Academy level results are cyclical. They very much depend on where particular teams are in their development - for example this year Leeds have played a number of 16/17 year olds in the U19s, where some sides may have more 18/19 year olds. Next year Leeds are likely to have second year players as the core of the side (Smith, Oledzki, Whiteley, Walker, Sutcliffe, Nicholson) as some of the experienced third years move on. At that sort of age group, a year makes a huge difference.

Leeds lost the 19s game at home to Wigan by four points to a late try and the 16s game away from home by eight points, hardly indicative of a gap in quality between the two sides.

Agreed - without Chicko it would have been embarrassing.

Imaging what would have happened with Faloon in the 9 shirt.

We were so lucky that Kelly had a nightmare for them. If they had only converted half the efforts they had in our 20 we'd have been well beaten.
I can't recall having been so deflated by a winning performance.
The only saving grace was our defence.
On that showing after watching Leigh vs Salford yesterday we'll struggle against both of them.
We were bl**dy woeful.

spot on with all that. if changes are not made for next year we will struggle massively again

I look at Cas' squad & think that there are very few players who would improve our squad (Gale is probably the exception) & I look at their current injury situation yet still they can beat the two (alleged) form teams at the top of superleague.
The only difference can then be their coaching compared to ours.
We must beef up our coaching set-up before anything else.
The current contracts mean that wholesale changes can't & won't happen so all that GH can realistically change are the coaches & other backroom staff.
Will that happen? Who knows?

Agree. Anybody still defending our coaching set up needs to be sent to Coventry (or to Spain where the epitome of McDermott acolytes seem to reside)....

Yes we need to desperately retain our 'lucky find' and recruit a decent game controlling HB....but most of all we need a new coaching set up.