Wigan game : Fri Sep 01, 2017 7:59 pm  

Leave aside the crap start. Our problem looks like creativity and skill. George Williams on his own has offered more direction, structure and creativity than Smith and Lomax put together.

I don't think we have it in us to come back from 3 scores down against a committed defence. We just don't know how to score enough.

40 minutes to prove me wrong, but I think our season ended when Gildart was gifted that second try.

Re: Wigan game : Fri Sep 01, 2017 8:52 pm  

The lack from f brain and structure in the last 30 minutes has been awful to see. We have two creative, fast halves. Both aren't playing tonight.

Re: Wigan game : Fri Sep 01, 2017 8:57 pm  

Even with a decent referee, we're not good enough. But I have to say hicks is a useless prick.

Re: Wigan game : Fri Sep 01, 2017 9:05 pm  

To be fair, this has been the worst season for Saints I've watched since the game moved to summer in '96. We've never deserved to be in the finals. Our attack is the worst in the top 8, and we've the slowest squad I can remember. Let's draw a line under this, and hope Holbrook can build a different team for next year.

Re: Wigan game : Fri Sep 01, 2017 9:12 pm  

Crap start killed us, 14 points down before we got going.

Our new spine looked exactly that. Looked like they'd never played together. Smith is poor, everything with him is so slow. Lomax isn't a 6, at least not on tonight's showing. He looked better in the last 10/15 when we had some urgency about us. Barba was rusty but when he had space looked dangerous.

Isa should have been off the pitch for that tackle on LMS. Whether it should have been a yellow or a red is subjective. On report is a cop out, if he gets a ban for that tackle, how does it benefit us? It doesn't. Leuluai's lunge when Taia scored should have been an 8 points try too imo.

One thing that really annoys me is apparent tackles in the air. Not just tonight, it happens every week in most matches. When an attacking player challenges for the ball with the defending player, as soon as there's slight contact it's a penalty. Happened tonight when Percival challenged Marshall(?), Percival had eyes on the ball, yet was penalised for it.

Re: Wigan game : Fri Sep 01, 2017 10:26 pm  

I actually thought Lomax offered a threat in the halves through his ball handling ability when running at the line. Barba who is about 3 yards slower than he was in the NRL still looked threatening in attack. Smith looked about 2 yards off the pace, and it showed when Wigan repeatedly attacked down that channel. They knew he was slow and exploited it with quick shifts. When he had the ball in hand they just let him run as they knew he could not go through a gap.

I personally was shocked that Fage was not on the bench, as expected him to rotate with someone else.

Looking forward the coach can now use the rest of the season to break through some of the youngsters.
Richardson needs to be given the last 3 games to help give him more experience, with a view to him partnering Lomax next season.

Fage i would rotate with Roby at hooker.

Smith needs to be used more as a senior mentor, like Wello in his last couple of years filling in when required.

Re: Wigan game : Sat Sep 02, 2017 9:21 am  

Roy Haggerty wrote:

Leave aside the crap start. Our problem looks like creativity and skill. George Williams on his own has offered more direction, structure and creativity than Smith and Lomax put together.

I don't think we have it in us to come back from 3 scores down against a committed defence. We just don't know how to score enough.

40 minutes to prove me wrong, but I think our season ended when Gildart was gifted that second try.

I think Holbrook made massive mistake in his team selection and I really think it cost us the game.

In the biggest game of the year so far, we go into the game with a fullback that hasn't played rugby league for nearly 12 month and it looked like it. We had a brand new halfback partnership in lomax and the worst 7 in super league in matty Smith.

This wasn't the game to experiment. Ben barba should have been on bench with lomax fullback and fages and Smith (I'd pick Richardson) in the halves. We could have brought barba on if needed to win the game or if we was winning.

We looked like a team that was playing out 2nd game of the year with new players coming in and not a team playing in plsyoffs looking to make semis

Re: Wigan game : Mon Sep 04, 2017 8:45 am  

St pete wrote:

I think Holbrook made massive mistake in his team selection and I really think it cost us the game.

In the biggest game of the year so far, we go into the game with a fullback that hasn't played rugby league for nearly 12 month and it looked like it. We had a brand new halfback partnership in lomax and the worst 7 in super league in matty Smith.

This wasn't the game to experiment. Ben barba should have been on bench with lomax fullback and fages and Smith (I'd pick Richardson) in the halves. We could have brought barba on if needed to win the game or if we was winning.

We looked like a team that was playing out 2nd game of the year with new players coming in and not a team playing in plsyoffs looking to make semis

Spot on mate, I said the same in the build up to the game that Barba should be on the bench to come on at some point and with Fage and Richie in at the halves with Smith left back in Wigan.

We had no creativity when we get near the oppositions try line, we just seem to run out of ideas and revert to the Cunningham side to side drivel. On that showing I am wondering if 'Cunningham Consultants' had rang Holbrook to give advice before the game....it sure looked like it, but the Ref didn't help either and had a shocker for me.

Re: Wigan game : Mon Sep 04, 2017 2:42 pm  

SecondRowSaint wrote:

Isa should have been off the pitch for that tackle on LMS. Whether it should have been a yellow or a red is subjective. On report is a cop out, if he gets a ban for that tackle, how does it benefit us?

No charge, quite rightly, he came in from behind.

Re: Wigan game : Mon Sep 04, 2017 6:02 pm  

Geoff wrote:

No charge, quite rightly, he came in from behind.

Laughable from the RFL.