I thought the pack was good today, it was other areas that let the team down massively. 

We were comfortably beaten up front in the first half.  York made more and more ground with each set and that got them in position to score their tries.


Second half flattered us because they kept dropping the ball.  

We barely had the ball for parts of the 1st half. It wasn't the forwards throwing offloads in our own half to nobody or putting in nothing kicks.

We've been outmuscled by York in previous games but today I didnt see that. I did see some clueless attacking shape though and nobody at halfback taking control.

I'm with Bullseye. When the two sides went set for set, York were consistently kicking on the last in our half. Whereas we were consistently kicking from our own half. York giving away soft penalties was what allowed us up field. Only for Lilley to miss a simple penalty and level the game up.


I feel for Keyes. He produced our one bit of quality. So there's not a chance I'd drop him. But he's had multiple half back partners who all have their own issues and who have also played different positions. No wonder pit attack looks off. Lilley needs to move on for me. He's simply not good enough to play 7 anymore but gets a free ride from the fans as he tries his nuts off. But we simply have to look at quality over effort now. 

I'm with Bullseye. When the two sides went set for set, York were consistently kicking on the last in our half. Whereas we were consistently kicking from our own half. York giving away soft penalties was what allowed us up field. Only for Lilley to miss a simple penalty and level the game up.


I feel for Keyes. He produced our one bit of quality. So there's not a chance I'd drop him. But he's had multiple half back partners who all have their own issues and who have also played different positions. No wonder pit attack looks off. Lilley needs to move on for me. He's simply not good enough to play 7 anymore but gets a free ride from the fans as he tries his nuts off. But we simply have to look at quality over effort now. 

Keyes was absolutely dreadful didn't look bothered.

Keyes hasn't been fit for a lot of the season and even when he has been fit he has been mostly underwhelming. The recruitment of Meadows and Keyes hasn't worked for the club and it was an area that we needed to strengthen to move forward. Unless we can pull a rabbit out the hat (which is highly unlikely) it will be our undoing this year.


Lilley has his imitations (certainly playing at halfback) but we'd be in a much worse place without him this year. I expect on Friday he will go back to hooker where has had his best games, unless Souter is back. If we are looking for a scapegoat there is are better candidates from this year's squad.


Does anyone know what is happening with Tafua, he seems to have been a few weeks away for about a month or so now. Could certainly do with his yardage carries coming out of our own half. 

Didn't say he played well, but again he was the only one who created anything. He was also the only one who backed up Hooleys late break so I don't buy he's not bothered.  


He's not playing well over 80 minutes. But as I said, when our spine is completely chopping and changing every week, it's causing an issue. Lilley tried but we could have still been playing today and I don't think he'd have created anything. He's no long passing game so it's a crash ball to Gee every time. He's an interchange Hooker now to bring some energy but that's it for me. 


Hooley/Holmes/Keyes needs to be our 1/6/7 now until the end of the season and see if they can get some cohesion/confidence together. 


For us to be at this stage of the season and our coach or fans not have any idea what's our best spine combination has been a farce and has what's cost us this season. 

Decent halfbacks are rarer than hens teeth but we do need to improve the squad in this area.  What I don't understand is how we seem to have got worse in attack as the season has progressed.   Sure, we've made a few changes to the spine but these players train together all the time.    Out attack is so slow and predictable with players having trouble executing simple catch and pass movements, timing their run or actually running at a gap.  It's like they're all just introduced to each other on the day of the match.  This where I'm starting to question the coaches - they say the same things but seem incapable of getting a response from the players.

Of our three Lilley is the one player that isn't suffering from an alarming loss of form.  He has plenty of limitations as we know (bit too slow, kicking game very hit and miss) but we'd miss his enthusiasm and defence if he wasn't out there.  Meadows has been unconvincing at best all season but has really dropped off lately.  Far too slow and defensively suspect.  Keyes looked off the pace yesterday (possibly still injured?).   He needs to offer a running threat so if he's not fit he's ineffective.  


Despite all that we don't always give our halfbacks the best platform.  Our forwards struggle when they meet a pack that can compete (York, Barrow, Toulouse).  We don't make enough ground to be in a position to put in attacking kicks.  Yesterday's first half was a case in point.  We were kicking on halfway yet their forwards got them onto our 40m line so they could kick from a much better position.   We also have too many players that get put on their backs (Ronan Michael especially).  This means we end up with a really slow PTB so a defence with a quick lines speed is in our faces immediately (even more so if the pass from dummy half is slow).  Hard to create without space. 

Blake also backed up Hooley's break with Keyes.   I couldn't believe they managed to that up given it was three on one.  

I know Holmes has played halfback before but I'm far from convinced he's anything other than a runner.  He never holds the ball in two hands and barely knows himself what he's going to do when he gets the ball so how anyone runs off him I don't know.    It may be worth a try though.  It can't be worse than what we currently have. 


The side look very disconnected at the moment.  Players are all trying to do things as individuals.  Take Fulton trying to run crossfield all the time.   That's a symptom of us not playing as a team.  He needs putting into a gap.   Shame we can't execute simple backline moves - even the most simple has players taking the ball at walking pace or having to check their run.  


Taufua is still a few weeks off apparently.   We certainly miss him.  Okunbor needs a break after yesterday's stinker.  

I think we can all agree that there's a lot to resolve and Nobles assumption that it doesn't matter where we finish in the play-offs as long as we're playing well we'll be fine, is way off. 


I get he's probably trying to protect the players but we're not having a "wobble"  we haven't played well for two months. Even if York or Toulouse have a wobble and lose a couple of games, we still need to win every game to finish above them! 


Finish outside the top two gives us such a disadvantage as it will mean we'd have to go to York AND Toulouse and win. It's a mammoth task to even do one! I I stand by my post that our season was on the line yesterday. We didn't blow an opportunity (a long with many of the other opportunities we've bombed)  we blew our season IMO

Noble is old school - like Kear, they can't coach attack.  Even in his hey day Noble relied on having massive backs to get across the line.  Defense is easy - either man for man or slide - get your numbers right and it is difficult to breakdown.