You really are a d!ck, aren't you mate. Crosby has consistently been a first choice pick when everyone is fit. The clue is in his having the no.8 jersey. It's not complicated really. Same with Joel Tomkins. Always started when everyone is fit. No. 11 shirt (you getting the hang of this yet?). In any case he doesn't have to start 'over' Bateman and Farrell (the two you were bagging as not good enough for your team on another thread btw!) as we usually run with 3 back rowers and one on the bench. Again, not really complicated is it? George Williams was young player of the year last season. In fact he was called up for international duty on the back of his performances! I'm pretty sure none of your young players could claim anything close to that. Oh, and by the way, he has the number 6 jersey (surely even you are beginning to cotton on by now!)



It really doesn't matter what you think of our players. Arguing that they 'don't count' as missing because you don't rate them is as asinine an argument as I've heard on these boards, and that's saying something! By that argument, and judging by last night's performance, you could have been missing your entire team and you wouldn't have any injuries as they were all gash! I'm pretty sure that's not how it works though.

Hey up, another keyboard warrior!! None of our young players could come close to Williams' achievement? Try winning trophies pal. finishing top of the table? Challenge cup whitewash? Man of steel? Grand Final win against all odds? Crosby is gash mate, Tomkins wouldn't start if SOL, Farrell and Bateman are fit (like yesterday) and yes, Williams is bang average. Not a patch on Brough, Gidley, Carney, Brown, the list goes on. Enjoy your start to the season, because when all is said and done, you'll fail AGAIN under Wane.

I think we (the fans) really need to calm down.

We are coming off the back of the perfect season.

We then lose 2 (sorry Kylie), of the most influential players to have EVER pulled on a players shirt. Our new captain, plus a few of our best players, then get hit with injuries.

Despite our fantastic academy, we are always going to struggle while the young guns, plus the new players (Galloway, Falloon, Ferres etc), take a little while to settle in. Personally I would be perfectly happy for a year of rebuilding, without the pressure of HAVING to win a trophy.

Some of the young lads are looking good. Keinhorst has barely put a foot wrong all season. Lilley may have a lack of bulk/pace, but he has not been phased stepping up to the main playmaker role.

Let the other teams have their day in the sun... See you in the Super 8s.

Hey! hold on there....Couldn't beat Trin in the freindlys, we won

, still, we've gone backwards since then so Leeds might just scrape it.

Well said, couldn't agree more.

Jeez, sums it up for me. I'm finding some of the posts on here painful to say the least.

Some of our fanbase don't deserve to share the good times.

I can't remember anytime in the last 15 years when Leeds have had Sinfield AND Mcguire out for an extended period. If we had we would have struggled, like we are now.



Combine this with burrow having had to play at hooker and 2 inexperienced halfbacks. Plus quality players in the team not playing their best and a tricky run of fixtures, then you factor in low confidence and morale from losing and we are where we are.



It is going to be a torrid season, so we will have to take our medicine. In the long run it is probably a good thing we suffer a swift knock so we can fill in any holes before they become canyons. We are the frog and we have just been dropped in boiling water, however this is better than settling down in cold water whilst it is heated and we slowly boil to death.

Ferres isn't playing badly, he is just giving away far too many penalties .

It feels like he's used to giants style of slowing down the PTB which isn't how Leeds play so he's left looking at interference.

Well said, couldn't agree more.

I am 50 and have been supporting Leeds most of my life, I have 2 kids 16 & 18 and they have seen Leeds win almost as much silverware as I have.

As lovely as it is to win the treble, to expect them to do it every year is ludicrous. So we have an off season, rebuild and move on.

McDermott makes some seemingly strange decisions to us fans who are not in possession of all the facts but he has my backing. I'm not writing the season off but I do think it is going to be lean in terms of honours, as long as we can show desire and improvement from this point that'll do it for me

I can accept an off season. The players can't.

You've also got to factor in the mindset of the players. I don't care what preparation you have or what kind of mentality you have, after last season there is going to be an element of unconscious complacency.



Give that time to filter out, along with key players back and a lot of hard work and we'll be alright.

SPOTY

Kiwis

November floods

Silverwood

Winter

Mindsets of Unconscious Complacency



Have I subconsciously omitted any others?

Injuries and new players bedding in . Please do and try keeping up

<subconsciously parts cheeks>



[iPhwaaaaaaarp![/i

This is what I've pointed towards previously. With all the talk of losing the 3 retirees I think people have underestimated the challenge of going again this year after the events and success of last year. It was pretty much the dream year for the players and very unlikely they'll ever have a season in their careers that tops it in terms of what happened and how it was achieved.



It's why I was confident heading into last season that we'd do well, because of the disappointing way 2014 finished would motivate the team and they won 10 from the opening 11. Wire pretty much are doing the exact same thing. Wigan have the disappointment of another GF defeat spurring them on, Widnes I'm sure determined not to find themselves in the Middle 8's again.

At present you can criticise virtually all the team, Jimmy K excuded, but while I accept, he is a penalty machine at the moment, I can`t believe how many times Ferres has made runs and has the ball in one hand looking for someone to pass to. If our coach hasn`t the brains to sort this out very quickly, then we are not going to get the best out of a very good player.

Having said that, he still hasn`t worked out a planned move for the best centre in Super League, other than giving him the ball from the scrum & asking him to run at 3 defenders.

Planned move? This isn't Stanningley on a Sunday morning.

I don't think he has been a flop. We haven't seen the best of him but he has got through a lot of graft and dirty work. Think he will work out just fine

I don't think we have seen the best of anyone yet.The tough fixtures amidst players dropping like flies, and key ones at that, has meant we have been back peddling in almost every game.Infact the only game we were pretty dominant in was the opener against Wire which we threw away really. Im really looking forward to seeing Ferres when we get on the front foot but more than happy with the graft he has got through lately, a couple of silly penalties aside.

No issue with Ferres yet - we've seen what he can do previously and he's having to work hard with the additional defensive duties that arise from operating with a central defender light. Falloon (who I'd personally never heard of) should smarten Leeds up in both areas.

I think we've seen a different side to Ferres, maybe he hasn't been busting tackled and coming up with offloads, but he has done a hell of a lot of graft, something I've not previously realised he was noted for.

Ferres is suffering from the change in expectation. You can do reasonably well in most games, you can look good against the stragglers and work hard in defeat, when you play for huddesfield, everyone looks for the positives.



When you play for Leeds, the opposite is true, the microscope is on you, every mistake or frailty is magnified and to prove their credentials everyones looking for you to fail.



Some players thrive, some players hide away from it, Ferres needs to take that step up and become the big fish in the biggest pond, or he will go back to being a player who looked good in the depths of SL but was nowhere to be seen when the big stage came. AKA Danny Brough syndrome.

Or perhaps it's just that Leeds fans weren't looking previously cause they weren't bothered......

All that rolling about and wrestling. Probably reminds him of happier times, eh?

Well done to the Rhinos tonight gutsy performance deserved the win let's hope we can kick on now for rest of the season. MOT, ALAW