I'd settle for two points from the next two games and Monday represents by far the best opportunity to get them, IMO.

I wouldn't save anyone for the Wigan game at this stage. If they're fit enough to play on Monday then that is what I'd do.

Yes you are probably right on reflection as I doubt we will get anything out of the Wigan game.
Wigan are scoring points for fun and could give us a thumping next week whatever team we put out.

we should be aiming for a top two finish this year. the wigan game isn't the be all and end all but it would be nice to get the two points in that game. wigan are thumping teams but look who they are thumping. not exactly warrington or leeds is it?

In the present league structure, teams like London will be targeting the games they need to win to make the 8 - the game against Wigan therefore wasn't an issue.

From a Leeds perspective, however: bollox to Wigan - let's put them back in their place... again

Sure but let's not forget we've got a game to play tomorrow night first where the two points on offer will be worth no more or less than the two that will be on offer next weekend in Manchester.

[size=85Wigan thumping Leeds around this point of last year didn't appear to do us any harm when it came to the two semi-finals against them that followed.[/size

Is this time of year we all climb up Wigan's backside and acclaim them as "the team to beat" again?

Much like people have been doing for the last two years.

I agree , in fact taking two points of Saints at any time regardless of injuries or whatever in their camp is always welcome . Hopefully the team will be fully focused on tomorrow night , next weeks game will take care of itself .

Looking at the Wigan game will it benefit Wigan in the long run that they have had unopposed training sessions the last few months?

Since losing to us they've faced the "challenges" of Widnes, Saints, Hull KR, Wakefield, Bradford, Leigh, Hull, Salford, KR (again) and London. Some of our usual doom and gloom merchants may be ready to concede to Wigan but I'll wait and see until they play someone willing to put up an effort.

Big question is will Tomkins have the bottle to face us?

Wigan looked really good on Saturday at the stoop...but TBH so would Chapeltown U11s (London started badly and somehow contrived to get worse throughout the game). Yes it's around now we all start drooling over how great Wigan are and start lauding the genius of the thoroughly objectionable Wigan coaching team headed up by that gracious gentleman Shaune Wane

you forgot to say how great sam tomkins is running at these "defenses"...

Vickery, Sutcliffe, and Singleton all in contention to play tonight according to BM. He also mentions Baldwinson could play in the coming weeks.

Well he's blobbed the last 2 meeting and defeats.

Wigan will be keen to get him out there, but a certain Leeds pack man will be even keener if you've heard the same rumours as I have. A rumour which started just before the Wigan away game in the play-offs last year.

As I commented on recently Leeds have had a poor recent record of giving the then present Academy players an opportunity in the Leeds first team. Apart from the 2008 season it's been almost quota like with the figure set at a maximum of two a season since 2006.

2006 - Danny Williams, Jordan Tansey
2007 - Ryan Hall
2008 - Luke Burgess, Ben Kaye, Danny Allan, Ben Jones-Bishop, Kallum Watkins, Joe Chandler, Michael Haley
2009 - Paul McShane, Dane Manning
2010 - Tom Bush, Chris Clarkson
2011 - Brad Singleton, George Elliott
2012 - Liam Hood, Stevie Ward (Jimmy Keinhorst ? )
2013 - ?

I don't imagine running the Academy set-up comes particularly cheap and it's an essential source of producing players for the wider game and Leeds have had an unmovable core group who have delivered much over that time ..... but looking at that purely from a Leeds 1st grade point of view you have to wonder whether the investment has been worth it.

Out of interest, why the question mark after keinhorst's name?

Suttcliffe will make his debut tonight.

If he makes the 17 then you'd hope so.

Would be an anti-climax for the lad if he's 'sub not used'.

I couldn't recall exactly how he arrived at Leeds (or at what age) and whether he should - or shouldn't, hence the ? - make the list as a Leeds academy produced player that made it all the way to 1st grade at Headingley.

In or out it doesn't make much of dint.

"How many make their first team debut" is a horribly skewed and ineffective measure of the productivity of an Academy system.

It can be affected significantly by any number of external factors, such as injury crises or the success of the first team incumbents.

Surely a more effective measure is how many of them go on to make a regular first team place their own? Even allowing for player turnover, you would only expect one or maybe two per season to break through and do so.

Hall, Jones-Bishop, Watkins, Ward and arguably McShane and Clarkson have done so over that period, despite being faced with highly successful incumbents, many of whom were themselves the products of the same Academy system.

If we are producing one or two regulars for this squad per season, we are doing very very very well.

I’d also look at the other side and ask out of those who left due to lack of opportunities have gone on to be a real success.

The fact is a youngster with the potential to be an SL player probably doesn’t get an opportunity in this side, that sounds like a bad thing but in reality its down to the fact that they are likely having to displace a very good SL player, an international standard player and in a few cases a couple of legends.

Weather could be interesting tonight

Typical - just as we're set to unleash the fastest spine in world RL (Wellens, Wilkin, Howarth - feel the lightning), we might get a wet pitch.

Massive disadvantage for the Saints.

Looking on the bright side, at least Meli's as safe as houses under the bomb. Any other player might struggle in the wet.

I predict Meli will not make any errors tonight.