That Saints Pod 2025 Episode 15

That Saints Pod – Edition 15
Plenty on the agenda this week as Graham, Darren, Gaz & Ady wade through a packed running order. The lads look back at the last two games, preview Saturday’s play-off clash, and give their season reviews – the good, the bad, and everything in between, with each bringing their own take. There’s also chat on Grand Final predictions, a lively debate on London’s place in Super League, and thoughts on how a 14-team competition should shape up – who deserves to be in, and why

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:06):
Hello, and welcome to That Saints Podcast. I'm your host,
Graham Commiff. We're actually at the end of the regular season.
We'll be looking back at the season, the last couple
of matches before before previewing the eliminator playoff against Leeds,
and he's discussing a couple of interesting developments in the
sport generally back in a second, Come.

Speaker 2 (00:26):
On, nice son, Henna the corner, Tommy Barton, Thank you
very much, letter stick.

Speaker 3 (00:33):
What's going to the screen?

Speaker 4 (00:36):
What's he going for day? He's trying to keep the score.

Speaker 1 (00:40):
Down right, So who's with us today? Well, short on numbers,
but high on quality today Darren and livings with us.
High chaps, How you doing good evening? We all emerged
from our depression. Yep, a little bit, a little bit.

(01:03):
Should we start? Should we start with the league game?
Do you have to get the worst fit almost the
worst fit out the way? First? Before last, before this game,
we were chatting on the last show. We just lost
a couple of games against Wigan and KR and were
we went to enthusiastic with with good reason for the
Lee results?

Speaker 3 (01:24):
Well, I went to Lee with enthusiasm until I found
out Morgan wasn't playing, so I was. I bought my
tickets and the day after the announced Morgan wasn't playing,
which I felt was like forty quid I needed to spend.

Speaker 5 (01:38):
You wait until you renew your season tickets.

Speaker 3 (01:42):
I'm not doing it till. That's not the waiting. But
you know, and and Darren will probably support me on this.
But Lee were like well drilled machine. When they were
coming to like fifth tackle, It's like they all knew
what they would do in I think Lamb and O'Brien

(02:02):
are just so used to playing together, and there's there's
players running off everywhere and and we were like I
was watching them, thinking, wow, these like and absolutely like
the old wigging teams. They are so well drilled. And
that we get to last tackle and we've not got
a bloody clue.

Speaker 1 (02:18):
Well, we know exactly what we're doing. Everybody in the crowd.

Speaker 3 (02:21):
The bomb, the n bomb. But we Yeah. So I
thought in the first to be at half time when
we nil and my little one saying, I don't think
I think we're going to end up nil, and and
then ten minutes into the second half somehow we're level.
It was like a miner miracle that.

Speaker 1 (02:38):
They were down to twelve were at the time.

Speaker 3 (02:40):
And so they should have been they should have been
permanently down to twelve. Yeah, and then after that it
just went downhill and some of them tries at the end.

Speaker 1 (02:49):
Was shocked even even the chairman, and in his notes
for the cast came actually said we capitulated. Well, if
you watch the if you if you if your team's
capitulating as and as the chairman, what do you doing?
What are you doing about it?

Speaker 3 (03:01):
But the Pappy try and the Trout try were disgraceful.

Speaker 1 (03:05):
Yeah, yeah, they I mean, aside that to give up,
it was actually a poor show for the facts of
the game. Twenty eight ten lost five tries to the
Bad Rock. I think on one of his early games
that Poppy hughes Brand and trout against two f from
ourselves when Poppy was off off the picture from Harry

(03:27):
Robinson and Kyle felt. But apart from that little bright
spell in the second half, there wasn't an awful lot
to get excited about.

Speaker 4 (03:34):
I didn't think, yeah, no, it was that I was like,
you guys spent about sixty quid by the time we'd
had a bad time. We'd had food and drink and
made a day of it and it absolutely atrocious? Was it?

Speaker 5 (03:47):
Is it?

Speaker 4 (03:48):
Bad rock bed Rock from and in the centers. Never
heard of him when when the team she came out,
I've never heard of him the teams he came out
and when I thing he wasn't playing because he's testing you, Oh,
he wasn't playing. So we had this bad rock bed

(04:08):
rock what his name is? And I'm saying that, lads,
who the bloody hell is that part of the bloody flintstones?
And the next minute he scored the bloody try. We
made him look like a bloody world beater.

Speaker 1 (04:19):
Yeah that was a good try as well. It was
cracking try. But but it all flows it alsows sulam.
I think he's hated his dad, but I think he's
a lovely.

Speaker 3 (04:26):
Players, a great grub's a g he dives, he cheats
around the pitch.

Speaker 1 (04:32):
Well, my god, he's goods good place Mickey level, isn't
he He is good?

Speaker 3 (04:35):
Yeah?

Speaker 5 (04:36):
Yeah, he will say. I agree with you from what
I've seen and what little I know, I don't like
his dad at all. Christ he is showing he can coach.
As Gaz mentioned about why he is set up, Yeah,
he threw a name in the gas O'Brien gas O'Brien's
had a stellar career without getting the plowed it's.

Speaker 1 (04:54):
I don't think that we had We had him for
ten weeks. I thought let us he was a good player.

Speaker 3 (05:01):
Time he played for those, he went off on a stretcher.
Can't take the it's and then now he's.

Speaker 5 (05:07):
But the And I think you're right about Lachlan Lamb
as well. Can't standing but what a play. But I
just think the ship I was any side of it,
you can tell that the coach has come through that
Sean Wayne school without don't as you've just said, guys,
they literally are and I think even more so than

(05:28):
Leeds Okay are or wigging is. They are probably the
only team in Super League that I literally plug and play,
take a player out, put a player in, because he
has got systems and formations in place there that it
doesn't matter who they put in. They could almost not
bother with having the names on the shirts because it's
like a plug and play system and it works so well.

Speaker 4 (05:49):
Despise him, don't forget now, agent Lamb. I hate him.
I don't like him as a person. He never gives
credit to opposition and when when he was at Wigan
never yeah he didn't. Yeah enough, But I don't forget
he a lot of the players that Wigan have got
now he signed them. Yeah, sure, you know what I mean.
And he's he was involved in that, that beginning of

(06:10):
Wiggans now dominance.

Speaker 5 (06:13):
But you know, and and and being good, but is
credited supposed as.

Speaker 4 (06:17):
Yeah, I've just done it. Having Really, ye's gonna be
a bit word.

Speaker 3 (06:26):
Hanley Junior grubbed himself a penalty and then got up winking.
I think he dived or something like what's you and
also said I thought Liam Moore had an absolute shocking
game that night.

Speaker 1 (06:40):
I think I think I during that game that he
was having, he was a great game for Lee.

Speaker 5 (06:48):
Liam Moore is the best refer in the game. But
he is you think back to the Wigging World Club
game when he has a bad he.

Speaker 3 (06:53):
Has and it usually is I have a Wiggins playing
or you know, when he's referring from his own area.
He leans that way. They just don't.

Speaker 1 (07:01):
Yeah, they have to be careful, but it appears that way.

Speaker 3 (07:04):
I don't think it doesn't in purpose. But he was
a nightmare that night.

Speaker 4 (07:09):
I came over to you at half time gas dinner
and you asked me a question, You said, are we
going to get nilled? And I said to you, yes,
I don't think we look like we're going to score
one bloody try.

Speaker 1 (07:19):
I don't think we would have scored.

Speaker 4 (07:21):
And yeah, and we only scored two try to try
in two minutes because they were down to twelve men.
And it's just it was so demoralizing walking off that
ground against because it was just like the whole the
whole fans even when the players came over at the
end half of the half, the fans weren't even clapping.

(07:43):
They were just stood there like looking at them, going
what the hell is going on?

Speaker 5 (07:47):
You have to minds a bit. My mind's a bit foggy.
But was that the worms the h I a was?
Was it about twenty minutes?

Speaker 4 (07:55):
Yeah, big loss for a.

Speaker 5 (07:58):
Player that doesn't play a full match as in Wormsley,
a thirty five year old. He's the only, thank God knows,
come back. We'll touch on that in a bit, but
when we're still dependent on a thirty five years old
high mileage Alex Walmsley, because when he goes off.

