Phuzzy wrote:I'm not sure that holds true. Partington and Byrne are both clearly good enough but as a starting pair I would say not....or at least not yet. It all depends on the circumstances you introduce them into. Harry Smith is clearly good enough too and I would want his game time to increase significantly over the course of the season. However, I'm not sure throwing him in and taking a sink or swim approach is the best way to fulfill his undoubted potential.
Interestingly when I watched where Smith was defending he seemed to have been shunted out to centre. Was this deliberate to reduce the amount of tackling, which is clearly not the strongest area of his game. Even with Tommy playing we looked a bit soft down the middle with plenty of easy meters available to KR. If the big lads are not cutting down that space Smith could get steam rollered.