Re: Team for Saints (CC) : Tue May 10, 2022 12:28 pm  

NickyKiss wrote:

We turned up for just 14 seconds of that 2nd half the Red Vee TV lads said. It’s funny they say that and blame their errors for the defeat but ignore how comfortable we actually looked at the start of the second half, until Marshall knocked on. The Saints spell started on the back of an error and until that error I felt they looked a bit beaten. It was only 5 or 6 minutes worth of action but respect the ball, don’t make the error and get through another 5-10 minutes and I think we take it home quite comfortably.

Who knows? But Saints are hanging their hats on it being totally their fault they didn’t play in the first half and are pointing to a 15 minute spell of dominance, on the back of our error, as proof next time will be different. We’ll have to play extremely well to beat them next time and the time after that and so on but I think we can do it again.

So we only turned up for 14 seconds of the 2nd half and still beat them? They must be proper poop.

Re: Team for Saints (CC) : Tue May 10, 2022 12:33 pm  

Itchy Arsenal wrote:

Couldn't agree more Phuzzy.

Also Saints fans are bleating about how poor they were for the first 40 and that they can only improve on that I'd add that we were very poor in the extreme for the first 15 minutes or so in the second half and that as the year progresses we can only improve on that as we strive to put together a full 80 minute performance.

We are still work in progress in several areas but as long as we keep making incremental improvements we will continue to close the gap on Saints and Catalans.

Very true Itchy. Another marker of the rate of progress is that barely a month ago after the last Saints match you asked me for optimism on how we could beat them next time. A month later and we've done exactly that and that question is no longer relevant. The question now is how we KEEP doing it

The Saints reaction (the good posters on here aside) has been embarrassing. We only won because they let us and got a lucky bounce. No mention of the fact that not only did they only get back into the game on the back of our errors gifting them the opportunity, that they were offside for the Lomax try and that he got the very same "lucky bounce" in order to take it. No mention of the 4 points we didn't take from kicks which, had we taken them, would have meant that they never lead in that game. No mention of the bombed try (Faz to Bibby) or that we were a 'shirt grab' on Field away from making it a more comfortable win. Most of all they refuse to recognise the skill involved in picking that loose ball up at speed and sprinting 80 metres, outpacing England international backs in the process, to win that game. No. It was just a "lucky bounce".

I had a day off yesterday so I watched the game again. They were poor in the first half indeed. But Wigan contributed to them being poor by cutting down their space with excellent 'shut down' plays from Bibby and Marshall in particular and by neutralising Walmsley. That stopped them playing their usual front foot game and, as I've said before, they have no plan B. To hear them talk, the 10 minute purple patch (and let's be clear here, it was 10 minutes not the whole half) "proves" they can do that at will. They can't.

Re: Team for Saints (CC) : Tue May 10, 2022 12:35 pm  

Egg Chasing wrote:

So we only turned up for 14 seconds of the 2nd half and still beat them? They must be proper poop.

99.5% 2nd half possession and couldn't beat us, I'd be ashamed to show my face if I were a Saints player

Re: Team for Saints (CC) : Tue May 10, 2022 12:36 pm  

apollosghost wrote:

99.5% 2nd half possession and couldn't beat us, I'd be ashamed to show my face if I were a Saints player

Exactly. Especially considering how poor we are.

Re: Team for Saints (CC) : Tue May 10, 2022 12:37 pm  

Phuzzy wrote:

I think it shows how far we've progressed when we're able to bring the likes of Isa and Partington, who were team regulars last season and even at the beginning of this, into the side to cover rested players. Hallsall too, in that he's nothing at all behind the incumbents and could quite easily be there himself on merit. Great place to be squad wise.

Absolutely.

Having them as back up is a great place to be and they will get plenty of game time this year. It just makes so much difference to our squad when they are not automatic picks because we don't have anyone else - shows how much our squad has improved this year.

Re: Team for Saints (CC) : Tue May 10, 2022 12:43 pm  

Egg Chasing wrote:

So we only turned up for 14 seconds of the 2nd half and still beat them? They must be proper poop.

They are a special breed thats for sure

Re: Team for Saints (CC) : Wed May 11, 2022 7:21 am  

Just on Jai Field, he had direct involvement on the play before on all our tries in the first half, he attracts players to him and it creates space, its pretty simple.

Re: Team for Saints (CC) : Wed May 11, 2022 7:27 am  

And while Jake Bibby has had his critics this year, what a lovely bit of centre play that was for that 1st try.

Re: Team for Saints (CC) : Wed May 11, 2022 8:29 am  

I thought we did a good job on Walmsley - he had very little impact on the game

Re: Team for Saints (CC) : Wed May 11, 2022 8:33 am  

nikos wrote:

I thought we did a good job on Walmsley - he had very little impact on the game

We did the same on Good Friday, but then Paasi ruined us. Get our rotation right and handle him better and we won't be far off.