Speaker 3 (08:15):
With nothing at all, we struggled I think that no
warms normal Knowles nose was normal. It's a massive and
he's you know, he's in that dream team and so
he showed our only player I think.

Speaker 1 (08:26):
We also had last last time, he was out of
Player of the season without doubt and he got it.

Speaker 4 (08:32):
But but we, like we've said it many many times
this year, last tackle, we don't have a clue. We
do not have a clue. And that probably is the
reason why we've had ten different combinations and half back
this season. And like you said before about Lee, they
all knew the roles, they all knew who was running
were who was going there. Everything looks so well, it's

(08:55):
a slick well pretty much like we used to look,
you know what I mean, And now we look we
look clueless, clueless.

Speaker 5 (09:04):
And when you're listen to such a level headed bloke
as Paul Rowley, who is literally being Rugby League's favorite
son at the minute for what he's done with sulfi
But before all the termoil was Solford. You look at
how we had him playing and the iudeings they've dished out.
So how many times guys have weeping to sulfur and

(09:24):
got absolutely dry.

Speaker 3 (09:25):
Bump structured don't they snead and yeah.

Speaker 5 (09:28):
So then you see him at the side of the
pitch and it's almost like he's doing his best not
to laugh at the state winning John Wilkin doesn't care.
He just says it as it is. Will call. I mean,
obviously he knows that skypays wages. He's got no financial
affiliation with the Saints anymore. But to be fair to Wilkin,
the old Boys Brigade doesn't come into it with shit,

(09:49):
and he'll say with shi. Yeah, for Paul Rowley to
be almost bemused, I thought he handled himself so well,
but when he says it is so blatantly obvious that
the team and the coaches don't know how to use
what we've got. They don't even know what the spine
is after twenty seven rounds and when somebody is I

(10:11):
don't know, but uncontroversial if you will, as Paul Rowley
to say that, that shows how glaring it is.

Speaker 1 (10:17):
Well, I think we all know it's it's a shambles,
and to a certain extent, injuries do play a part,
but you've got a plan for that and everybody's got
to be on the same page as to what you
do and how you do it.

Speaker 3 (10:30):
We've got to be like to win, we're gonna have
to be. We might have it Friday, but we're going
to have to have everybody. You know, we go to
I thought we had a chance to go to Lee,
but I didn't once I found out Morgan wasn't playing.
And it's like we've got to have every single one.
We haven't got anything that comes in is nowhere near
as good.

Speaker 5 (10:47):
So we've got to have them all.

Speaker 3 (10:49):
We need Warmsley, Friday, we need, we need Nols, we
need them all. If we've got them all, we've got
a chance. But a couple of injuries for us. You
I saw him on the team sheet and notice she
knew in bolds great also right down that side. No
we didn't, but.

Speaker 5 (11:03):
Think we scored as wells Like we mentioned about we
being a plug and play, whereas we're like anything good
that we've had. I mean, in fact, we'll come to it.
For the Castleford match. There was a guy who we
played in the Castleford match. The Buys not had a
goal before. Now this season it's almost like the state

(11:24):
of our squad and like you say, with the tactics
we used, but it only takes so we've absolutely no
other option to try something different.

Speaker 1 (11:32):
We'll come to that. We'll move on because that game
was a our game was a shocker, to be blunt,
but you've got to go to a better one. I'm
going I'm going to win. Just Saints twenty six, cast
Castle Tiger twenty four. The facts. Benison tried some Benison
felt to James Bell, No Stevens, three goals from Carl

(11:56):
Felt against a tat trick for younger Tate on the
wing for Castle, the Tigers, Wood and Horn and a
couple of goals from Hay again. If he kicked his goal,
he would have lost. Shane Wright Shane Right, man of
the match on his debut. Interesting, interesting position. There, just

(12:17):
a disappointing quiet night for me. Nothing seats, empty seats
all around, nobody particularly interested. A couple of points and
No Stevens was back, thank god, looking looking really good.
A couple of debuts for Jake Davis and Leon Cowen Leon.

Speaker 4 (12:37):
And a lot of changes, but just Jimmine Cohen's real
debut because his last one didn't count ninety seconds. That
was an absolutely fast and do you know what he
looked He looked. He looked like a unit as well.
When you come on and Davis heard of them.

Speaker 5 (12:53):
Big lads in that roberts and Dad in all kind
of way the unit.

Speaker 1 (12:58):
We can come to that we'll do with this point
that you're bringing up before. Now, these lads, however good
they are, would not have got in without injuries. And
it's a happy accident.

Speaker 5 (13:12):
And obviously Noah was desperately unlucky with that thumb injury.
But I think he's come back looking lean and fit terrific.
But Cowen, dag No, Robertson Whitby, to a degree, all
these all these have only come in because of injuries.
And it makes you think that would they have been

(13:32):
the next Johnny Vaughan and Samboo going off to elsewhere
if we hadn't have had the injuries? If you because that,
Let's make no mistake, that's the only reason these kids
were in the team. It wasn't like they thought, right, well,
we've we've got to start running some fresh players. And
from that Castleford match, that utter piss take of a

(13:53):
situation that wise George Whitby not playing because he's not
good enough game time, well, no ship at Sherlock. Why
is he not going okay? Before this run of we'gging
okay r Lee. Before that we had five matches. We
had Wakefield in it, but it was Castleford, others Field.
It was it was suffered and George Whitby was fit

(14:15):
and he didn't play.

Speaker 4 (14:16):
It can't change a winning team. But that's what that's
what comes out, isn't it. It's like we can't change
a winning team against bottom bottom sides.

Speaker 5 (14:25):
Yes, and it's just like so then dad and went
went on the way to the game on Friday. Gas
has picked me up and on the way down there
in the car and we're talking about what we want
from this game on Friday, and I said that, right,
forget the results. Let's just have an evening's entertainment. Let's
just throw the ball around, let's just attack, and let's

(14:48):
just if it ends up forty two thirty, then so
be happy day. But let's be entertained.

Speaker 1 (14:55):
And what do we do?

Speaker 5 (14:57):
Five drives and I lobbed to the corner.

Speaker 1 (15:00):
Are you taking the piss?

Speaker 5 (15:01):
And then next minute you're gonna be one to five
hundred pound off me, six hundred pounds off me for
some more season tickets? Do me a favorite saint? Do
you know what I mean, it's abysmal.

Speaker 1 (15:11):
What's well it was? It was a disappointing game because
we started and then ten minutes later it was ten
six down, and then then we were twenty We pull
our finger out a little bit, get up twenty six
to ten up with again spectacular playoff to say, and
then we damn near lost the game at the end.

Speaker 3 (15:29):
Whether the Murphy fiasco for fifteen minutes no, unbelievable, unbelievable
And when he was on and he was absolutely awful.
Both tries he was no work. They went both down
his side. He was miles out of place. Oh, it
was terrible one that we made.

Speaker 1 (15:45):
We made wood.

Speaker 3 (15:46):
It was a bang average center at world class and
the kid take scores two tries and Murphy it was
no work, like he's never played the game. And then
next thing is bloody orf injured again the.

Speaker 5 (16:00):
Thing gay just to digress a little bit while it's
in the head. Also right in front of us, if
it wasn't for Senior twinging his armstring that he was
going lent to the field because he was clear, because
we said, how is it no, because we because we've
been big fans, there is Stephens and we said well,
how how's he got caught? But he did his It

(16:23):
wasn't the Stephens was I think he was.

Speaker 1 (16:27):
Yeah, there was another yea, then a couple of breaks.

Speaker 5 (16:28):
So he's gone and he's clean through and but for
his armstring going in and stopping it' had been clear
under the sticks. It was incredible what we were seeing.

Speaker 3 (16:38):
No, you're right on the on the positives bell. I
thought Bell played well.

Speaker 5 (16:44):
Yeah, pleased about that, Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Speaker 1 (16:47):
But I thought James was a good player.

Speaker 3 (16:48):
I thought, but but Bell played made a difference and
I thought Bell played well.

Speaker 4 (16:53):
It's a shame a thirteen next year.

Speaker 3 (16:55):
Yeah, yeah, I know, yeah, I thought on the subject
fell to our had a bit of a downer on
But he doesn't know where it line is and if
that balls in the air, he takes it. He's saying to.

