Given this years performances, would you be happy for McManus to sit down with Royce in the off season and extend his contract? Personally I would be happy to give him the chance to build his team around our youngsters and have the chance of stability for the club. The players certainly seem to want to play for him which didn't always appear to be the case under potter.

The most promising thing with Simmons is what he said about our first half yesterday. "We were trying not to lose". To me that's very encouraging. It suggests he wants to not only win but with with good attacking rugby. With this season under their belt and the addition of LH I am excited to see what he can do with them if this is the start.

two more trophy free years just like the Potter era

I bet Royce will be chomping at the bit to get back to it. Being out-coached by James Lowes and Brian McDermott must bloody sting.

I don't think he was out-coached. I think he knew exactly what his players should do; it's getting the players to do it that is the challenge. Remember, it took four attempts to succeed against Wigan this season. But the team still needed to be reminded at halftime to go and play to win in our second playoff against them.

I think Makinson should start giving team talks. His attitude to the game was the best of the team. That try of his when he chased his own grubber and curled his arm around Webb to touch down to me was astounding. Some players in the first half couldn't even raise themselves to chase down the kicker much less a try.

why did we play like a team not trying to lose in the first half?(Simmons words)Did someone on the pitch decide what tactics to adopt ?Surely they were playing to Simmons instructions?

That was just the point: they weren't. They did the same thing in the first half against Wigan in the second playoff (contrast that first half to the first half against Wigan at the DW, for instance, and you will see what Simmons is getting at).

Yeah, I agree there. First half plans didn't work out as we'd liked so they changed it and it worked well in the opening 20 minutes of the 2nd half. Once those 2 injuries hit though, the disruption caused by them was too much sadly.

Not Royce's fault in my book. Will be for our misery troll Saint from Prestwich though.

Quote: Carlos Alberto "Yeah, I agree there. First half plans didn't work out as we'd liked so they changed it and it worked well in the opening 20 minutes of the 2nd half. Once those 2 injuries hit though, the disruption caused by them was too much sadly. Not Royce's fault in my book. Will be for our misery troll Saint from Prestwich though.'" [i"We knew Paul Wellens wouldn't get through the game. He did as long as he could but the injury to Michael Shenton really did for us." [/i www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/news/ar ... d=10757836 So Wellens went into the game with the injury? Or does he mean Wellens got injured early and carried on as long as he could? How on earth can you go into a Grand Final knowing your full back will have to pull out with injury at some point? If so that is pure stupidity and entirely Royce' fault.

Quote: Carlos Alberto "Yeah, I agree there. First half plans didn't work out as we'd liked so they changed it and it worked well in the opening 20 minutes of the 2nd half. Once those 2 injuries hit though, the disruption caused by them was too much sadly. Not Royce's fault in my book. Will be for our misery troll Saint from Prestwich though.'" [i"We knew Paul Wellens wouldn't get through the game. He did as long as he could but the injury to Michael Shenton really did for us." [/i www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/news/ar ... d=10757836 So Wellens went into the game with the injury? Or does he mean Wellens got injured early and carried on as long as he could? How on earth can you go into a Grand Final knowing your full back will have to pull out with injury at some point? If so that is pure stupidity and entirely Royce' fault.

Wello has had the injury for a few weeks and didn't train all week. He was passed fit prior to the match but we got through a lot of defensive work in that first half. By halftime the staff knew Wello wouldn't make it through the match but he went back on because we needed him to. Only when it became impossible for him to continue did he leave the field.

Foster went for a scan on Monday last week. Was he fit? Who knows. Our whole season has been like that.

In a Grand Final, if a player has been passed fit beforehand, he plays. Had we not had so much defensive work in the first half then maybe Wello would have gotten through the match. It's a judgement call. He was our best option at fullback and one of the few who had experience in Grand Finals.

Not sure that's what I said. It's certainly not what Simmons said anyway. He said we were too cautious in the first half which personally I think is a nice way of saying that our forwards didn't man up (which would be a more accurate statement IMO). In the second half we went out with the same attitude as we showed at Widnes against Wigan in the second half (when we were also one try down before halftime) and against Wigan at the DW for the whole match.


That I do agree with. As soon as I saw Meli on the wing I knew we were screwed! (And realised we must have been desperate!)

Jamie has had troublesome knee for a while, shenton has had a wrist injury thus year and so has roby.

I'm pretty sure Leeds went in to the game with knocks as well.

I was pretty shocked at saints moving meli to the wing in a grand final. I bet meli was having flashbacks.