i think its fair to assume, without even looking at delaneys stats, just by watching yesterdays game he is playing through the pain barrier at the moment

Delaney did play a lot less i believe than normal, Hauraki got more time than Clarkson usually does off the bench and then Lunt came back on and gave us a kind of Lunt/Sinfield/Burrow/McGuire mash-up at 6,7,9 & 13 which i think saw Ablett do some time at second row before switching to centre for the injured Watkins.

I think its a great time to have to play us. Worst case scenario we go into the game without Hock, Prescott, Tuson, Mossop, Fielden, Flower, Richards and Hansen. Thats some serious key personnel in the forwards missing and some serious size and talent. Leeds should win.......on paper !!

Three days wasn't it?



Bradford had eight days clear inbetween, Leeds had five days.



Countered (as bad luck would have it) by game ending injuries to Kopczak, Diskin and Walker V the one suffered by Watkins.









At least the penalty count now makes sense. At one point in the second half Sky gave it as 11 - 8 when the count ended at 9 - 5



How long as the much missed 'Margin Metre' been predicting penalty counts as well as scores?

Going on performances though i think Wigan will still be favorites, i'm expecting it to be close though unlike some who are suggesting a big defeat. Even though Wigan have won more of the games against us since the M.McGuire/Wane era they've usually been quite tight games. Quite similiar scenario going into the league game at Headingley last year and it ended up being a 22-22 draw which Leeds should of seen out.

have





I do think the team will raise their game for this....in the same way others used to raise their game to beat Leeds

Most disapointing for me are the backs, yes the forwards at times are barely holding their own but we don't have any shape at all. anyone who watched the salford game will think they were watching us from bygone days, nice angled lines coming at speed onto the ball. We bunch and are waiting for individuals to create nobody working for the team, well not many thank god for Sir Kev. Don't no what we would do without little Robbie and some are happy to see scrappy do sit on the bench.

It's the whole team. When I watch Wigan or Warrington at the moment, the speed and lines are amazing. They ask so many questions of an opposition defence. We look so plodding in comparison.

Lauaki will be our only senior prop, the rest will be youngsters. Think it'll require a massive effort from our young props to get on top of you. Think it'll be a close one mind you, as you said it always is when we play each other



Edit: Forgot about Jeff Lima

Our team will look something like this:



Sam Tomkins

Josh Charnley

Darrell Goulding

George Carmont

Anthony Gelling

Brett Finch

Thomas Leuluai

Gil Dudson

Mike McIlorum

Eric Lauaki

Liam Farrell

Jack Hughes

Sean O'Loughlin

--------------------------------------------------

Jeff Lima

Dom Crosby

Rhodri Lloyd

Greg Burke



Or possibly Gelling on the bench as another forward with Ryan King on the wing.

Is that the runt who who was making un-founded allegations against Mr Bailey after the CC final?



Hope he plays.

We've never played with that kind of systematic structure in our attack though, even under smith. A big part of our attack has just been instinct. Getting the ball to players like burrow, webb and mcguire in space and one on ones and playing off that.



The way wigan play remind me of saints under anderson, the way they stucture their attack.