Speaker 1 (17:06):
Twenty tries. Yeah he has fourteen fifteen games.

Speaker 3 (17:09):
Yeahs and yeah that's undeniable.

Speaker 1 (17:13):
Again again with our wingers, they don't get half the opportunity. No,
they don't wingers and other teams get.

Speaker 5 (17:19):
I don't think we've seen all season. In fact, it's
not I don't think we haven't seeing Kyle Felt have
a clear run. No, more than fifteen outs, which says
to you how poor our attacking formations are. We've not
had the chance to see him spread his legs. I
don't mean a cheap Manchester attacked.

Speaker 1 (17:40):
I don't know what's going on, but I refuse to
believe that Libre has got anything to do with our attack.

Speaker 4 (17:45):
Well no, libreer Is was at Warrington. Their attack when
he was at Warrington fantastic, look fantastic. When he went
to Wigan, he turned their attack around. He went to Brisbane,
he turned their attack around. We're all getting excited libra
Is are going to turn our attack around. He's not
done much. We've we've seen glimpses, but he's not done much.

(18:08):
Our defense started off like an house on fire, and
then that's gone backwards. So it's like, well, it starts
making a question, Well, what what's what's the what's the
facts are here? Are they getting overridden by somebody maybe
the head coach who knows? I don't know because I'm
not there, But I said before we came on he

(18:29):
I wish Castleford would have beat us because.

Speaker 5 (18:34):
It shows it shows, it.

Speaker 4 (18:38):
Shows what level we're at when we're winning at home
to Castleford in a nothing game by two points. When
you said before Ady, I was hoping that we were
going to see Saints throw the ball around. Let's see
what we've not seen for the majority of the season.
Let's see George Whitby on the field. Let's see all
these youngsters coming on and going right. First team. We

(19:01):
want to take your place. But it doesn't happen because
you've still got m bomb and you've still got all
these other players playing, and they're doing the same stuff
over and over again. It's boring.

Speaker 1 (19:12):
And ironically, the same night, George Whitby is absolutely ripping
it up Halifax.

Speaker 4 (19:19):
Yeah, absolutely ripping it up.

Speaker 3 (19:21):
In another one as well. So he doesn't pick Whitby
and he gives that reasoning that he gave for that. Yeah,
he picks Ben All who's leaving, and it was a
nice Will Roberts and Will Roberts who's leaving is the
eighteenth man on another subject, and that was nice to see.
Bennison Simon made it, gives it. He can't knock him,

(19:42):
but he's inconsistencies and you can't say I'm not playing
with because he's not had enough game time. And from
witness who's leaving and puts him.

Speaker 4 (19:50):
In Nothing nothing makes sense. Nothing, nothing makes sense.

Speaker 5 (19:54):
What I was just saying before we came on after
the older Halifax game when Whitby's got man of the
match by a country mile. It was like a masterclass
of attacking, kicking an organization, cajoling players into positions. But
the comms team were Ian Smith, the X referee, and

(20:14):
I forget the other guy's name, and they were an
interviewing George Whitby on the pitch after the match. And
when they've asked Whitby about his season and he spoke
about how frustrating the season's being, the comment that came
back to him was he seemed to be really enjoying
things every time he worked with Kyle Eastman. And his
comment was, yea, well it's just nice for the team

(20:37):
not to be bored with the tactics.

Speaker 4 (20:39):
Wow, I mean, well might drop.

Speaker 1 (20:47):
Well, I mean I'm sure that that one was rattling
through the rattling through the corridors. They're totally wicked, wasn't it.
And he might he might be pulled in on to
see the media manager on noise Well possibly possibly, But.

Speaker 4 (21:01):
You know the point there with the Saints and Castle
a game, and any game that you go and watch
I don't believe is a nothing game. No, because you
go in supporting your team, you're going watching what you
want to watch, your paid, you paid for nothing game.
It's you want to go and see the team perform,

(21:22):
and you want to go and see him perform. Well,
now the past four weeks we've not seen any of
that because they've been absolute diabolical, apart from twenty minutes
where we all got excited because we scored that one
try and that that's good, we look good, but we
still didn't capsulize on it.

Speaker 3 (21:42):
First game, well yeah, until inevitable one. I think it's
inevitable at the minute they're going to turn this.

Speaker 1 (21:47):
Well, well, we all knew that. We on knew what
the score was going to be in those three games,
didn't we well predicted before the game.

Speaker 3 (21:54):
I think before then we'd had fire and we all knew.

Speaker 1 (21:58):
That the time we play it wig and okay, lead,
we're going to revert to type. I don't know exactly
what's going to happen.

Speaker 5 (22:05):
And I think that because the teams were supposed to beat,
we do beat, but we beat them playing the same
way as we play against the teams that we're not
supposed to beat, who we don't beat because it's good
enough to beat the teams below us. But now another

(22:26):
concerning thing is that I genuinely believe, even though they're
very inconsistent, that Leads are better than us as well,
because when the Leads play well, I didn't Leads could
I could see Leeds doing that horrible Leads thing this
year because when they play well.

Speaker 1 (22:45):
Didn't they.

Speaker 3 (22:51):
We beat them three three this year.

Speaker 4 (22:52):
But I was one thing Warrington's beat us three.

Speaker 3 (22:59):
Playoffs.

Speaker 5 (23:00):
We don't. We don't do anything of it. So I
don't think Leeds are now one of these teams that
we're supposed to be. But like coming to your game,
your games against the Big three as they now are, because.

Speaker 3 (23:12):
We've not got any I mean to be fair, what
is it about Leeds that's changed? And it's not the players?
Brad Arthur absolutely And it's like we've all said and
Willie Peters Well, always only trying to do things as
we did under Christian Wolf.

Speaker 5 (23:30):
Because under Christian Wolf it was ship boarding to watch.
It's just that the players were younger, it was better
and it was successful. Now the squad's got eye mild Johnny.
And if Christian Wolf had a little thing or two
to tinkle with and tweak, he had the ability and
the skill set to do so left.

Speaker 1 (23:49):
He left at the right time. That the thing about course,
the thing about wolf ball is you've got to win,
because if you don't win playing that way, it's pretty.

Speaker 5 (23:57):
What we've got now.

Speaker 4 (23:58):
But even with Wolf, we looked like we knew what
we were doing. I never went to a game when
I was watching Wolf and thought what we're going to
do tonight? Because I said, you what all season this year,
I'm like, what am I going to watch tonight? And
do you know I never thought that were Wolf because
you sort of knew what you were going to get.
You knew it was being but you know what, it

(24:19):
was dogged as well. We we never looked like we
were outpowered by anyone. We would stand up to like
the lights of Leak. If Wolf was still then we
were playing Lee away. We'd give them as hard as
as they edit us.

Speaker 5 (24:30):
Well, do you know what why I had a bit
of a disagreement as Gas. I'll tell you on one
of our WhatsApp groups, the Kyle Felt Dive the other week. Yeah, now,
when he got shot. When he got shot. Now I'm thinking,
when you ship, if you've got, if you've got Christian
Wolf sat on the sideline, are you going to be

(24:52):
stupid enough to try and do that. I know, if
I've if I've got, if I've got, if I've got
a that I'm either afraid of not but have respect for.
I'm not going to mean five yards from your line.
I'm not gonna pull a stunt like that, do you
know what I mean? And again it's this leadership quality Wolf.

Speaker 4 (25:15):
I'm going to go back to last season and it's
accepting or acceptance of things within the team. When you've
got whack of Blake in the seam and he's playing
absolute dog. Everybody in the stadium can see he's playing
absolute dog, and he gets picked week on week on
week on week on week. And you've got young kids

(25:38):
there in the background who would die like Harry Robertson,
like Dagno probably at the time. You've got kids crying
out for an opportunity to show what they can do
for the hometown club. And we still pick the dog
as whack a Blake who can't score a try when
he's got twenty meters to go at two meters out

(25:59):
and that that's accepting of standards. So as a coach,
he's accepting that as acceptable, so he goes to the
whole team, I'm accepting that were I'm sorry, mister Wellens,
but that is not acceptable. It's not acceptable that a
club as Saints standard. And when you do that with one,

(26:20):
you do it with another. And it's happened time and
time and time again where we've picked the same drab players.
And if it wasn't for fan pressure this year and
Johnny Lomax when he wasn't playing at his best, and
you know what, I love Johnny Romax, He's a cracking player,
but earlier on in the season he wasn't doing it
and that was the right time to bring in George Whitby.

