The gap between saints and the rest of SL is evident when you consider there isn’t one player from the rest of SL that would get in saints first 13. Wigan fans will shout “jai field” but there is no way he is anywhere near the class of Welsby. He’s just a sprinter playing rugby league who is only decent in broken play.
Joined: Oct 29 2007 Posts: 6767 Location: Now in Enemy Country
TheWarringtonWolve69 wrote:The gap between saints and the rest of SL is evident when you consider there isn’t one player from the rest of SL that would get in saints first 13. Wigan fans will shout “jai field” but there is no way he is anywhere near the class of Welsby. He’s just a sprinter playing rugby league who is only decent in broken play.
Far too much hype if an attacking full back, for that position you need the attributes to be creative and have a good defence. Jai Field has neither he's just a broken field runner and thats about it. Can't defend either the last try by Percival he allowed Percival to juggle the ball to score can't defence read.
The new young dynasty of super saints is coming to a ground near you. Welsby-Dodd-Simms-Eaves-Rizzelli, not Eastmond...the future is coming.
Judder Man wrote:Far too much hype if an attacking full back, for that position you need the attributes to be creative and have a good defence. Jai Field has neither he's just a broken field runner and thats about it. Can't defend either the last try by Percival he allowed Percival to juggle the ball to score can't defence read.
Totally agree. He’s just another Adam Quinlan. The way the Wigan have been crowing about him, I thought he was the next Billy Slater. Wouldn’t get anywhere near Saints 17
Mild Rover wrote:While it is tempting and it’d be easy to make jokes about feeling sympathy for Leeds fans who have not seen their team win a trophy since 2020, I think it does illustrate another issue will the same clubs dominating a sport for a prolonged period… the withdrawal symptoms and lack of tolerance for disappointment among some (not all!) of their fans when they have to endure a period of the mediocrity so familiar to the clubs fulfilling the role of opponent, year in and year out, are so used to. We take our happiness were we can and have learned to treasure it. McManus has invested heavily at Saints to make them what they are today, and yes they also have a good culture. Kind of admirable, but yeah kind of boring too from the outside. But not massively more so than the previous 37 years since (probably not entirely coincidentally) my own club had a ‘good culture’ and won major trophies.
It's all to do with the lack of diversity at the top, in terms of final outcomes. This could get to the point where saints win 4 or 5 back to back doubles, at the very least, like it's nothing. It's never been this bad. How hard is it for teams to simply be coached well, have good young players and make smart overseas signings? The competition is just so, so poor.
Joined: Jun 01 2007 Posts: 12646 Location: Leicestershire.
FlexWheeler wrote:It's all to do with the lack of diversity at the top, in terms of final outcomes. This could get to the point where saints win 4 or 5 back to back doubles, at the very least, like it's nothing. It's never been this bad. How hard is it for teams to simply be coached well, have good young players and make smart overseas signings? The competition is just so, so poor.
It could but we’re some way from that. Also, from my perspective this doesn’t feel different. My first post in this thread hasn’t aged well in a couple of ways…
However, the reason I share it is to show that Leeds, Wigan and Saints have essentially merged into one RL entity in my head, the one with the money that always wins. Which particular facet of that monolith lifts the trophy at the end of each season ceased to matter some time ago.
As for the lack of quality, fans of not-Wigan-Saints-or-Leeds twigged some time ago that being well coached, having good young players and making smart overseas signings helps, but without lots of money there’s a cap on what can realistically be achieved. One (or maybe even two) of the monolith’s facets might be poorly managed for a bit and have to slum it in mid-table for a couple of years but in some ways that adds interest for the rest of us.
FlexWheeler wrote:It's all to do with the lack of diversity at the top, in terms of final outcomes. This could get to the point where saints win 4 or 5 back to back doubles, at the very least, like it's nothing. It's never been this bad. How hard is it for teams to simply be coached well, have good young players and make smart overseas signings? The competition is just so, so poor.
It could but we’re some way from that. Also, from my perspective this doesn’t feel different. My first post in this thread hasn’t aged well in a couple of ways…
However, the reason I share it is to show that Leeds, Wigan and Saints have essentially merged into one RL entity in my head, the one with the money that always wins. Which particular facet of that monolith lifts the trophy at the end of each season ceased to matter some time ago.
As for the lack of quality, fans of not-Wigan-Saints-or-Leeds twigged some time ago that being well coached, having good young players and making smart overseas signings helps, but without lots of money there’s a cap on what can realistically be achieved. One (or maybe even two) of the monolith’s facets might be poorly managed for a bit and have to slum it in mid-table for a couple of years but in some ways that adds interest for the rest of us.
'Thus I am tormented by my curiosity and humbled by my ignorance.' from History of an Old Bramin, The New York Mirror (A Weekly Journal Devoted to Literature and the Fine Arts), February 16th 1833.
Fair enough! I've just binned off SkySports after a huge price hike so don't get Super League any more but I subscribe to WatchNRL and Premier Sports so get plenty of RL to watch. WatchNRL for £130 a season is a bargain. 8 games every week you can watch at your leisure and also the RL programs like Matty Johns show etc. Different gravy as they say!
"Arguably the best Rugby League side certainly in the last 40 years!" Phil Clarke.
giddyupoldfella wrote:Does the Rugby League always stand in solidarity with countries engaged in war and virtue signal that to let everyone know where they stand? I can't remember it happening before.
Is it just the TV games that stand in solidarity with Ukraine or do the non TV games stand in solidarity too?
No Super League like other sports have decided that as people in Ukraine are white with blue eyes they must stand in solidarity. Plenty of other wars and there has been nothing. The hypocrisy is disgusting. When wars have brown people being bombed and land occupied nobody in sport cared one bit.
For example a Few years ago UEFA fined Celtic about £8,600 because fans waved Palestinian flags in support of Palestine against a brutal illegal occupation of there land by Israel.
I see Ukraine flags all over football grounds and no fines are being issued.
No one can argue that St Helens aren’t the dominant side in the competition at present. It won’t last forever though and someone else will take over. The sport goes through cycles.
The aim for the rest of the clubs should be at first match, then surpass St Helens. The way to do that is through youth development. It’s no coincidence the last 16 winners have been Leeds, St Helens and Wigan. The best 3 academies in the game. The sooner the rest of the clubs get their development up to the standards of those three the sooner we will see a different name on the trophy.
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