: Sat Jul 05, 2008 1:15 am
There was criticism of Smith in August time in 2005. Though memories may also be clouded by the criticism of 2006 and 7 too.
I think there were a number of differences.
The strange selection policies of now aren't anything like as extreme as the ones that arguably cost the cup final in 2005 or that then stifled certain players in 2006. Arguably any decisions at the moment are forced. I'm not sure the same could be said of 2005.
Bluey doesn't appear to be breaking up the squad whereas in 2005 Smith discarded fringe players, despite much of 2004's success and his reputation being founded on his 'tinkerman' use of the squad.
In 2005 the spirit of the side that was so visible in 2004 and pre July 2005 seemed to vanish amid rumours of dressing room unrest and draconian approaches to discipline. I don't think there is any problem with the spirit at the moment and no rumours of unrest that I'm aware of.
Theres also the context. By the middle of 2005 we'd seen Leeds pretty much completely dominate things for 12 months. That came after a long period without success and was acompanied by a real belief (not just on this forum) that the squad was good enough to be a dominant force for a number of years. That the dominance should appear so fragile and for this to happen so suddenly in 2005 was difficult to take, particularly as it seemed that Leeds were falling back to the chasing pack rather than them catching up. Now, after another GF win and WCC people are a little more chilled about failure and success.
Finally there's the timing. Criticism in late August and September 2005 bracketed the challenge cup final upset and marked the end of a long period of poor form heading towards the business end of the season. People can be more chilled now as its still some months from the play offs, the team are still top of the table and still in the cup semi final (which is seemingly the priority). The blip in form is happening long before the big end of season games.
