With Matautia in the halves, I don`t see where Ratchford fits, other than as substitute and that surely means Walker misses out?

Heard that we have given Ratchford a new contract, so he must figure in Powell`s plans.

You could be right, as I think Ratchford has the positive mindset that Powell talks about. I’m not sure what role he’ll play. I like Walker too much to leave him out, and he seems like just the sort of character that Powell wants. He’ll make a very vocal on-field captain/leader if and when he becomes the starting 9. No doubt Powell is working with him on his weaknesses now.

I think Ratchford is like Shenton was at Cas. Solid professional.

Now that we have signed Jake Wardle, for 2022, I too would prefer Matautia in the halves, since it allows both Wrench and Thewlis to play regular 1st team football, which they need.

Well on a thread somewhere it was said if Duffy does not come that we will bring Gale in, and that there had been talks, if I remember that correctly.

This worries me too. We needed a clear out if we were going to shake the club out of the comfort zone it had been in, living permanently just outside the teams who were really competing for Grand Finals. But we can't underestimate the scale of the challenge especially in an era where the elite Aussie players don't come so we can't just load up from the NRL like we did with Morley, King, Hodgson and the Monaghans.

I remember when Lineham left I said something on here like Lineham's one of those players who you feel like needs to be moved on but is not easy to replace and you could easily end up with an inferior player. That applies to a lot of our guys: certainly Hill, Cooper and Charnley.

I haven't seen Powell bring in a player yet where I've thought this guy has improved us. He's been bringing in squad fillers which is what TS was doing after around 2014.

One thing we did well during the Gatcliffe era, despite not having a great youth system ourselves, was targeted and brought in good upcoming talent that had emerged from other club's youth systems and signed them while young. I remember Cullen saying this was a deliberate strategy. As well as the more obvious signings who had already looked like stars at their clubs (Westwood, Atkins, Myler, Ratchford) we also made some under the radar pick ups in Bridge, Harrison, Grix and Hill. Although those guys hadn't come through our Academy it meant we were a bit like Leeds/Wigan/Saints in terms of having a core of good players who had been together since a young age in our squad and that gave us a good core. I'd like to see us rebuild with that kind of signing.

Anyway, we know the risks. We've gone all in now so we have to back Powell and accept that things might get worse before they get better. The worst outcome from this is, results are bad as Powell's new squad takes time to bed in, we jettison Powell and end up with an inferior coach who tries to do his own rebuild on a rebuild and that goes even worse and suddenly we've gone from being a decent team to perma-strugglers in the space of a couple of years and pining for the relative stability of the Price era.

To be honest i'm not a big fan of Gale anymore as he is past his best, but if we signed him on a 1 year it would allow Williams the freedom i think he needs. Gale would be the organiser and Kicker and would leave Williams free to roam and pick his moments to scoot through the line etc.
There are alot of Aussie journalists and pundits saying we have signed Dufty so i think we have. And i think he will come over to play in the halves but we will see

Quite, sally. Especially the bit I've bolded. This is my major worry.

When Moran really started spending his money (Morley, then King and Monaghan x2) we've gone from perennial underachievers, to CC and GF regulars, with a bit of tweaking. Powell's "my way or the highway", and it's subsequent overhaul, could well be too much too soon. We let Smith go stale, and Price, well he was stale from the begining. All we needed (as I said) was a tweak. A bluff Yarkie has sent us back to the mid days of Cullen. A few stars, but, miles away from where we want/need to be.

You don't think Mikaele and Harrison are an improvement on Doro and Robson?

An alternative perspective is, of the players being released, how many would you as a fan want to retain.

For me, it`s one.

Some interesting comments from Sally and Lefty and I get where you are both coming from to some degree because I thought this would have been a season of evolution rather than revolution once Powell had had a good look at us. Yet it's more of a surprise these days when we are not in the news for comings and goings.

However, on reflection I'm up for it and the consequences as the last year(s) of TS the Price era generally despite some success have been written off and viewed as an unhappy time to be a Wire (apart from the revisionists based on our recent run of defeats and abject performances).

I'm not sure what Powell's options are/were? The packs too light, some players are under performing compared to their perceived cap space or worse under performing to their perceived talent, some players apparently don't want to be here, some players don't want change and some players are naturally coming to the end of their time with us due to age/being OOC.

When you think about it he's had a lot to deal with it and sometimes the best way to take a plaster off is.....well you know the rest.

For those bemoaning the lack of quality, yes I'd love us to be in for today's Morley, King, Hodgson and the Monaghan's, but where are they? Oh and I'd be giving this new crop a chance before bracketing them with Wheeler Bailey, Pomeroy, Blythe, Asatosi......

Spot on.