(26:42):
But the fact that we had to wait until the
Wakefield game because that's when they had it scheduled in
that George Whitby was going to play. What a load
of rubbish. If you're not playing well enough and you're
in that first team squad, get out, mister whitbych your
chance shows what you can.

Speaker 1 (26:57):
Do this level. You've got to pick You've got to
be in fun you've really got to.

Speaker 4 (27:02):
But that's what we've become. We've become accepting as a club.
We've become accepting of lower standards. And as soon as
you do that, you might as well give up. You
get overtaken by you might as well get it. You
may as well give up because other clubs will go
I'm sorry, you're not playing well. You sit on the
side another another, another guy have a chance.

Speaker 1 (27:22):
Well, let's move on to looking at I mean, the
season finished now, but let's look back a little bit
and I've seasons not for the regular season is finished.

Speaker 3 (27:32):
I know that. I know they're still coming on.

Speaker 1 (27:36):
Jimmy crickets. Crickets sat on the shoulder.

Speaker 5 (27:40):
I love it.

Speaker 3 (27:41):
Well, we'll never right off the scenes.

Speaker 4 (27:45):
They can just say the flag's gone from the stadium.
So if you off someone, someone's off you. Mass we
forget that.

Speaker 1 (27:53):
At the end of the regular season. Let's let's just
have a little think about what what. Let's try and
find some positives and I'll come to you first on
it's has. Then let's let each of us can think
of something good in the season, and there's something bad.
That would be the easy bit. I've got one or
two things that I think I've been really good this season.
But watched your highlights of the season.

Speaker 3 (28:12):
I highlighted the emergence of Dagnol and the team. He
came into the team, as they all do because they
run out of players, but right from game one you
look the real deal and some of that one he's
got the try of the season for us that was ridiculous,
that where we kicked it around to the corner. But

(28:32):
there's but there's other highlight tries in his first seat,
the one where he started on the left and sidewinded
his way to the try line and scored. And he
in Dagnoll there, We've got a proper super league player
for the next decade if we if we look after
low lights, has got to be the way that we playing.

(28:54):
The fact that on nine last tackles out of ten
and by puts an awful bomb up and we've continued
to do that, and it's draining. And when we used
to watch it with the orfhage, now you don't see
I the your farge do that for Catalan.

Speaker 1 (29:09):
He has a bit of variety, doesn't He has a
bit of variety.

Speaker 3 (29:11):
But but but and as I say, I'm probably not
going to blame him by, but by last time, m
By shouldn't even be playing. He should not be playing.
He should be on the bench as a utility sub.
But so low light for me is our last tackle option,
which has been inverdiably crack bomb after crack bomb, or

(29:34):
they're not even good bombs, you know. We the only
good bombs we had was when George Whitby put them
up on his fleeting appearances. You watch other team Daddy
Smith puts absolutely shocking bombs up. You have really hard
to take. We put dollies up like a daddy due
to his lad on the park. Well, that's that's a
low light for shooting.

Speaker 1 (29:53):
My downside is kind of fixing for the style player.
It goes to an abysmal kicking game. I mean I
often watch watch us kicking for touch and I think, God,
I could kick that further and it's gone like five yards.
And you're playing teams that were the likes of Sneed
and Harry Smith. They were kicking it forty yards.

Speaker 5 (30:11):
That's another thing when you go back to that older
Malefacs game with Whitby when he was and I remember
as much as he wasn't successful when Lee Radford was
coaching up and he had Mark Snead, And remember watching
an interview with Mark Snead and he said that Lee
Radford always said to him, when you're kicking for touch,
go for as much distance if you can. He said,
if two or three times out of ten you don't

(30:32):
find touch, I'm not bothered because the seven or eight
times you do find to fifty yards. And when you
say about the bombs, and you see what fire is
done and bomb and you see and you see what
Whipby's doing there. I don't know who it was who
said it to a long time ago that those kicks

(30:54):
a coach, that's the coaches tactics to do that type
of kick. These players are capable and.

Speaker 1 (30:59):
Much more as much more.

Speaker 5 (31:01):
There was a lot lightly Instagram's low light that. Yeah.

Speaker 3 (31:04):
And the reasoning is and Andy was saying, he sits
in front of us. He was trying to justify it.
He said, ye, he's kicks. What it is is the
land just in time for the players to get them.
So they've got to start from the goal line. And
you're like, what about was actually trying to score? Is
that no longer he's scoring to try, No, longer an objective. Yeah,
it's now the objective is so that we don't want

(31:24):
to score, just make them start from their own line.
It's just beyond belief. It's unacceptable.

Speaker 1 (31:32):
Darn't know you are you thinking of anything good?

Speaker 4 (31:35):
Something first high or low?

Speaker 1 (31:37):
I give something good.

Speaker 4 (31:38):
We call that the heart right, So I'm going to
stick with gazes theme here on the on the high
or something good from the season is the emergence of
the young stars. So do you know what talking about
Whitby the I love when when he's played. That's certainly
a highlight. And then the emergence of Dagnol another highlight.
And you know, Harry Robertson, I know he's had his injuries,

(32:00):
and you've got Wellsby. We've got a lot of good
kids in the squad.

Speaker 5 (32:04):
We've got a goal kicker.

Speaker 4 (32:05):
We've got a goalkicker as well. So you know, the
future looks bright from a player's point of view because
we've got I think we've got a team there that's
emerging in in you know, sort of like one six
seven and you wing, we've got a lot of good
kids and certainly the prop forward I got to throw.

Speaker 1 (32:24):
This in here now was a bit of a downer
on that though. Are these players the likes of Roberts
and Dagnore Whitby, Stevens co Stevens Cowen Burns so lesser extent?
Are they going to be able to play how we
know they can under our system or are they going
to have to be told to play.

Speaker 3 (32:47):
Change the system.

Speaker 4 (32:48):
They'll probably be told to play to a system. But
I'm not going to use that as my low light
because I feel this season and it's the first time
I felt in a long long time being a Saints fan.
My lowlight is the disconnect between the club and the fans,

(33:08):
and as we sit here now, it's still going on
that we do not know who were signing for next season,
we do not know who our coach is going to be,
and that for me is a low light, which was
highlighted in the game against Leeds at the Magic Weekend
when we had fans screaming at the players. And that
all comes from frustration from the fans because they do

(33:31):
not have a Scooby doo what the hell is going on?
And that happened in bloody May and we're still at
this point now.

Speaker 1 (33:38):
Well, all that all that we do know is that
poor Weller's contract is up. We've got assistant coaches longer
contracts than the head coach, which is a bizarre situation.
And we've got no inclination except that the chairman has
been quoted as saying that's right in the earlier part
of the season, that next season we will be spending

(33:59):
up to the cap. Now if we we've lost my
by my calculation, twelve players and eight of them are
first team as in in my we've got a lot
of money to spend apparently in theory, but we've got
no inkling as to what's happening. And I think it's
again we're going to end up with another whack of
blake situation. But look at look, yeah, you know, look

(34:21):
seeing what's available in the bargain being unless there's been
some brilliant work.

Speaker 4 (34:25):
And I hope that, I really hope, and I really
hope we're all sady and we're all wrong, because I
really hope the club I've been working out behind the scenes.
But tell the bloody fans, Tell the fans, because I
tell you what, if you're a whole le f C fan,
now you get excited, you're excited about next season, because
you know exactly who's coming in there and now I'm

(34:45):
staying gone. This is who were bringing in and all
fans are going great, more than happy to bring the
biggest humble pie and absolutely.

Speaker 5 (34:52):
Okay, okay, I look at how long all the announced
tom and own thing exactly.

Speaker 4 (34:57):
But but we've we've got nothing. We're playing absolute dog
on the field. Off the field, the club are not
saying anything. You know, we're getting told we're outside noise.
It's it's just like the whole season, the whole season
rolling on it before, frustration.

