Im not saying weve been disadvantaged Matt im saying its understandable the lads havent improved when theyve not played games and have missed a ton of training sessions. Every team has been in the same boat. Every individual player will react differently.

You keep saying we had 10 x 2nd year lads but to me they are 1st years cos last year didnt happen did it? I mean they wasnt even allowed at the training ground, even now they arent allowed in the building. If you want to say they are 2nd years thats fine, i get that. To me they are playing their 1st year but its irrelevant really.

The group has been hit by covid as recently as 2 weeks ago when we had to cancel the Wigan game.

Be honest tho how many of yesterdays team will make the grade at Leeds? You put Gannon, Levi, Tindall and Gatus in and we win easily yesterday. Weve talented kids but most wasnt on the field yesterday.

Are the kids being coached properly? No cos training sessions arent happening as regular as they should, the players arent allowed in the 1st team facilities and the players have played 5 games in nearly 18 months. All i can go on is Agar says Chev is right man, Sinfield thought same and i remember Jonny Wainhouse telling me Chev was best coach at club and right man for the job following Rob. Maybe they are wrong and maybe others have different opinions.

Most of the good kids by pass the 19s system and go from scholarship to full time in truth anyway.

We will always have good kids thats for sure.

How many of hull krs kids will go on to have careers in the game though marty? Our calibre of player yesterday was more than enough to beat that hull kr team, man for man we were miles better on individual talent, even without the players missing. Its walkers job to get the best out of them, you can take what you here off the people at the club, i can only go by what i see on the pitch, they look a poorly coached team, the same players looked far better at origin level the other week, against better opposition with less coaching time. They looked absolutley clueless yesterday. Im not saying we havnt got talented kids, im saying the exact opposite, we'v got excellent kids that are badley coached imo.

Very rare do the really good kids by pass the 19's, gannons one of the very few. Nearly every kid in our first team played 19's, even the ones who sign pro contracts from scholarship play 19's. Very few even get pro contracts straight from scholorship.

I keep saying ten 2nd years because thats what they are marty, thats the age group they are in, no matter what circumstances they had to deal with, because every club had those same circumstances. Like you say, every player will react differently to the years development missed, so all we know for certain is the year group theyr in.

Interesting points chaps.

If you look down our roster of under-22s (with the caveat that not all these players will lock down a position and “make it”): Walker, Tindall, Newman, Broadbent, Edwards, Simpson, Sinfield, Mik, Johnson: Holroyd, Walters, Gannon, O’Connor, Smith… you could add in several others on the fringes… I’m saying I think that’s the best home-grown generation of players I can remember.

I know the game is in a tough place right now at all levels but that is an exceptionally talented group in any era. I don’t know if I’d swap Mik and Holroyd for Ward and Bailey for example.

The talent is there but the names mentioned are in the 1st team full time squad not in the scholarship/academy programme. Thats standard for Leeds.

We agree on most things, of course we shouldve won yesterday but there are reasons for this group to be under perforning is all im saying.

Anybody know how Corey Johnson has been going on at York? See he started at half again today. Hope he is rediscovering his love for the game.

Hes going well but Leeds asked him to return this week with Dwyer facing a covid test and he said he wasnt ready mentally or physically for SL yet which i would have thought he wouldve jumped at the opportunity. Bit of a concern. He was at the game Thursday.

Yeh he's going pretty well.
Been playing at 7.
And he's even been kicking some goals!
I went to watch the game against Widnes a couple of weeks ago and he did pretty well.
But it reminded me of Leeming covering in the halves. You can just tell it's not his favoured position.
And I agree, I don't think he's physically ready for SL yet, but getting back going again at York will do him good.

Fingers crossed that with a proper pre season in him he will feel ready to take the step up. Convinced he has the talent, and then some. With Dwyer off contract at the end of next year he has a great opportunity to force his way into the first choice 17.

Yeah we do, i respect your opinion. Nothing wrong with disagreeing now and again, Chevs one of those occasions. I think he's one of the reasons theyr under performing.

Yesterday wasnt the reason i dont rate him, the result, but more importantly the performance, are just another layer on top of what i already thought. Like i say, hopefully he goes on to prove me wrong.

Think we saw early season with the 1st team that if your spine is no good you cant do much as a team. Half backs and hookers, other than Corey, in 19s have been poor for a long time. The game isnt producing many at all unfortunately.

I can understand Corey’s thoughts there - he will know he’s missed loads and probably doesn’t want to come back in to Leeds feeling underdone.

It also wouldn’t surprise me if he decided it still wasn’t for him after this season. He’ll be into a pretty brutal pre-season at Leeds leading into next year and will need to be up for it.

You guys really know your stuff, lots of respect for you both. I don’t think hookers and halves is a new problem.
1 decent player in these positions every couple of years is about the form.

I am very encouraged by the quality of some lf these younger lads. The youth of today gets a bad wrap in some quarters but there are some diamonds at Leeds which bodes well.

A full strength Castleford would beat a full strength Leeds in my opinion.

You've mentioned twice about Leeds playing against Hull KR under 17s. Hull KR didn't play any under 17s matches.

The under 16s match between the 2 sides was a decent, if error ridden, contest if that is what you meant.

Yeah it was. It got confusing with mostly same players playing as 16s and then as 17s a week later. KR was best team we played but the 2nd half was a knockonathon it must be said.