Smokey, you quote the following:
The next generation of Ablett, Smith, Scruton, Murrell, came through 4-6 years ago.
None of these are world beaters. Scruton debuted in 2002 anyway (albeit at 17), and Murrell's not worth much.
then 2-4 years ago we had Hall, Golden, Fox and Burgess, Ratu, Gibson, Broughton and Allen,
Of these Hall is good, Fox is one that got away but the rest are nothing to write home about. Golden, Fox and Broughton never troubled the Leeds first team even when injuries allowed, and Ratu played a handful of games.
I'm not talking about 17 new players a year, that's cr*p. I'm saying that since Burrow and McGuire started in 2001 for example, Leeds haven't produced a single halfback who has looked like even pressuring them for a spot in the side. The careers of the wannabees who have left the club in that time bears this out.
A club our size IMO ought to be producing a halfback every two-three years who is SL quality, and a real goodun every five years or so. If you think that's not possible have a look at the NRL - most clubs have that sort of standard of youngsters coming through.
Sheer number of players means nothing - where's the real quality in the lists above? Not one world class player. Again, not having a dig at Leeds alone, but its not as great a record as many make out (especially Leeds fans).