Quote: DAVE@CAS1990 "for a start - looking at the league table now, I don't see who is going to overtake us to get in the top 8. Hull, HKR and Wakefield might compete but they're 8 points behind us already. Even the teams in the 8 aren't special - for me Leeds and Saints are miles ahead of everyone.
But considering Widnes and Salford are already in the 8, to me it show's there aren't 8 top quality sides in the league anyway.'"
I think it's interesting because in 2011 just before Easter we were in a position where not making the eight was unthinkable, and we somehow managed to lose our place. That said, injuries were a huge problem, and then the emotional involvement in losing in the cup semi against Leeds took far too much out of our tank I thought.
The big difference is the squad depth, this season. With Boyle, Gibson, Webster, Wheeldon, Owen, Milner, Dixon, Gilmour, Reynolds and Tansey all missing out yesterday and still to play a big part this season, injuries hopefully won't bite us too hard. I think over Easter and in the Challenge Cup games this could be a big bonus to keep us fresh, and hopefully we can roll the team around to make subtle changes that allows everyone to stay fresh while keeping a relatively consistent spine to the team.
I'd bring Ryan Boyle and Ashley Gibson into the team next week, while keeping James Clare and Jamie Ellis in the side. It'd be nice to rest up Lynch/Huby as they've put massive efforts in so far this season so far.