Make or break seasons : Thu Mar 25, 2021 9:20 am  

Bit dramatic to be honest but you get the idea.

David Fifita: If Dave is to become the Trinity legend most of us thought he was going to be then this is the season to make that happen. The injury was, without doubt, the main issue but we all know that the bopper has not helped himself much. There is time still but this season has the be the rebirth season.

Tom Johnstone: We all know the blight injuries have forced on this lad. However, if he can stay injury-free then Tom still needs to step up a notch if he is to become a truly international player. I think Wane is fair but Tom will have to stand out to be noticed. Put simply, TJ needs to improve is concentration more than anything else. His ability for me is beyond doubt, but to be the best he has to play the full 80, full-on, week in week out and as he is no longer a kid that's exactly what Wane and Chester will be looking for. I'm his biggest fan always have been but I'm not the one he needs to please.

Max Jowitt: Max has finally got recognition and it's been a tough journey for the lad. Max though is not a natural, he's a good player but his skills have been earned. That won't change, if he is to reach the top and stay there he will need to improve almost every game and then maintain it. FB is a congested position in SL, there are a number of similar level players to Max, it will be hard to get noticed and much for him more than most will depend on how the team goes.

Eddie Battye: Eddie has Trinity legend written all over him but at 30 he hasn't got long to prove it.

There are plenty of other players who need to improve or have a point to prove but those four for me are the ones who will have the most impact on how the team goes. For the record, Batch and Crowther need to continue to progress, Josh Wood needs to show he's more than a tackling machine, Westerman needs to keep proving the doubters wrong and so on.

Add or comment as you wish.

Re: Make or break seasons : Thu Mar 25, 2021 11:38 am  

This maybe a little controversial but I’ll add this:

Lee Kershaw: he’s been around the first team for 3 years now and he will be 22 this year. In my opinion he was lucky to get a deal for this season based on past performances. In 2020 pre season Chester said he would start the season on the wing only for the following 2 pre season games for him to play his way out of a starting spot with some glaring defensive errors. I like how he can carry the ball strongly but I always hold my breath when there’s a high ball or he’s defending kicks. It’s something some players seem prone to and Annakin was the same. He always had that error in him and usually at the wrong time too. Now I want him to succeed as I do all the trinity players but looking at the wing options and the fact he’s on a 1 year contract he’s about 4th choice maybe 5th if you include bill. I’m just not sure where he will get the opportunity to prove his worth.

Re: Make or break seasons : Thu Mar 25, 2021 11:47 am  

Trojan Horse wrote:

This maybe a little controversial but I’ll add this:

Lee Kershaw: he’s been around the first team for 3 years now and he will be 22 this year. In my opinion he was lucky to get a deal for this season based on past performances. In 2020 pre season Chester said he would start the season on the wing only for the following 2 pre season games for him to play his way out of a starting spot with some glaring defensive errors. I like how he can carry the ball strongly but I always hold my breath when there’s a high ball or he’s defending kicks. It’s something some players seem prone to and Annakin was the same. He always had that error in him and usually at the wrong time too. Now I want him to succeed as I do all the trinity players but looking at the wing options and the fact he’s on a 1 year contract he’s about 4th choice maybe 5th if you include bill. I’m just not sure where he will get the opportunity to prove his worth.

Fair points but to defend Lee,

His opposition has been fierce, TJ, BJB and MCB so he's not had many chances and has also been the victim of a very disjointed season.

He personifies the phrase 'raw', there is something there IMHO but so far it's only been fleeting. He needs a run that's for sure but where do you play them, there is only so far you can go with DR.

If Kershaw has been lucky it's being given another go after that rather silly story he gave to the press about having to be a van driver to eat, that one really bugged me.

Re: Make or break seasons : Thu Mar 25, 2021 12:00 pm  

vastman wrote:

Fair points but to defend Lee,

His opposition has been fierce, TJ, BJB and MCB so he's not had many chances and has also been the victim of a very disjointed season.

He personifies the phrase 'raw', there is something there IMHO but so far it's only been fleeting. He needs a run that's for sure but where do you play them, there is only so far you can go with DR.

If Kershaw has been lucky it's being given another go after that rather silly story he gave to the press about having to be a van driver to eat, that one really bugged me.

Fair points on his competition as it certainly has been high quality over the years.

He certainly is raw and that’s a perfect way to describe him. He’s done a solid job on the rare opportunity he’s been called upon. I can’t really see him getting much opportunity so I guess loan to give him game time will be utilised again. Who knows though, if he does get his opportunity I’m sure he’ll do his best.

Yes that was a silly article but nobody can spin and run with a story like the media so I’ll take it with a pinch of salt.

Re: Make or break seasons : Thu Mar 25, 2021 12:14 pm  

Hopefully I can bring this up without been accused of a hate crime but for me the ultimate response to this post is Chris Chester.