Speaker 1 (35:13):
Outside noise. We've only become outside noise after two and
a half years. Are watching this and I think every
fan is entitled to be outside. That's a great point
because I think you've had two solid years of support,
a little bit of a little bit here and there,
but the last twelve months have been the last distinct.
It's been pretty dross really.

Speaker 4 (35:31):
But we're all Saints until we die, and we're all
absolute avid Saints fans and you know we always will
be not the best. But the problem is we can
you can accept as a fan we're not going to
win every year. Got that because we've had four bloody
good years of us winning, winning, winning, winning, and everybody
knows at some point that's going to come to an end. Granted,

(35:53):
we're going to have a turnover players, Granted, we're going
to have a turnover of you know, staff at the club,
one of us going on behind the scenes, granted, but
just communicate with the fans. Just communicate so we've all
got that hope, because if you've got no hope, you
might as well freaking give up.

Speaker 1 (36:09):
Well, we've said all seasons the Saints pr slash media
has been dog as dog as the playing some of
the matches, and that's the easiest way of keeping the
fans on side, and it really keep fans informed as
to what's happening, and it just doesn't. Other clubs are
way ahead of us on that field, as far as

(36:29):
I can see.

Speaker 3 (36:31):
Way ahead and has done so many different areas. Even
when I went to Lee Away they've got a fur
ground outside and stores and food. Let me see at Salford,
Lee's the same now here probably the biggest outside area
of any ground not used.

Speaker 5 (36:48):
And the safest for youngsters families walking from Marshall's cross
Road all the way up to the Bloody link Way
if you will, it's I figured he's not going to
move on yet.

Speaker 3 (37:02):
I won't give my eyes and oh yeah, we're coming up.
There's just one more on that one moving on to
on the od occasion. On the odd occasion, we invite
j J down. There's a q a mile longer and
he's a nice cream. What we could do if tree
you miss tell you what we got.

Speaker 4 (37:23):
It's either on the parks outside Cunningham statue, no, no,
no of what passed and send the queue said.

Speaker 3 (37:29):
No, we invite an hed cream man down mile long
down to actually made an.

Speaker 1 (37:34):
Effort that an indicator what might actually no, actulutely.

Speaker 3 (37:39):
Maybe put a spot man next?

Speaker 5 (37:41):
You know you know what I.

Speaker 4 (37:43):
Actually, I did actually queue up for j J's ice cream,
but the queue was back to Maci's. I turned around
and ordered the drive.

Speaker 3 (37:52):
That shows there's a bit of an appetite for you know,
a bit of outside active.

Speaker 4 (37:55):
It's all right, just face cream.

Speaker 3 (37:58):
He is good to be for eadies.

Speaker 1 (38:00):
You're watching with the ages watching intensey this year, give
us your highs and lows asy.

Speaker 5 (38:07):
The youngsters. I agree with these two, but very similar
to what Dazas said. But my high and I'm going
to go to Magic Weekend, and I'm going to go
to of a personal opinion, the emergence of Jack Wellsby

(38:28):
as an absolute leader of that squad in the way
that he had the guts and the balls to come
out and defend his teammates, not from the way they played,
but from the vitriol of some supporters. That's up guts
that did. And if you're a player and you've got

(38:48):
a leader like that, I think he should be the
captain of the team. I've thought it for a couple
of years. But if you're a player and you've got
a guy that will come out and stand in front
of the national presser after the game like that and
have your back like again, I go back again to
that forum with Dad now and Robertson talking and Wellesby

(39:11):
was there, and the way that you can see they
just cling on every word Jack Wellsby says, and they
treated they spoke of Johnny Lomax's almost a bit of
a and like a bit of a comedy act, if
you will, like a mad professor, like a nerd.

Speaker 1 (39:25):
Like a nerd of the gain. I think the problem
with Johnny is he's not playing well enough to be captain.

Speaker 5 (39:30):
But when you've got a man like Wellesby and he
and it's not the only time he's done it. He
did it again to a lesser degree more recently, but
to come out after that Magic Weekend and then for
a week or two and you'd see it on social media.
Some of the fans saw that. I asked with him
in this part of the dummy out with him, and

(39:50):
he kept himself. He's not going round a poarding the fans. Yeah, well,
he's just witnessed and HEARDing this. And then we had
a game and he scored under the sticks and he
went to the west and it was influence to the
west and the arms went up and the West fan
loves him and it was like it was all kisses
and made up. But in that moment, I thought, yeah,
Jack Wellesby's put his arse on the line.

Speaker 1 (40:12):
He's grown up and I think as.

Speaker 5 (40:14):
Desperate as Magic Weekend was, I think.

Speaker 1 (40:16):
I'd make him captain because he is definitely one that's
always going to be in the team.

Speaker 5 (40:20):
Yeah, he's always going to be in the team. And
I know he's since he's come back from this injury.
Let's not forget he shouldn't have been back by now
he wasn't scheduled to be back until next week. That
for me, if I'm a player and I've got a
guy like that, if I'm a player, I'm not listening
to Johnny Lomax because I couldn't be asked with him.
For me, If I mean, if I've got low Max
and Wellsby in my team, I'm following Wellsby and I'm

(40:44):
going with Jack every single time. Johnny can do well,
he's had his time and he's over complicating issues.

Speaker 3 (40:49):
Well he should get next year. He should get it
because Morgan's gone.

Speaker 5 (40:52):
Yeah, so.

Speaker 3 (40:55):
Johnny, Johnny should not will probably not even be at
the club, but he should definitely not get the seven shows.

Speaker 4 (41:03):
Johnny should be like when Rob Burrow at Leeds at
his time, he went to fourteen and he sat on
the bench for a bit and came on. Johnny should
be that player, especially because bye bye and By is
going your mate.

Speaker 5 (41:15):
Yeah, I mean, like you said, we've got all world,
but just I'm be lowlight is I'm again like in
Dadden's footsteps. Here, the disconnect, the outside noise comments, the
you know, the leaders at our club can't wait to

(41:36):
you know if they do something good. They want all
the players crawled in front of the fans, and they
want this, that and the other, and they want our money.
And yet as soon as it starts going tits up
and opinions get voiced, which went entight And like you
made a belting point, grame, we waited two years. It
took two years for all this discontent to really read
its head. But they pulled that drawbridge up and that disconnected.

(41:59):
Find so disappointed after the work that just in all
books started successfully to put in place to almost make
the town and the supporters and the community and the
club as one again. And I feel now that that's
been totally destroyed.

Speaker 1 (42:15):
Definitely a reboot, Yeah, it really does.

Speaker 5 (42:17):
And they, like you said, the the playing style as
you said for all that, I agree with all that,
but I think the biggest and in the outside noise,
I'll put in with what Dads said about the lack
of communication, the cynical or not. I am convinced that
they were waiting till the season ticket renewal deadline, the

(42:40):
early bird thing. I'm all going there, and then after that,
if there's not going to be a coaching change, they
will announce it. After all those mugs have gone on
renew our season tickets. If there's going to be a
coaching change, then I hope that it's within a day
or two of whatever our final match. I don't say

(43:03):
we've got gassy so within a day or two was
winning the final? I mean, but if we win the
Grand Final, we're not going to change the coach, shall we?

Speaker 1 (43:11):
No?

Speaker 3 (43:12):
I'll check that though.

Speaker 5 (43:15):
Winning the just winning the Grand Final and a new
five year deal for no, no, no, Just.

Speaker 4 (43:21):
To point then on, like you know, we're on about
the club again, and there's there's been numerous times this
season where you know, we've been we've been waiting for
some hope or something from the club. And I go
back to the Challenge Cup Final and the Saints release
of video. I think it was on the Challenge Cup
final day. All the players this week have been training

(43:42):
in Church Church Square outside the church, and it showed
a video over all passing the ball around intervention and
You're thinking, I'm going a minute, we bloody we we
should be in the Challenge Cup final and the bloody
on Church squad like passing the ball and I know
that's all about like Saints community getting involved and all
that lot, but pick a bloody different weekend. And then

(44:04):
and then you've got the this this last weekend, you've
got the tickets fit fiasco where the turnstiles go down,
and you know that the day before your season ticket expires.
So when everyone's got these eye tickets or whatever they
called on the phone, you need dry ticket. We're not

(44:25):
printing tickets because it needs to be any phone. Okay,
we'll have it on our phone. Oh, by the way,
you can't get in the last game of the season
because your season tickets expired. So you know that was
a whole fiasco. And then the other one the other
week when when we're all there, it was yours back
on now and you got it back on.

