We're 4 points clear off Wigan and 5 clear of Saints, with Saints still to come to HQ. Hull away is always a tough trip, especially given Radford seems to have them fired up and going hell for leather for 4th place.

At the same time we have a trophy game the following weekend, and that's not something you can take player's minds off. As such, I'd be looking at resting a good number of players. Every other side in the S8's will get CC weekend off, so it's not only giving us a much better shot in the final but is giving us some key juice we'll need for the run-in.

1. Golding
2. Handley
3. Briscoe
4. Keinhorst
5. Hall
6. Lilley
7. Burrow (C)
8. Singleton
9. Ward R
10. Yates
11. Walters
12. Ward S
13. Delaney

14. Halmshaw
15. Mulhern
16. Leuluai
17. Jordan-Roberts

Its 15 days until the cup final and Hull is on the friday so still 8 days rest before it so its unlikely we will see the wholesale changes in your side (although i wouldn't be against it) expect JP and kylie.Maybe Sinfield and Cuthbertson to be rested but i think the rest will play.

Yates isn't with the club any more, for one thing. For another I can't see us resting anyone other than Sinfield, Peacock, and maybe Watkins, Cuthbertson or McGuire. Not sure if Golding is fit or not, or whether Achurch will pass head tests.

Hardaker/Golding

Handley
Briscoe
Moon
Hall

S.Ward
Burrow

Garbutt
R.Ward
Singleton
Ablett
Keinhorst
Delaney

Lilley
Cuthbertson
Leuluai
Achurch/Walters



Unlike the "reserve" team that should at least be competitive, while also resting some key players.

No chance. We need to keep the momentum going. Post final is when we will need the rest. We play the best team we can put out.

The only exception would be to try Robbie ward out and see how it affects or shape

Tbh if a half was to be rested I'd prefer it to be McGuire.

I can see resting Hardaker for Golding and Delaney in for cuthbertson but I think we need to win this one too.
Go in to the CCF on a big game winning streak with a good point cushion in case we drop points after that game

No way will that side take the field.....for a start Yates is no longer a Leeds player

Take Peacock out and anybody who has a 50/50 knock.

Don't need to make wholesale changes, we should still beat HKR in the cup. I'd rather try and claim the two points and wrap up the LLS as quickly as possible and then rest players for the last week/s. We could potentially wrap it up against Saints if we win that and the Hull game (and Wigan lose another one) and have ourselves 2/3 rounds of resting players for the playoffs.

Warrington v Wigan, St Helens v Huddersfield next week. We need to keep the momentum going as they don't have the easiest of games.

Hardaker
Briscoe Watkins Moon Handley
McGuire Burrow
Singleton R Ward Leuluai
Keinhorst Ablett
Ward

Lilley Mulhern Delaney Cuthbertson / Walters / Achurch

Burrow twice ?.

Pretty much the team I'd pick.

Apart from you naming Burrow twice (Lilley for one of the 2 Burrows?) I'd probably about agree with that, but I'm sorry .....I just don't rate Walters at all at the moment.

Win the next two games (Hull & Saints) and we are mathematically guaranteed a top two spot and a home playoff game.

Saints the week after the CCF is a tall order. Depending on injuries / hangover it should be a hard one.

It will be, but we had the exact same scenario last year and came within a whisker of beating them despite Moon being sent off early on and having 12 men most of the game.

1. Hardaker
2. Briscoe
3. Watkins
4. Moon
5. Hall
6. Sinfield
7. McGuire
8. Garbutt
9. Ward, R
10. Cuthbertson
11. Ablett
12. Delaney
13. Ward

14. Burrow
15. Leuluai
16. Singleton
17. Achurch

Give Peacock a rest. Obviously if anyone has a knock replace with Keinhorst/Walters/Mulhern.

I'd like to see a proper hooker in Ward played at 9. If we had Sutcliffe available I'd say move Sinfield to 9 but as we don't I think we need Sinfield in the halves.

With a maximum of 8 games left in their League careers...you ain't gonna see Peacock or Sinfield rested. Bench at best or they start. .no chance they miss out.

I'm a little worried about ward coming into the team to be honest. Previously I had high hopes for him and thought he looked relatively strong, but I was speaking a one of the Hunslet players on Thursday and from the sounds of things, there aren't many players down there that rate him. They have him down as a bit of a bottler when it comes to making tackles, tends to back off, which then leads to him being targeted and giving up 10-15 yards at a time according to him, same when running with ball in hand apparently. I haven't seen much of Hunslet myself this year so I can't really pass too much Judgment, it's just a concern to hear things like that and sounds like he's playing with a lot of fear. Lilley on the otherhand, nothing but positives about him.

I think we do need to rest some key players ahead of the cup final but this game is actually quite important because if we beat hull we will have secured a place in top four.

I'd go with

1 Golding
2 Briscoe
3 Watkins
4 Handley
5 Hall
6 Lilley
7 Burrow
8 Leaulai
9 R Ward
10 Garbutt
11 S Ward
12 Delaney
13 Singleton

Subs
14 Walters
15Keinhorst
16 Mulhern
17 Milton

Wasn't Hunslet's former first choice hooker you were asking for an opinion was it?

Ward's shown enough in the games he's played at SL level - well above the standard said Hunslet player has ever achieved in his career - to make me not have a problem with him coming into the Leeds side.

It is but as pointed out we probably would've done them last year after Wembley had Moon not got sent off. They still seem to have no plan for stopping us in attack and they're in quite poor form ATM.....leading Hull at home 18-6 and then losing the 2nd half 4-26 is a real bad one.

Don't expect to see Delaney next week. Sounds like his hamstring will continue to bother him for the rest of the campaign and that they'll just pick him when needs must like Wembley and playoffs.

No need for wholesale changes or positional changes. I'd like to see R.Ward, Handley, Keinhorst and Singo in the 13. Rest Hall, Ablett and JP. Kylie doesn't play enough minutes to warrant a rest.

Depends on your criteria for 'resting players'

IF it's about 'resting/protecting' MVP players for Wembley then I'd say Hardaker, Cuthbo, Sir Kev and possibly Watkns (although I though he went back to some of his lackadaisical moments last night) would be top of the list to 'rest' as lose any of them would be a hammer blow

In terms of Hardaker. Golding is only just making his return today for the u19's after a long period out after his back injury so I'm not sure he'd get thrown into a SL game so soon after. Handley is an option but would mean the starting three quarters all play (can't drop Keinhorst back there if Delaney isn't fit and other forwards are rested).

Personally wouldn't go for big changes (just put some starters on the bench and hopefully use them sparingly depending on how the match goes) as I'd prefer to get the LLS as quickly as possible and then rest players in the final league games for the playoffs. Yes they might get injured before Wembley, but if we have to go strongest for the last one or two league games then they might get injured for the playoffs.

Hardaker
Briscoe
Watkins
Moon
Hall
McGuire
Burrow
Garbutt
R.Ward
Leuluai
S.Ward
Ablett
Singleton

Sinfield
Cuthbertson
Keinhorst
Achurch/Mulhern

Cuthbertson was holding his right hand/wrist towards the end last night so he may be forced into missing a game.
Garbutt gets better each game he plays which means that Kylie is not needed as much.
On his return Ward's efforts in defence were immense.
Achurch's injury meant Ward had to play longer minutes than were planned I'm sure.