Makinson has a natural class about him, he looks made for the NRL.
Cunningham probably doesn't have very long left anyway? Now Leeds have turned a corner I think he may be the one under most pressure.
Herein lies a problem.
Robes has been fantastic for many years. He is coming to the end of his career but there's no one of the same caliber at the club, excluding a young player called Jonah Cunningham. Yes, that's correct. CUNNINGHAM.
KC seems terrified of accusations of nepotism and would rather buy an aged (jobbing) player (tommy Lee, please stand up) than promote his lad to be an understudy
We have a few superb players in robes, Percy, fages, Lomax and Makinson, the rest are bang average.
Makinson has a natural class about him, he looks made for the NRL.
Cunningham probably doesn't have very long left anyway? Now Leeds have turned a corner I think he may be the one under most pressure.
Cunningham will see out the season without doubt, as will Mcdermott. Tony smith? He's the one I'd be most worried about moving/sack/?
He's taken warrington as far as he can. Grand Finalists twice, 1 hubcap and several challenge cup wins is a record to be proud of but they're very inconsistent. In 2015 they didn't even make the playoffs! Last year finalists in both comps they expected to win and look at them this season.
Leeds (like saints) will be up and down all season I reckon. They beat Wakefield easily in the end last night but there were a few warning signs. I don't think they've turned the corner yet and it'll be a poor season but much better than last season.
Saints will string a run together and leave themselves within shooting distance of the semis and that's the issue. Mediocrity. We shouldn't be aiming for semis of any comp, we should be winning them or at the very least appearing in the final.
For some reason I don't see Smith being sacked. Stepping down and moving on maybe but not sacked.
It's a funny one as he is the coach that came in to take Leeds to the next level after excellent work by daryl Powell. Now he needs to b replaced by someone who can take his work to the next level. Although I think they've had their chance and blown it.
Leeds have had their fun over the last few years and it's spoiled a lot of younger fans who know nothing but success. Time to wake up and start again!
I`m still smarting after Trinity's defeat last night! Leeds deserved the win but it should've been a good deal closer. Trinity made mistakes with the ball in hand at crucial times; the Leeds try before half time was the game-breaker in my view because it took Leeds out to a 16 point lead, it came from a handling error by Wakefield whilst in a good attacking position. I lost count of the number of times we kicked the ball dead and gave Leeds a 20 meter restart, which is a mistake with the new 7 tackle rule. What worried me more is the way our pack looked second best, particularly in the second half. Only consolation was Tom Johnstone's first try, he's one of the few wingers in Super League with genuine pace and he used it to good effect. Chris Chester wasn`t happy after the game, I thought he was a bit too scathing on the players, but they did shoot themselves in the foot with errors and penalties at the wrong time.
Have Leeds turned the corner? I`m not convinced. They relied heavily on the forwards last night and if Trinity had muscled up to them better I think they would've struggled. The attacking play still lacks fluency to me.
I watched Leigh vs Warrington and Leigh impressed me. Gareth Hock showed how effective he can be when he keeps his head! We play them next week at Wakey and I`m expecting a close game, hopefully Hock will revert to type and incur the wrath of the referee!
Who'll be the first coach to get the bullet this season?.....too early to tell but someone's head will roll before the first 23 games are played.
Paul
Just want to clear up I didn't mean Leeds had turned the corner. I just mean they seem to have found some confidence and look a different team to last year. I don't expect to get near winning anything still.
Hock is one of the biggest wastes of talent I've ever seen. He could've been another Adrian Morley or Sam Burgess in my opinion. His potential was huge.
Anyone following Toronto Wolfpack? I have to say I'm very impressed with their social media team. Setting a standard for rugby league teams all over!
Well!
24-28 win for the saints at Perpignan with some off the cuff rugby and the winning try from a piece of great skill from Fages who offloaded the ball as he hit the ground!
COYS!!
31-6 to the Saints, the "entertainers" turned up at last!
Surprised to see Matty Smith back so quick.
Not a clue what Hull tried tonight, 22-0 up and did their best to chuck it away! Still, 2 points at Wigan isn't something to moan about and top of the table tonight. Hopefully we can get a couple back before Warrington next week!
Well, we were poor again last night (Wire). Kicking game abysmay and daft turnovers and penalties. Total lack of creativity and ideas. The first half was played in our half almost, we couldnt get any field position. Need to get a win from somewhere, and soon.