Speaker 5 (44:41):
The thing.

Speaker 4 (44:43):
The player with the Year thing is like you get
an email from the club, right, vote for your player
of the Year, but it's already expired. So straight away
I'm thinking, well, that's pointless. And then you're thinking, right,
we're you now I'm signing news. And then the next
minute they released this video and it's Moses em Bar

(45:04):
who's going next season, and I think it's Matty Lee's
or something talking about and designing shirts for next year.
With on it, and I'm thinking, what the freaking hell's
going on? Are you and couple with that gaz never
right off? The Saints flag has been tucked down from
behind the west hand, so what the body ELL's going on?

Speaker 5 (45:27):
They've written us off? Throw another little grumbling here, which
a lot might laugh at.

Speaker 1 (45:33):
It wasn't me planned for this section of the show.

Speaker 5 (45:36):
The follow the girls team, and since the inception of
the girls team, our club has exploited it beyond compare.
At one point they wouldn't even give them a playing kit.
They were wording the hand me downs from the men's team.
And yet they want trophy after trophy after trophy, and
the club couldn't wait to wheel them out in front

(45:58):
of the cameras. So anyway, they have the big semi
final this weekend, and this girl's team is pretty much
not far off where the men's team is, as in
a squad that needs updating. There's a lot of them
have got I'm iding them now, but you see the
two semi finals this weekend, so Saints and Wigging. In
the grand final, you see the TV cameras at Wigging

(46:19):
and Matty Peach all the player and the first team
blokes have took the families and the kids and everybody's there.
The girls team I have yet to see or anybody
who saw any representative from the.

Speaker 4 (46:34):
Men's was actually in the.

Speaker 5 (46:39):
In the box where well and and you think to yourself,
well this this is a prime opportunity to bring the
club as one. So it's like there's a disconnect within
the club. It's almost like two clubs within one club,
if that makes sense. It's such a shame because it wasn't.

Speaker 1 (46:54):
Like the thought they thought as well. They did well
to get through to the It was.

Speaker 5 (46:58):
A brilliant game, but I was a club, I mean
the club and to refer to make rush. They work
so hard when you think of Wholebrook into Christian Wolf
era and the rebuild from what Kardom was stitched up with.

Speaker 1 (47:13):
And now look where we are, well I think I think,
I think the pr side of the club's gone down
the neck. But we are where we are.

Speaker 3 (47:21):
So that highlight, law light, there was a bit of
a the law light.

Speaker 1 (47:25):
Unfortunately, let's let's cheer ourselves up. We've got an eliminature.
On Saturday night away to Leeds where we have a
decent record. Friday night and Saturday Saturday, Saturday.

Speaker 5 (47:35):
Seven o'clock Saturday.

Speaker 4 (47:39):
Now we can't go you've watch.

Speaker 5 (47:43):
Eight o'clock kickoffs.

Speaker 3 (47:45):
I won't even see it. I'm going to a comedy
night in Liverpool. Sure it was Friday night.

Speaker 4 (47:54):
Get a refund on them them tickets, mate, you're.

Speaker 3 (47:56):
Joking and watching great comedy nights. You can watch it?

Speaker 4 (48:00):
And which which comedy you can watch them?

Speaker 3 (48:03):
Comment and eight on Sky and at the one in Liverpool.

Speaker 1 (48:06):
All right, well let's let's let's try and not be
quite so cynical about the lads that's with a full
team and with a full full squad back. I don't think.
I don't think they're not like you.

Speaker 3 (48:16):
Yours will be funnier.

Speaker 1 (48:18):
Lewis Murphy's obviously out. I think I think he's gone
for the season.

Speaker 5 (48:21):
Obviously touching on comedy, the comments about that.

Speaker 3 (48:28):
He's a wingle tribute.

Speaker 5 (48:32):
Knew that he wasn't fully recovered, and they knew it
was probable that it would go again.

Speaker 3 (48:41):
In a nothing game against cass What did the plaim
in that for?

Speaker 1 (48:44):
That's just madness? Okay, can we win? Can we win
this game?

Speaker 5 (48:49):
Yes?

Speaker 1 (48:49):
We can win it?

Speaker 3 (48:52):
Tell you why go on team?

Speaker 1 (48:54):
Yeah?

Speaker 3 (48:55):
It will be probably one of the strongest. So we're
gonna bring in We're gonna i'd have Jacket full back.
The other guy cannot defend. He can't even catch a bomb.
He lets bombs bounce and hops for the best. And
then then then you've got Felt Percival all right, to
put it back in Felt Perceval, Robbo and Cross which

(49:16):
is cold. We got Warmsley Clark. Lee's said, oh, Whitley
Morgan really really good bench Delaney, Bell, Stevens, you know
what I mean, Burns maybe or Passy one of them too.
So I think we're going with and six and seven.

(49:37):
I'm guessing he's probably going to be Johnny and him By.
But by what he's gonna do, he's gonna put Sailor
full back, and he's gonna put Jack at six. But
he shouldn't, but he will.

Speaker 1 (49:45):
You're saying sales should be dropped, Sailor should be dropped.

Speaker 3 (49:48):
Yeah, playing no playing in the arts. But he can't
be full back because I've got to keep turning on
this because he's only way of its, only way of
going into the offence is if his full back. He's
good going, but defensively is beyond incompetence. He can't even
catch a ball, and we can't say that he's been absent.

(50:11):
Every single ball he lets it bounce. He's not dropping
it because the bloody ball's bouncing twice. What he doesn't
even try to catch him your.

Speaker 1 (50:20):
Dog or something, because going going forward, he's not dropping
it because he can't drop it if you don't try
and catch it.

Speaker 3 (50:29):
He lets it bloody bounce. I've never seen it, liking
my life, his staff, he's a fullback. He lets the
ball bounce from the bomb. It's a crime. It's a
bloody crime. He shouldn't be playing in jail. It's a crime.

Speaker 5 (50:44):
Anyway.

Speaker 1 (50:46):
He don't. He does have to face good kickers, not.

Speaker 3 (50:52):
Anyway, so it's okay. It just can't defend like that.
And then as a last man again he's a non event.
My mam would be put more of an effort in.
So I just don't think we can play him at
full back because if he's totally non defense does have
a bloody wheeling he doesn't know. So I think if

(51:12):
he plays, he's got to play at six or seven, okay,
and I probably would do that, but.

Speaker 1 (51:19):
No chance, because's go can we win back to the
initial stage.

Speaker 3 (51:23):
Yes we can because we'll be attrition them to death
and bore them to death and win three nil.

Speaker 5 (51:29):
We can win that. Absolutely nothing to do with what
Gaz said. We can win that because Leeds can be
shipped one minute and will beat us the next.

Speaker 3 (51:39):
Yeah, we don't what's coming.

Speaker 1 (51:40):
What happens if the will beats turn up?

Speaker 5 (51:44):
So is that?

Speaker 4 (51:45):
Is that a penalty kick and a drop goal to
seal it on like the seventeen ninth minute. Yeah, something
like that penalty and by and a drop leaving press.
And do you know what, Taylor, I disagree with you
in some respects. I get Wellsby as our best fallback

(52:07):
and Wellesby should be at one. But for me, in attack,
Sailor is our biggest threat and he makes he makes
that half break when he gets the ball.

Speaker 1 (52:18):
He's always getting through the line.

Speaker 4 (52:20):
He's always just niggling there and it's as if he's
going to push and the only.

Speaker 5 (52:24):
One that will attack the line.

Speaker 4 (52:25):
And I've said it hunteen times a season. Sailor reminds me.
I'm not saying here's this quality, but he reminds me
of Bevern French when Bevern French came to Wigan. He
went on the wing, he went at center, he went
at six, he went at fallback, he went, he went,
he went all over, he was all over the place.
Two years.

Speaker 3 (52:44):
He has nowhere near the pace of Bevan and he
might he might not need the pace.

