[quote="bishops finger":11uv78pe]I'm not saying that fc's youngsters aren't good enough, but for me there still 2 or 3 years off being fully developed, Wigan have Nsemba, Hill and Eckersley that are maybe a year older but far bigger and imo far better, I think now that fc have these two loaded guys on board the whole idea of not wanting to block the pathway of the youngsters may well go out of the window, especially if they don't see the club improving quick enough. Just an observation obviously[/quote:11uv78pe] Balmforth is big for a hooker. Staverly big lad to. Hard to judge against Nsemba as the bloke is bigger than most SL players. Wigan are far ahead of all teams in this respect. But we have Martin. Barron.Moy. Balmforth. Staverly.Who could certainly step up in the next year. Plus we have others waiting in the wings.

[quote="bishops finger":3m4jhesk]I'm not saying that fc's youngsters aren't good enough, but for me there still 2 or 3 years off being fully developed, Wigan have Nsemba, Hill and Eckersley that are maybe a year older but far bigger and imo far better, I think now that fc have these two loaded guys on board the whole idea of not wanting to block the pathway of the youngsters may well go out of the window, especially if they don't see the club improving quick enough. Just an observation obviously[/quote:3m4jhesk] Time will tell I suppose. I expect money will get thrown around on certain targets, but Myler has been around the game long enough to know that splashing out on players can only get you so far in Super League. It's a tight salary cap, and whilst you might strike it lucky with a group of players every now and then (see Hull FC 2016/17) it's all going to unravel when the squad starts to age, or when contract renewal time comes around and guys want to get paid etc. The only proven method of sustainable success is to have that academy production line consistently turning out 2 or 3 quality players per season, and supplement that with the big star signings, and that's clearly where we want to try to get to.

[quote="bishops finger":1o2e1car]but as promising as they look are they om a par with the young kids that Wigan produce? IMO no.[/quote:1o2e1car] I see what you’re saying but not all the youngsters Wigan produce are superstars like Tomkins. Look at the 3 you’ve got, Gildart, Davies and Burgess. All 3 had success with Wigan and top SL players, I don’t see why the likes of Martin and Barron can’t be at least as good as them even the likes of Litten and Charles have something about them just need a bit more physical development. I don’t think the Wigan lads age 18-19 are particularly better than anyone else, just the overall environment is better. Now Hull seemingly don’t have to worry about money short term and diverting cash from elsewhere to the first team the challenge for Myler is to recreate that Wigan, Leeds and Saints environment for young players. He’s making the right noises only time will tell.

[quote="DSJ1983":1dxm5wy4]I see what you’re saying but not all the youngsters Wigan produce are superstars like Tomkins. Look at the 3 you’ve got, Gildart, Davies and Burgess. All 3 had success with Wigan and top SL players, I don’t see why the likes of Martin and Barron can’t be at least as good as them even the likes of Litten and Charles have something about them just need a bit more physical development. I don’t think the Wigan lads age 18-19 are particularly better than anyone else, [b:1dxm5wy4]just the overall environment is better.[/b:1dxm5wy4] Now Hull seemingly don’t have to worry about money short term and diverting cash from elsewhere to the first team the challenge for Myler is to recreate that Wigan, Leeds and Saints environment for young players. He’s making the right noises only time will tell.[/quote:1dxm5wy4] The bit in bold is the biggest difference for me and you’ve hit the nail on the head there.

[quote="ComeOnYouUll":2eb7qgvw]Super League clubs enter at Round 3 with games taking place 8th/9th February (the week before the league season starts). [b:2eb7qgvw]All SL clubs will be drawn away at one of the twenty Second Round winners.The draw will be taking place probably on 27th January[/b:2eb7qgvw].[/quote:2eb7qgvw] Turns out the third round draw is next Tuesday at 6pm on the BBC iPlayer. Not only before round two takes place but the bad weather means some first round games will also not have happened so it could end up A or B or C or D v Hull FC.