Since the Super League 16 started its been mentioned a fair few times how DJ doesnt like getting his shorts dirty...

Tonight simply confirmed those comments. He single handedly lost us the game.

The missed pass which led to (MOM) Matty Smith chasing back at jaw dropping speed, then us being short in the corner and conceding a try, was the turning point in the game, and simply turned all our hard work to get back into the game into wasted effort.

Up to that point a comeback was on the cards, but that try simply put the game out of our reach and gave Hull time to collect themselves. Take nothing away from Hull, they came to play & not having the ball in the first 10 minutes didn't help either but that was a massive turning point in the game, us building pressure then our captain turning position over.

I hope it was simply just a one off, but having a decent scrum half involves getting stuck in and trying to break the line, not throwing the ball away in any direction like it's a piece of turd every time the opposition puts his hand on you. His decision making tonight was one of the worst i've ever seen from a Salford player, and if those sort of antics continue surely his captaincy has to be reviewed. Resting on your laurels after securing a 3 year contract simply isn't acceptable, especially when the team around you are looking for guidance and getting stuck in.

Overall we displayed a spirited performance and 16/17 players deserved to be on that pitch tonight with some not having their best game but those 16 giving 100%. Dare I say if Mr Holdsworth were at, Wigan, Warrington or Saints, he'd find himself on the bench next week.

On a positive note, what a cracking display Adam Clay's putting on with 5 try's in 3 games, With Henry fit I think Vievers is going to have a little selection headache

not the one I'd be wagging the finger at : two other players had a mare: both on damn good contracts as well. Both made crucial errors that led to 3/4 tries.

Lyrad is spot on though about the turning point, we were definitely building pressure and another try at that point for us would have seen a very different outcome to the game I reckon. Mr. Ratchford also didn't cover himself in glory tonight by trying to break away from 3 Hull defenders and ending up in touch after picking up on their spilled ball, we really need to cut out some bad habits - possession was what we needed at that point in the game not attempted heroics. Also, as Wardley Red says on the other thread, we can't keep starting to play 10 minutes after the opposition, we gave ourselves a mountain to climb, again.

As for your first question, it depends where you were. I was at the Willows watching Salford.
As for the kicks ... as I stand opposite the "25/35 metres area" towards the family stand and opposite the posh seats, I witnessed 5 different kicks in 6 attacks. All opposite me.
So where were you? I too can be ironic.

he does tend to go missing when it matters but 25 mins to the end he was blowing and tried to keep out of it from then on to stop him self falling on his ass.

Players have good games and bad games ..... they do not go from hero to zero in 1 game

Form is temporary, class is permanent

On this occasion I have to agree that DJ had, IMO, a poor game by his standards. When we needed our leader & playmaker to be calm he was throwing it around when the pass just wasn't on. This lead to a few others attempting the same. I don't know how many times we were in good attacking positions & then panicked and threw a pass/off load that just wasn't on and lead to either being pushed back 10 or 20 metres or to Hull gaining possession. It seems to me that when we start throwing the ball about everybody thinks they have to keep it alive rather than take the tackle! Having said all that it was the first 10mins that cost us as for 70mins we won 16-14!
P.S. I thought Feka had a good game during his spells.

The only positive thing I could say regarding Mr Paleaaesina is that he managed to play 21 mins from the start of the game and played I believe his most minutes yet.

The fact that it has taken until round 14 to achieve this merely goes to support how poor the coaching is at Salford and in particular the pre season conditioning.

People slagging DJ of after a bad game, I've heard it all now. Holdsworth is the best scrum half we have had at Salford for a long time and anyone who cant see what class he adds to the team must be blind, yes he may of had a bad game but to come on and start a thread about him "losing" us the game is nothing short of sad. The changing point in the game was when the team bothered coming onto the field. That first half was absolutely shocking straight from kick of we fuc*k up and that just set the tone for the game. How can holdsworth possibly do anything when our forwards get battered week in week out? We could of started a thread up about most players tonight take Anderson for example what a mare he had.

Look im not saying i dont think DJ can improve he can every player can improve, but how fickle can you get saying hes gone from hero to zero in one game. If DJ was in Wigans/Warringtons squad he'd be awesome because hes got the players around him, and the forwards to make the yards.