Speaker 4 (52:50):
But what I'm saying is I think Sailor looks as
well as like Harry, Robbo and Wellesby. When he's coming
into the line. He looks threatening, and I'd buy a
seat next to the Morning. We've been crying out, we've
been crying out for our attack to be better. There's

(53:10):
no point having someone like m buy over Sailor, do
you know what I mean? So you've got to put
Sailor in there because he looks more threatening.

Speaker 3 (53:18):
Jacket one, Jack's not really gone well at six No, no, no,
Jacket one and Sailor next to Johnny, but he won't
do it.

Speaker 4 (53:25):
Well, do you know who i'd have wit being Sailor.
Of course that's not going to happen, is it.

Speaker 1 (53:29):
Can? Can we win?

Speaker 5 (53:30):
Yes?

Speaker 1 (53:31):
Right to the mask? Are we winning?

Speaker 3 (53:35):
Yes?

Speaker 5 (53:35):
We are?

Speaker 1 (53:36):
No? No, No, I don't think so. I think we're
reverted type.

Speaker 5 (53:42):
And I think with a massive caveat of it depends
which leads turn up.

Speaker 4 (53:45):
Can I ask you another question, Can I take it
off your grame? Do we want to win? Yes?

Speaker 1 (53:54):
No?

Speaker 5 (53:55):
Do you know why?

Speaker 4 (53:57):
Because whoever we get in the next round, we're not
going to win that either, And if we go to
the Grand Final, we're not going to win that. So
at some point we're going to get humiliated.

Speaker 1 (54:05):
Point being do we don't deserve it?

Speaker 4 (54:07):
This don't deserve it. But I think we are not
good enough and we do not have the tactics to
win the Grand Final. I think, and I love your enthusiasm, gals,
but I'm being realistic.

Speaker 3 (54:17):
Oh I think when I get wigging kr and six
months Miky, Lewis and May and Addie Smith and French,
there's a chasm in terms of the difference. That's that's
where our core problem is. And he hasn't got the balls.

Speaker 5 (54:30):
The biggest the biggest, bigger issue than that for me
is if like go back to twenty fourteen, we shouldn't
finished top and we should have been No. One ear
the Grand Final and we won. The frigging thing. Bigger
issue for me is if we went even if we
went at Leeds and then losing the next round. What's
the first thing you're going to get from the club.
We think Paul Wellans has earned another contract because he's

(54:52):
got us into the semi final, he's got us to
Old Trafford and look at the state of the squad
and he's still that's because he's a great coach.

Speaker 3 (54:58):
But he's not.

Speaker 5 (55:00):
But I can't say that I don't want us, because
I always want.

Speaker 4 (55:03):
Us as a fan. Yeah, you want us to do well?

Speaker 3 (55:08):
What say this?

Speaker 4 (55:09):
What a change is needed?

Speaker 3 (55:11):
That's what I'm about to say. If us going out
is what if? If if us going out is what
we need to make the change happen, then I'll happily
go out.

Speaker 1 (55:23):
I never want us to lose, but I think we will.

Speaker 4 (55:26):
I think we will. And even if we win, and
I hope we win on Friday, and I hope we
beat leads and I hope we tough leads. So I
hate leads, I hate that away and I hate the
bloody whole city. Yeah, but we will then probably go
to KR. Are we winning away at KR?

Speaker 1 (55:46):
No?

Speaker 4 (55:47):
Probably not, not even with a full team. Not even
with a full team. And even if we scrape through,
and let's say we just scrape through against all KR
and it's a three nail drumming and tactics. But we
then go to the grand final, we're we're probably going
to be playing Wigan or Lee. Will we win that game?

(56:09):
Probably not. No, we won't be we won't be leaving, we.

Speaker 1 (56:13):
Won't we won't win a big game. While we know
we're not going to win a big game, playing like
this will stop.

Speaker 4 (56:19):
So you know, my point is, should we just all
save our money for next season for us tickets? All right?

Speaker 1 (56:28):
Well, let's are you on the scream you're you're your know,
I'm an unfortunately. I mean that's unfortunate because I always
wanted to win.

Speaker 3 (56:35):
But I don't think yes off just pure optimism and desire.
It's the hope that it's not foundation in my yes,
but but from I think we'll go with the strongest
team that's played for the last couple of months.

Speaker 5 (56:49):
But I genuinely will be hard to be for an hour.
Twice this season I have genuinely thought the same as
you when away to a k and got pumped and
then the world going into the last wiging match when
we've gone in absolutely full tilt and for the first
twenty minutes we looked the top ten. Honest to god,

(57:11):
that is the biggest dictees I have ever had in
my life that first twenty minutes. Match mate. Honest, I
have never, honest, honest to god talk about addictees for
that first twenty minutes of that wiging match.

Speaker 1 (57:27):
Okay, a couple of things I wanted.

Speaker 3 (57:29):
To let's bring up before you carry on, Sorry to
jump to Wakefield Lee, Let's have a quick chat on
Wakefield league. I've got a sneaky Wakefield and that would
be that. Now, that would change my highlight of the season.
If Wakefield beat them, Yes, that that would be my
bloody highlight of the year. I wanted us to get
them in the play My dream was for us to

(57:50):
get them somewhere in the playoffs and end of the season.
I'd be happy with that. This year, it's not.

Speaker 1 (57:54):
Entirely possible that Wakefield could go and win.

Speaker 3 (57:56):
I think Wakefield might just just tip them. They're gonna
go and have a bloody goal where we didn't.

Speaker 5 (58:01):
Said Powell will go on with attack and attack and attack.

Speaker 4 (58:06):
But right so I'm going to put our slants on
this now. So yes, great if Wakefield win, But I'm
thinking about Wigan. I do not want Wigan getting another
sniff getting a third title in a row, because you
know what's going to happen next season, so they're going
to beat Tank on that bollocks. But I think Lee

(58:29):
have got a better chance of going to Wigan and
beating Wigan than Wakefield have. That's what I mean. So
you I would want Lee to win that game so
that then they go to Wigan having a tough game
and go and take five thousand fans over the hill.
We're not over the ill because it's down next to

(58:51):
the bus stop, two stops on the bos.

Speaker 1 (58:54):
They can probably walk there with the pitch.

Speaker 4 (58:57):
But I think Lee have got a better chance. And
one it be fantastic to have Lee versus oll KR
in the Grand fight.

Speaker 3 (59:03):
As long as KR win, because I do not want
to know with Lee win super.

Speaker 4 (59:06):
But let's have a new winner. Let it be. Let
it not be wigging, Let it not be anyway.

Speaker 5 (59:13):
You know. I like that selfishness that you've just said,
because the one thing I was thinking when last week
was that it keeps wigging one legal leaders shield further
back from us and if Okay are win the Grand Final,
they've still eight to nine behind us, and the fall

(59:34):
in a row thing because you got.

Speaker 4 (59:35):
Will be next season and they'll push for it. They'll
put the push for that Wigan and we're not. We're
not up to defend it. Not at the moment. City
is along loan.

Speaker 1 (59:51):
All right, let's have a quick look at other things
happening in the big in the broader game. We're going
to allegedly go into fourteen teams. I think that's the
only confirmed thing we've got next season, with teams being
told they're into super League the week after the Grand Final,
which gives them precisely eight weeks to sort it all out.
Putty typical of our game. But who do we think

(01:00:14):
he's going to be in that? Because I suspect one
need three teams, So I don't think Salford have either
applied for the license or I think they'll get it.
I relegated.

Speaker 4 (01:00:22):
Hang on, I know who's coming.

Speaker 1 (01:00:23):
All right, let me just go for it.

Speaker 3 (01:00:25):
We all know one of them.

Speaker 1 (01:00:26):
Well, let's just look at well some of the I
was just looking back and doing a research on the season. Here,
let me just tell you a few things. Nigel Wood
comes back in as a direct slash German. In spring
twenty five, Bradford appointed a new coaching Kurt Tiger.

Speaker 5 (01:00:44):
Team is that the same Nigel would that like virtually
Olans Bradford.

