When the ref fails to protect players they will only take so much before responding . On connor if he put as much effort into his game as he does his mouth what a player he would be .Onto the derby do you have any half backs we can borrow , looking forward to a lot of local lads playing for both sides and as Radders said last night the ones who get picked will be bouncing !

Harris

I agree. You see it regularly in every game and it's starting to get ridiculous.
Powell was practically advocating in his post match comments last weekend.

Some of it seems to come from a lack of confidence in the officials so the players over egg things to try and make it obvious. As such I think 2 refs would help to clean it up to an extent. What else can be done I'm not sure. Start penalizing simulation? A recipe for even more controversy to be certain. Stop penalizing anything so it becomes pointless? Chaos ensues.
As you say though it's ultimately up to the players and coaches. A collective decision needs to be made on how we want to play the game.

Limiting the role of videos refs would help. Players are staying down cause they know it will give the video ref chance to look at it again, and also the on field official will see it on the big screen.
Let video refs check for try or no try and that's it. At a stretch let them check who shuttled a ball out of play (drop out or 20 metre restart) but they shouldn't be allowed to look at things themselves and radio down to the on field official telling them to change their decision.

The COHA is an intresting one, Hudds have had injury problems and have been playing the Senior twins who are 17. In the COHA there is outstanding halfback who is 17, I'm guessing as he isn't signed to either team then he couldn't play first team rugby?

Can't see it, registered with Donny and not sure w could fit him under the cap.

I'd think we'd look at Smith at Saints if Sneyd is out for the season, but I expect Radford to to stick with what we have.

Thinking about it some more, as fans we have to take responsibility too, and think about the point at which we don’t want to win ‘like that’.

One of the highlights of 2017 for me was when, defending a narrow lead vs Widnes, we held on in the tackle conceding a worthless penalty and wasting a few more potentially crucial seconds. Now, my joy arose from a very particular previous event and it was about laying a ghost to rest and showing that we could be hard headed. I remember it almost as fondly as Shaw’s long range try. But I was celebrating a professional foul, no two ways about it.

I think everyone thought the same about that professional foul

It was a hugely cathartic moment. But I imagine to Widnes fans it just looked like bad sportsmanship.

The thing with simulation now though is the amount of it - it feels like we’re well past the thin end of the wedge, and maybe even the point of no return, because it seems to work.

We did loads at the middle 8’s away game at Leigh too, and it showed we had learned a few lessons from 2016. Derek Beaumont saw it slightly different to me have to say.

Anyway back on topic. Our injury list appears to have been miraculously halved due to the intervention of the faith healer that is Gareth Westmorland. Everyone is apparently cured apart from Flash Flanagan.

On the flipside, Hull are so decimated that Radfords yet to be conceived grandchild is lined up to play half back. Our chances of avoiding humiliation are once again in tatters.