Oledski to play this week, take his chance and not look back. His physical development is way beyond anything his age + 2 years. He is one of those specimens that don't come around so often can handle games at top level despite his their young age.

I honestly don't think they will play Oledzki. If he is in their 19 he will most likely be 18th/19th man. Miss this week anyway as he was due to and be back with us next week or the week after.

I played against Baldwinson when I was younger and even then he was destined for SL. Same with Naughton. Yet Baldwinson seems to have taken a very long route to 1st team. He he been part of the Leeds set up in 1999 he would have been in the first team since he was 17. Very much like Chev Walker was at 16. But now people won't put players in young out of fear.

I think we may get him back. If not, then it looks like throwing a teenager into the Bulls side for 3-4 weeks and they are all of a sudden SL quality. He looks great for us but playing against SL players is a different thing and McDermot will know that.
I suspect he would like him to stay with us for the season and give him the odd bench game with them to build him up slowly. What is the point of recalling him and letting him sit in the stand for months on end. I don't think we have seen the back of him but it also doesn't help us if he is now in and out at short notice.

Hopefully, this visa problem is sorted soon and there are a number of signings done but not yet announced.

Can't see this being the case.
Look at how far back we announced the Phoenix signing and his visa still isn't done.
I don't think there are any signings waiting to be announced but that doesn't mean we can't make some going forward.

Sadly, that does seem to be the most likely.

We are getting to the point in the season where clubs may be looking to 'lose' someone in order to bring someone else in, so it does open up more chances of loans or even a proper signing, assuming we've got the cash.

In the forwards I don't necessarily agree it's that different, certainly in terms of smashing into the line and making great yards; many of the better teams in the Championship have plenty of big rough old heads in the pack and I wouldn't think it is any easier to win the collision than it is in SL. In fact, the lack of big grizzled forwards has been our undoing on several occasions.

I'd guess that, with championship funding levels, you're talking around 4K fans to support a reasonable full time operation, without a sugar daddy that is, so you're only ever likely to see it in the larger towns and cities. Unless the emphasis on funding changes, I can't see this major difference between SL and the championship changing any time soon.

I notice that Bradford allowed Brandon Pickersgill & Keenen Tomlinson to play for Skolars in the Challenge Cup this afternoon, so we mustn't have much of a plan to use them (or to be in the cup for very long). Both won't be able to play for us in future rounds now.