometimes.

Thanks BSJ. Just had a good look through all the information and enjoyed it very much. It puts me in mind of when I was a young boy and every Christmas one of my pressies was a Rugby League Year Book. It was a smallish booklet type thing full of history of the game, information and articles about the current players and sides, and contributions from aces like Alex Murphy. Can't remember who produced it, might have been Windsor the bookies, but I really don't know. I loved it. That and my Victor annual were my favourite bits of Christmas.

Only right. The other sides efforts are somebody else's responsibility.