Re: Should Shenton be dropped to the reserves for a bit ? : Sun Apr 15, 2012 9:18 am  

Saddened! wrote:

Wheeler should be released. He's proven his lack of fortitude far too many times and he simply can never be relied upon.

Shenton had a MAJOR injury last season in the Grand Final. We've got to give him time to get over that and dropping him isn't conducive to that. He should be given the rest of this season (As it's a write off anyway due to how weak the squad is and the fact we have no coach) to gain strength and confidence.

Did he used to bully you at school or something!!!

Re: Should Shenton be dropped to the reserves for a bit ? : Sun Apr 15, 2012 9:50 am  

Saddened! wrote:

Wheeler should be released. He's proven his lack of fortitude far too many times and he simply can never be relied upon.

As for Shenton, he (hopefully) just needs games to shake the injury off - if his problems are mainly psychological then I think he's better off doing that in the first team than stuck back in the reserves which wouldn't do anyone any good. We've got very few alternatives to play instead of him, especially with other injuries, that could do the job as well as even a struggling Shenton so it's a bit of a non-issue really anyway.

He's been very disappointing in a Saints shirt so far, but he'll no doubt have taken time to settle in, has had a complete lack of service and then the injury so it's unfair to write him off just yet. We're stuck with him one way or another for the next 18 months so hopefully he'll start to show what he can do once the injury is finally sorted and he starts to see some ball from a coach who knows what to do with a backline.

Re: Should Shenton be dropped to the reserves for a bit ? : Sun Apr 15, 2012 10:37 am  

I don't mind cutting Shenton some slack for what was a terrible injury. It has to be remembered that Cunningham took the best part of twelve months to get over something similar.

But I just don't buy this "lack of service" as a reason for showing, well, nothing much in his first season. Yes, centres such as Newlove, Iro, Lyon etc. did benefit a little more in terms of possession. But they could also chip in with impressive form when service was at a premium.

Gleeson is a very good example. When signed (as, well, an unknown - certainly not a GB/Eng fringe player) he was essentially the junior partner in the centres - a secondary attacking option. But even though the ball was almost always going the opposite direction he still managed to chisel out some pretty vital performances. To such an extent that his reputation at the end of his first season was considerably enhanced. In contrast we have Shenton who, so far, has struggled to achieve the best form he showed in a Castleford shirt.

Yes, League is a team game. But this doesn't mean the annulment of individual responsibility. I'm sure there isn't a player at the club who wouldn't love to give Shenton as much possession as he'd like. But Shenton has to reciprocate with doing the absolute best with what he's got. Which so far hasn't amounted to a great deal.

Re: Should Shenton be dropped to the reserves for a bit ? : Sun Apr 15, 2012 11:04 am  

Mugwump wrote:

But I just don't buy this "lack of service" as a reason for showing, well, nothing much in his first season. Yes, centres such as Newlove, Iro, Lyon etc. did benefit a little more in terms of possession. But they could also chip in with impressive form when service was at a premium.

Agreed, I don't buy that 'excuse' - as that's what it is in reality. Someone on redvee gave some statistics which proved that he was getting just as much ball as his opposite number.

His disappointing performances have probably been exaggerated after having Lyon and Gidley there in the recent past.

Re: Should Shenton be dropped to the reserves for a bit ? : Sun Apr 15, 2012 11:16 am  

I think he's just symptomatic of the decline in standards. Ten years ago we wouldn't have looked at him.

Re: Should Shenton be dropped to the reserves for a bit ? : Sun Apr 15, 2012 2:41 pm  

I felt really sorry for him yesterday. Whenever the ball came to him he either dropped it, or had the body language of someone who had never seen a rugby ball before, nor an idea of what to do with said object.

I really hope he catches a break soon though, he was doing so well in the tail end of last season.

Re: Should Shenton be dropped to the reserves for a bit ? : Sun Apr 15, 2012 2:49 pm  

To me he looks like a kid who's yet to flesh out. Given the nature of his injury perhaps he missed a lot of pre-season strength conditioning. I suppose the last thing you want to do with a dodgy elbow is pile 240lbs on the bench press.

The trouble is I doubt he'll regain that muscle mass until the next pre-season.

Re: Should Shenton be dropped to the reserves for a bit ? : Sun Apr 15, 2012 7:26 pm  

Carlos Alberto wrote:

I felt really sorry for him yesterday. Whenever the ball came to him he either dropped it, or had the body language of someone who had never seen a rugby ball before, nor an idea of what to do with said object.

I really hope he catches a break soon though, he was doing so well in the tail end of last season.

Shenton has been a very poor buy; he has not got a step to speak of and he is certainly not robust enough to break a tackle. He also looks to be sadly lacking in pace, his tackling is weak and his handling skills of late leave much to be desired. All the excuses regarding lack of quality ball etc is a load of cobblers, a decent player will make his own openings, something Shenton is incapable of doing. It is time to get shut.

Re: Should Shenton be dropped to the reserves for a bit ? : Sun Apr 15, 2012 7:36 pm  

Mugwump wrote:

I suppose the last thing you want to do with a dodgy elbow is pile 240lbs on the bench press.

I hope our players are doing alot more than that! i can do that myself!

Re: Should Shenton be dropped to the reserves for a bit ? : Sun Apr 15, 2012 10:42 pm  

Mugwump wrote:

I think he's just symptomatic of the decline in standards. Ten years ago we wouldn't have looked at him.

I agree completely - a decade ago he'd have whiled his career away at Cas unnoticed in mid-table anonymity. Now he's a GB and first choice Saints player and one of the top 3 or 4 centres in the country. Oh my, how standards in our game have plummeted.

Albion wrote:

Agreed, I don't buy that 'excuse' - as that's what it is in reality. Someone on redvee gave some statistics which proved that he was getting just as much ball as his opposite number.

Lies, damn lies and statistics etc. He may have run with the ball as many times as Meli did, but Shenton's runs were 90-95% from dummy half or 1st receiver whereas Meli generally received it down the line, in space and at pace. Shenton, whatever his strengths or weaknesses, is not the kind of player who's going to be able to cause defences problems up the middle from a standing start. In the 7 or so Saints games I watched last season I made a point of watching Shenton in every game and I reckon he received the ball out wide and at pace about 3 or 4 times tops in all those games put together. He's not a Newlove or a Lyon (nor even a Gleason) who can produce something out of nothing and needs the right service to shine. I hope he gets it under Brown next season so we can see one way or another what he's about, and I'll reserve judgement on him 'til then.