I accept the need to develop the squad but I truly believe we need to put our strongest side out for every game. These are professional athletes who are 6 weeks into a season. I remember not long ago Wane saying how he wanted to win every game and this simply isn't the way to do it. Even if we'd scraped a win is be disappointed with today's performance. 2 debuts with Sam and lockers on the bench would have given us a bit of strike and leadership if it started to go wrong! It went wrong!!

He's doing well as a centre, but his best performances have still been on the wing. I'll start to believe he's right for the shirt he's got when he does the business in a close game against one of the big four.


Surely this was a prime opportunity to give him a shot in his preferred position though? With Gelling being brought in.


I think he looked like a fish out of water, and playing him on the wing can't have helped

But Hughes preferred position is second row, you've selected him at centre.

I dont think they have at all and some of his performances this season at centre have been top notch. Goulding is a natural centre and always has been, he represented England at every underage level in that position and he had never even played wing until he was in his 20s and played there in the first team. He is our starting centre and to juggle the team around even more when there is no need makes no sense.



Hughes natural position is second row and he has hardly ever played centre so it is not his preferred position at all. He even represented England academy at second row.



Gelling is hardly a natural centre either and is more of a second row and Auckland fans said this was his best position. He was put on the wing because his defence and positioning arent up to scratch at centre.

Aye but I would have played him at second row v Widnes, when Goulding was available

He has been doing a good job at centre in the last few games, albeit against weak opposition, but a natural centre? His main strengths are his finishing, his agility and his speed off the mark. His main weaknesses are poor defensive decision making, not passing and he's not very strong. He's clearly gone some way to overcoming his weaknesses, and those strengths are still good attributes for a centre to have in his nal, but I still think he's a winger playing at centre, and that Gelling at centre with Goulding on the wing makes much more sense than vice versa.


That's what I'm saying, it would be nice to see him get a run there. I reckon he would already prove a better option in the back row than Tuson


I'll have to bow to your greater knowledge if he's more of a second row than a centre, I was always told he was a centre. Either way, a second rower is further out of position on the wing than he is at centre, no?