I cant comment on what went on in the second half if IM honest, for the first time ever i left a game at half time, (which isn't like me) IM 19 years old and even im sick and tired of getting built up and let down why cant we possibly win more than 3 games on the row is that to much to ask? I've not missed a game in 3 years (barring Catalan away with the ash cloud) and i wont miss another one for the next 3 either but last night i had to go it was so frustrating watching them and knowing they can play better and they fu*ck up again.

On another note i thought Fekka had a decent first half ran it hard and got more game time than usual out of him.

Lets hope we get of to a better start at KR next week.

I've said it for a while, he isn't playing as well as we know he can. He isn't miles away from being a top player, its just a few things he needs to do. Bend his back in tackles, run with the ball and learn that if the pass isn't on then the best thing you can do is keep hold. If he does that he'll be a miles better player. At the minute though we need much, much more from our captain.

Holdsworth was responsible for 2 key errors that may have turned the game, but you can't blame him alone for our loss. It wasn't him who missed the kick off or who missed the tackles for the tries we conceded.

Too many errors by the whole team, both on attack and defence cost us the game. Cashmere's/Patten's kick off error. Patten's knock on. Jewitt's knock on. Ratchford going in touch. Anderson's missed tackle. Gibson's positioning.

On a plus side I did think Matty Smith was superb and was the best player on the field. Controlled many aspects of our attacking game, took on the line, handled and kicked well and tackled excellently (by going low instead of wrestling!). I hope for more of the same.

I was watching a game I'm making observations about. Surely your sarcastic
(not ironic) question answers itself. And I beg your pardon. I was referring to kick offs not attacking kicks (my bad) and excuse my tone. I was genuinely annoyed that for a once we looked like serious contenders to revive a comeback after our usual first 10 minutes. And yes my topic title is a little off the mark but I'm referring to "zero" for that game, not the remaining superleague. Talk about taking things literally.

Possibly one of the most contradicting comments and ill informed post's i've read.

You call me a fickle fan for venting my frustration and you're the one throwing in the towel at halftime....pathetic. Fans don't come more fickle than that. At least I had the loyalty to see it out and witness a half hearted attempt of us getting back into the game. The going got tough and you showed how little faith you had by spitting your dummy out ? Were half way through the season, are you not aware of our inconsistent form? or do you simply have prematch visions of us putting 60 on a well drilled side ? lets be realistic for a second.

And more to the point it was the second half we endeavoured to make a come back, the half in which DJ came up with more mistakes and rash decisions. And as mentioned we won the second half on points. Ok my topic title has come across a little rash, I was really trying to make a point of how quickly his form has declined from a decent run of form. I wasn't chanting "DJ OUT" when the whistle blew, I can see his talent and class, but I do think as mentioned, he does need to bend his back a little more in the tackle and take a leaf out of Patterns book when it comes to attacking the line.

I like the bloke and like you think he's the best scrum half we've had in a long long time, but I do think his leadership qualities need a bit of a polish if were going to make a good attempt at the second half of the season in our last year at the Willows. And your right, he isn't at Warrington or Saints were he'd have good cover from the forwards, and with that being the case surely he realises he has to put that little extra work rate in, not sit back and disappear for 20 minutes, which seemed to be the case last night.

No he didn't single handedly lose us the game, but he had a 4/5 good opportunities to win us the game, opportunities which turned to dust and halted our comeback.

Fair point on the sarcasm.

However I cannot vent my frustration only at Holdsworth. I do not like to vent anything to individual players on here (bar one, recently, and now very regretted) but one player referred to in posts referring to this match did cop a lot of loud criticism during the match.

When I see Clay, Smith and other backs running their blood to water, when I see certain forwards obviously hurt and tired but trying to fill in for others ,, it's the others who get my ire. And there were two who did.

The only comment I'll make about Holdsworth is that he is not leadership material and the decision to make him captain is merely one in a long line of dense decisions at the club.

On the pitch he neither leads by example or by communication. He comes across as a follower. Friday night was a prime example of where a leader was needed. The poor start and the mounting scoreline in the first 10 minutes needed him to stand up and tell a few home truths and get the players going. Instead he looked like one of the players who needed someone else to lift him. A captain motivates himself as well as those around him.

Holdsworth is a good player but he's not a captain.