Exactly. Being able to handle the step up to add super league is stage one of development.

Stage 2 is letting his talent dictate where he plays.

My interpretation of the way we introduced Sutcliffe was that by playing him back row he firstly gets more opportunities to play due to the nature of the position and the squad. Secondly it allows him to get used to the physical side of top level rugby. His body gets used to being battered by large blokes without having the pressure of having to run a game on top, so when he gets the chance to play at halfback he's not afraid of getting belted whilst trying to put prime through gaps etc

It might be just me, but although I thought Lilly did very well for us, he looked s little chubby to me and a bit slow. Hopefully an off season to get a bit fitter and step up to the first will do him good. Look forward to seeing him next season in what opportunities he gets. Wasn't he the academy goal kicker as well ?

Exactly. He should be allowed to develop as a half back first and I would say he should work on his speed and not bulk up.

He's listed on the website as 5 foot 9 and 11 stone, which makes him shorter but slightly heavier than Robbie Ward.

IMO he doesn't need to be adding too much more bulk unless he genuinely sees his future at 9, which would be a dangerous move given he's got the highly regarded Harvey Whiteley coming up behind him at the club.

His game really isn't based around pure pace or elusiveness anyway, he's very much more an old fashioned half-back with an eye for a pass and good game management skills.

That's just his cheeks mate not an ounce of "chub" on him he's also not as slow as you think and certainly quick with his RL brain during matches.
Yes he is the GK as well a very good one at that but so was Sutcliffe yet when he broke through and missed kicks he was "useless" to some experts who conviently forgot how Sinfield started with the kicking duties!

Yep, goal kicking for the academy and for the first team are 2 different things!

Fair enough! i might be getting mixed up, but I seem to remember lilly being the goal kicker over Sutcliffe in the academy.

Lilly clearly has a rugby brain and is a creative player, probably a 7 long term but as some have said, bursts jumping into dummy half is probably the best way to get his experience up.

I remember an interview with McDermott when he was talking about Sutcliffe establishing himself as a first team player and how he already had 50 SL appearances under his belt. A lot of those early ones were in the back row. The point he was making is Sutcliffe had built up confidence just being on the field and part of the team, even out of position, before giving him the responsibility of SO. Confidence is such a big thing in sport. A gifted player with no confidence is useless. I think the club will aim over the next few year to give Lilly as much of a chance as possible even if for short spells slightly out of position.

If a new hooker does come in, that probably limits Jordan's options to filling in when there are injuries to either the starting halves or dummy half.

I'd like to see us develop a dual-registration arrangement with a Championship side for 2016, as players at that stage of their development aren't going to learn anything at Hunslet in League One playing against semi-pros and kids. They need to be at clubs where they will be playing against teams with SL aspirations and experienced full-time professionals. Somewhere like Dewsbury or Batley would be ideal if they were interested.

Robbie Ward surely isn't 5'10 he isn't much taller than Burrow & I too thought Lilley looked to be on the chubby side at the back end of the season but did show much more promise than Ward ever did. It's a shame we didn't still have Morgan Smith on the books because I always felt he'd make a good 9.

Lilley is definitely on the chubby side, but that's to be expected at this stage as I don't think he'll have done much strength and conditioning training. I don't think Leeds academy players do until they're 19.

Thought Robbie Ward looked good against nz. Not sure what has gone on but as third choice hooker behind falloon and burrow I think he still has a place in the squad.

Not physical enough to defend in the middle I'm afraid. Lost so many collisions and got sat on his backside so many times last night by the big Kiwi forwards.

Might make it at SL level if he bulks up and becomes more physical, but not as he is.