Willie Manu is looking good this year as is Briscoe, other than that they are poop

Richard Horne is back to his best!!!! I wouldn't say we are ##### as everyone knows the form book goes out of the window on derby days!!!!!

After todays performance i'll just repeat my first post.

DOBSON

Is it just me or did anyone else think Manu looked as though he has been having tea at Hutch Maiava's house this week?

Nobody looked dangerous....due to the heavy pitch...it didnt suit our game at all!!! On the dry hard KC pitch it will be a totaly different game!!!!

Not been funny but does a heavy pitch stop you from passing the ball around?

Okay, here's how I see it...

We don’t possess individuals like Gidley, Burrow, Webb, Pryce etc. that will scare teams whenever they touch the ball. The big threat to Hull is Rovers style of play.

Hulls approach is a physical one – the “Bulls” model. Big centres, back rowers in Tickle & Radford that could easily be playing prop & 4 forwards on the bench. They try to out muscle teams. This is exactly what Sharp was trying to do at Huddersfield – Wild & Lolesi in the centres, Snitch playing 2nd row, Crabtree at loose forward. He even bulked Kevin Brown up to nearly 100kg to play stand-off!

Rovers approach is now about speed – the “Saints” model. Back rowers moved up to prop (Newton, Netherton, Lovegrove), centres in to the 2nd row (Walker, Webster) & our fastest player in Fitzhenry moved to hooker. Cockayne spends most of his time in the forwards & even Galea & Murrell are just bulked up stand-offs.

A clash of styles…Hull vulnerable to quick sides, Rovers run the risk of being out-muscled.

For my money, heavy conditions / Rovers make plenty of handling errors / referee that allows a slow play the ball = probable Hull win.

Hot dry conditions / Rovers don’t make too many handling errors / referee that wants a quick play the ball = probable Rovers win.

Fair Point!!!! One man rugby on a heavy pitch was the game plan!!!!

Our fastest player by a country mile is Fox.

I think it would be close tbh.

Fitzy is deceptively fast.