From where we are to challenging in two years? Not a chance! This is a five year program at least. Leigh had a better side in the championship than we have now. We need to replace half the team and will have to accept that some players we sign won't be that great but will be a stepping stone to something better.

Tbh I think the club and fans have to acknowledge we are at rock bottom so will only be signing players that other clubs don't want and the same goes for the coach. Tbh i think we're gonna have to take a chance with a young up and coming British coach as no decent coach will come here. And seen as Grix is already here then just give him a go but as a club support him with a decent set of support staff.

True, they did. They did have a certain amount of luck in that, having gone with a small squad by investing in greater quality rather than quantity, they stayed relatively injury free, particularly to certain key players, which helped them enormously in achieving what they did.

But the chief reason for Leigh's success was that Beaumont (and Lam to a degree) created an impression of a club on the rise, made it feel like an exciting place to be a part of, which probably made recruitment a little easier when they made overtures to their targets.

Our problem, right now, is that we look like the opposite, a so-called 'big' club floundering and still going backwards. Myler's biggest job, among many, is that he has to change that narrative, to make us appear to be a club once more on an upwards trajectory. This will make our recruitment considerably easier, making us attractive for decent players to join us.

Given where we are now, we are probably a fairly hard club to sell to anyone. It is up to the club to change that situation so that we can at last move forward once again.

To be honest I'd be very disappointed if they were/are the 3 we are actually looking at.

Considering Myler has put across in interviews the importance of repairing the link between the club and fans I just don't see McDermott even being in the running as he is such a dour character and just don't see him having the personality to be able to effectively deal with a very disgruntled fan base. As you say he is a pretty divisive character.

Ward for me whilst a decent Coach and did a decent job at London managed to keep Cas up, he's still pretty untested as a SL coach and chose to decline staying on at Cas to be assistant across the river.

McGuire again similar to Ward in that he appears to have done well as an assistant to extent but would be too big a big risk to take that he'd have the ability to turn us round and doesn't sit well that he's another that not long ago was across the river.

I know we are in a position of being a pretty unattractive prospect for potential Coaches as the job has certainly been made in to a poisoned chalice.

Still get the feeling the Rowley situation is more Salford rejecting a deal more than him, as it almost the same scenario with the likes of Croft, Dupree etc. It all just seems odd with what has and hasn't been said and by whom.

Other than Rowley there is no one else currently in this country I'd say was a good option for us and that is the difficulty and reality we face.

I think we are being harsh on ourselves.

There are only a finite number of clubs and Hull are in the Super League, have a fantastic infrastructure and one of the largest fan bases. This will appeal to coaches and players alike.

We have new investment and a quite a sizable salary cap becoming available at the end of this season. This will allow any new coach to start building their own team/squad very quickly.

I also don’t think our fans are toxic. I do think the players have been the tail wagging the dog in terms of the coach in recent years. However, almost all of those players will have moved on by the end of the season, which will allow a new coach to set a new expectations and culture in the club. With regards the fans, in all the years I have supported the club, I have always thought our fans are realistic on where we are as a club at any one time. Any recent booing, has come on the end of several seasons continual decline, increasing heavy defeats, poor player recruitment and discipline and a confusing playing style.

Our fans are always ready to support new players coming into the team, in particular the academy players and effort. Any one joining the club will receive instantly our support.

As others have said, we are not going to transform overnight. I hope we have a new (and the right coach) here soon. I do think we need to improve during the rest of this season. If the short term signings can help stop the rot, then that will be great. Realistically we are going to finish 10th at best, however I hope we improve throughout the summer and set ourselves a higher finishing position.

Next season should be about targeting the Top 6 and then improve further in 2026. Ongoing improvement will help attract new players. We can’t change our geography and for some a move to Hull will never suit them for family reasons. However, for many, if our potential shows signs of being realised they will come on board. Playing and coaching careers are limited and all will want to maximise their participation and earnings from the sport while they can.

Slightly off topic, but we don't actually have a Grade A license do we? Last year's gradings were all just indicative and it's not set in stone that we're a grade A club? If the investment doesn't come to fruition and league performances don't improve, wonder if that's a potential consideration that potential coaches are aware that things might not actually be as secure as we think they seem , and we could end up with a grade B license when IMG announce them later this year? And the new coach very quickly have to deliver improvements or the club doesn't stay in SL, rather than if we definitely had a grade A and they had time to rebuild?

Our major problem is that there is some considerable distance between who we would LIKE to be coach and who we can realistically actually GET. Those scenarios are two very different beasts, indeed!

My suspicion is that whoever is eventually appointed it will come across to the fanbase as being distinctly underwhelming, mainly due to the fact that beggars can't be choosers. Right now, we are not a particularly attractive proposition for almost anyone. I just hope that whoever it is brings some energy and enthusiasm to the place.

I can't escape the nagging feeling that we are going to end up with McDermott, which will go down like a lead balloon on here!!! In that scenario I would rather we appointed either Ward or McGuire, both of whom would be preferably to McDermott. Like I said on a previous post, I'm afraid this is the pond we are going to have to fish in for the time being, until we start to look like a club at least heading in the right direction.

Do we actually know if we spoke to Rowley and offered him a contract?

Officially, we would have had to:
1. contact Salford for permission to speak with Rowley
2. hold talks with Rowley
3. offer a contract
4. if Rowley accepted we would then need to discuss compensation with Salford.

Unofficially, in sport there are unofficial 3rd party soundings with many appointments, with either ‘X would be interested joining your club’ or ‘would X be interested in joining our club.’ This would be the prelude to the above formal steps. Who knows if this happened with Hull and or any other club who may currently be thinking of changing it’s Coach?

All we know is that Salford have confirmed that Rowley is staying at Salford and we don’t know how far any discussions Rowley went, and if they happened at all.

Either way, we have to respect Rowley’s decision. However, I will not be surprised if he is at Leeds within the month.

Indeed. I actually think the fan base has been remarkably patient given what we have witnessed over the last half decade. Provided you stay away from comments sections and FB, where the unhinged gather in numbers, the general attitude seems quite measured tbh.

No one has a licence at the moment. I presume they will be issued at the end of the season in October.

Based upon the current criteria, Hull should still get an A Licence. Worst case, we would be the highest scoring B grade, so have no threat to being in the Super League.

Bizarrely, we could improve our IMG score by knocking down the MKM West Stand and just have a second hand shipping container on some gravel. Not only is this the future for all sporting stadia, but it would reduce our capacity by about 10k and improve our IMG crowd v capacity utilisation score.

Completely agree with the Leeds bit, ironically should a miracle occur and we win on Sunday that might just happen next week that's the talk in the Salford fans circles anyway.