Joined: Jan 16 2003 Posts: 6734 Location: At the cider bus, Worthy Farm, Somerset
at this stage of the season we have now had a good look at all the teams, either live or on tv, or by just looking at the results, form, stats etc.
can you name the 4 teams who will most likely finish in the top 4 from what we have seen so far? to me only wigan and warrington have shown any level of consistency. saints have been up and down (even lost to leeds ffs), widnes started well but struggle without brown, cas really inconsistent (a surprise), leeds are in transition (don't forget they are due another upheaval with ablett, jjb, burrow and mcguire all in the autumn of their careers), and hudds just poor. catalan running into form though and now looking good. looks like you could lose quite a few games and make the 4 this season, so if we manage to avoid too many injuries (though at the moment we seem to have decent depth to cover like we did today, though hooker would be a concern) and maintain good form then a top 4 is not out of the question.
can we do it and who do you think the top 4 will be now as opposed to what you might have thought at the season's start?
We have gone from very good to average to shambolic clueless rugby then back to outstanding for the last game and a quarter. The Warrington game could be pivotal, it might be a flash in the pan, it might be the foundation for something amazing. We are just so difficult to predict what we'll do from one game to the next.
So far from what's been on display elsewhere it's not unreasonable to say on our day we are contenders, top 4 as I've stated before season start should be what we are aiming for as a minimum and with this squad ahould be more than achievable
Joined: Feb 11 2014 Posts: 1073 Location: Hill Valley
Before the season started I would have said Wigan, Leeds and Saints would have been in the Top 4 along with either Castleford or Warrington.
As things stand I would say Wigan and Warrington will easily make the Top 4 but the other two places are very much up for grabs. Leeds have a lot of work on whilst Saints and Cas look a bit patchy. I would not rule any of those three out just yet nor some of the others such as Widnes and Catalans.
As for us well we are certainly in with a shout as the table suggests but I don't think we can afford to go on any more losing runs. Obviously we can't win all our matches but if we can avoid consecutive defeats (and certainly not three on the trot again) I think we'll be in with a very good chance of making the four. We're capable of doing it but still very much a work in progress.
Before the season started I was hoping we could make top six and anything else would be a bonus. At the moment the league looks more competitive than ever so whilst I do think we're in with a chance of getting into the top four, I'll still be happy with sixth.
At the moment I would confidently predict that Warrington and Wigan will be in the four. Then I reckon it's between Saints, Catalans and Hull for the other 2 spots. Widnes are a decent team and they won't collapse completely, but I don't think they can sustain what they've done so far, and yet they have already lost as many as us. Huddersfield are already planning their middle 8's battle, Leeds will make the top 8 but have a mountain to climb, Cas and Salford are dangerous but inconsistent (also don't forget the potential points deduction for Salford).
Our next five are crucial. We play the two teams I expect us to be vying with for 4th, and a win against Leeds may well make it too much for them to catch us. On the other hand a couple of slip ups could leave us well off the pace. It's going to be interesting.
Funny how so far this RL season is as unpredictable as this years football season. Who'd have thought Hudds would be as bad as they are. I still fancy Widnes to kick on and get into the top 4, if they can get Brown back and fit then the have every chance. I suppose if you're going to do it any year this has to be the one.
I certainly wouldn't waste money betting on anything this year though.
barham red wrote:Funny how so far this RL season is as unpredictable as this years football season. Who'd have thought Hudds would be as bad as they are. I still fancy Widnes to kick on and get into the top 4, if they can get Brown back and fit then the have every chance. I suppose if you're going to do it any year this has to be the one.
I certainly wouldn't waste money betting on anything this year though.
I think widnes will tail off when injuries start to inevitibly bite but they'll still make the top 8 comfortably. Other than wigan and wire, it could be any 2 of about 6 or 7 for the other 2 places in the top 4. We should be looking to win at least 4 of our next 5 in which case we should be in with a decent shout
Jake the Peg wrote:I think widnes will tail off when injuries start to inevitibly bite but they'll still make the top 8 comfortably. Other than wigan and wire, it could be any 2 of about 6 or 7 for the other 2 places in the top 4. We should be looking to win at least 4 of our next 5 in which case we should be in with a decent shout
I don't actually think Wigan have been that good this year, everytime I've seen them they've scraped through (good trait to have). Once Wigan get back their key players then i really can't see anyone troubling them to winning the GF.
Think the big problem with looking to win the 4 of 5 is that it generally doesn't work out that way. I've given up guessing what's going to happen this year, Wakey will probably make the top 4 now
You cannot post new topics in this forum You cannot reply to topics in this forum You cannot edit your posts in this forum You cannot delete your posts in this forum You cannot post attachments in this forum
