Wakefield Ram

Coates and Hookem work really hard, harder than most half backs. If they added a kicking game to their attack it would create a bit of doubt in the defence. At the moment, the opposition know they will run every ball. Bit like Finn in his last season. The opposition knew he'd pass every time, so made it easy to defend against. Sykes is a better all-round player. His age is irrelevant. The priority is to get in the Top 4. I do wonder why Jack Briggs get less game time than Joe Summers. Briggs did well in a struggling side in the Championship and is a better player in every department than Summers. Likewise Day is streets ahead of McShane. I get the idea of building a team for the future but I went to Midlands game and the ease with which they beat us was alarming. Yet the same team got selected for Newcastle and PM blamed getting to the ground too early and saying Midlands had 4x playing budget. They were fitter and better drilled. Kicked into the sun, we didn't, had clearly spotted we were vulnerable around the ruck area and we had no reply. Didn't even try one short kick-off to try and change the momentum. Feels like Andy Fisher days all over again. I remember Neil Kelly saying he wasn't a great technical coach but his strengths were man management and tactics. Well we certainly lack tactics and I'm wondering now how good the man management is.

Aayden Faal? For a short period he was outstanding and then disappeared from the scene.

Championship clubs are stuck with either not using DR and losing out to teams who do. Or use DR and hacking off their fringe players. DR benefits SL clubs. It just distorts the Championship.

Neither half back can make a break or put players through a gap. Add the absence of any kicking game in the opposition 20 and our only tactic is to barge over. Either PM doesn't ask Coates and Hookem to practice kicks or he does and they ignore it in games. And McShane needs to add more guile at acting half. As soon as we get near the line, he'll try and barge over even on 6th tackle. Day is streets ahead of McShane but gets much less game time. Equally not sure why some of our substitutions seem to happen at odd times. Unless our 6,7 and 9 create more and PM comes up with some tactics beyond battering our way upfield then there's an even chance we won't make top 4. Midlands took us apart. Fitter, faster and more creative. Crusaders just used their bigger pack to roll us over. And in neither game did we have any response. Feels a bit like Andy Fisher days all over again.

Yes I remember Billy Pickup. Signed him from Warrington and barely played. Remember he scored a long interception try when we had no quick players.

Bradford scored 4 tries from kicks against Oldham last night. Think we've scored 1 all season. Might force a goal line drop out or even do a 40:20. And hope the subs get more game time. Seems they spend most of the game sat on the bench.

Try being in L1....it's basically semi-amateur.

Agree with it being no worse than the others and neither was Sue's, which was probably the harshest decision of the lot. But Handley went in high, if he'd bend his back, no penalty, no yellow card and another player would have avoided a heavy blow to his brain.

The point is Handley wasn't bending his back. He went in high, had no time to adjust, but it's still another player receiving a heavy blow to the brain.

Completely agree where a player is falling, it's hard to adjust. But a lot of them are just going in high and the end result will simply be more players with brain damage.

Agree that the refs were no worse than the yellows. But at what point will players stop going high with their shoulders? Each one of these contacts will be rattling the players soft jelly-like brain around inside their hard skull. How many of these blows to the brain do we think is okay?

Looked at the main forum and it seems people are 50:50 split on who will win this one.

Saw this on FB. Good to see him putting Bulldog in his place at the World Coal Carrying Championship

I know for 3rd Test v Samoa last year they offered Tag Rugby players discounted tickets late on. So guessing they have some plans like that, but tbh it will need some big marketing in London to sell the game. Equally if people have spent on 2nd and 3rd test tickets, then they might hold off Wembley tickets to spread the cost a bit. Or might be editing to see cost of train tickets.

I remember that series from 1980s. The Aussie players all looked about 45

https://youtu.be/lNq9a9_ve24?si=D5nUZEPdqeFStDkZ Highlights

Crusaders, Rams, Goole, Workington

Have to say the L1 refs so far have been very good. This game will be a good test and another must win game if we want to make top 4. I doubt we will be able to run over them like we did against Newcastle. So hoping that we have some more variety on attack and maybe even a kicking game in the opposition 20.

Much as I'd like to see us win the series (esp as I have tickets for Headingley), I really can't see us winning the series. Man for man Aussies are stronger in every position. The likes of KPP, Bateman, George Williams etc.. wouldn't even get near SOO selection let alone the national team.

Agree if we had stuck to just driving through we'd have scored more. But that isn't enough against better sides and like you say we made mistakes when we tried to play some rugby. Individually we have some very good players. Interesting points you make about 6,7 and 9. Is it the coaching? At the moment I'd say we are 50:50 on making the top 4.

That is d massive blow. He was playing really well

Thunder are a very young side and they lack size, so they were always going to struggle. Credit to them for their strong 2nd half performance esp on defence. We didn't have to do too much, but managed to bomb quite a few chances the the 2nd half. Still no sign of a kicking game or set moves in the opposition 20. Coates and Hookem need to organise and manage the game.

There was a good turnout of Rams fans at Birmingham but without them, the crowd would have been very sparse.

Nice piece of promotion

So if a new employer offered you a lot more money, you'd just go back to your old employer because you'd worked there before? Whilst we are fans, for these players this is their job and livelihood. If a new employer offered you an extra £10-20,000 would you turn it down?