Wilde 3 wrote:5 years ago, I would have said that you can put anyone on the wing really that could do half a job and be error free. Nowadays, they are a vital part of the team. They need to have good kick return, land on their front to get the momentum into the set. Be good in the air as they can be bombarded. They need to have agility to finish tries in the corner with the corner post now not being classed as in play. I dont think we really have a winger that can score a try like Makinson, Lineham, Burgess, Hall etc. so if there is a strong ball carrying, flying try scoring winger out there who is good in the air, can we sign him please?
Add another 10 years to your time frame and you would have a point.
Since Bradfords strategy of using Vianikolo and Vaikona on the wings from around 2002 onward, the days of the slight, fleet of foot winger were just about over.
I do think that too many out there expect us to find the perfect player in a winger (runs like the wind, build like heavy weight boxer, can finish and can defend well. Well, they just don't really exist. lets face it, at the time we would all have welcomed Offiah to the club (we made a bid in 1991/2 ) but he could not defend to save his life. I do wonder how well he would have got on in todays power driven game.
