Do you see the problem there?

get a vice captain..unlike langley- sick note!! who can fill in if the captain has an injury. Im not sure who to suggest as my guess would be BK?

I believed SM should have been sacked earlier but otherwise this is a fair assessment. Whilst coaches must have a strong say on the overall composition of the squad there must also be a level above them which has a longer term or broader remit. This level has failed catastrophically, not as you say in every single situation where there are always mitigating circumstances, but viewed in the whole over many years. The financial issues have imnpacted but alongside the players who have left Brough, Myler, Robinson, Orr, Brown have all been available cheaply I suspect, prior to establishing themselves as very good players at other clubs and this is only in the halfback position. We simply called it wrong.

I don't see what's to be gained from another wholsesale clearout or changing coach unless we have a real vision of what we're replacing them with and to be honest, I don't think we have that skillset at the club.

Bit petty that mate ,the reason Cas fans were celebrating was because thats what we do and the two points were vital in our quest for a top 8 place ,if you look at the league you 'll see that we (cas) are now four points clear of HULL KR in ninth place .,nobody in Cas is expecting to win owt but thats the way we like it .
FWIW I was impressed with the Bulls defence in parts but you did seem to tire easily,Cant believe how big young Tom Burgess is.

Delboy66(aye of the tigers fanzine)

I agree very much that the point about the turnaround at Catalans in a relatively short space of time is a great point.

I can understand the calls for a mass clearout, even though financially everyone knows, realistically, that isn't a possibility - there may be several departures and hopefully arrivals, (always is) but "mass" just can't be done.

Having said that, the points which mainly grab my interest are:-
a) my view that our young players would have been, and could be, much better if they had one or more really inspirational role models on and off the pitch (and I won't regurgitate my whinges about the lunatic release of Menzies, or indeed Morrison, but what a fkin difference they would be making)
b) the fact that despite all our faults (and they are many) we ARE capable of playing some good stuff, at times, we CAN defend exceptionally well, at times, and we HAVE got some good results amid the dross. The season is doom and gloom, but it is the ultimate overall results - caused largely by our abysmal defence, followed by inability to retain possession - which cause my despond, and not the level of play as such, which I think at many times has been far better and more entertaining than last season, even if the league position isn't.

So, how to sum up; well, i don't think we actually need a wholesale clearout. I do believe Potter is a far better coach than our league position suggests. And I suspect that getting the right men into the spine of the team would produce a disproportionately large improvement. If we can get them. As opposed to crazily getting rid of them.

Don't forget that one such leader by example is L'Estrange, and he will still be here next year. The light at the end of the tunnel is a faint one, and may still be a train, but I do think that relatively few but key acquisitions, could actually make us a competitive side in terms of Top 8. The question is, of course, having got rid of a load, whether we can now somehow find any available.

But I believe that such as Whitehead, Olbison, Crookes, Raynor, Platt and Addy could develop into much better and critically more consistent players with less of the responsibility on their shoulders and with someone's lead to follow. I think the consensus is that Lulia will beef up the centres and that can't but help.

I know we have been very critical and understandably so but we do still have some genuine class in the squad with the likes of Kearney, L'Estrange, and Elima. You could mention Lynch (though not of late); Scruton could come back better next time; and there is no reason why if we can get Whitehead and Donaldson sorted out in close season those two in particular could not be stand out players for us. Also Langley seems to be taking some stick, and maybe he has become injury prone, but there's no denying that a fit Langley is a big asset for us and him and L'Estrange improve the defence no end.

So we look pretty broken at the moment. But maybe it would be no more difficult a task to fix than were Catalans, with the right key personnel fit and in place. At least, that is what I'm hoping.

bulls = giants 6 years ago

As an outsider looking in (I'm a Hull fan btw), it seems to me that you all fell for the spin at the start of the year when in reality you had signed some very avarage players.

Hull are no world beaters but when I look at your squad theres probably no more than 4 players that would bring anything to my side. Even them wouldnt be guaranteed a game.

ITs alright blaming Potter but in reality he has very little to work with, I guess he has the chance to prove his quality by getting rid of the deadwood over the next couple of years and building a useful squad. With these players you are going nowhere no matter who is in charge.

I agree with what you say here. I think it's important to remember that Potter was never going to come in and completely transform the team in one season. We signed an absolute shedload of new players this year, many of which were gambles and risks. Some of them have come off (Elima, Royston, Raynor, Ainscough) and some of them have not (Walker, Herbert to an extent) due to injuries and general disruption within the squad.

To say we all 'fell for the spin' is a little harsh imo. Our full strength 17 is really not that bad at all, certainly better than our current league standing would suggest.
Unfortunately we have suffered from major injuries to key players and a severe lack of cohesion and self-belief within the camp as a whole.