Adam B

Hally's versatility, and the (free-scoring) quality he brings to wherever he plays, makes him one of the first names on the team sheet. Anyone seriously suggesting he might not be part of the starting 13 is guilty of McDermott-esque levels of woeful judgement re our playing group.

That's not entirely true POR, I seem to recall Chizzy playing on and off in early season while McD fannied around with the halves, and alongside Ryley in that turgid draw at Batley, then being farmed out on loan a few weeks later, with Ford being announced a few weeks after that. By any measure that's someone being moved out to bring someone else in. That went well.

Kind of works though. Here he is working on his kicking game with Longy:

Who could blame him? Anyway it'd be our fault for allowing McDownbeat to push him out last season, only to replace him with Mick Fleetwood.

Liking the new shirt.

I'd be delighted to see us bring in Kyle Laybutt, he's looked impressive for PNG and looks to have a pretty decent kicking game to boot (no pun intended), which is something we really need. If we do sign him, I'd be inclined to sign a livewire half to play alongside him and encourage Ford to 'move on'. Dare I say it, and if his body is still up to it, we could always get Chizzy back............

I realise it's going over old ground, but you really have to wonder what the funk McDermott was doing with them in training all season. Perhaps he was so busy holding one-to-one confidence-destroying workshops he didn't have time for defence. If Longy is mostly focused on the attack, he could consider bringing someone in to specifically coach the defensive stuff, maybe on a player-coach basis? I'd guess there are always older SL players with the right skillsets who may be after that kind of opportunity.

I'd definitely agree re the bigger pack, but I'm always happy with Hardy wherever he plays. Never takes a backward step and improves us defensively wherever he is. I always feel he has biggest impact in the centres, but he's also not the same kind of centre as Joey/Hankinson, if you ask me they're strike centres whereas Hardy's more of an 'all-rounder'. What you gain in defence then with Hardy, you lose a little bit in try threat. It's a nice problem to have if you're the coach.

Would echo the thoughts above, Hankinson is a great signing (completely unexpected too), particularly if we're aiming to play more expansively next year - big well done to the club on bringing him in. If we play to his strengths, and also get Joey going consistently the way he's shown he can in spells (notably in that last quarter against Batley), we'll have some major threats out wide. I wonder who's next?

Mine too, I've a lot of time for Batley and if we can't do it, I'd be delighted to see them get there instead. Edit - I expect nothing but a tight/nervy game on Sunday, as they are well capable of turning us over, particularly if they play with the same intensity/low error rate they had when they beat us in June.

Just imagine how long the pole was when he was playing in Toronto

You're quite right, I'd completely forgotten about our fixed term contract Jack B. Whether that says more about his impact this season, or the sieve that is my mind these days, is of course for my neurosurgeon to decide.

I popped into the club shop yesterday to renew my membership for next year, so I reluctantly take full credit for both these re-signings. Be gutted if Jack B is moving on - say it ain't so.

Joey could play Oddjob. Closing credits - 'Jamil Bond will return in..... The Cheque Is Not Enough'.

In an ideal world, yes.

In view of the way Moors has carried the pack forward at times this year, you'd have to think he's got at least another year in him. Would love to see him bossing it in a Fev shirt again next year. Tempt Eseh with a 3 year deal, and find a few more big young forwards in the same vein, and we'd be shaping up nicely.

This has to be a wind up. Can just see it - Feisal Nahaboo is Jamil Bond, in 'Pay Another Day'.

Moors Koppy Briscoe

Fantastic news re Koppy (in particular), and totally unexpected given McD's doom-laden assessment when he first picked up the injury.

Nor mine Robin, and not the point I was making. POR makes an interesting point though, and it's a shame if that was a factor affecting his game. My point was that he never seemed to play to or take advantage of his size, and he's far from alone in that regard (I'm looking at you Ryan Verlinden, amongst many many others). I don't think he was tripe though, and judging by his visible enthusiasm and constant geeing up/encouragement of the other players he must have been a great lad to have in the team/dressing room.

morepieslesstries91waistsize?

Keegan Hirst begs to differ POR.

I was going to post something very similar, bizarrely including that sense he'd been with us for more than just the one season. What an absolutely superb player he was. A Rolls Royce. The fact he's only ever spoken with obvious affection for us ever since just further cements his Fev legend status. Indeed I still vividly remember his interview after that heart-breaking home defeat to Hull in early '95 where he was talking about how clubs like Fev never seem to get the rub of the green etc. But then, what would he know......... Agreed young Freddy Banqueting-Hall was pretty good too. Didn't he have a couple of mysteriously disallowed tries in the above-mentioned fix game?

The big question now is what constitutes the greatest miracle - what Ford witnessed in that delivery room last weekend, or ever seeing him in a Fev shirt again?

I can't imagine why they would have thought that. Nothing to do with the fact that for the best part of 20 years the RFL allowed SL clubs to create an obviously closed shop which protected and sustained clubs like London and Bradford. Add to that the frequent bailing out of Bradford by the RFL, in order to help them retain their SL status at the expense of more deserving clubs. Like ours. Then you wonder why some people might think the RFL have certain clubs they favour, and some they don't. How soon people forget.