2020 Squad

[gateman]

if we still have Ellis on the books why not try him at prop it will not be the first half back that as done the transition at CAS only a few of us will remember Kenny Pye

[Tamworth Tiger]

wow, 3rd?!

is the competition that poor or are one or two posters making a late claim for the Forum Optimist of the Year 2019?

The bookmakers that I have seen have us 6th which is about right imo

Optimism isn’t what this Forum is known for. I remember all the ridiculous doom and gloom about the team being relegation candidates well into last season.
I haven’t seen anything sparkling happening in the rest of Superleague to suggest that we can’t have a realistic tilt at the top 4.

[gateman]

Injury's are our main problem last year we were devastated by them lots of players pulling out because the were injured during training besides those in matches , can it be that they are training too hard or is it the conditioning is not right ?? when you look at our squad i should say we are stronger than last year and should with any luck at all be up to gaining a top five spot

[nottinghamtiger]

wow, 3rd?!

is the competition that poor or are one or two posters making a late claim for the Forum Optimist of the Year 2019?

The bookmakers that I have seen have us 6th which is about right imo

The thing with the bookies is that their odds are often based on the number of bets that are likely to be made. This is massively influenced by the number of supporters a club has. For example, there are far more Leeds supporters than Cas ones, so it’s likely more people will back Leeds to win the GF than Cas. The odds therefore don’t truly reflect the mathematical probability of it happening, they reflect the number of people who are likely to bet on that probability.

[tigerfeat]

In terms of rugby league the bookies are mostly clueless as the summer of 2017 showed when cas were head and shoulders above the rest and still getting start on the handicaps against the likes of Leeds and Wigan well into the season when they wised up a bit
Until then most weeks were a liecence to print some money if you backed cas

[Hepworth7]

As a compiler of odds and working for a company that supplies odds to major bookmakers on Rugby League you might be surprised to know we do know a wee bit about the game, do we always get it right? No of course not, do we get it right enough to make a substantial profit season on season? Yes we do, and that is what matters in bookmaking,the bottom line. Are there anomalies in the book? Yes, there will always be a Leicester City or Salford who outperform expectations,does that stop us making a profit? No,all those things are factored into the equation at the outset. As Nottstiger rightly said one such factor would be the weight of bets we expect to take,the number of bets taken on a well supported team would be generally higher therefore the price offered would be based on the weight of money rather than their statiscal chances. And that Is just one factor of many and varied ones that enter calculations when it comes to setting odds. Odds which no-one should ever doubt are always but always in the bookmakers favour. Tigerfeat may be an accomplished punter who did line his pockets in 2017 but the fact we still made a good profit on the year meant he was in a small minority. I've no doubt if you have a deep enough knowledge of the game,a sensible staking plan,access to all the information we have and very deep pockets you could make money betting on the game if so fair play to you. Thankfully the people who pay my wages haven't yet realised I actually know "Zilch" about the game

[classycas57]

I'm gona go for 4th. We are much stronger than last year. The conditioner has admitted mistakes which led to the injury crisis,so in theory it shouldn't happen again. Think Richardson will have a cracking season. Hopefully have a good cup run as well.

[gateman]

I'm gona go for 4th. We are much stronger than last year. The conditioner has admitted mistakes which led to the injury crisis,so in theory it shouldn't happen again. Think Richardson will have a cracking season. Hopefully have a good cup run as well.

thats the way mate there are too many doom and gloomers on here , a stronger overhaul squad than took the field last year if the conditioning is right with not too many players crying off because they were injured in training i think we will go well,

[duke street 10]

It can be tricky predicting where clubs can finish the season...especially your own!

Two examples of how hard it can be take Wakefield & Salford last year. One finished 5th the previous season and recruited well (Brough aside) in the off season and escaped relegation by the skin of their teeth, yet most pundits prediction to really struggle in Salford made the Grand final!

For us in 2020. i think a lot will depend on how our Big forwards do,can they stay healthy and be in good form.

[lurcher]

I'd have us 3rd if nothing happens injury wise to the two half -backs

Even with a relatively injury free season the lost punching power of the mentioned forwards, a centre whats lost his cutting edge with age, and a new (but promising) half back what has to settle in, its a fight for 5th for me.
I do hope I'm proved wrong and 3rd would be exceptional in my eyes.

I think the problem we’ve got is that not many of our players would get in the first choice starting 17 at Wigan or St Helens.
Full backs (Rankin and Mata’utia) - no, Coote and Hardaker are better.
Wingers (Eden and Feki) - no, Makinson, Grace, Marshall, Burgess and French are better. I guess that’s maybe a bit harsh on Feki, he might be a superstar in SL, but he’ll have to be good to be better than the above.
Centres (Blair and Shenton) - no, Percival, Naiqama and Gildart are better. Maybe Wigan would take Blair over Hankinson.
Halves (Trueman and Richardson) - I think Fages and Lomax are both better than our two, as is Hastings at Wigan. I don’t doubt Wigan would take Trueman though.

In the forwards, I don’t see our pack as a whole as better than either Wigan’s or Saints’s. Liam Watts would walk into either team, beyond that I think McMeekan and Sene-Lafeo are the only ones who would be in Wigan or Saints’ first choice 17. Maybe that’s harsh on some of our players, but Wigan’s kids seem to have the better of our more experienced forwards last year.

think french has been given the number 6 shirt at wigan to replace williams.

