Steve Price seems to have decided that he is such a good halfback he will play off the bench as an interchange 9.

I think giving Patton 7 is the break he needs.

But

We could argue both sides.
There's no denying there has been times when I could shake him and say back yourself and just do it for that brief chance he might get.
I think TS scared the risk out of him, and O'Brian and Myler too.

I want Patton to selfishly think about himself and just rip it up.

I can see Patton ending up being like Penny, a player with a mythology around him that he would have been a great but was ruined by coaches.

It will be TS ruined him by 'stifling his natural game' and then Price ruined him by using him as an interchange hooker.

I've seen Dec do some great things But he isn't involved enough with last plays or decision making, if that's coaches saying Kevin brown calls and makes the 5th tackle plays then that's a sad indictment of what our coaches thought about Dec patrons kicking game and decision making.

My biggest reservation about Dec is that sometimes we are crying out for someone to grab the game by the scruff of the neck and just decide where the game is going to be played and I have never seen Dec do this. Maybe given a run he could develop but IMO the time is now, we should have a great chance next season given saints and Wigan could be unsettled for a while, I'm not saying they won't be challengers or better than us but they could both end up being weaker than this season. In 2019 both titles are there for the taking if we can get a player with the necessary game management skills to make up our major flaw. I don't think that's Dec patton.

I wish we hadn't given him a contract extension after a few good games as a bench hooker. 1, because I don't rate him and want rid. And 2, we could've all seen the calibre of club that would've signed him. It wouldn't have been anyone in this season's top 8 and it certainly wouldn't have been Wigan duckie

If Patton is our starting 7 next season then I do fear for us. Interchange hooker at best and I’d go as far to say we need to improve upon that too.

That's Patton in a nutshell.
We need to replace Brown, and Patton is no more than a squad player. Also, I'd have kept Dwyer to fulfill this role and let Patton go.

tell you what i find frustrating with dec, this thing where he stops dead just before the line and then throws a pass, he wont' take the line on properly, think how many late hits o'brien was taking a few years ago, now i don't want that, but i would wager he's took more of them this year than dec has in his entire career.

Looks like there is only me in the Patton camp....
And not for the first time I've been a lone figure on here and still came through.

The lad has it if he wants it. Perhaps Paul Anderson working closer to him has seen more in him in 2 months than TS has since Patton became a Wire.

I don't think Steve Price playing Patton behind SL highest ever earning 7 is dismissive of Patton...but rather an endorsement of his importance by awarding him a bench spot above other contenders or even snap recruitment.

Since GOB left, I haven't seen that he has it, nor that he really wants it, RD.

Weren't you telling us all that Roberts was going to have a storming end to the season when it came to the playoffs and Grand Final?

How do you solve a problem like Maria, sorry, I mean Declan.
Simple. You get rid.
He's got 3 years under his belt, and all our coach gives him, is 10 minutes at the end of the game.
There's the issue. Our coach doesn't trust him, so why are we giving him a wage/ taking up salary cap space. In three years, he hasn't improved, but, being fair to him, he hasn't got any worse. That's just it. He's ambling along. Sat next to the coach for 70 minutes, thinking what's on the post match buffet, and then not doing much when he comes on.
He's Matty Blythe. He's Dom Crosby. He's Ben Evans. He's not bad. Just nothing special. Time for him to move on.
Let Salford have him, or HKR or London.

If we don't get anybody by the time the squad meets back for training, looking at Matty Smith should be considered seriously. If we don't swoop for a GF winning SH, someone else will.....and he's better than Patton.

Patton good enough for England knights but not good enough for Warrington?? Rated by Gary scofield but not by the experts on the forum ,, I’ll trust the opinion of those that are paid to make decisions and have turned the club around this season

Somebody already has swooped for Matty Smith.

I was in it and partially still am, he got us to a gf when Sandow was injured and really played well and controlled the games, we're we not winning until he went off in the grand final??

All we wanted were those performances on a consistant basis, not really happened, not really been given a long enough run there tho. There was a rumour the more senior players were overruling his calls Smith fallouts etc if true they would have had an effect, but a champion player would buckle down and work harder to overcome it. I would have been OK if he had partnered Roberts tjis year with Smith as cover.

I think that the interchange booker may be out of necessity, but it will give him the experience in controlling the direction of play it could benefit him, how many of our half backs went on to be bookers could happen with Patton. I don't think we need to get rid but he does need to start proving his naysayers wrong and start to win us games which I think he can.