We have Lindop who is a better centre than Tai.

I think you are right. In my view the coach got it wrong, Vaughan and Powell should have started. However, poor defending was Wire's undoing. Having said that the team had enough chances to win the game in the second half.

It pains me to say it...again...but for the last 2 seasons, I have said that officialdom is killing this game, and been derided.
I genuinely want the RFL Officials to select 6 numbers, as they clearly see things...no one else does.
Last week Moore gave the Makinson attempt as a Try, which given he was yards from the action and players in the way, how ?
Same last night.
I was always under the impression that if on the field, they weren't 100%, then send upstairs, but if you send upstairs, then your 'not sure', so your giving the decision on 'suspicion', not as a TRY.....amateur, which unfortunately makes the game more Amateurish.
No one can argue that NRL is not better, and have significantly better officials.
NONE of ours would be able to operate in the NRL, simply nowhere near competent enough.
The standard of officials has been, and is, woeful and totally inadequate to respect the game, but I also suspect they are given 'guidelines' as to how to officiate...wrongly clearly.
Afraid that SL will again not have any of my hard earned next Season again, as its just a joke.

We can discuss the refs errors ad infinitum, and just to chip in my views, he should have gone to VR on the Dufty “try”, Ashton’s 2nd should have had an “8 point try” clear head high in act of scoring. Burgess try, say no more.
I think we suffered with the short turnaround (cf leigh).
I really do think we missed Fitzgibbon though, our 3 back rowers too similar.
Ashton has been absolutely phenomenal, best winger in the league currently.

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Spot on re the 8 point try, that was as clear as an example as I've seen. I would say I was surprised Sky didn't mention it on commentary, but they were all too busy queuing for hugs from Mikey Lewis and Ryan Hall to notice.

And laughing at us losing courtesy of an idiotic ruling that may be made obsolete next year, by all accounts.

The 8 point try (or lack of) was the worst decision of the lot. What’s the video ref looking at there?? Clear as day.

They conceded similar to us at home, so I'm surprised it wasn't given.

Exactly. He's 25 and he lacks basic rugby skills. Similar to a lot of the PNG team you see at every world cup. They never give below 100% and can hit hard but they're just not very good. He costs us tries by not being able to pass or beat a man. He needs to be a filler player and nothing more if we want to start winning things. I have no idea what Sam sees his value is when we have Lindop waiting in the wings. I just hope this was the last season before Lindop is brought fully through or he goes with Wrench and sorts his positioning out. It's a much easier fix then teaching someone what to do on a rugby pitch apart from tackle hard and run hard.

After a day to reflect, I agree with a lot of what's been said.
1. We got bossed on the middle in the first half. We did ok in the second as the game became looser.
2. Really don't understand why Vaughan didn't start unless there was an unreported injury. (And when he came on he was relatively quiet. Something isn't right there).
3. Ashton was immense and was so strong running in. My mom for Wire by a mile.
4. Frustrated that the Burgess try was given but it seems like the videoref rules now (always??) are that to overturn the refs decision there must be clear evidence to the contrary and as the videoref couldn't see the ball at all times that was deemed to be enough to fail the 'overturn' bar. Harsh. But were HKR worth a 10 point lead at half time? Probably.
5. We hauled ourselves back into the match and had chances to win, but couldn't take them. Fine lines.

If we'd have got to the final would I have feared Wigan more than HKR? No.
I always said HKR was the toughest one, but we'll never know.
It's a real shame the Wigan Leigh match was on terrestial tv. It was so one sided. Ours would have been far better.