Unless he is saying one thing and doing another he really doesn't seem to see the issues we have. Surely anyone can see that Fages and Russell in the halves is not a SL quality pairing? Do you think they are? Yet Watson talks them up and has no plans to sign more for next year. We have spent big, but next year our backline atm includes two 35 year olds, a 34 year old and Innes Senior who really isn't good enough for this level, are you not worried about that? We simply have no threat with the ball from the backs at all, with Leutele going we are going to be totally toothless. I can't understand why we are not busting a gut to get more backs, and yet Watson talks about having more or less completed recruitment for next year, so no i don't have much faith in him at the moment. We are what we always have been the side that bombs it in the big games, the side that others lose games on purpose to get in the playoffs (and it works). Don't forget that he has had absolute control to sign whoever he has wanted, and we end up with the backline i just mentioned. No i'm not impressed atm.

Kendall had a storming game last week at Hudds v Wakefield!

Paaaaahhhh

A very disappointing way to end the season. Gutting in fact. What’s more disappointing is that all this week (and previously) no one has bothered posting in the build up- but are posting all the dissatisfaction now.
At the start of the season we were tipped to finish out of the playoffs between 8-10th by all and to do nothing of note, so a top three finish, and a challenge cup final that we were within three minutes of clinching I’m sure most would have taken over that given the choice.
Yes it’s disappointing but I think we just overcooked in the middle of the year,and were going well until that defeat away at Cas which seemed to take the wind out of us-we were massively hit with injuries/suspensions at a time when there was a lot of upheaval at the club (wardle/king, players leaving etc) we lost our way.
We have time to regroup. And a full preseason ahead of us to work on some more creative stuff, the idea that Watson doesn’t play creative rugby we know isn’t right- because we know how salford played under Watson.
We don’t yet know the full extent of who is signed for next season- there will be more announcements to come, and just because it’s been said that recruitment is complete doesn’t mean we the fans know all. It just means the club does.
We might not do as well next season, who knows. I’ll still be getting my ticket and going to the games just like I did when they were bottom, and like I did when they were in the lower divisions. I guess we won’t be gaining any glory supporters this year. Hey Ho.

You are deluded hangerman has it right in the post above

I think Sezer would have made the difference for you.

Hangerman and yourself know who we have /have not recruited for next season? Then do tell.

We have yet to formally announce who else is leaving and so far have only announced two signings In naiqama and Rushton.
With Roberts ashall-bott and Butler already having left the club, and senior definitely going, Joe Greenwood, Jack Cogger, Nathan Mason, Jack Ashworth, John luke Kirby OOC and not having been announced as resigned there’s 9 potential players gone and only two in, so even if we resign one or two of those OOC perhaps greenwood, there’s plenty of scope for new names so I repeat you don’t know where we are strengthening. Perhaps you can moan when you know the full extent of our squad next year. If Marsters is a definite signing and wardle is back then that makes our back line look a whole lot different wouldnt you agree?

Ps salford played very well yesterday. Watson did not lose the game yesterday- the players did. At the start of the season our set completion rate was excellent, yesterday it was shocking- we made 14 unforced errors in that game, and gave away 9 penalties. That’s not down to Watson.

On reflection I suppose, it's not so much where you finish on the so-called 'league ladder', as how you finish.
I think deep down we all had an 'inclin' of what could happen against Salford - and it did so with true vengeance.
In my view they even engineered a situation to play us, rather than get roughed up in France and it proved a master stroke. So good luck to Salford, I just wish they had Croft on board next week to sort the Saints out.

As previously pointed out, our season comes to an end with a 3rd place and a cup final, a sign of much progress made in my opinion and more to come no doubt.
As Mr Watson loves to point out, this is all part of a 'process' and since a process is defined as " a series of actions or steps taken to in order to achieve a particular end" strap yourself in for the next step - it will all be worth it in the end.

The problem is that everyone seems to now have cottoned on to our 'process' and it just isn't very effective anymore and we don't have the players to play any differently. Yes i will change my mind if i see new half backs and backs for next year (I would be amazed if Wardle remains for long given how Watson has publicly castigated him) but at the moment there doesn't seem to be an admission that Fages + Russell is most certainly not the way to go in the halves.

Would you rather Watson did a Powell and castigate players publicly and say they aren’t good enough? The main thing that improved to bring us to that challenge cup final in the first place was our belief. If he’d said yeah well Russel is what we are going with but I’d prefer x it’s hardly going to inspire the players (or fans) is it? Have you ever noticed the times he’s castigated players (sezer, edwards,) it’s been about their attitude- never about their ability. And I don’t recall him castigating wardle either, he just said he wanted game time and we couldn’t guarantee it, the only castigation was to wire on the breaking down of the deal. If you’ve seen somewhere where he’s said something negative about wardle then I’ve missed it so I will apologise.
Do you think our players have been playing to that process as we were mid season in the last few weeks?- fully completed sets, no missed tackles, no silly penalties, quick line speed, dominating ruck, i don’t think we have- if we were doing those things we might know whether it was effective or not. Only the latter can really be fully influenced by the opposition, the rest is in the hands of the players!