Re: New Signings/Re-Signings : Wed Aug 20, 2014 3:21 pm  

The talk on the Wire site is they have signed a new number 7 and have offered Gareth O'Brien to Leigh on a permanent move but it didn't materialise. Now he would be a good replacement for Gale.

Re: New Signings/Re-Signings : Wed Aug 20, 2014 3:26 pm  

martinwildbull wrote: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z0fm2yslXz4 to see a player with speed, an eye for an opening and good support play. It shows a player with very strong attacking attributes, but there's very little showing what his defence looks like. Yes, it would be nice to have players who know their way to the line, but we still need players who know how to stop the opposition from doing the same.

martinwildbull wrote: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z0fm2yslXz4 to see a player with speed, an eye for an opening and good support play. It shows a player with very strong attacking attributes, but there's very little showing what his defence looks like. Yes, it would be nice to have players who know their way to the line, but we still need players who know how to stop the opposition from doing the same.

Re: New Signings/Re-Signings : Wed Aug 20, 2014 3:34 pm  

woolly07 wrote:

The talk on the Wire site is they have signed a new number 7 and have offered Gareth O'Brien to Leigh on a permanent move but it didn't materialise. Now he would be a good replacement for Gale.

Apparently the move to Leigh didn't materialise because his wage demands were too high. I'm not sure I would want to blow a large chunk of our limited resources on GoB. He's an average half back who Tony Smith obviously doesn't rate if he's willing to offer him to Leigh.

I want to see Brook in the first team, see how he goes. No point paying big bucks for GoB if we have a perfectly good halfback already on our books.

[Bullseye]

Re: New Signings/Re-Signings : Wed Aug 20, 2014 3:42 pm  

Similarly we don’t want to put too much pressure on a kid who’s yet to play a first team game. Much as I think Brook has got potential we need a decent first choice halfback with experience. We can’t rely on Gaskell on his own as he’ll get marked out of the game.

I can see us signing a stop gap halfback with Championship experience who will take the role with Brook being phased in. However that strategy relies on us taking a calculated risk that Brook is going to make it. I’ve not seen that much of him to know either way.

On Shaw it’d be good to have a player with some decent attacking ability. He’s just a kid so I don’t think he’d figure in every game

Re: New Signings/Re-Signings : Wed Aug 20, 2014 3:45 pm  

Naughton at fullback, Mullaney to 6 and Gaskell plays 7. Problem solved

[Bulliac]

Re: New Signings/Re-Signings : Wed Aug 20, 2014 4:14 pm  

Next season is a crucial one; if we don't escape in 2015 it only gets harder as time goes by. With that in mind, we really can't take risks with positions like no. 7, it's a far too important to leave to hopes, mights and maybes in the early part of the season, and we really need to get it sorted before training starts, imo.

I really don't feel we can just put in an untried kid as our first choice scrum half and hope for the best - next season is just too important.

Re: New Signings/Re-Signings : Wed Aug 20, 2014 4:34 pm  

O'Brien at Wire to seems the best name mentioned for scrum half so far. Agree about the young kid, too important position and season to blood a lad with no experience. If Jimmy was goona
play him next year as main s/h surely he would be playing him now?

Re: New Signings/Re-Signings : Wed Aug 20, 2014 4:39 pm  

Agree with Bullseye. I think we'll have a stop gap 7 and phase Brook in which is fine with me. I think we have spent the big bucks on Gaskell, O'brien, Sidlow
And Ferguson which is fine by me. All 4 of them are excellent players in SL, never mind the championship. I think Gaskell will rip the championship up next year so can't see us paying huge amounts for a 7. Just a steady eddy. Mullaney can play there if we fail to find anyone which would be content with.

Re: New Signings/Re-Signings : Wed Aug 20, 2014 6:29 pm  

I would expect Jimmy and Ferres to have the number 7 already sorted out. It is one of the most vital positions and I just can't imagine they haven't thought long and hard about it. We may already have sorted it out and will be announced when the time is right in the run up to the ST sales. In Jimmy and Ferres I trust!

Re: New Signings/Re-Signings : Wed Aug 20, 2014 8:19 pm  

Next announcement tomorrow according to twitter. U18s beat cas 28-26.