Nobody cares about Barba’s stats from 2018 because he bottled it at the business end of the season when it actually mattered. French will stand out for Wigan this year but only because the rest of the team are so absolutely bang average. Hull for me are like when Everton spent £180m in one transfer window a couple of years ago, their fans get all excited and they look good on paper but no-one is seriously worried about them challenging. Saints will win the league leaders shield comfortably and the only team I see stopping us from winning the lot is Warrington as we know they can beat us on their day.
Forwards win games. The backs decide by how much.
Running the risk of being called patronising again by annoying Dave, but...
I think nobody in the sport was on the same planet as Barba in his prime (that was 2012 though). Bevan French at SL level and in 2020, will cause all teams problems with his speed and evasiveness.
You mean the same rhetoric many on here spouted about Barba himself? Full backs these days are picked to play there because of what they can offer in attack. Not the other way around.
I think you're being really disrespectful to Barba here. If I recall correctly, it was the whole squad that went off the boil. Yet Barba still went on to be named the first Saints player to win MOS for 10 years wasn't he?
Regards,
STEVO
The disrespect was justifiable in part, his first 20 games he was probably the best full back we have ever had, his last 10 games he was probably one of the worst full backs we ever had. Leading up to the play offs Barba wasn't interested and it had a big impact on the team for the rest of the season, for me it was a hollow MOS when he lost interest in becoming a team player and his loyalties disappeared.
I don’t think it’s even lack of respect. It’s a simple matter of fact that Barba’s focus moved to the NRL and that his lack of commitment unbalanced the team. It may have been an error of judgement on Holbrook’s part to have continued playing him but he put things right by bringing Coote in. Superstars are only any good when they have loyalty and focus on their current job and not on future prospects.
speaking of Wigan , I see that they have loaned Greenwood out to Leeds.
There has to be something more going on that these players do not fulfill their undoubted talent. The coaches who see them everyday know what is going on, so if a player is a legend in his own lunch hour, then they may decide to get shut if this is disrupting the team.
A player who plays professionally cannot be accused of having no heart especially if they have played in the NRL, Joe`s issues may be more natural aggression required but not lacking in ticker.
Scully was average 1997-1999, if social media abuse was as abundant then would his confidence have gone?
When I first saw Andre in that Leeds match against JP & Co I thought we had a real find in our hands then, the next few games he was very good, then the rumours came out that he did not want to play where selected. With the failed loan moves and NRL shut out is he now fulfilling his potential as he has an injury free run, maturity and hindsight? He seems to be going well at the moment time will tell.
I think by bringing up Scully you’ve got to the bottom of it. I think resilience and desire are qualities every bit as important as speed, size and power. Scully had resilience and desire in skiploads, along with an unbelievable skill set - he would have been a world class player in pretty much any circumstances.
The trouble with big powerful lads is that they can sail through the age groups without having their desire or resilience tested - especially with the limited talent pool we have here. It’s only when they get into a first team environment that these shortcomings really come to light.
Ps. If Scully was average from ‘97 to ‘99 I hope we’ve got some average young forwards ready to break through now.
Jack Wells and Ben Kilner have both gone on a months loan deal to Toronto. They've both missed most of the last two seasons with injuries but have shown up well in the reserves this year so far. It'll be interesting to see how they go v Saints on Saturday.
Didn't we pay a world record fee for an average Scully. Average I will have team full.
Yeah Dux average was a bad choice of words, although by his own admission 1998-1999 he felt hampered by the pressure of expectation and record fee. He did make the GB squads that time but from 1999 Mike Forshaw got selected ahead of Joynty for GB. Tough I think Joynty was on the "naughty step" for allowing Vangana to score when he heard the half-time siren and stopped playing.
The point about resilience and having their own way too much at a young age may serve as an explanation for some drop off in performance and one I did not consider.