Stuart
I was pleased to see Wakefield win on Thursday, I was at the match and it was an interesting game to say the least! In the second half Trinity did a great job of containing Leigh, maybe other sides will take note of what's needed to beat them. Also think we had our fair share of luck with the decisions, although the ref got a few wrong for both sides.....that was clear when I watched the game again on TV.
Paul
Saints at salford tonight!!!! Live on SKY right now.
We welcome Jonny Lomax back in his Fullback position, so tommy makinson reverts to the wing.
A win tonight will be a step in the right direction!
COYS!
Salford have had a great game and it's 22-10 to the Red Devils....
5 mins left!!
We clawed another try back but Salford defended as though their life's depended on it. Mark Flanagan and Lama Tasi had storming games for Salford. Both ex saints shown the door so something to prove!
Salford win, 22-14 final score.
Well, we play Leeds this week. I'm hoping Ferres gets a lengthy ban for that disgusting tackle on Gildart. That will take some of their firepower from them, but I still believe we will get beaten. We just dont seem to have any confidence at the mo, and the mistakes we make in possession is costly. When we have the ball we dont seem to know what to do with it, whether its the players trying too hard and actually forcing the errors themselves I dont know, but we should not be bottom.
Stuart
Just returned home from a week in sunny Spain. Weather was excellent and I found a bar with all the Sky games showing.
Highlight for me was (obviously) the Wakey/Catalans match last Saturday evening. Surprised to see a Trinity win, they had their share of luck with the tries but also took full advantage of Catalan's mistakes. Had a couple of extra St Miguels to celebrate
All three matches were entertaining, Mrs Walker enjoyed them too. Having a wife who likes rugby has distinct advantages.......shame she's a Cas fan!
Paul
Six matches I believe he got. Not sure we'll miss him that much - he's a good option but we should have Ward back and although he's a different type of player, I much prefer him
Very odd seeing Warrington so poor. Shows it can happen to anyone with like it did with us last year.
Tonight's game warrington vs Leeds, currently 12-4 at the start of the 2nd half.
Warrington seem to have had a good first half.
Ben Westwood is such an ineffective player nowadays, that late tackle was horrid.
He used to be a real battering ram with the ball.
Just returned home from watching the Wakey v Widnes match, we weren't great but the win was well-deserved.
Super evening, back home to Normanton after the game for a celebratory pint or three!
Punching well above our weight so far.......the mighty Trin march on!
Paul
Keiron Cunningham sacked by Saints, this Friday`s derby should be interesting.
Always seems a shame when a coach gets the bullet, it's the players on the field who lose matches but all coaches know they'll carry the can if performances ate below par. A hard decision considering KC's status as a Saints legend.
Paul
Last edited by RJM25R; 10th April 2017 at 17:49.
Well Good Friday is upon us!
I'm getting picked up in less than an hour for the trip to the DW Stadium.
Rumour has it Sam Tomkins injury sustained whilst filming Benidorm hasn't cleared up.
I'm sure the Sky commentators will mention him many times throughout the match however I won't hear them as I'm infiltrating the Pie ranks for the day.
On a serious note, it'll be our first game under a "new" coaching staff and I'm glad to see that Peyrox has finally been dropped after some of the worst performances I've seen a player make in the red v. Owens misses out too, and whilst he's score a couple of tries he's not really super league quality.
The loss of James Roby for 6 weeks with a knee injury is far more worrying, and the speed at the PTB will suffer without him.
I'm sure it'll be a slog of a game with Wigan also short of some players, but if we play "the Saints way" and take the first steps to going back to being "the entertainers" I'll accept the result either way!
COYS!
[QUOTE=RJM25R;4316270]Well Good Friday is upon us!
I'm getting picked up in less than an hour for the trip to the DW Stadium
Bring a brolly, it's p1551ng down.
Probably be a slog fest played right up the middle, can't see anyone throwing it wide in this weather.
Sam isn't back yet, though your suspicions of the cause of injury are wrong, rumour in Wigan is that he tripped over his neatly combed beard.
Possible return for Budgie, Lockers to add some firepower & stability in the middle, Micky Mac in the squad but I suspect that's just a scare tactic to heap pressure on your temporary coaching squad.
Looking forward to a good encounter.
I was proud of how we played, about time grace got a run out as well!
