Agreed. Ordinarily this wouldn't be a problem except that it's a fantasy that half the side seem to be sharing right now.

Watkins problems are usually mental; something McDermott commented on.

Well lots should be happy this morning,Lowes leaving!

Don’t get the bunting out just yet.....he’s being replaced by Agar.......for now

Have to say I think money spent on top quality coaching right now has to make sense. No salary cap impediment, and we have a first team in some disarray and the most important batch of Academy players coming through for a decade. If Furner was enabled to bring in a right hand man, it couldn't hurt.

100% agree should have picked his own team from day one.

I really hope that the Merrin rumours aren't true, but if they are I'd love to see us go all out for George Burgess as a replacement. He's out of contract at the end of the season and he's stated a desire to play in the super league. makes it a lot easier to attract players of that quality when marquee money is available

Different types of players though and for me both players of that calibre is what we need as opposed to either or.

NRL clubs looking at Walker according to the Mole.

I can see Walker ending up in the NRL, but probably when his current deal expires, he’s certainly good enough. Maybe we should keep hold of Golding.

I think by then either Iwan Stephens, Sam Little, Liam Whitton or another academy prospect will be knocking on the door to be honest. It looks to me at this point that Golding's chance has gone, unless Leeds change coach again.

Truth hurts but while there is such a difference in spending power between NRL and SL, and while we have agents lining their pockets actively moving players around, we are in effect a nursery for NRL or RU clubs. ALL of our best players will get hawked around these days as soon as they look something like, and it'll be a devil of a job to keep them at the club. It was a bit different when the last lot came through.

I guess one difference is that the Leeds lads who moved on in the past had achieved more at the club first at least.

We know what to expect from Walker to be honest given his last contract stand-off with the club at such a young age. He has a high opinion of himself and his value, with his agent in the ear no doubt. Does anyone know if the RFL regulates agents by the way?

Actually this musical chairs of players (and of coaches in the NRL), turns me right off and isn't an aspirational thing for Rugby League to be aiming at. Players have always moved on for opportunities and money, I get that, but one of the things I like about RL is the localised nature of clubs and the development of local talent.

You could look at a handful of our current Academy prospects and think that an NRL club is bound to come sniffing at some point - we are going to have to manage some cap space and at least be competitive on salaries with these boys in the current market. The only weapon against this drain we really have is the club culture, and that is certainly something that Sinflied can't afford to get wrong.

This is rubbish, and was proven at the time. The club spun a lie about those negotiations in the public, and were lucky it got sorted the way it did. There was nothing out of the ordinary in Walkers requests, which was purely that he was given the chance to fight it out for fullback spot, it was the club at fault and trying a fast one. However, one thing Walker requested at all time in those negotiations was that if an NRL club came in for him then it could happen. Playing there was always his ambition, and money from that was never the forefront of those thoughts. We will just have to see what happens in future there, but he has had NRL clubs in his ear since 16 years old.