Well tonight I saw a young lad do far more to try and win a game than Josh Drinkwater has in a wire shirt. Promising showing from Hayes.

Really struggled to create opportunities without Williams. Dufty looked decent on the ball but just needed someone to create a bit of space for him.

Concerning start. Couldn’t compete with the intensity and by the time we’d settled in, we were left with too much to do.

Difficult to see but the Drinkwater intercept decision looked a real close one. For them to go on and score after we had scrambled really well up to that point is a kick in the teeth. There were a number of frustrating decisions, but we had chances to go level and didn’t take them.

Based on last night... Ashton. Maybe Vaughan, Clarke and Philbin on the bench.

Hayes had an excellent second half - you could see the confidence starting to flow, and his pass selection, kicking and willingness to take on the line were top notch.

No reason at all he can't be Williams partner next year if we look after him.

I think it would be unfair not to mention Hayes' defence as well. He was all over it.

Saints did a good job on Vaughan. Restricted him to 55 meters.

Drinkwater, Currie and Ratchford all stealing a wage. That Crowther is garbage as well. 36 metres and 9 missed tackles. There’s a reason why Wakey and Cas aren’t bothered about him.

I'm no expert on the technicalities of the game but I always notice the difference between the timing of the passes between us and Saints. They seem to pass a split second before they are tackled, meaning an opposition defender is committed and out of contention for the remainder of that play. Wire passes are usually far earlier meaning the defence has time to rearrange and track across.

As good as Clark is, I thought we looked much better when Walker came on, his distribution from dummy half is streets ahead of Clark.

Dufty looked revitalised, keen in attack & defence, He's, Philbin, Russell, Wrench, Harrison, Ashton all worked really hard.....nice to see a few positive pointers for next season, coz this one is a write off

Saints have to be recognised as the benchmark in superleague.
They have had a continuing will to win at all costs for many seasons . No matter who the coach is or what players come & go there is a need, a will, & an attitude throughout the club that carries them through most games. Bending the rules doesn't matter to Saints because the team are confident that the ref won't punish every infringement.
Incidentally, was the Sironen try off a forward pass ? It looked forward from the font of all knowledge ,the South stand.

W71 ,when you look at Saints though, they have this knack of getting players who are committed to the "cause". They don't even necessarily get the best players but they get the best out of them.

None is the answer to that

Have a day off. Are you saying Bettison is a better winger than Ashton? LMS better than Vaughan?

It's the environment and the constant pursuit of the highest standards. They attract ambitious players who want to win the title (rather than players who want to get the largest contract). Players are then absorbed into the existing winning culture. They also have very strong leaders on the pitch who lead by example.

Meanwhile we say things like "I’ve got to be happy with the shift they put in" whilst selecting Drinkwater, Dudson, Mata'utia at al week in week out, giving journeyman players long contracts and then be surprised why we don't win.

Soft underbelly? Pack "too nice"? Embarrassing comments. At Wilderspool we used to be a hard side. We are powder puffs now. Not a hint of menace in any forward.

Unless we change this we will never progress. Anyone inside the club who makes an excuse or accepts where we are in the league is part of the problem.