posted Jun 28, 2008

Sadly it does look good for French RL developement, because i think England
put there foot on the brakes.
Difficult to introduce anotherFrench team to
the Super League.

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posted Jun 28, 2008

I though it was a good show from England, James Roby is a superb player.

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posted Jun 28, 2008

That poor excuse for a match will probably cost Leeds 2 points tonight why we had 6 players on international duty against a french side that would have struggled against the top players in NL1 is beyond all belief.
TS should have been made to limit clubs to losing 3 players max he did not need his strongest players to beat that poor french outfit.
Lets hope the only loss for Leeds will be 2 points and not anymore long term injuries.
I for one is starting to think the RFL are a joke what with there dodgy fixtures eg playing some clubs 3 times,stupid international on a weekend with a full fixture list,inability to hand out bans of equal length for the same offence and allowing a club to progress in the CC that broke the rules....rant over.

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posted Jun 28, 2008

I was hoping for a bit of a juicier fight but I think the French side were too compromised with injuries? They looked tired quite early on. If they get the team they want next time out and can work harder on their fitness to make sure they can keep going for longer then perhaps they will be a contender at least for a great match. I just ended up feeling sorry for them and for the French fans last night!

What I find really difficult about internationals is cheering players on who normally I would be hoping would drop the ball or something!

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posted Jun 29, 2008

You're out of order there mate, Smith achieved a hell of a lot as far as I'm concerned. There was always a question mark about Gleeson and personally I wouldn't have played him. I would have probably tried Pryce at inside centre, with McGuire at stand-off. But Pryce was sensational in my book and Gleeson fully redeemed himself as an international class centre. I love Rob Burrow, he seems to get better every time I see him, but Danny Brough is another great scrum-half and I'd like to see him in the squad. His kicking game is as good as Burrow's and he creates so many chances for others. Burrow and Senior (another who stood out) work together so well.

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posted Jun 29, 2008

Isn't danny brough playing for scotland though????

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posted Jun 29, 2008

i really like league more than union but with union they have a lot of good teams but with league the only decent teams are us the kiwis and Aussies

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posted Jun 30, 2008

I thought it was an excellent display on how much better a coach Tony Smith is. He picked players on form (with a couple of notable absentees through injury) and they all showed their intent for the World Cup. Maybe the French team is a weakened opposition but they still took them apart in a careful and skilled manner and really gelled as a team.

I thought Pryce and Burrow linked extremely well together, Roby was a real handful and McGuire made a big impact from the bench. Fox on debut did really well too.

But the outstanding player for me was Kevin Sinfield - at least five of the ten tries came from well-timed offloads from Kevin. He created gaps and allowed the other players to shine.

stickimonthewing - Danny Brough is Scotland captain and won't be playing for England.

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posted Jun 30, 2008

But the outstanding player for me was Kevin Sinfield - at least five of the ten tries came from well-timed offloads from Kevin. He created gaps and allowed the other players to shine.
----------------------------------------------

I've never been an admirer of Kevin Sinfield but he has matured in the last couple of years into a top player and captain. The majority of Leeds plays come from him after the forwards have set the platform.

Is there any way back now for O'Loughlin ???

I think Sinfield will be No13 for England in the World Cup.

(Someone will probably tell me that O'Loughlin will be playing for Ireland now !!!)

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posted Jun 30, 2008

JGBR, many Wigan fans keep insisting to me that O'Loughlin is a much better player than 'average' Wilkin and will bw chosen ahead of him if Sinfield gets into the squad. Granted, last year he was superb against NZ but this year Wilkin has been miles better than Sean, even taking into account injuries. When Wilkin is on the pitch, he turns the game and makes the breaks. This year I have seen nothing from O'Loughlin that says he is international material.

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