Mr.Side wrote:
However would all of you on here really leave Wellens out of the 17 every week? Is Makinson that good to replace Wellens straight away? Wellens experience and leadership this season could be vital with the loss of James Graham to the NRL.
Wellens is still a good player, don't let anyone convince you otherwise, but Saints are a team that has consistantly fallen short at the final hurdle, people want us to move forward and make that extra step. Wellens plays well and will pop up with tries and assists through his individual talent, but when he slots into the team move in that 2nd pivot role, I'm afraid he just tends to slow things down and blunten a formerly crisp move. Last year he, didn't look his usual solid self and was beaten too easily too often, although as I have previoulsy said, he finished the season strongly.
The arguement for Makinson is probably that he offers a similar amount, replacing experience with speed and classy handling, but Makinson has the potential to improve, whereas Wellens is heading the opposite direction.
Bear in mind that makinson hasn't been through many big tests at #1, although he played well in the GF.