Re: Nielsen departure confirmed : Fri Jan 15, 2016 7:39 pm  

Well certainly has some pace and good foot work. Represented England a lot in the 7's so much be quick and agile. Be interesting to see how he goes. No lose situation really.

Re: Nielsen departure confirmed : Fri Jan 15, 2016 8:05 pm  

Please not another "maybe" player. We need proven quality not more utility players.

Re: Nielsen departure confirmed : Fri Jan 15, 2016 9:28 pm  

I know how easy it is to make a player look good in some youtube highlights, so I'm not getting carried away here. But damn that guy has got a highlights reel to be proud of. Looks to have some serious agility and pace, with a cracking sidestep. Could cause mayhem if we put him in space.

The only thing I can't tell is how old some of those highlights are. If they're all 3 or 4 years old then it could be misleading.

Edit: Also, isn't there some sort of salary cap dispensation for signing rugby union players? I'm pretty sure there is for SL sides, not sure about championship though.

Re: Nielsen departure confirmed : Fri Jan 15, 2016 10:37 pm  

woolly07 wrote:

Please not another "maybe" player. We need proven quality not more utility players.

Agreed but all the quality players are likely signed up by now. I think giving trial is a better way to go than last year where we were stuck with 2 year deals.

If Jacks and Caprice go well, then we sign them up. If they turn out not to be good, we don't sign them and leave space in the cap to spend later in the season.

I say we go with what we've got (as it stands our squad isn't good enough to get promoted) but it is likely players will become available later in the year. We will make more signings later in the year.

I will be annoyed however if we sign championship standard/maybe players later in the year.

Re: Nielsen departure confirmed : Sat Jan 16, 2016 7:25 am  

Bull Mania wrote:

Well certainly has some pace and good foot work. Represented England a lot in the 7's so much be quick and agile. Be interesting to see how he goes. No lose situation really.

I wonder if Robbie showed him the Bulls own 7's heritage? Middlesex 7's 2002

Re: Nielsen departure confirmed : Sat Jan 16, 2016 8:23 am  

I've seen the guy live... He was always one of the quickest on the field, pretty solid defensively as well. Learning how to read the game of league will be the challenge.

Re: Nielsen departure confirmed : Sat Jan 16, 2016 10:04 am  

Bull Mania wrote:

Agreed but all the quality players are likely signed up by now. I think giving trial is a better way to go than last year where we were stuck with 2 year deals.

If Jacks and Caprice go well, then we sign them up. If they turn out not to be good, we don't sign them and leave space in the cap to spend later in the season.

I say we go with what we've got (as it stands our squad isn't good enough to get promoted) but it is likely players will become available later in the year. We will make more signings later in the year.

I will be annoyed however if we sign championship standard/maybe players later in the year.

I disagree that the side is not good enough to get promoted. We're missing only 3 players who played in the MPG, all of which were absent or not yet signed for the majority of the season. My concern is with the coach who doesn't seem to know how to get the best out of his players on a consistent basis. Not just on a week by week but for a whole game. I think that the best signing we could have made in the off-season was a replacement for Lowes.

Re: Nielsen departure confirmed : Sat Jan 16, 2016 10:24 am  

In my opinion this side has a solid nucleus that could be good enough for promotion but I still feel we are a couple of players short. I've been wondering for a while now whether the club are keeping their options open both on the field and regarding the head coach. If Lowes doesn't look to have learnt from 2015 I can see him being replaced in June. If we're going well he'll probably get another crack at the 8's. The free cap space will then be there for some changes whether that be by Lowes or a new man looking to put his own stamp on things.

[Bulliac]

Re: Nielsen departure confirmed : Sat Jan 16, 2016 10:35 am  

roofaldo2 wrote:

I disagree that the side is not good enough to get promoted. We're missing only 3 players who played in the MPG, all of which were absent or not yet signed for the majority of the season. My concern is with the coach who doesn't seem to know how to get the best out of his players on a consistent basis. Not just on a week by week but for a whole game. I think that the best signing we could have made in the off-season was a replacement for Lowes.

To take a position between the two, I feel the side, with a just a few additions/changes, is good enough to hold down a SL spot but, like any side playing all year in the championship, would struggle to overcome the promotion obstacle. The difference is the inbuilt advantage which is gained from a season played at the higher level.

On the coaching and tactical front, I'm hopeful that lessons have been learnt. I'm pretty sure that Jimmy is wise enough to take stock of what might be improved and to act upon it, there is certainly enough experience at the top to give advice so let's hope Jimmy has his 'ears on'.. He certainly isn't very likely to be replaced so I'm hoping that's the case.

Re: Nielsen departure confirmed : Sat Jan 16, 2016 10:37 am  

If we aren't looking in good shape in June, I would be amazed if Marc Green doesn't look at other options. He knows full well that we haven't got too many rolls of the dice left before things are scaled back to a more sustainable level.