The nature of our performances suggest that SF knows what he's doing and the players take to the field with a decent game plan. It all points to the team running out of steam although it does also seem to be a mental thing now that as soon as we concede the 1st try the heads go down.
Think it's impossible to judge SF fully when he simply hasn't been given the tools to work with. I know we've heard it all before but seems to be a fair coach but in very difficult circumstances. Not nice to for Widnes fans to see where we are, but a bit late now to do much about it. Just have to do the best we can this season and attack from the off next season.
I don’t see how anyone can point a finger at the coach when we have no props. You could have the best coach in the world but with no props on field or to interchange your players will be exhausted by half-time!
We had one, unused, on the bench for 74 mins v Batley, explain that one away.
Paulie xx
Some good points widnes 89, the players seem able to put spells together ,nearly always in the first half, where they score quite freely. The big issue is the way we capitulate and allow teams to score seemingly at will and we are steamrollered, even by teams we should be beating.
Are we suffering from a chronic lack of fitness, confidence or coaching.
The stage was set early in the season when we let leads slip and it has no become a real problem. What happens at half time, because our second half performances on the whole are lamentable and surely our coach must bear the lions share of the blame to allow the same story to unfold time and again.
I know most of the players were signed before the coach, but he knew the tools he had when he signed .
It almost seems to me that the height of the club's ambition is to do enough to avoid any real chance of relegation for the least outlay of cash and this is no way to keep supporters, whose money is sorely needed by the club.
I don’t disagree with some of that, Martin but I think it doesn’t counter my view that the recruitment is not the fault of the current coach. He came into the club with the squad (bar Lawton and Hulme) already signed, loads of excess outside backs twiddling their thumbs with no cover barring untried youngsters in the pack. Plenty of people including myself said we were light on forwards and that was without knowing we would get about an hour in total out of Tomkins and Jewitt and also lose Dwyer and O’Neill. Is it his fault that we have failed to strengthen during the season? Who knows. But I maintain the club is paying for mistakes prior to his appointment.
PF messed up with recruitment. There was nobody else left here to blame other than him with what we have started the season with. Simple as. The fact that he hasn’t been brave enough to put an answer out there as to why Sheen’s walked tells its own story too on that front. This isn’t in any way acceptable to effectively be limping till the end of the season filling out match day squads to just complete games. But… It isn’t Simon’s fault. If he isn’t been given funds to strengthen then he just has to run with what he has. He needs his own off season and hopefully a less Conservative budget to work with now things are getting back to some form of normality.
Sheens left for personal reasons. It’d probably go against all sorts of employment law for Finney to reveal that reason. Both have been pressed on it, both have held counsel out of professionalism.
The real question to be asked is why Sheens came here ? I know what my best guess would be but until anyone comes up with a better answer then I will stick with it.
I don’t see how anyone can point a finger at the coach when we have no props. You could have the best coach in the world but with no props on field or to interchange your players will be exhausted by half-time!
We had one, unused, on the bench for 74 mins v Batley, explain that one away. Paulie xx
Well, that same one played probably 20 minutes in the first half on Sunday, looked knackered, and then didn't come back on after half time.
I don’t see how anyone can point a finger at the coach when we have no props. You could have the best coach in the world but with no props on field or to interchange your players will be exhausted by half-time!
We had one, unused, on the bench for 74 mins v Batley, explain that one away. Paulie xx
Well, that same one played probably 20 minutes in the first half on Sunday, looked knackered, and then didn’t come back on after half time.
So you are saying he was unfit ? injured ?
He didn't look any less fit than he's looked for the whole season to be honest. In Tilleke's defence, he should probably be the 7th/8th choice prop; he's played in every single match.
He could have still done a couple of ten minutes spells vs Batley which I think would have benefited the team by giving others a much needed rest.
He didn’t look any less fit than he’s looked for the whole season to be honest. In Tilleke’s defence, he should probably be the 7th/8th choice prop; he’s played in every single match.
Come on James a little unfair there, the lad runs in hard and gives 100% and we don’t have seven or eight props. If we did he might come on better we a good mentor.
Hopefully he is getting mentored in training by Cook/Clough/Jewitt etc.
He didn’t look any less fit than he’s looked for the whole season to be honest. In Tilleke’s defence, he should probably be the 7th/8th choice prop; he’s played in every single match.
Come on James a little unfair there, the lad runs in hard and gives 100% and we don’t have seven or eight props. If we did he might come on better we a good mentor.
And therein lies the problem!
I've thought the team as a whole hasn't looked fit enough for the whole year; but having asked the question a few times, was told otherwise.
He didn’t look any less fit than he’s looked for the whole season to be honest. In Tilleke’s defence, he should probably be the 7th/8th choice prop; he’s played in every single match.
Come on James a little unfair there, the lad runs in hard and gives 100% and we don’t have seven or eight props. If we did he might come on better we a good mentor.
And therein lies the problem! I’ve thought the team as a whole hasn’t looked fit enough for the whole year; but having asked the question a few times, was told otherwise.
James, I would always bow to your much more superior knowledge than the majority of us have but you are told otherwise by whom; Finney, Finnigan the players themselves. We are a part time team LIKE all the other teams in our league yet they put in a much more concerted effort for a longer period. Finney promised us the money was there and we would pick up players as the season started but we ended with a loan player from Wigan and now a younger more inexperienced kid from Wigan. It’s frustrating for us fans to watch a decent first half and then capitulation in the second, for me that is down to the manager, he must take the responsibility for this. As I said yesterday I am sick to death of people saying it will be different next year, it’s this year I’m watching a good coach can get the best from any other coaches selections.👍👍
Please don't bow to me, everyone entitled to their own opinion!
I won't ask any questions tonight, as clearly I get more opportunities to do that than others, so it will be interesting to hear what fans ask.
An obvious question is "why no signings" - but having asked that myself earlier in the year, I was told that the salary cap allowance afforded to the club by the RFL was at its limit (hence why Hulme only came in when O'Neil had gone, for example).
When you look at the performances when we've had a decent 17 out, they have been OK. My personal opinion is that the issue is the number of bodies; we're competing for 40-60 minutes in every game and then just running out of numbers. I think you could have had anyone as coach yesterday and it would have been the same outcome.
I think that’s part of the problem like you used the example with Tileke James he is a good member of the squad but back end of it as the 6,7,8th prop the problem is we have a fair few of them playing week in week out and expected to be in the starting 17 when in actual fact they ain’t good enough to do that, also for me despite the coach saying otherwise it is crystal clear the team ain’t fit enough with the numerous fast starts we have had but ultimately near always get pegged back, let’s hope we do have a stronger off season recruitment wise hopefully starting tonight cause to me that’s the only thing that’s going to start to change things.
Hopefully he is getting mentored in training by Cook/Clough/Jewitt etc.
Is that in sick note writing ?