Firstly you have to realise that York's budget is nowhere near that of the mighty FAX, just to get rid of the if you have the money brigade. I will start with my assessment of YORK, very well coached,good quick half backs,plenty of pace, loads of attacking options, great defence,forwards that made yards in the tackle, enthusiastic,aggressive,well disciplined,virtually error free and they possibly still may finish out of the 5. Now FAX - NONE OF THE ABOVE. A pathetic performance with Murrell and White in particular anonymous, forwards running in glue and QLT sat in the stand watching things unravel on a perfect playing surface. No top 5 this year for definate, I know what needs to change and I know Murrell/Grix is not the answer, but will it.
I did wonder why QLT was not playing, yes his defence is suspect but the guy creates things from nothing which is what we are missing!!!! Think the time for younger fresh halfbacks is here.
Halifax are going through what Featherstone & Leigh, Sheffield & Bradford have been through. That is, fans & club owners expectations are massively higher than what actually happens in the Championship purely based on pounds spent.
Teams in this league turn each other over week in week out, it’s never going to change, that’s what makes the league so good, it’s good honest Rugby League. Fans believe that the more money you spend the bigger the win margin should be and that’s nonsense, and Halifax are going through that.
My team Leigh spent 1.6 million last year and you pumped us at your place, money doesn’t make you win games in this league, I’m used to seeing it, problem is you guys aren’t, and I’ve sat here reading your comments goading us in the past for spending and not achieveing and unfortunately now is your time being in the leagues “big boys”
Stick with it, enjoy your team, you have a track record of finishing strong and I’m sure you will.
Last edited by Binosh on Sun Mar 17, 2019 7:26 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Waddy, QLT was apparently saying it's too cold for him currently, which was why he was dropped last week.. today was ideal for him. However watching the play slow considerably every time Murrell or White touched the ball, I doubt he would have had any impact. This Fax team is a very poor team with too many has beens or journeymen now. Jonno is not the answer either.... The issue (and I've said for several years) lies with the coach. Frankly he's woeful and should have gone years ago. Zero development of the squad, very little development or pathway via the U23s despite in excess of 250k spent on it... Marshall is a very very poor coach. Stevie Wonder can see our halves are very poor, we lack a strike centre and generally pace in the backs full stop. We also need 2 aggressive forwards (with 1 a nasty offloading prop). It's clear where we lack and everyone but our coach (loosest sense of the word) can spot it after 5 years.... What squad development has there been? Very little! It's still the majority of Harrison's squad and many of his additions have been questionable at best...
Today I saw a team that lacked heart, ideas and aggression. Very poor discipline and incapable of breaking the line with slow halves incapable of stamping any authority on the game at all. Unless changes are made quickly, this could be a very very long season where crowds dwindle considerably. For me Marshall must be shown the door and quickly cos today was embarrassing and sadly not much different from any games Fax have played in so far this year....
We have had one decent performance against Dewsbury. At Widnes, Fev and York today we have been out muscled, out enthused and out played by much better sides. Poor performance in every respect, attack, defence discipline again.
I think the weather v Dewsbury flattered us.... We just managed the conditions better. Another day (weatherwise) I think would have seen something similar to other performances
"Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid."― Albert Einstein "Everybody gets so much information all day long that they lose their common sense." ― Gertrude Stein "Don't believe everything you read on the internet" ― Abraham Lincoln
Well that was poor but honestly not a shock to anyone who has seen our performances this season. In previous years we could get away with having the worst attack in the top 5 or 6 teams because our defence was so good but this season won't be the case as we look pretty soft up front and have no back up as our attack is as poor as it has been. Our attack is laboured and slow, again no real surprise to anyone who has watched most of the same players for the past few seasons, but now we seem to give more penalties away than most teams in the league which will test any defence.
Marshalls contract runs out this season and now after a few games it does not look like there is any talk about an extension so surely it would be in the clubs best interests to make the break now while the season can still be rescued and give a new coach a chance to be ready for next season rather than wait and do everything rushed at the last minute?
We have had one decent performance against Dewsbury. At Widnes, Fev and York today we have been out muscled, out enthused and out played by much better sides. Poor performance in every respect, attack, defence discipline again.
While I wasn't there today, it seems given what people are saying is that we are either lacking confidence on the field or we didn't have the right mindset to tackle York today. Either way, the discipline is alarming, I think it was 8-1 in the second half. However, I really can't empathise with the Marshall bashing. Yes, he has been found wanting tactically on occasions but to say that the youth system hasn't bore fruit is misguided. Take a look at Fev and their rent-a-squad. Last 2 games they have had 6 players playing who don't belong to them. Leigh, 5 players that don't belong to them. This isn't sustainable. We have a youth- set up that will provide a pipeline for seasons to come. It's no coincidence that the most successful teams of the last 2 decades also have the most successful youth set ups (Bradford, Wigan, Leeds).
Too cold for Q L T ? W T F it's not as though this is his first season in England. I bet it is not too cold for him to pick up his wage packet . As for a penalty count of 8-1 against it shows : players too slow/ out of condition to catch opponents therefore have to give penalties. a disregard for the discipline required to be a professional sportsman. lack of skills, basic rugby practices. I am just disappointed it cannot be sorted out by the coaching staff, yes blame R M but once the players cross the whitewash he is powerless. Fine players who give penalties away, hurt them where it counts, say 10% of the wage for every penalty given away needlessly on single players, or you could make it peer pressure and fine the whole team 5 % of their wages for every penalty given away needlessly. The referees can t be wrong every week. It has been suggested to change coach now: Can Fax afford the payoff? Who is there to step in ?, don t mention Murrell and Grix would be just the same, as for reasons stated by others,they are seasoned pros and should be able to change things on the field at the time. Been said before, Keep doing the same thing over and over, you will get the same result and wonder why. Doh