Quote Him="Him"I'd choose O'Loughlin for now. Cracking LF and a couple of years younger than Sinfield. If Sinfield were 2 or 3 years younger I'd pick him, confident that he's just in a patch of bad form, but he's nearly 32 and currently not playing well enough to be picked. I'd tell Brough and Lomax that (barring injury) they'll be the halves for the World Cup with O'Loughlin as Captain, Roby as hooker & Tomkins at full back, and use the remaining year and a bit to get the team playing in 1 style. So everybody knows what they're doing, and anyone who has to come into the squad just slots in to the existing setup.
As much as I think Ellis, Graham & Burgess are cracking players, I don't particularly see them as captains, there is a lot more to the role of captain than just what happens on the pitch and I'd rather not run the risk of adversely affecting their game by loading them with the captains responsibility when O'Loughlin seems to shoulder that burden so well at Wigan.
In my opinion the World Cup squad should be:
1. Tomkins
2. Charnley
3. Watkins
4. Atkins
5. Hall
6. Brough
7. Lomax
8. Mossop
9. Roby
10. Graham
11. Ellis
12. Westwood
13. O'Loughlin (C)
14. Burrow
15. Crabtree
16. LMS/Carvell
17. Hock
I know that's leaving out Widdop and Reed but whilst I think they're both good players, and could maybe be in the larger squad as backup, I think it's important for the halves to use the opportunity of the mid-season camps and games to play together and for the team to get used to a system.'"
No Burgess? Leaving out the number 6 from the current best team in the world? Leaving out one of the form centres in the NRL? You must be mad.
Tomkins
Charnley
Reed
Atkins
Hall
Widdop/Lomax
Brough
Burgess
McIlorum
Mossop
Ellis
Westwood
Lockers
Roby - IMPACT
Hock - IMPACT
Graham - IMPACT
Crabtree - IMPACT
That is a fantastic side IMO. With enough time together I think we could make the final against Aus and have a real go at them. I would just hate to see us crash out at the SF stage.
Just stay well clear of players who have been tried and failed at international level like Sinfield especially! I just can't see our coach picking a team like that though!
