Following on from the off piste Chris Hill discussion…
This season is obviously even more difficult for young players given the lack of Reserve grade but some issues are glaring.
As FMC pointed out, why play a prop on the wing rather than give a youngster a go?
Why re sign a player (Robson) to not trust him. Why have a player on the bench and not play him? Why have a reserve hooker who has clearly advanced and not give him more game time, even if it means DC at 13 for a part of the game?
I appreciate the coaching staff see more of the players than we ever will, however if the answer to an absent winger is to play Sita who can’t do a half decent shift at prop then either we have a complete set of duffers in reserve or something odd is going on in the coaches mind.

It's simple. Price has his favourites and your face either fits or it doesn't. His sheer arrogance is also holding the team back not only in his team selection but in his tactics too. But that's not a discussion for this thread.

Though I am far from excited about Powell as our next coach, I do hope he puts more trust in our young academy players and allows them to express themselves on the pitch.

I'm interested to see the list of players who have been denied opportunities at Warrington. Surely if they were so good they would be ripping the league up with another club by now?

I think under Price our youth development has come on leap and bounds from your Pat Moran's and Jack Johnson's of this world that previous coaches had left him with. Powell will be getting a damn site better hand to play with in respective of young talent than Price had when he joined.

The likes of Thewliss, Longstaff and Wrench are a class above anything we have produced since the days of John Bastian. There are others younger players pushing through as well but we shouldn't forget just how young those three named are. There is a duty of care to these players with the longevity of career in mind owed to them by the club and it is good to see that Price is not over-exposing them.

Isn't Robson getting high praise at Bradford ? All good grounding i suppose ,coming up against some of the old stagers in that division.

Simple.
Our coach is not very good, at all. Decent and a lovely bloke but not a top line coach here or elsewhere.

I'm not saying you've not got your finger on the pulse 9, but he's been recalled been in one of match days squads and been at Salford on loan for a month.

Obviously ,my pulse is feinter than i thought . I must have missed his return .

I agree that the 3 players mentioned have the potential to be great players.
There’s also a saying if your good enough age doesn’t come into it. They need to given regular games. As mentioned in above post why didn’t Connor Wrench play instead of a prop on the wing.

Ben Currie was a great example. He played because from the age of 18 onwards he was simply undroppable. Toby King was given a regular chance, proved his worth and it was thanks Ryan Atkins we don’t need you anymore.

Look at Jack Welsby and Lewis Dodd at Saints plus Morgan Knowles previously. Saints have played them a lot more than our youngsters too the point now they are first team regulars. Lachlan Coote and Theo Fages and James Bentley can move on. It means they can use their salary to sign a class NRL centre.
I read on our forum though that we can’t let Chris Hill go. It would leave us a lot worse off. It possibly will but if Butler/ Robson/ Doro had been given more chances in lesser games maybe they too would be ready.
It’s because we have this anchor round our necks of not winning Super League, that we have to stick to experienced players all the time.
I’ve mentioned in previous posts on other topics that I believe James Harrison has been signed by Powell to play not be a bit part player.

I’ll give you an example and it’s totally my opinion. Joe Philbin for me hasn’t done the business this season, he has stagnated since signing a 5 year contract. For me,a chance to play Longstaff. It gives Joe a kick up the ar$e and improves his game knowing his 1st team spot is not assured.
Competition for places his what brings success.

Thewlis has played more Super league minutes than Dodd despite being younger.

Why would Wrench play on the wing? He played all his academy rugby in the pack and is currently learning to adjust to centre. Sita has played wing in the NRL and against Wigan a physical presence to make yards off your own line is important. He was our biggest yardage maker on the night which supports his surprise selection.

It is your opinion that we play a 19 year back rower as a prop in lieu of a current England / GB international. I'll concede that it is an interesting opinion to have, probably best left on an internet message board.

Fair enough. Saints if the rumours are true are letting Theo Fages go having a ready made replacement in Dodds despite the fact he’s played less minutes than Josh Thewlis. They think he’s ready.


Connor Wrench played and played and played well at the DW stadium. 40 points to 14 l recollect. We didn’t need Sita’s physical presence as a ex NRL winger that night. At home I didn’t say Sita didn’t play well, but to give Connor a lad for the future another chance to impress we could of quite easily of moved Jake Mamo to the wing and give him another chance.

I’ll accept Longstaff isn’t a direct replacement for Joe Philbin but the point I’m trying to make is players have to be given a chance. The topic is about young players opportunities and when there going to get them.
Ellis Longstaff as extended his contract by two years, if he doesn’t get the opportunity how can he prove he’s worth another contract. This is where we definitely need a good reserve league competition. Going out on loan for me doesn’t help. You need a reserve team playing the same structures as the first team and players can step in when needed. Training is all well and good but it doesn’t replicate match pressure.