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This is an interview with Richie Mathers in todays WEP. He says that he wants to step up a notch or two next year and that he wants to be judged on how he performs next season, not this season.
Has CP's incessant campaign to rid us of his favourite "cheerleader" been premature?
Is this all just the usual run of the mill horse poo that some players come out with?

http://www.wigantoday.net/warriors/Math ... 4598168.jp

Have we judged Mathers too early?

100% NO

i am not sure.....the only thing i would like to point out is pat richard was not very good but now he is amazing.

I am not happy with mathers 1st season performance but i would give him a chance to improve.

No, he isn't good enough. He can say whatever he likes his performances at times were dire and its hard to see if he can improve.

yes we have remeber pattttttttt

But, like someone else has posted, look at the way Pat Richards improved after his first season.

I'm not arguing with anything people have said, just offering a different point of view.

Personally I am really disappointed with his performances this season. I remember him always chiming into the line well when he was at Leeds and I used to rate him. This season he has been nothing short of dire. However, I am prepared to give him a bit longer to prove himself. If he starts next season like a house on fire then fine. If he doesn't, Get rid of him ASAP.

He fudged on more tackles per game than he scored tries all year. He is a seasoned player in super league, has played in finals, in good teams. We have a right to judge him pretty quickly, especially if he is performing very badly, which he was.

However, to support your arguement of giving him a new shot / clean slate for new season the better comparison, for reasons stated above, is Fielden not Richards. Pat came over from Aus in a winnings exciting team to play out of position in a poor team in his first year. Fielden has done what mathers has done in that he is experienced and has won things over here, and my opinion on fielden is that he has come good...eventually. So might Mathers..? Of course fielden always had the attributes his position requires, just forgot them for a while, Mathers needs more work than just regaining confidence.

Unfortunately Mathers could not shrug of the critisism from the first half of his season during the second half. He did have some excellent games but everybody watched for the mistakes and waited to pounce. Anyone who watched his performances could see his improvement but all that was reported was the mistakes. Before someone points out the leeds missed catches,check the lighting, missing bulbs etc. You can't catch what you can't see. I have already posted the same but I probably still that lone voice in the wilderness,
Jim

His major problems are two:

1. Can’t put a big hit on anyone

2. No bottle

You can’t put a big heart into someone, so we are stuck with a fullback who can’t tackle someone running at him along with no bottle.

Sorry it may seem harsh but these are the facts.

markill wrote:He fudged on more tackles per game than he scored tries all year. He is a seasoned player in super league, has played in finals, in good teams. We have a right to judge him pretty quickly, especially if he is performing very badly, which he was.

However, to support your arguement of giving him a new shot / clean slate for new season the better comparison, for reasons stated above, is Fielden not Richards. Pat came over from Aus in a winnings exciting team to play out of position in a poor team in his first year. Fielden has done what mathers has done in that he is experienced and has won things over here, and my opinion on fielden is that he has come good...eventually. So might Mathers..? Of course fielden always had the attributes his position requires, just forgot them for a while, Mathers needs more work than just regaining confidence.

I didn't mean my post to come across in a way that I was putting forward an argument for his poor play, I certainly wasn't defending him. I was just trying to play devils advocat and post the article that has been written about him in the WEP.
The only thing I will say is that I am prepared to give him a bit longer, a la Fielden.

When Mathers says that he want's to step up "a notch or two" I would have thought it was more like a notch or ten!! I do still think that he can be a reasonable player for us but he will have to work tirelessly on his defence and the way he comes into the line. Time will tell.