Dufty Thewlis Tai King (Lindop if King not fit) Ashton Williams Leyland Vaughan Walker Yates Holroyd Russell Currie Powell Philbin Harrison Crowther Not sure whether to go with Crowther or Musgrove, I expect Burgess will go with Musgrove, but I'd be tempted to give the spot to Crowther,

[quote="karetaker":25to7ti3]Jury is still out for me with Russell.[/quote:25to7ti3] Same here. I have only seen brief highlights of our games so far, so I'm in no position to judge him yet. Plus, it's still very early days for him within the set-up. It will be interesting to see how he goes on Sunday, if selected.

[quote="The Speculator":o9nfzwk8]Same here. I have only seen brief highlights of our games so far, so I'm in no position to judge him yet. Plus, it's still very early days for him within the set-up. It will be interesting to see how he goes on Sunday, if selected.[/quote:o9nfzwk8] I thought he was better against Leigh than he was against Widnes - has has some size and is pretty quick for a forward. Possibly seems a little bit slow laterally in defence but worked hard in both games. For me, Holroyd is still ahead of him in terms of selection when Fitzgibbon is fit so this weekend will be a big one for him if selected. I'll be interested to see how he goes. I actually thought Tom Whitehead did well preseason and will be putting pressure on all the back row positions if people are out of form. Nice to have young players pushing for places in the 17 rather than making up the numbers.

[quote="karetaker":2m0gtv5b]Jury is still out for me with Russell.[/quote:2m0gtv5b] Definitely, he's not a like for like replacement for Nicholson. He did little against Leigh and again against Whitehaven imo. Just hope Sam and Co can get more out of him as the season progresses. It's hard to teach an appetite for work though.

I think we’re going to miss Bateman and Nicholson a lot.

[quote="ratticusfinch":2w9pibwu]I think we’re going to miss Bateman and Nicholson a lot.[/quote:2w9pibwu] Agreed. I think we will miss the workrate of those two. Our defensive workrate was excellent for most of 2024. I hope Russell steps up as well as Holroyd.