Why is it only Rovers that seem to struggle when catching kick-offs? I've lost count of the number of times we've knocked-on or let the ball run dead from kick-offs, there isn't any other team that allows this so often, i'm sure of it. It comes to something when, at about 3 oclock this afternoon we were discussing times of when Rovers will knock-on from a kick off, I plumped up and said from the kick-off... and was unfortunately right.

We do seem to struggle at times,
with the very basic skills of the game!

We have a running joke going in our group that sit in the RM stand that whenever we score, something happens from the kick off, i.e. knock on, ball goes dead etc. The trouble is, its turning into the norm, rather then the exception.

I would also point how poor Rovers kick offs are. No height, no distance and no hang time. Straight away the opposition is on the front foot and clearing their lines. I'm not sure how long Ben Cockayne has been taking them but they are at times so bad it beggars beleif. Personally I'd let Craig Hall take then as he is capable of getting both the height and the distance to be effective.

It's getting as bad as 2007 when I almost didn't want us to score because we'd inevitably make a right Horlicks of the kick off.



Did he used to take them at Hull? I seem to remember there's were quite good, plenty of loft and spin on them so that the forwards were almost on the Rovers players as soon as they'd caught it. Pat Richards' as are excellent.

I agree but as he plays once in a blue moon its irrelevant.

Are we back to the myth Hall is a great player, his positional play on Sunday was awful , his edge of the defence is targetted everytime he plays and inevitably he crumbles, see his waft at Yeaman in the derby for evidence.

I remember the calls for Hall to take the penalty kicks into touch apparently he can kick it miles, yet he gets one in the derby game and barely found touch 2 yards further up the field. He is a confidence player that once one this goes slightly amiss he looks all set to crumble in a heap. I'm wondering when anybody (other than the opposition) will notice Craig Hall is not the Greg Inglis some people think he is.

Most teams have their best strike players on the left side as a right to left attack is usually favoured which means defensively your right edge is constantly targetted, so to say teams are just targetting Craig is rather naive. Rovers edge defence on both sides of the park is pretty poor all round and has been all season as has their overall defence. They have conceded tries for fun this year which more down to a poorly structured defence and/or lack of contact work during the week (seems the 'older and more influential' players in the team cannot get through 2 contact sessions per week between games).

Its suits some peoples agenda to constantly berate Hall for his 'poor' defence, whilst at the same time ignoring similar failings in other more 'popular' players.

I agree that we have edge defence problems and Hall is in no way on his own in making mistakes, it just seems there is a belief on here that he is the saviour of HKR, where certain players are berated constantly (Netherton for instance) Hall can seem to do no wrong. I'd like to see the kid do well but he just seems mentally fragile. He isn't our starting option of centre yet and rightly so but JM seems to get flack for hving seen this and chosing his team as such.