Re: Halifax Game is now SATURDAY : Tue Sep 29, 2015 11:11 am  

Bulliac wrote:

...
It's not his fault that there is no 'reserve grade' and we certainly couldn't loan out the lot of them but they could have been used intermittently through the season and not just left out. They could have been used to give a break to the regulars a bit more often and made to feel wanted, and whatever the truth is don't know, but some of them didn't look as if they cared over much.
.

But what if Lowes felt that weakening his team by rotating with some of these was too much of a risk to take? As appears to be the case? I should imagine he was picking squads to finish as near top and be ready for the playoffs. And I don't buy this "disaffected" thing. if youare not happy then leave. If your agent can't get you a gig then when you get your chance, why would you play like a disinterested twot, surely you would be putting yourself in the shop window?

But don't ask my why they played like that. I don't understand it, any more than I do when our first team gives up and ships another 50

[Bulliac]

Re: Halifax Game is now SATURDAY : Tue Sep 29, 2015 12:22 pm  

Ferocious Aardvark wrote:

But what if Lowes felt that weakening his team by rotating with some of these was too much of a risk to take? As appears to be the case? I should imagine he was picking squads to finish as near top and be ready for the playoffs. And I don't buy this "disaffected" thing. if youare not happy then leave. If your agent can't get you a gig then when you get your chance, why would you play like a disinterested twot, surely you would be putting yourself in the shop window?

But don't ask my why they played like that. I don't understand it, any more than I do when our first team gives up and ships another 50

If that was Lowesy's opinion then it's his right, in fact his duty, to do that. He's the boss and he's hired and fired on that basis. I though, don't have to agree it was the best policy. That's the beauty of being a fan - my team selections never get put to the test, so were always correct!!

As for the disaffected thing, well, yeah you'd think so but I don't have any other explanation as to why so many seemed unbothered by being drubbed.

Re: Halifax Game is now SATURDAY : Tue Sep 29, 2015 12:35 pm  

Bulliac wrote:

As for the disaffected thing, well, yeah you'd think so but I don't have any other explanation as to why so many seemed unbothered by being drubbed.

It could well be that they knew they weren't going to be involved this weekend no matter how they played even if they had a blinder.

Re: Bulls v Fax - Post match : Tue Sep 29, 2015 12:54 pm  

As a man being paid a full-time wage for playing, that'd be a bit like committing job suicide wouldn't it?

If it was me, then the way to test that theory is to bust a gut and have a blinder. If after that you still don't make the squad - THEN complain. i reckon not many have played so well that many times, that at least a place in the squad or two wasn't up for grabs for anyone who played a blinder.

But as it is, Lowes doesn't have that problem!

[Bulliac]

Re: Halifax Game is now SATURDAY : Tue Sep 29, 2015 1:45 pm  

redeverready wrote:

It could well be that they knew they weren't going to be involved this weekend no matter how they played even if they had a blinder.

Well there are many incidences of mangers and coaches leaving out players for the game before a big final and saying something along the lines of, "it gives players a chance to play their way into the side", but if you're one of those brought in, you know full well that it's largely disingenuous claptrap.

The puzzle is, as FA points out, it makes little sense for the future prospects of those players for them not to give their all, since they are clearly on the outer and must realise they won't get another club by looking as though they couldn't care less. I know what I saw last Saturday, and Jimmy Lowes summed it up pretty well, but it still doesn't make any sense.

Re: Bulls v Fax - Post match : Tue Sep 29, 2015 3:41 pm  

Getting dropped...not picked even when we're rubbish....fed up....not playing...not match fit.....getting picked on the wing, at full back, at stand off... getting blamed. I felt sorry for Mendeika. How is a lad coming in mid season going to get any form?

Adam Henry was poor last year but then again I didn't sign him on for this season. Fleming (what's he ever done wrong?) and Halafifi were OK in the first half and didn't last because they haven't played.

James Clare - full back, wing, dropped, wing, turnstyle. Most of these lads are actually very young.

It's a combination of some not good enought to start with, a good few not match fit, honest lads who look like they've tried but had their confidence badly knocked by a coach who sends them to Coventry after a poor performance while sticking with Luaki, not bothering with half backs while doing his best to get O'brien retired by 25.

You can't watch what we've watched all season and put it down to players can't be bothered. Watching us against Wakefield my friend said look how nervous we are in defence and I think this might be it. Our confidence levels are wafer thin. We don't trust ourselves and we don't trust the next player.

It clearly is a type of disaffection which has manifested itself all year and in particular in the absence of a fit Gaskell and/or Mullaney who the others believe have the ability to make things happen. It is a critical absence of leadership and experience in key positions which has been apparent from pre-season and blatantly obvious from HKR in the cup when we were facing a long period without Siejka and Mullaney.

Jimmy's analysis is indeed correct. Now he needs to go find a mirror.

Re: Bulls v Fax - Post match : Tue Sep 29, 2015 3:57 pm  

Cripes I hate to think what you'd be like if we'd actually had a poor season rather than having proved ourselves the best of the division by some margin and made the big game

Re: Bulls v Fax - Post match : Tue Sep 29, 2015 7:00 pm  

That we haven't been able to prove ourselves the best in the second divison by 'some margin' is rather the point.

Re: Bulls v Fax - Post match : Tue Sep 29, 2015 7:51 pm  

M@islebugs wrote:

That we haven't been able to prove ourselves the best in the second divison by 'some margin' is rather the point.

Not at all. If we don't get promotion, then whether we were the best team in the division or not couldn't possibly matter any less

Re: Bulls v Fax - Post match : Tue Sep 29, 2015 8:08 pm  

Ferocious Aardvark wrote:

Not at all. If we don't get promotion, then whether we were the best team in the division or not couldn't possibly matter any less

That probably isn't an Absolute Truth. It may matter to some people or just one person.
However the two questions as I see it are:
Does it matter?
Does it matter that it matters?