I've read the comments on here, and they mainly concentrate on Thaler's ineptitude (he was, for both teams), and our players' all round 5h1teness. Fair enough.
I missed the first half (I had a note from Matron), and the video ref calls, etc, BUT, I firmly lay that defeat at Smith's door, due to his APPALLING tactics.
Whenever Cas "fluffed up" in their own 20, each set of six was a carbon copy.
Play one, Drive the ball up
Play two, pass towards Monaghan's wing, take the tackle
play three, pass the ball until we're facing the posts, take the tackle
play four, repeat play two, take the tackle
play five, pass until we're facing the posts, then pass back to Monaghan's wing (were all the traffic is) and get tackled
play six, kick
No variety, the same routine every set. DROSS, DROSS, DROSS. These will be his instructions.
Does he not realise that we have a left attacking side. Despite criticism from myself, I'm well aware that Atkins has strength 10m in front of the opposition line. Why did he hardly get to show this strength? I'm baffled.
As for shoving it to the right, all the time. WHAT FOR? Monaghan looks no more a RL player now, than the old bird on that Bake Off rubbish. Don't get me started on Wheeler. Penny must've been bored witless, in that second half.
Despite Sandow's input, we've regressed to where we were, circa Easter and mid June. A mid table club, who are just ambling through matches, without any real purpose.
I know we've all said that this season was going to be a struggle, but the standard of RL played throughout the season by ALL teams, has been way below what we've seen since Super League's inception. Even Leeds have "stunk the house out" at times (those two defeats v us). This season has been there for the taking for any team. (as Stevo would say) we've "put the cue on the rack", the week after the WCC game, and merely gone through the motions.
Smith MUST turn things around. He's undoing years of good work, before our eyes.
I'm peed off.