After a very positive start to his time with us, another poor season, scraping survival would for me be impossible to justify the club giving him a new contract beyond the end of this season, that`s just my opinion. Yes, he has had to deal with plenty of external issues, Injuries, Covid, etc but that is part and parcel of the game and elements that every coach and every club has to deal with. We have for me the most talented squad that we have had in a long time and I don`t think there is any doubt that they have underperformed in the last few seasons.

This season he has been given plenty of support with Last and Poaching, which I think was desperately needed.

The coaching market is at this moment in time is dog eat dog, there are plenty of good/successful coaches out of work at the moment or playing second fiddle chomping at the bit for a chance to coach a SL team and that for me puts a little more pressure on coaches around the league.

Every part of me wants Chester to succeed, he is a Wakefield lad, he obviously has his heart in the club and I hope we can push on now and progress, for what it`s worth I think that we will this season.

Re: Make or break seasons : Thu Mar 25, 2021 1:06 pm  

homme vaste wrote:

Hopefully I can bring this up without been accused of a hate crime but for me the ultimate response to this post is Chris Chester.

After a very positive start to his time with us, another poor season, scraping survival would for me be impossible to justify the club giving him a new contract beyond the end of this season, that`s just my opinion. Yes, he has had to deal with plenty of external issues, Injuries, Covid, etc but that is part and parcel of the game and elements that every coach and every club has to deal with. We have for me the most talented squad that we have had in a long time and I don`t think there is any doubt that they have underperformed in the last few seasons.

This season he has been given plenty of support with Last and Poaching, which I think was desperately needed.

The coaching market is at this moment in time is dog eat dog, there are plenty of good/successful coaches out of work at the moment or playing second fiddle chomping at the bit for a chance to coach a SL team and that for me puts a little more pressure on coaches around the league.

Every part of me wants Chester to succeed, he is a Wakefield lad, he obviously has his heart in the club and I hope we can push on now and progress, for what it`s worth I think that we will this season.

Nothing controversial there. With some very rare exceptions all coaches have an expiry date and even if CC had done better in the last two years or should I say had a bit more luck, unless he'd won trophies he'd still be in danger. Five seasons is a long stint and in that time Chris has made a real impact, most notably in junior talent and some shrewd signings. The club is definitely better for his tenure but at the end of the day, the losing cycle has to be broken. We need to do a Salford and soon, I don't expect miracles but if CC doesn't get very close to doing so this season then his future has to be in some doubt.

The truth is all coaches need some luck and it's deserted CC of late, if he gets a bit of that then he's in with a chance. If not we need to look for a coach who is lucky, a shame because whoever takes over will almost certainly reap the rewards of CC's hard work, life is really cruel.

In one crucial way, though he is lucky, there can't be many BOD's who back the coach and show more loyalty than ours and that also extends to the players. It's certainly time that loyalty was repaid IMO.

Re: Make or break seasons : Thu Mar 25, 2021 1:49 pm  

I have no confidence in playing Kershaw or Kay on the wing , there problem far out way there pluses . I would play Arundel in the Centre with Bill on the wing.That could solve the problems of defence and high ball .As for this season ,all I know is that the last 2 season we just played basic shocking rugby and I do not think one close season ,can turn it round that much .Hope I am proved wrong ,but it's going to take a completely different attitude

Re: Make or break seasons : Thu Mar 25, 2021 2:30 pm  

alegend wrote:

I have no confidence in playing Kershaw or Kay on the wing , there problem far out way there pluses . I would play Arundel in the Centre with Bill on the wing.That could solve the problems of defence and high ball .As for this season ,all I know is that the last 2 season we just played basic shocking rugby and I do not think one close season ,can turn it round that much .Hope I am proved wrong ,but it's going to take a completely different attitude

Don’t agree, I’ve seen Bill drop more ball on the wing than almost any other winger. In fact it wasn’t until he moved to centre that I stopped thinking he was a dud.

Bit unfair on both wingers considering neither have had much game time. Defensive partnerships are not built over night, assuming Bill stays with TJ and Lyne remains first choice then you will need to give someone a chance to build up a rapport with Lyne. I certainly don’t see Bill on the wing as any real long term fix, total waste tbh.

Over the next few weeks one from Kershaw, Senior or Kay will get the nod. My money is on Senior.

Re: Make or break seasons : Thu Mar 25, 2021 3:58 pm  

Hope you are right about Senior, looked to me last year as the best of the 3

Re: Make or break seasons : Thu Mar 25, 2021 5:57 pm  

alegend wrote:

I have no confidence in playing Kershaw or Kay on the wing , there problem far out way there pluses . I would play Arundel in the Centre with Bill on the wing.That could solve the problems of defence and high ball .As for this season ,all I know is that the last 2 season we just played basic shocking rugby and I do not think one close season ,can turn it round that much .Hope I am proved wrong ,but it's going to take a completely different attitude

I like arundel and he is probably the closest we have to a true centre however he was always slow and I can’t imagine that three years of constant injuries have speeded him up any. I am sure he will get gain time along st with Croft but if tumour can find his preinjury form he still has the potential to be one of the top 5 centres in super league - hears hoping !