Both teams played well and the atmosphere as always was electric!!!
We had hospitality, and I was lucky enough to spend some time with Marshall and burgess after the game to get some stuff signed for a benefit gig I was at later in the evening. They both know I'm a saints fan and they both said it was never a sending off, Marshall said he wasn't even hurt but by the time he got up the ref had already red carded Amor.
As an aside, The lad who we had the benefit do for at my local rugby club has just lost his mum he is only 19 (same age as my son) and lost his dad when he was young. Not a boy or a man. He's a pie as well so I wanted to get him a bit of something and the players were more than happy to sign anything for me.
Reinforces my thoughts of ""the family sport"
Last edited by RJM25R; 16th April 2017 at 09:21.
Indeed it was! Bit disappointing with the refereeing as it seemed a little one-sided at some points, lots of missed penalties for high tackles and lying on in the ruck. Touch-judges didn't seem to be paying too much attention either to forward passes from Cas or being onside at the play-the-ball.
Aside from that the gameplay was great from both sides, I didn't expect the winning margin to be as narrow!
Bring on Widnes
Not a huge fan of Rugby League (Salford had a habit of turning you off ) but I watched the Wigan v Saints match and he was a revelation . His speed, directness and confidence were great to witness. Even when he dropped the ball over the line from the kick off after his try didn't seem to bother him. Even with his daft haircut, I expect to hear a lot more of this kid.
Not a happy Easter for a trinity fan. The defeat at Cas was predictable, they blew us away in the first half and the game was gone by half-time.
Today's defeat at home to Wigan was a disappointment, the game was there for the winning but we lacked the class to take our chances; we desperately need a better half-back pairing. A dour game played by two tired-looking sides, I`m not a fan of playing 2 games close together over Easter and I think it's time it stopped. It may be tradition but the game's so much faster and harder thesedays, too many players carrying knocks and fatigue from last Friday's game for my liking.
Only consolation today was the Cas Pussies losing to Saints.
Warrington away next Saturday, wish we'd played 'em 4 weeks ago before they started improving.
Paul
Last edited by walkerwek1958; 17th April 2017 at 21:05.
Well said! We played Widnes on a Thursday night and they hardly brought any fans. A combination of midweek travelling and the match being on Sky spoiled things a bit.
Bring back Sunday afternoon games, on balance it suits more people. I enjoy watching the odd match on Thursdays on TV but overall I don`t think it's a good thing.
Paul
Well done Saints today, I thought Cas were going to be unbeatable this season. Helps us Wire fans in keeping the gap at the top to a minimum!!
Glad Hull managed to tackle again today. Big game next week for us v Cas. Win that and only a point off top
Last edited by goregasm; 18th April 2017 at 15:55.
I did say Leeds may have turned a corner
Regan Grace certainly looked impressive, definitely a talented prospect.......just needs a trip to the barbers.
Decided to watch the Wakey/Wigan game agan on Sky and It looked a whole lot better on TV than live! What I initially thought was a dour contest was actually an absorbing arm-wrestle of a match with both sides giving 100%. Shame we lost, but I think all players from both sides could hold their heads high after that match. Two hard-won points for the pie- eaters , with a bit more luck we could've beat 'em.
Paul
Woeful performance tonight vs widnes.
So much dropped ball, so many penalties.
Watched the Wakefield v Warrington game this afternoon on TV...........just as I thought we were going to hang on and win we concede a try with 2 mins to play. Warrington's comeback was impressive, they were the better side for the last 20 mins, but to hang on to the lead till the last 2 mins is a disappointing way to lose. That's two close finishes that have gone against Wakey, and valuable league points have been lost. We're going to struggle to make the top 8 and these defeats will no doubt prove costly.
Crying in my beer tonight!
Paul
Good win for Hull especially with Watts getting sent off after 20 minutes and Houghton missing again!
De Ja Vu from the Hull City game the day before... it's been a weekend of 20 minute red cards that shouldn't have been given!
After the drubbing on Saturday, Saints now have literally nothing to play for but pride.
New permanent coach Justin Holbrook will be onboard soon, but unless he clears some deadwood sharpies and restores some confidence quickly, I'm not sure we'll even make the top eight, and for the first time in SL history not make the playoffs.
Absolutely gutted.
Seems unthinkable that Saints could miss out on the top 8, but we were saying the same about Leeds last year!
Paul