One for the Holdsworth knockers, he is statisticaly the best scrum half in Super League! rlFrontline team of the yearrl
Well in DJ

I agree even though he hasn't reached the dizzy heights of his 1st season he has been our most creative player this year playing out of position imo hopefully with the new stadium and with a bigger pack next year or a switch back to standoff he will continue to show the magic he obviously has.

Who's in the pack then Bobby, I seem to recall endless threads about our lack of a pack for next year.

It always amazes me people knock Holdsworth. Although I don't always belief he organises the team particularly well, he still creates slot of chances. This is where Smith comes in, he does organise the pack and he injects a bit of speed. Neither Smith or Holdsworth have been perfect, but they do seem to work well together, and Holdsworth seems to raise his game when partnered by Smith and standing a bit wider.

i think smith and holdsworth are better together also. Think he struggled abit playing with stef, dunno why but i just seemed that way to me!

Holdsworth has had so much flack this year its untrue, he's by far the most creative player on our team and one of the most creative in the whole league. People don't realise how hard it is for a halfback to play behind a beaten pack week after week, so for Dan to have the amount of assists he has is nothing short of a miracle. Take him out of the team and you automatically take a good chunk of Pattens assists out as well because they link up so well.

All this nonsense about him not taking the line on enough is well....exactly that nonsens. Do we really want our halfback taking the ball in at every opportunity and constantly getting tackled? I'd much prefer him to guide the team around the field and set try's up just like he's been doing, oh yeah the amount he work he puts in in defence is also unreal for a scrum half. Thats becasuse A) He doesn't get the protection he needs from our team and B) Opposition teams see him as our biggest threat and target him.

His goal kicking on the other hand is a different subject all together

At least there's people on this forum that do appreciate how good Holdsworth really is. Now Ratchford/Smith is different story, Ratchford never really seemed to live up to the hype and expectation, whilst Smith has improved since his first season of poor passes.

There's no dismissing how much of loss Ray Cashmere will be, but he is over 30 and it's something that was going to happen sooner or later. That said, McPhersen should make a considerable improvement to the second row. If I was coach Wild would be moving to the second row and I'd play Adamson at loose forward with the stipulation that he get's his act together in attack.

That was only to be expected under a coach who ruined him and a pack that has been constantly useless.

I think he will shine under a decent coach and the platform his forwards will create. In fact i'm sure he will.

how can you say Ratchford never lived up to the hype. Did he even partner holdworth this season???Always a top performer playing out of position

Did Ratchford ever partner Holdsworth?

Well, that would be yes! Who do you think was partnering Holdsworth, whilst Smith was at hooker? Ratchford looked awesome when he first went to centre, but his level of performance dropped off. The same could be said of when he first started playing SL and earnt some good reviews. The trouble is, he's developed Salforditis. That lack of desire to get stuck in, in defence.

This is by no means a criticism of Stef, but it takes a massive heart to play for Salford, and like a few others, I don't think he has it. Godwin has it in abundance.

I'm not saying it's his fault. Far from it! One of the things the gets me annoyed about seeing McRae on tv is the amount of damage he has done to young players' careers. Not to mention the damage he's done to the playing roster.

Just goes to show that what they say about damn lies and statistics is true! There's NO WAY that Holdsworth is the best 7 in Superleague. Although, I do admit that he's probably the only 7 in the League who has had to play behind a beaten pack every week. So well done to him anyway.

Think the link between DJ and Patten is as good as we've seen at Salford for a few years and worth remembering by Pattens detractors.
Still not convinced that DJ is a #7, would much prefer to see him at 6 with Smith at 7, play Moon at 13 and along with Pattern we then have 4 brilliant play makers on the field whilest not sacrificing any defensive capabilities.

off to widnes apparentley is houldsworth

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