Do we not invest or spend up to the cap then?

Absolutely there is.
Hoever I think my previous point above that holds a certain amount of weight. The squad TS took over at the start of 04 was significantly better than Powell's of 03 and that was before the addtion of Lauitiiti! I firmly believe that had Powell been in charge in 04, we'd still have won the SL. That squad was just that good. This is not to take away the achievements of T, nor to say I think Powell is as good a coach as Smith. I do however think he got a raw deal from Leeds, after putting together an excellent squad on the back of the Hay, Sheridan etc era. This was no doubt helped by the academy producing that long list of excellent players I noted earlier, but I stll think he gets less credit than he deserves.
I admit that Powell also made his f-ups, Adamson included and no match winner McGuire in the CC Final 2003, nice one that Daryl!

I think the term you're looking for which would be more accurate is Closet Xenophobia.

And you'd still be wrong.

It was either McGuire or Burrow - the Cas mafia won the battle sadly they lost the war

Whilst I am in no doubt that Tony Smith was a tactician many times superior to Powell, just as important was his ability to work on the mental side, to eradicate what seemed to me almost like a fear of success - or at the very least an inability to live with the pressure of the weight of expectation playing for Leeds involved. Smith was perhaps lucky that Powell had taken them through the Aussie-beloved "lose one to win one" phase but I don't believe Powell was equipped to bend the players' minds to the degree that they could go on to the next level as they did under Smith.

Wigan and Warrington provided the best TV game this season. The pace of the game was higher than anythinhg that I had witnessed and the defences were brutal.
Warrington dominated all facets of the game and set a marker down to Wigan that they are the ones to catch.
There is along way for us to go.

Next week should show us how wide the gap is, if indeed there is one.

Just hope someone gives Mac & Lowes a copy of the DVD of last nights game so they can see what defence is supposed to mean.

Think that TS got Warrington at the same stage of their development

I remembered the days when a Leeds side used to play like what Warrington currently produce ...

I thought exactly the same thing at Wembley last year.

You've hit the nail on the head regarding Powell's deficiency, shame as it is for such a talented young English coach.

I wonder if he's worth another shot at the big time now after several years away?

depends if he has learnt from his mistakes. tony smith, as someone posted earlier, seems to have learnt from his mistakes with us. this is what top class coaches do.
it's great that quins are doing well and this may encourage other clubs to appoint young, british coaches.
i think powell deserves another shot in super league, maybe not with a big club but he deserves a go