Quote: Mrs Barista "Been a decent first half to our league campaign IMO. League position is a fair reflection of where we are after playing everyone; couple of close wins and losses probably cancel each other out.
Standouts for me have been Danny Houghton - another 57 tackles last night - but really taking games by the scruff of the neck and in great form. Pack looks strong; Taylor has been a very good acquisition so far and Frank's made more meters than any other back rower in the comp apart from the exceptional Dave Taylor. Shaul's come of age at fullback, and it's great to see Naughton emerging. Fonua looks a prospect too, hope he can get a good run in now. Sneyd has also shown his ability to run a game, would be good to get a solid 6 to relieve some of the pressure though.
It's been a bit disappointing to see Logan disappear from the radar - started to look the real deal last year but been displaced (deservedly) by Yeaman. The loss at Widnes was a real low point, but the response has been excellent and from Yeaman's break to put Shaul through at Hull KR we've not really looked back.
In terms of stats, they look good. Highest metres made of any club in the comp. 4th for tries, 3rd for tackle busts, 2nd for clean breaks, 2nd for average gain, 2nd fewest errors. In that context, support play remains a focus.
Radford and the coaching staff should take some credit too. Our conditioning looks strong, and we're playing a more exciting style of rugby off the back of a very good pack which is being rotated sensibly.
I think we can take encouragement from this first half of the season - overall it's been better than I expected - but given we've had a relatively good injury position compared to some clubs we need to keep up the momentum. It will be good to get Ellis back - his value to the team can't be underestimated in my view. Plenty to feel positive about at this point.'"
Great post. It's been a long time that I've been this optimistic at this stage of the season.