ian.birchall wrote: ↑Thu Jun 13, 2024 8:11 am
On Wigantv in his interview Matty Peet says Field felt the injury in the first 10 minutes at Wembley. I would be concerned that despite the importance of that match leaving him on for the rest of the game might have caused more damage to the hamstring than necessary and it could turn round to give us more difficulties later in the season.
i think there's a difference between feeling a tightening / twinge or the whole thing snapping. I'm an amateur athlete and know when to push / not push with muscular injuries, which is something i've learned about my body and what it can / cant take. Note, i'm not saying i play a game at the intensity that Jai will be though, but i know my body, and sure he will too
i would assume that they've spoken to him, and he's said, its tight / niggling but i can go at 80% and be ok, and then deal with it afterwards. On the pitch, he looked quite dangerous, and didnt appear to be running with an injury, so i would say they probably got it right, and having a rest for 3-4 weeks wont do him any harm
Hampshire’s absolutely shocking performance against Wire - where arguably we would have been stronger with 12 men - makes Field’s injury far more concerning, but if it is only a few weeks then that should be fine. There are many grades of tear and his movement was good enough to rule out a bad one.
Despite the Wire performance, I would tend towards giving Hampshire another go - his performance was an outlier compared with the other cameos we have seen from him. If he gets back up to the level he showed against London away, that should be enough to get us through the next couple games. In any case, as long as we are within a win of Saints by the time they come to ours, then we have shown we have enough talent to prevail and secure the LLS, so a stumble or 2 isn’t anything to lose sleep over.
Rocky has never enjoyed playing fullback and we should play him at 6 if he's in the side. Bevan is so good at fullback that it shouldn't be a difficult decision. Rocky and Harry in the halves on Friday and Rocky with Farrimond next week. We've two games to sort this out before we play a top side so hopefully all will be well.
southportcdm wrote: ↑Thu Jun 13, 2024 5:50 pm
Rocky has never enjoyed playing fullback and we should play him at 6 if he's in the side. Bevan is so good at fullback that it shouldn't be a difficult decision. Rocky and Harry in the halves on Friday and Rocky with Farrimond next week. We've two games to sort this out before we play a top side so hopefully all will be well.
It is a solution, but I just don't want to see us chop and change Bevan's position when he's just settling in. It could put him back too far IMO. I'd rather fill that spot with the best backup we've got and leave the rest of the side unchanged, even if the team could be slightly better for a few weeks by changing two players around. I think its better in the long term. But let's see which way Peet goes. Its not a cert either way.
With almost any player I can think of throughout my time watching the game, I’d be dubious to switch them between fullback and stand off too often but French is different IMO. He’s just a fantastic player and I think he could make an impact from pretty much any position on the field. I actually think he finds it easier to impact games more consistently from full back, than he does from stand off but he’s that good he will always put a stamp on games from anywhere.
The team is better with French at 6 and Field at 1 than vice versa but by the same token, I think it would be better with French at 1 and Hampshire/Farrimond at 6 in the short term, than the other way round. Put it this way, I think Cas would be happier if we put Hampshire at fullback tomorrow, than they would be if we put French there.
My only concern about switching French to fullback is the defensive aspect. Our right edge tends to be the weaker one and French is our most experienced player on that side. We've lost Keighran from that group and Eckersley is in his place. Nsemba is on the right edge and getting better with every game and for me the consistency or defending alongside French is doing him the world of good. I think if you chuck Hampshire on that side we're significantly weaker.
I would prefer Farrimond to get an opportunity but he seems more comfortable on the left and again, it's really going to test that right edge defence. You could move Smith to the right since he's played there before and is an experienced defender.
I suppose some of this depends on how long Field is expected to be out for. If we're searching for a longer term solution it might be worth more disruption to find what works. If it's only a handful of games I think the simplest option will be the one Matt Peet goes for.
NICKYKISS wrote: ↑Thu Jun 13, 2024 9:15 pm
With almost any player I can think of throughout my time watching the game, I’d be dubious to switch them between fullback and stand off too often but French is different IMO. He’s just a fantastic player and I think he could make an impact from pretty much any position on the field. I actually think he finds it easier to impact games more consistently from full back, than he does from stand off but he’s that good he will always put a stamp on games from anywhere.
The team is better with French at 6 and Field at 1 than vice versa but by the same token, I think it would be better with French at 1 and Hampshire/Farrimond at 6 in the short term, than the other way round. Put it this way, I think Cas would be happier if we put Hampshire at fullback tomorrow, than they would be if we put French there.
I get Mike's point, but your last sentence clinches it for me..
Rocky is used to Castleford small ground too. Put him in at FB please
Anyone can support a team when it is winning, that takes no courage.
But to stand behind a team, to defend a team when it is down and really needs you,
that takes a lot of courage. #18thMan
My preference for Hampshire is in the halves but, with French on the field, we could quite easily start him at fullback and switch during the game if necessary. As Josie says, he knows the ground well having played there so it's the ideal place to see if the Wire performance was just a bad day at the office.
