Think it'll be Escare at fullback and Tierney on the wing. Not a huge fan of Tierney on the whole, but thought he played well through the playoffs/final and probably deserves to keep his place given the injuries we have.

Hard to get too excited about this, if we've all learnt anything this year it should be that it doesn't really matter what 17 you turn out for a large chunk of the season!

Only 100k from Tomkins counts on the cap...but depending on what happens in the next few weeks, that could possibly be better spent elsewhere!

These adventures in further fields are costing us dear at the moment. I don't know what we paid in total to bring back Sam, Joel, Thornley and Mossop, but we've had very little in return. Can only hope that Budgie bucks the trend.

Mossop was crook before he left tbf. We knew he'd be a risk when we went for him... Has the club actually confirmed what caused the injury - this one seems a fresh one and completely separate to the one he suffered in NZ.

Chris Ashton looking to get out of English RU....

Is there still that rule where RU signed players don't count on the cap?

Ashton can do one. He's made his bed...

Wants to go to France doesn't he? Just sulking because he got a ban for chewing on someone's arm. Probably thinks he can come back from the dark side & just slot back into the squad for next year's WC or som't.

Jog on, sunshine

Lenagan must be privately fuming. Isn't he basically funding the marquee salary out of his own pocket?

Its not the fact that he'll miss games at the start of the year that's concerning, more the fact that he'll go a second year without a pre-season.

Ashton had so much potential as a kid. I always thought he was a massive loss, but the manner of his departure has been put into clear perspective by the much more honourable way that Josh Charnley did it. Still ... he was a kid, and his head was obviously turned by RU gold.

Would you seriously not consider him?

I think I'd take a look at him first, but I'd hope we wouldn't say 'no, never' just out of spite.

Not out of spite, no. I just think he'd be much more of a liability now. Too much RU to unlearn I would think. And I suspect he might have the same mindset that Dwain (Drug Cheat) Chambers had when he thought he could just slot into Cas' squad - it's an easy game League, after all, innit?
(Along with maybe, a "Big I Am" attitude too).

Back on topic, though: are we nearing an acceptance that ST might well be not the golden boy returnee we all thought he might be? We've done all right without him for 90% of the last year, after all. I'd hate that to be the case, but if he's falling over his own shadow (with or without help from a sherry or three), how long 'til we start thinking about offloading?

I remember when we sold Hanley. At the time it was regarded with horror in certain quarters, but it soon transpired that Leeds had paid big money for a player who was well, well past his prime. I think the same could be said of Andy Farrell. But in those cases, I suppose, their age was against them. Sam is only 27. I'd hope we'd fully and thoroughly assess him before making any such drastic decision.

i heard he has broken his foot in two places - is that official now?