[nottinghamtiger]

I'd have us 3rd if nothing happens injury wise to the two half -backs

Even with a relatively injury free season the lost punching power of the mentioned forwards, a centre whats lost his cutting edge with age, and a new (but promising) half back what has to settle in, its a fight for 5th for me.
I do hope I'm proved wrong and 3rd would be exceptional in my eyes.

I think the problem we’ve got is that not many of our players would get in the first choice starting 17 at Wigan or St Helens.
Full backs (Rankin and Mata’utia) - no, Coote and Hardaker are better.
Wingers (Eden and Feki) - no, Makinson, Grace, Marshall, Burgess and French are better. I guess that’s maybe a bit harsh on Feki, he might be a superstar in SL, but he’ll have to be good to be better than the above.
Centres (Blair and Shenton) - no, Percival, Naiqama and Gildart are better. Maybe Wigan would take Blair over Hankinson.
Halves (Trueman and Richardson) - I think Fages and Lomax are both better than our two, as is Hastings at Wigan. I don’t doubt Wigan would take Trueman though.

In the forwards, I don’t see our pack as a whole as better than either Wigan’s or Saints’s. Liam Watts would walk into either team, beyond that I think McMeekan and Sene-Lafeo are the only ones who would be in Wigan or Saints’ first choice 17. Maybe that’s harsh on some of our players, but Wigan’s kids seem to have the better of our more experienced forwards last year.

think french has been given the number 6 shirt at wigan to replace williams.

That’s interesting. With his pace and footwork, I’d want him getting the ball with as much open space in front of him as possible. Generally, that means at full-back or on the wing.
I don’t see him as a half, but I might be wrong.

[mart0042]

We can get top soit if we stay injury free and the other top teams get our usual 10 starters missing.

Saints are a wonderful team, but take out 10 starters and they aren't that strong, no one is. In 2017 we kept our best on the field, just like saints did 2018 and 2019.

[heritage1926]

If Wigan gel pretty quick then IMO are the team to beat for next year. Saints will always be up there with the calibre of their squad. People seem to think Hull will do something this year, they have the players, but I still think Radford is holding them back with his style of play, a good coach could do some big things with that current squad of theirs. We should be there or there about, I'll take top 5 before a balls kicked, that guarantees play off rugby.

[gateman]

If Wigan gel pretty quick then IMO are the team to beat for next year. Saints will always be up there with the calibre of their squad. People seem to think Hull will do something this year, they have the players, but I still think Radford is holding them back with his style of play, a good coach could do some big things with that current squad of theirs. We should be there or there about, I'll take top 5 before a balls kicked, that guarantees play off rugby.

i think you have got it right there mate i can see us in the top five

[Piquad1]

Well said Heritage I'm with u about 5th

[Lofthouse Tiger]

I'm gona go for 4th. We are much stronger than last year. The conditioner has admitted mistakes which led to the injury crisis,so in theory it shouldn't happen again. Think Richardson will have a cracking season. Hopefully have a good cup run as well.

If the new conditioner, the.cheap nasty option yet again, was at fault for the injury crisis and he has admitted so then why is he still in a job?

How will he be any better next year?

What if it happens again? How long will the club put up with it before it becomes another crisis?
Mi remember people on here questioning how this guy got the job to begin with and it now appears these concerns have proven to be correct.

Do the people in charge not see this as a massive failing and these injuries have cost us maybe a cup run, a higher league finish, better chance in play offs and above all this must have cost us and/or lost us money.

Yet again very weak and poor running of the club.

[tigerfeat]

It was a strong backroom team of Powell Sheridan Orr Cooper Crowther no doubt that was a factor in the way the team went 2017 into 2018
Cooper just gone to work at HKR i believe

[Lofthouse Tiger]

Well Mr Cooper only has himself to blame for not being at the club any more and he is also the reason his wife is no longer there.

Nothing to do with their skills or capabilities either.

He is also the reason we ended up with a cheap and nasty replacement. Cheap and nasty in a key role delivers what we had to put up with this year. So what do the club do? Continue with the cheap and nasty option.

We shall see what happens next year. Is anyone really confident that our injuries will improve or not happen with the same guy at the helm? Is he capable of becoming very good or at his job within a few months?

We have a first class head coach in DP, in other key areas he doesn’t appear to have the tools he needs to make us a challenging club every season. Just look where we are compared to 2017 and the evidence is there.

[classycas57]

I'm gona go for 4th. We are much stronger than last year. The conditioner has admitted mistakes which led to the injury crisis,so in theory it shouldn't happen again. Think Richardson will have a cracking season. Hopefully have a good cup run as well.

If the new conditioner, the.cheap nasty option yet again, was at fault for the injury crisis and he has admitted so then why is he still in a job?

How will he be any better next year?

What if it happens again? How long will the club put up with it before it becomes another crisis?
Mi remember people on here questioning how this guy got the job to begin with and it now appears these concerns have proven to be correct.

Do the people in charge not see this as a massive failing and these injuries have cost us maybe a cup run, a higher league finish, better chance in play offs and above all this must have cost us and/or lost us money.

Yet again very weak and poor running of the club.

It all depends on the guys qualifications. Whether he knows his stuff

[gateman]

lets hope our conditioner gets it right this year, too many players going down during training last year hardly a week went by before it was reported another player had gone down in training, if i was DP i would be having words with Richardson in the way Saints keep themselves so fit week in and week out