Re: 2019 Super League Ins & Outs : Sun Dec 09, 2018 6:02 pm  

little wayne69 wrote:

but well done to leeebron for muddying the waters and getting us at it for absolutely nothing.

What did he post that was so bad or any different than what a few had already posted slagging off Merrin? Reality is no difference but easy to just blame it ALL on him

Re: 2019 Super League Ins & Outs : Sun Dec 09, 2018 6:11 pm  

ThePrinter wrote:

Yeah I’m sure if given the choice between signing Merrin or George King this offseason, Chester and every other SL coach would go for the latter

If Merrin signed for Wakefield he’d walked into the starting team but I bet you and a couple more will say he wouldn’t

This is the crux and I don’t think he would. Merrin is clearly the better player by some way nobody can argue that. However for the amount of the team budget he takes up and the quota place he takes then his advantages over King as an example are not so obvious.

Let’s be honest here Merrin is no game breaker or a match winner. He’s no Thurstone and even as a forward he lacks the impact of a true star such as a pre- RU Sam Burgess.

He’s a quality Aussie pack man no doubt but the kind of player who can turn a pack around and lead it to victory?

It’s possible but I can’t say it’s obvious or guaranteed. If he were that player then he would still be in the NRL - as indeed would Fifita and PP - that’s just the truth.

The othe guy Hurrel has a better shot because it’s a position where with the right attitude he’s bound to look good - but it’s more entertainment value.

At Trinity we all love Johnstone as he’s fantastic to watch - who wouldn’t. However we all still know that he will not be the cog in the machine that will make it truly work.

If that’s to be Merrit then he has his work cut out. Personally I’m hoping it’s Brough for us but personally I think his best days are gone but he is without doubt the kind of player who could if his mind set is right.

Re: 2019 Super League Ins & Outs : Sun Dec 09, 2018 6:46 pm  

vastman wrote:

This is the crux and I don’t think he would. Merrin is clearly the better player by some way nobody can argue that. However for the amount of the team budget he takes up and the quota place he takes then his advantages over King as an example are not so obvious.

Let’s be honest here Merrin is no game breaker or a match winner. He’s no Thurstone and even as a forward he lacks the impact of a true star such as a pre- RU Sam Burgess.

He’s a quality Aussie pack man no doubt but the kind of player who can turn a pack around and lead it to victory?

It’s possible but I can’t say it’s obvious or guaranteed. If he were that player then he would still be in the NRL - as indeed would Fifita and PP - that’s just the truth.

The othe guy Hurrel has a better shot because it’s a position where with the right attitude he’s bound to look good - but it’s more entertainment value.

At Trinity we all love Johnstone as he’s fantastic to watch - who wouldn’t. However we all still know that he will not be the cog in the machine that will make it truly work.

If that’s to be Merrit then he has his work cut out. Personally I’m hoping it’s Brough for us but personally I think his best days are gone but he is without doubt the kind of player who could if his mind set is right.

Merrin takes up one quota spot same as any other overseas player regardless of hype, reputation or pay so no issue there and we still have one more free quota spot so fine there.

As far as his pay, we don’t know what he’s fully on. Only know he counts as £150k and you can only say that’s an issue if you know the full run down of Leeds’ squad and each salary.

He won’t be a highlight reel or match winner in the traditional sense but brought in to lead the team especially the forwards. Think he’s seen doing the same job as Dave Furner did in his 2 years at Leeds in 03-04 (and Furner wasn’t exactly a flash x-factor match winner), a stint that was regarded as having a huge impact on a young team that then went onto great success and why he’s been held in high regard ever since and been sounded out as a future Leeds coach pretty much since he left. If he can do that then money very well spent.

Re: 2019 Super League Ins & Outs : Sun Dec 09, 2018 6:50 pm  

Mr. Zucchini Head wrote:

Some of you Wakefield fans really do need to lighten up. Not every little joke and bit of banter is a slight at your club.

You have a team to be proud of currently, one that everyone will be taking seriously. Don't be so bloody defensive all the time.

It's hard not to be defensive after so many barren years.

Having said that, the arrogance of certain fans who support one or too of the so called big clubs is laughable.
They think that pulling their sides shirt on makes them world beaters, when, clearly, it doesn't.

The close season is great for banter and tring to work out which clubs will sink and which ones will be competing at the sharp end of the season.

Talking of which,what are you expecting at Hull, I think Radford may be sitting in the SL hot seat, especially if you dont get off to a decent start.

Re: 2019 Super League Ins & Outs : Sun Dec 09, 2018 8:12 pm  

vastman wrote:

such as a pre- RU Sam Burgess..

O/T and not really directed at you vastman but I see a lot of people say this but IMO from watching him, he may have lost a little bit but he's still one of the best forwards in the NRL. For example his big season in 2014 he averaged 157 meters a game and 34 tackles and the season he came back from RU he averaged 149 meters per game and 35 tackles. The season after he averaged 143 meters and 34 tackles and this past season, he's still averaged 140 meters a game and 30 tackles. Yeah, I know stats but you get the idea.