Speaker 1 (01:00:49):
Very possibly Gary Edington moved to London In April twenty five,
right Daron Lockey comes on the scene going public with
his bid to buy into London and they have a point.
Jason demetri as the coach confirmed loaded get it? Do
we think all this has been planned from the early

(01:01:11):
days when Salford put a reserve team out against Sints
in the first game of the season and everybody knew
they had no money and were't going to get it.
We're going to get taken over so that we are
going to end up with miraculously and announcements that London, Bradford,
New York and or to lose. Certainly London and Bradford
are coming into Super League based not based on form
of you think and Yark signings that they've all been

(01:01:36):
given the NOD want you to lose.

Speaker 4 (01:01:40):
Grahame, you have hit the nail on the head because
they say Bradford are showing because knives are big. Nige
has already had his two penneth with the movement that's
going on at London now, that's no fluke.

Speaker 5 (01:01:58):
Together.

Speaker 4 (01:01:58):
Yeah, and they've all always wanted a strong London side.
And do you know what, I don't mind me that
third play if they get fifteen ten thousand again's absolutely fantastic. Well,
he reckons, he reckons there's two hundred thousands. No, No,
they're playing at the plane at Wimbledon. But Darren Lockey

(01:02:21):
has come out and said that there's two hundred expats
of New Zealand and Australia. And I think we've we
alluded to it on the show before Brief touched on it. Yeah,
Rugby Union had London Irish, didn't they. Well it could
be like London Ausies or whatever the bloody call themselves.

Speaker 5 (01:02:38):
I think the London thing will work, but I again
genuinely believe that in the rebrand they should just become Wimbledon.

Speaker 4 (01:02:47):
Of course they should be London too.

Speaker 5 (01:02:49):
Big. London is like it's a bit like Stoke Contrent.
There's no actual town of Stoke. It's seven towns that
comes under the banner of Stokes. There is no Stoke
city center and London. There isn't a town of London.
There isn't a suburb. There's the city of Westminster, bar
blah blah. But it's like about thirty big towns that

(01:03:11):
are that tightly passed.

Speaker 1 (01:03:12):
Are you saying Leeds shouldn't be leads the leads because
they should be rabbits.

Speaker 5 (01:03:21):
Yeah, London, London itself is too big, it's too generic,
there's a there's no identity now, I.

Speaker 1 (01:03:28):
Agree, but for selling, for for growing a club and
selling it internationally where they want to bring players in it,
it's got to be London failed.

Speaker 5 (01:03:37):
The London thing has failed times with.

Speaker 1 (01:03:40):
What may not have had the right back and the
only time it looked good was when Richard Brownson put
money into.

Speaker 5 (01:03:44):
It's true, it's true, but I've I've found out through
a deep conversation into the early hours of this morning
that was more because of his son. It was a
massive rugby league family.

Speaker 1 (01:03:54):
It's gone down to.

Speaker 5 (01:03:57):
Eight I honestly to god, I've ended up in a
conversation with someone in another country last night that I
never expected. And it's yeah, anyway, for two weeks. So
that's well one hand anyhow, so the London thing, yeah,

(01:04:19):
well with so the other difference this time is where
they are is a really affluent earlier. It's got a
big sport in history, the in the old wimbled in
the Wimbledon Football Club stadium and if there's any part
of London that's got twenty five quid, it's there to
just blow on going watching some fang.

Speaker 4 (01:04:40):
With that and it gives it an identity. It gives
the fans an identity.

Speaker 5 (01:04:44):
Part of London around Mitchell and Wimbledon and New Mold
and and it's it's so affluent and it's a big
sport in it. You know, it's always nailed on. From
the minute that Slimy Gary went there. You've got big
night with the Bradford t Now York as long as
they win this Grand Final will have done it completely

(01:05:04):
on merit. But they've kind of blown the cover. Yeah
that is Matt John Benison.

Speaker 1 (01:05:17):
Maybe they're passed to each other in the other one.

Speaker 5 (01:05:20):
That would have more merits, but based on merit would
be to lose because to lose I got merit to
be in there, but London and Bradford there's zero merit
for either of them to be in there because the
ship at least London have got a good infrastructure in place.

(01:05:40):
But Bradford. I mean it's nothing, but it's just corruption
after corruption.

Speaker 4 (01:05:44):
I mean, I mean take take away like the on
field team of to Lose when they're in super Leak.
One thing I was massively disappointed with, like when Catalang
and they still do it this day. It's a big
hype at Catalan with with the whole fan fur and
the whole league. I don't think it was captured to
lose as much as it was to.

Speaker 1 (01:06:06):
Lose got up by surprise and didn't have the time
to develop it. I think is that is the problem.

Speaker 5 (01:06:10):
That's what London did two years ago.

Speaker 1 (01:06:12):
I think To Lose has got all the infrastruction and
the potential there. But again it's the issue would travel
the course? Can't?

Speaker 4 (01:06:20):
That's it's going to cost you. Yeah, I don't think
to lose because it's going to cost him six hundred
grand to fly over. Teams are already paying them for Catalan,
aren't they? And isn't he paying for Catalan or something?

Speaker 5 (01:06:32):
That's another thing. It's outrageous the burner has to pay
for the other team to travel to Catalans.

Speaker 4 (01:06:46):
But he got a French twang.

Speaker 1 (01:06:50):
That's right, He's right, that's his.

Speaker 5 (01:06:57):
Culture. I'm going, I'm going.

Speaker 4 (01:07:04):
It's like that has got it.

Speaker 5 (01:07:06):
It's like that.

Speaker 1 (01:07:10):
So I think we're not against London, Branford and York.

Speaker 3 (01:07:16):
Sake that three game nonsense away that you got away against.

Speaker 4 (01:07:20):
Yeah, I think I'm on a weekend and weekend in London,
weekend in New York. Don't want a weekend in Bradford.

Speaker 5 (01:07:27):
Now, they don't think, they don't give me throat because
it's done purely on the back of that. Nigel would
well on the picture the ship off.

Speaker 4 (01:07:40):
They'll have to shut out the stadium because that the
I don't think the away end. I think all the
concrete crumbling.

Speaker 1 (01:07:47):
Where do they play now? Because the picture not even
a regularly.

Speaker 4 (01:07:53):
Playing games from know there was a picture because they're
using the speedway track again now and there was a
picture of one of the players diving.

Speaker 2 (01:08:00):
In diving dove orange. It's like he kept on going
into Rose right into Shipley. All right, fair enough, it
was whacker blank, But I would I would, oh god,
he's there, isn't it? With the ball coming back to
Saints next year.

Speaker 4 (01:08:21):
At trick a trick coming, I'm telling you what.

Speaker 1 (01:08:25):
But London with Lockier and his partner putting serious money in,
they're probably going ended up with immediately half a dozen
dozzies coming over gor dozzies as well, and they'll be
compactors straight away. I think, if you remember Gates, if
they've got a sort of money that they're talking about
and no reason to doubt they haven't got it, and

(01:08:46):
they're prepared to stick it out, I think that there's
a thriving club there if they do get the rump
of the twenty two hundred thousand Dozi backpackers around London.

Speaker 5 (01:08:58):
When they were in the prime, when they were at
the Stoop and they were still the blanc Calls just
before they rebranded as ali Quinn's again in the brands
and days, it was a great trip down to the
Stoop and they'd be like what six and a half
seven and a half thousand people though, and they were
doing decent it was. But I think this is the
first time now they've just been like jip ows around London,

(01:09:19):
haven't they? And I think this is the best opportunity
since then.

Speaker 1 (01:09:23):
M hm, Okay, now I'll be happy with them three.

Speaker 4 (01:09:27):
To be fair on balance, I think that's going to
be a three as well.

Speaker 1 (01:09:30):
I think so. I think whatever the ins and outs
of hout, it's worked. It's for the it's better for
the game that they come up now. Whatever fudging of
the i MG gratings.

Speaker 3 (01:09:42):
Are going to take place, a shame for Salford.

Speaker 5 (01:09:44):
The money it is criminally criminals.

Speaker 1 (01:09:48):
But god knows what's happened to that club. I don't know. Okay,
well we'll be back probably just a couple of weeks
after the Grand Finals. So summ it all up and
there see what's happening. So thanks to Ady, thanks to Darren,
thanks to Gaz, no problem. See again a couple of
weeks and enjoy rugby Lea because we still dom