It's strange, despite a much worse season this year, I feel a lot more optimistic for next year than I have for a long time. Really enjoy the style of play we've had over the last couple of months and if we manage to maintain that I think we'll be right up there!

Of course being able to blood so many youngsters (was it 13 who debuted this year?) is only going to make us stronger for next year and we've managed to recruit in areas where we've needed (a first for a while!)

A lot to look forward to for me!

(Ps saddened in spite of your complaints of people saying there's no one available you still haven't been able to come up with a single standoff whose available and would improve the team )

Lol

I'm hoping they are looking for a stand off in the world cup? might be a surprise playing for one of the lesser countries? [size(like England)[/size

Good call.

I did post it else where but the positives for next year are build on the ground work from this year.

We are a more expansive team.
We are a more balanced team.
We are a team playing proper rugby and making proper rugby decisions. eg Roby. (It's fun to call him the machine, but coaches bought this myth and playing him 80 minutes each week dulled his effectiveness and the teams)
Apart from a 6 we have a complete side. (for me Lance is a replacement 9, Wheeler is a stand in 6 for when injuries hit)
We have if you like a dual pack which if split would be able to do a job against most teams, below 6.


eg
Pack 1

LMS
Roby
Walmsley
Sia
Jones
Wilkin

bench
Lance
Thompson
Beaumont
Laffranchi

Pack 2

Masoe
Lance
Clough
Manu
Walker
Flanaghan

bench
Roby
Greenwood
LMS
Walmsley

If you look at the 2 packs when you include the bench you have to double up in places. But either pack like I say would do a decent job. Obviously you would not play like this changing each week, but it shows the depth we now have in the pack and that even if injuries hit and took out Sia/Jones/Wilkin/Laffranchi, we'd have enough depth to cope. It should also mean al a Warrington we do not need to put out the top 17 each week. We can let players have rests for lesser bumps.

You've not included Amor.

Positives -
Brown seemed to come out of his experimental phase and got the team to a 5th place finish. If we carry on our late season form we'll be top 2-3 material.
We have a scrum half coming. This, combined with some good talent in the back should see some fine running rugby next year.
We have a good, well balanced pack.
Thompson, Greenwood, Percival and especially Swift and Jones have shown some real potential.

Negatives -
Things haven't been good for long enough for me not to worry about it going tits up again.
No sign of a stand off and hints that Wilkin will be in the pack again all sit badly with me. Continuing with Hohaia in the halves is a terrible idea and Wilkin is not as good as our other back rows.
I still wonder whether we will match the big game intensity of your Leeds and Wire when it comes to the business end of the season.
There is still the spectre of Gardner, Boof and Wellens threatening to resign for next year.

Dissapointments from 2013-
Lomax has looked unfit for the last couple of months.
LMS clearly has the potential to be a massive influence for us - why was he so poor early on?
Whilst I can kind of forgive a lack of league form for the sake of squad experimentation by a new coach, allowing ourselves to be knocked out the cup by, with all respect, a team that ranks well below us (whom we spanked when we got serious) really sticks in my throat.
Hohaia stinks. He's a terrible ball handler and will hold us back as long as we give him a halfback spot. I thought Brown had decided against this, but it seems Lance has convinced him somehow.
Gaskell. I don't know what went on and I'm happy to support the club's move on it, but its a shame when a promising half back goes wayward.

the cladding will be finished.

Damn I knew there was some one missing, I had done it in my head and thought I did not repeat the players as much.

A totally agreeable post!

I can see only a few positives, the completed stadium being one. More worrying is that we have only won one league title in 11 years.

Anymore rumoured signings??

Disappointed to hear Clubb going to Wigan.
Would have been better than Laffranchi.

Clubb is a strange signing for Wigan, they've plenty better back rowers/centres and so do we

Positives are we've got a good halfback, stronger pack, good young players with first team experience and a good goal kicker in Walsh.

Not to be pedantic but we last won Super League in 2006 which by my dodgy old calculator is 7 years and we were minor premiers for a couple of years after that