Completely agree with the above post except to add that if Southern is also not fit he needs to be rested & get himself 100% fit (seems to be carrying too much around the middle) and then back in the second row where he belongs with Lauititi on the bench for impact as he did when at Leeds to good effect.

When the going gets tough Wakefield's bench is full of plodders except for Wood so Lauititi fresh from the bench could give WTW some extra impetus when its needed. I accept that its common practice to have 2 props on the bench but I think its because R.A. is concerned about the strength of his pack.

Its a squad game (not just 1-17) and if anyone is not 100% in the pack then use Matt James on the bench for prop instead of Wilkes who should start (Number 8 on his back!) with Amor and then Raleigh on bench , if James is not up to it then get rid.

Please give Ellis a chance at hooker and move Aiton to loose forward! Bench - Raleigh, Lauititi, Wood, James

I like Wilkes of the bench, he seems to add abit of something to our pack when he comes on that i cant see raliegh bringing of the bench.

I would start him on the bench in this one. Hopefully by the time time he gets on Ganson will have too many other things on his mind to forget his personal vendetta against him.

Point taken. It'll be a must though if Wakefield do not perform against Cas that other squad players come in and freshen things up. Aiton does not run from dummy half anywhere near enough & this needs to be addressed against Cas but he is a fantastic tackler & a strong runner so should revert to his other favoured position which is loose forward.

Nothing against Washbrook he's a good signing but if there is a problem around the ruck area & dummy half then that needs to be addressed within the next few games so someone will have to move over. Opposition teams are getting a roll on quite alot of the time from runs from dummy half, whose fault is that?

This must be done with the introduction of Ellis who had fantastic OPTA stats last year at Harlequins with yardage made. He also scored 2 tries last week and is a proven Super League Hooker. Someone will have to be dropped if things don't go well so it may be down to the player stats etc.

I'm not suggesting Wood is dropped as I think Wood needs to be on the bench for his versatility & impact with his sharp runs and good kicking game so its not at Wood's expense that Ellis comes in.

Surely we will need to mix the squad up a little bit, just to cope with the Easter period, if not the players will be absolutely knackered for the next few weeks.
The fixture scedule is bad enough at the best of times, but Saturday, Friday, Monday and then Friday is crazy.
We are having to play the 4 fixtures, with 2 days less rest than the other clubs and it is these fixtures that will define our season.

Totally agree re washbrook, He's being playing great so why move him? We finally have a genuine ENGLISH LF at the club!

Aiton has being outstanding at hooker, probably our best player this season so far, so why move him

Wood has really established his self in the impact hooker role. So dropping him for Ellis wouldnt be right when he is playing so well, that said he's still a developing player and I'm sure at some natural point Ellis will take over that role

For me the matter is simple, the team need more time to play together and we need a decent prop with some size adding to the props we already have to help the pack gain some forward momentum

Clearly Agar wants to bring another prop into the club and Southern is filling the prop gap for the minute, I'm sure once Southern drops back to the back row we'll see the best from him

Can't agree about Aiton - fantastic player that he is - he ain't a hooker.

At random I chose Danny Houghton for a comparison

Half the number of dummy runs and about 2/3 of the metres made. Not the right player for the role.

He would definitely be in the 17, and I don't mind him covering hooker, but for him to play most of the game there is stifling our play straight away.

I don't believe that any of the players should be dropped based on Saturdays performance - it would do no good to single out individuals in a dreadful all-round performance - but I do think that tactical changes could be in order and I would certainly wish to see either Wildie or Ellis in the 17, with Aiton's role being altered. If that means someone has to make way, then that is what has to happen.

If we can't get momentum from the PTB, then we won't be able to play our expansive game - without it just being lateral movement.

This is not someone getting something wrong - I just don't feel that we've got it right yet!

As for Southern - get stuck in lad and lead from the front as the job description says - you are that man, if you want to be!

Can't just compare him against 1 hooker, (Possibly the second best hooker in the league behind Roby)

Look at the stats against luke robsinson.. rlStatsrl

Aiton is a class act, and quite possibly the best signing of our season

I would like to see Ellis given a start but to drop Washbrook and put Aiton at loose would not be fair as Washrook has done no wrong.We do need another prop and not just anyone one that will drive the ball up all day long and make the yards not just go down at the first touch of a tackle.The loss of Amor for a few weeks showed this and in the London game he appeared to get a knock at one bit and did seem as though it stunted our go forward.Up to that game most players had given it a good go so who to drop/move I will leave that up to Agar hes the coach not us and will rise or fall by his choices over the long run.

Not argued at all.

However, his stats against Robinson don't show that - given that Robinson has played 1 game fewer and will have certainly spent less time on the pitch.

The only definitive win to Aiton is tackling - and he could still defend around the ruck, even if someone else is playing at half-back.

We need more go forward from the PTB.

There's a bit of chicken & egg here. Bigger forwards may help to put us on the front foot, but more runs from dummy half might also allow our forwards a little more space and time to run into - rather than a charging defence!