The powers that be offered what they thought appropriate this was rejected and the lad moved on let it go tvoc yer holding on too tight your ego's writing cheques your body can't cash!

Not that I can be too bothered about looking through a few pages of this but is there an arguement as to whether Gibson was offered a contract or told he wasn't needed?

If so yes he was but it wasn't what he wanted. That's why he moved on.

If there isn't that argument then sorry, as you were

Just going by what i was told when he left for Salford and his brother Brooke joined Bastien at Wire.
I think i also read it in the LE along with the deals that Gibson and Ratu rejected.

I know I will probably get stick for this, but Ashley did get offered a new deal, however, Salford offered abit more too him and garenteed him the number 5 shirt and first team rugby, hense the reason why he chosen Salford.

I wonder if he realised that would mean playing as back up hooker?

The answer to your question is no. Watkins should (and was) be in the squad in addition to Donald. BJB should arguably be in the squad but, given he would've been behind Watkins in the "utility/cover" department he was let out on loan. That would leave Broughton well down the pecking order (and rightly so) which is why I assume the lad weighed up all his options and ended up at..................Salford. That's my view and clearly the view of the coaching staff and management

Possibly but given what I have stated above and given the clubs, sorry, given that Salford were barging down his door he wouldn't have hung around on the off-chance that Donald, Delaney and Watkins copped injuries. If the lad is as good as you think he is I don't blame him for taking the golden opportunity of 1st team rugby at........Salford........rather than languishing down the pecking order at Leeds waiting for injuries. I suppose the shame of it is that if he hadn't taken that offer at.......Salford.......he'd now be getting a chance to prove your point and show he's a better winger than Donald.

the fact that on paper he has loads going for him.

SL experience
Young
British
No quota spot

but none of the 12 clubs finishing above Salford in the table were willing to take a gamble on him despite all the above positives says to me that none of those teams saw much in him.

If he improves, then fair enough, we missed out, that is a big IF for me.

Also, whilst Francis Meli still gets a game at a top club, show just how little he was rated

I wonder how Broughton's & Lyne's stats compare for last week's game?

You picked up on the non too subtle tone of my post.

We didn't want him, Hull didn't want him and they're the two clubs that got the closest look.

As a complete free agent, free to negotiate and go to any club in the league I think his final destination tells you how most within the game judge him, TVOC aside.

Still, as you say, we MIGHT all be wrong.

If Leeds didn't want him why did they offer him a new deal (G1/rhinoms), it was in the LE and everything apparently (rhinoms)

Once Leeds chose to extend Donald's contract then Broughton stayed where he was in the pecking order. I wasn't surprised he left in that circumstance.

My point then (as I'm sure you recall) was that I felt it was time to say thank you and bon voyage to Donald (on the assumption that he was also a quota player with further reductions on the way) and give his squad place to one of Broughton (wing) / Watkins (centre) / Jones-Bishop (full-back)

There are players who have found themselves playing on the wing in 1st grade for Leeds this season that are much less accomplished in the position (IMO) than Jodie Broughton.



Why the latitude afforded to the settled wingman in the champion team (Donald's 2009 stats) in his fourth continuous season of almost unbroken starting appearances?

Meanwhile Broughton was making the step up to a higher level, settling into a new squad where he wasn't an automatic pick, combining training with his new team-mates in unfamiliar surroundings with his college course in Doncaster (IIRC a morning course curtailing some of his time with the rest of the Hull squad), playing for a team on a season long slide in to the bottom three. Despite all that 5 tries in 7 appearances. This season more settled but still with a struggling outfit at the wrong end of SL.

No, on reflection I think you're right, Donald had it real tough by comparison.

I didn't see rhinoms provide you with any link so assumed you were correct and my recollection was wrong. Are you now accepting Leeds offered him a deal or do you still want evidence of that?

Nor I. It was the right thing for us and for him.

Not one of those players is a better winger than Scott Donald. Your major concern last year when it came to the right centre was that a quality player fill the jersey and you criticized GH for not scouting overseas players for that position. Your assumptions regarding the quota have been shown to be wrong.

Should have hung about then shouldn't he, if you're saying he was offered a contract. He might've been able to cement a place and prove you right, As it is he headed for the dizzy heights of Salford.

Sorry, run that by me again.

No, on reflection I think you're right, Donald had it real tough by comparison'"

Evidence would be useful to clarify the situation one way or the other. As it stands you and ms believe it to be the case whereas I have no recollection of such an offer. Are you withdrawing what you previously said just because I don't recall it? Sat here 100 miles south of Headingley I'm sure there's plenty I miss.



In your opinion but not in mine. On that I think we'll just have to agree to differ. If we substituted Donald and Broughton for Buderus and McShane would we be any closer to an agreement?



Is Donald on or off quota? You presumably know, unfortunately I don't.

That said to me he is a born and bred Australian citizen, overseas trained (not a product of any SL team's academy) and before the 'new' regulations came about I'd expect to a degree of 99% certain that he was a 'quota' player. You can never be 100% on anything where the RFL are concerned. If he were to become exempt under the 'cajones' clause, again I haven't heard anything to that effect but accept I may have missed it.

Last season Leeds had ample space on their overseas 'quota' as defined here