Chris Dean : Thu Apr 28, 2011 9:05 am  

I know we had a thread about P Johnson last week, but, watching B&All, Chris seems to be getting on ok and carving our a good career for himself. Its nice to see.

Saints now seem to be preducing an excess of youngsters of various quality that are still good enough for SL clubs. These two guys + Jacob Emmitt and Matty Smith, its sensible to predict that all three of Ashurst, Dixon and McGennis wont spend their full careers at Saints, plus we have half a glut of promising young backs who won't want to spend their careers as back up players and some will move on. Even Jamie Ellis is tipped for a return to Super League.

So saints are starting to do what wigan have done before us (and continue to do) by producing many youngsters that make the SL grade at another club. Leeds also have no problem producing players and clubs like Hudds, Cas and Bradford have also been giving a lot of oppotunities to young players it seems. London's progress in this area is well promoted by posters on the VT.

So, in another couple of years, especially with Widnes, who have an impressive youth system, also joining SL, will we be producing enough professional players to sustain 2 more SL teams like some people hope, or should we keep the number of clubs lower, with a veiw to keeping the average standard higher or reucing the no of imports to 2 per team?

Re: Chris Dean : Thu Apr 28, 2011 9:23 am  

Dean has lost over half a stone in weight and looks a few yards quicker since he went to Wakefield.

Re: Chris Dean : Thu Apr 28, 2011 9:31 am  

Rogues Gallery wrote:

Dean has over half a stone in weight and looks a few yards quicker since he went to Wakefield.

A few of the lads here now look to have become a little more lean since the tellytubby days of Potter

Re: Chris Dean : Thu Apr 28, 2011 9:59 am  

I still think he is more suited to playing 2nd row, was very impressed when he played there for the reserves last year.

Re: Chris Dean : Thu Apr 28, 2011 10:51 am  

Offside Monkey wrote:

So, in another couple of years, especially with Widnes, who have an impressive youth system, also joining SL, will we be producing enough professional players to sustain 2 more SL teams like some people hope, or should we keep the number of clubs lower, with a veiw to keeping the average standard higher or reucing the no of imports to 2 per team?

I think the number of clubs we have now is pretty much a maximum. The bottom three or four clubs are still short of the required standard IMO. The increased number of British youngsters will hopefully help to bring those clubs up to standard, but it'll take some time. Let's not forget that once the numerous overseas players that currently have exemptions from non-fed status start to retire then they will have to be replaced by English players. Hull KR, for example, are going to have to find 5 good quality domestically produced players over the next 2 or 3 years to maintain the standard they've reached. Presumably they'll be looking to buy in, which will leave gaps elsewhere.

If we're going to genuinely improve the competition then the emphasis should now be on quality rather than quantity.

Re: Chris Dean : Thu Apr 28, 2011 11:03 am  

This is where the franchising sustem is working well, forcing potential club s to develop youth systems as widnes have had to do. Would be great to have a cumbrian team back in sl tapping into the local youth pool up there , any new club must be able to develop their own players now.

Re: Chris Dean : Thu Apr 28, 2011 1:31 pm  

LOL! Christine!


(I'll get me coat.)