Personally, I don't think his RU year off has had any impact on his game, I think it's just a slight drop after being at the top of the game for so many years, playing huge minutes and his body taking an absolute pounding, since he was 17 or whatever he was when he came through.

Re: 2019 Super League Ins & Outs : Sun Dec 09, 2018 8:41 pm  

ThePrinter wrote:

What did he post that was so bad or any different than what a few had already posted slagging off Merrin? Reality is no difference but easy to just blame it ALL on him

I'm completely indifferent to Merrin or Leeds for that matter, my only concern was when once again leeeBron decided to make a bit of mischief by linking him to two of Wakefield's forwards, making any response to him seem as though I was having a go at your signing, and it appears that your not bright enough to see that by responding to it. HTH.

Re: 2019 Super League Ins & Outs : Sun Dec 09, 2018 8:53 pm  

wrencat1873 wrote:

The close season is great for banter and tring to work out which clubs will sink and which ones will be competing at the sharp end of the season.

Talking of which,what are you expecting at Hull, I think Radford may be sitting in the SL hot seat, especially if you dont get off to a decent start.

I always start the season feeling optimistic (I should know better by now) and I have us 4th. I have tried to erase the last 11 games from my memory and instead I am looking at the fact that this squad was there or thereabouts right up until the split despite struggling with injuries pretty much from the word go. I think if we can stay moderately healthy we will make the playoffs without too many dramas.

I still think the first 17 is one of the best in the league, and the likes of Matongo, Lane, Litten, Fash, Miloudi, Scott will have benefited a lot from the extra game time they got last year and should be better equipped when called on again. I know most have written us off and that is totally understandable after how we finished last year. But Sneyd, Kelly, Westerman, Green and Bowden barely played a game between them in the second half of the year, Connor missed a big chunk of our losing streak, Minichiello, Manu and Hadley were in and out every other week and Taylor played most the season with a knackered shoulder. Get all them back in and at full fitness and it's a different beast.

You are right about Radford though, he needs early results otherwise the pressure will be on him massively.

Re: 2019 Super League Ins & Outs : Sun Dec 09, 2018 9:23 pm  

little wayne69 wrote:

I'm completely indifferent to Merrin or Leeds for that matter, my only concern was when once again leeeBron decided to make a bit of mischief by linking him to two of Wakefield's forwards, making any response to him seem as though I was having a go at your signing, and it appears that your not bright enough to see that by responding to it. HTH.

Stop playing the victim, you’ve posted just as much ‘bad’ stuff as anyone the last few pages and now resorted to an insult there at the end of that post.

Re: 2019 Super League Ins & Outs : Mon Dec 10, 2018 8:35 am  

ThePrinter wrote:

Merrin takes up one quota spot same as any other overseas player regardless of hype, reputation or pay so no issue there and we still have one more free quota spot so fine there.

As far as his pay, we don’t know what he’s fully on. Only know he counts as £150k and you can only say that’s an issue if you know the full run down of Leeds’ squad and each salary.

He won’t be a highlight reel or match winner in the traditional sense but brought in to lead the team especially the forwards. Think he’s seen doing the same job as Dave Furner did in his 2 years at Leeds in 03-04 (and Furner wasn’t exactly a flash x-factor match winner), a stint that was regarded as having a huge impact on a young team that then went onto great success and why he’s been held in high regard ever since and been sounded out as a future Leeds coach pretty much since he left. If he can do that then money very well spent.

I should have clarified that I was referring to Wakefield budget and the relative value of King v Merrin. I accept at Leeds there is more scope when it comes to budgeting.

We simply couldn’t justify either the cash or the quota spot for such a player. The reason Fifita and PP hold such value at Trinity is because big men who can actually play a bit are rare in on SL certainly British ones so we are always going to struggle to recruit big players.

Only three seasons ago England was the only big forward we had and when he played we struggled and when he didn’t we got bullied. The improvement in our pack size is the main reason we now compete.

Merrin would not offer us that for Leeds he may well offer something they really need.
It’s not a quality issue with me it’s that I think there are a lot of Merrin type players in SL. He may be a cut above but whether it’s enough we’ll have to wait and see.

Re: 2019 Super League Ins & Outs : Mon Dec 10, 2018 9:42 am  

ThePrinter wrote:

Stop playing the victim, you’ve posted just as much ‘bad’ stuff as anyone the last few pages and now resorted to an insult there at the end of that post.

If defending your players against criticism is playing the victim then I'm guilty as charged M'lord, unlike in your case it would be the normal thing to do by defending Merrin, incidentally I would appreciate it if you would point out this bad stuff I've allegedly made in the last few pages, and as for the perceived insult towards you, if you can't see when leeeBron's making mischief maybe it's not a bad assumption that that your not as bright as you think you are, just my perception of you not an insult so maybe it's just you playing the victim.