Maybe it is. I haven't watched it back yet, but I'd say every halfback in the league gets targeted in the same way every week, it's just part of the job. My major point is that in the areas of the game that set aside top class players -  pace, kicking, and execution of skill under pressure - he looks average  I really wish that it was not so, but my eyes and 40 odd years of watching the game tell me that it is. 

Handley is a good centre, maybe the best one at the club, but if Hall's injury is a bad one, he's going to have to play some wing at some point this season. What a terrible bit of luck Sivo?s jnjury was for the club, I can't help but feel we'd have nicked a couple more wins with him on the field. Agree with you re our missing spine players players. Wonder if Croft and Smith might be available next week? 

Bentley also had a nice role in the Lumb try, for Bentley's detractors. I'm generally very happy with the forwards. 


Very happy with Miller and Connor - but we need more than half a spine. While I'm optimistic about Croft returning, I'm nonplussed about Smith and Ackers. They are both skillful players, but I'm not convinced they add anything significant to our attack as it is already. Same goes for Frawley. We've been spoiled with Watkins or Palasia at 13, Smith is a significant downgrade on these two (IMO), unless he just runs hard and direct and reins in the playmaking. Ackers might be a marginal upgrade on O'Connor on a good day; I guess having them both in the team means we get more out of 'impact Jarrod' when Ackers starts to fade into the background, but I agree this is a position we could do with a serious upgrade in.


Frawley vs Sinfield is tricky. Frawley is solid but we just look so clunky attacking with him on the field. Sinfield looks better in attack and probably deserves more time, ideally not in the front line every game. At some point he's going to have to make it hard for Arthur to drop him, and we're not in that position yet.


The backs struggled with us losing Hall early, Newman's usual antics, and Handley's sending off. Newman is a bit of an enigma. He's actually looking more like his old self in patches in attack and defence, but whatever the situation is with his neurodiversity this is professional sport, and Leeds can't afford him coughing the ball up and getting penalised 2-3 times every game. If he is one of the highest earners he's just not good value. Let him go to Saints with his hunchback mate and spend the money on a decent 9. By now it's clear he's not the next Senior or Watkins, whatever Wane thinks of him. Don't mind Handley at centre. He can still help out in yardage and the Lumb try showed decent centre-wing play.

I thought the same thing. I also think its time to introduce mandatory HIAs for any player who is hit by a tackle that results in a card. That would stop most of the play acting we see now.

The green card situation was the worst for me. It was a a completely incorrect use of the rule. 


?Explaining the changes, Robert Hicks, now RFL Director of Operations and Legal, said: ?This rule change only applies when the game is being played or where the shot clock isn?t being used.
?And it doesn?t apply if the referee chooses to stop the game because he believes it?s not safe to carry on.??



Connor wasn?t play acting, wasn?t asking for play to stop and it was the referee who chose to stop it.