What would people have as their match day 17 this season if everyone was fit? (Yeah, I'm bored! Can't wait for the season to start). Or maybe I should ask what you think our strongest 17 is

I'd go:

Hardaker
Briscoe
Watkins
Moon
Hall
Sinfield
Sutcliffe
JP
Aiton
Singleton
Ablett
Delaney
Ward

Burrow
Leuleuai
Bailey
Achurch

I would probably agree with your 17 but in reality I think we will see mcguire in for sutcliffe and burrow at 9 with aiton getting the token 15 minutes from the bench.

No JJB? You been listening to Gotcha again?

I was just about to post no JJB and that he would be earning the wrath of certain posters.

As it happens, from his seventeen, JJB would have been in mine.

regarding jjb
"if" he is fit and "if" we make the big games,then imo he will definitely make the starting 13 without a doubt

my best 17 when the big games come

1 hardaker
2 briscoe
3 watkins
4 moon
5 hall
6 sutcliffe or mcguire <one misses out totally if not selected>
7 burrow
8 delaney
9 aiton
10 peacock
11 ablett
12 jjb
13 sinny
14 ward
15 singleton
16 bailey
17 leuluai / achurch

1 hardaker
2 briscoe
3 watkins
4 moon
5 hall
6 sutcliffe
7 burrow
8 delaney
9 aiton
10 peacock
11 ablett
12 jjb
13 sinny
14 ward
15 singleton
16 bailey
17 leuluai / achurch

I cant believe you are all binning Mags, unbelievable

1 Hardaker
2 Briscoe
3 Watkins
4 Moon
5 Hall
6 Sinny
7 Mags
8 Singleton
9 Aiton
10 JP
11 Ward
12 Delaney
13 Ablett

14 Burrow
15 Kylie
16 Bailz
17 JJB

Think we are too second row loaded so can see in some games Delaney, Achurch and JJB playing prop. Some players to be disappointed if everyone fit, i.e. Clarkson, Kirke (who was our best player at back end of season) Achurch, Sutcliffe and all the kids who had an impact last year. Hopefully Mac will follow Wigan's example and rest players when we play some of the lower placed teams.

Exciting season ahead though. We have the best backline in SL so lets see if we can finally get some tactics to utilise them fully.

I'd go with:
1. Hardaker
2. Briscoe
3. Watkins
4. Moon
5. Hall
6. Sinfield
7. McGuire/Sutcliffe
8. Leuluai
9. Aiton
10. Peacock
11. Ablett
12. Delaney
13. Ward

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

I'd be starting off with McGuire but steadily using Sutcliffe more and more over the season. Hopefully by the end of the season Sutcliffe will be the starting half and not McGuire. (By that I mean I hope Sutcliffe will have developed sufficiently to take on that role). The benefit being that Burrow can step in at times and take some pressure of Sutcliffe if needed. By the end of the season I'd have hoped to have started Sutcliffe roughly around 15 times over the whole season.

I'd look to do similar with Leuluai and Singleton. Steadily increasing his game time over the season.

Alex Foster, Thomas Minns and James Duckworth have gone to London on loan for next season.

The team I put down is what I expect brackets for players I would have personal preference for:
Hardaker
Briscoe
Watkins
Moon
Hall
Sinfield
Mcguire (Sutcliffe)
Leuluai
Burrow (Aiton)
Peacock
Jones-Buchanon
Delaney
Ward

Aiton (Burrow)
Singleton
Ablett
Bailey(Achurch)

To be fair with all the people I would prefer from outside the chances are because of injuries they will most likely play

Hardaker
Briscoe
Watkins
Moon
Hall
McGuire
Sinfield
Delaney
Aiton
Peacock
JJB
Ablett
Ward


Burrow
Singleton
Achurch/Bailey/Clarkson/Kirke/leulali (2 from)

A lot of love for Ward who, whilst highly rated, hasn't shown as much at 1st team level as Sutcliffe did. Sutcliffe gets the 13 position to start with.

totally agree.

Hardaker
Briscoe
Watkins
Moon
Hall
Sinfield
McGuire
Singleton
Aiton
Peacock
JJB
Ablett
Sutcliffe

Delaney (as front row)
Leuluai/Bailey
Ward
Burrow

Whilst I, like others, think Delaney to have a try at front row is a decent shout, the fact Clarkson was put there for the Boxing Day game whilst Delaney stayed at 2nd row perhaps means that'll be unlikely.

Ward was holding his own the minute he came in the team, I am not sure Sutcliffe has quite shown the same yet. To add to this, one was doing it doing the hard work, the other had the opportunity to show their skills.

An unfair comparison, and extremely short memory.

Both are very good players, but Ward IMO when fit is above his competition for the team. Sutcliffe whilst I would like to see there, I can't definitely say is above his competition.

When everyone was bulling up Delaney first quarter of last season, Wards stats more than matched him.

I still rate JJB, but aren't sure his body can still handle the week to week demands. In an ideal world he'd be part of the rotation. If so he'd still be a big game player. Certainly have plenty on options in the back row

Its a long time since we've seen Ward, but one game that stands out for me is the Playoff vs Catalans away. A massive game, especially for young Ward against a big Catalan pack, but Stevie put in a couple of thunderous shots and was a machine in defence. He reminds me a bit like Greg Bird. He's got the ball skills but also loves graft and damage in defence. Sutcliffe played a completely different role for the team last year and, unlike Ward, looked dodgy in defence. Unfair to compare them both with McDermott thus far giving them different roles.

I think the team needs to be rotated vigorously if we are to stand any chance of silverwear. Last year the pack started the season like a house on fire, all were busting a gut with sheer hard work. It was no surprise players were dropping like flys.

Sutcliffe looks most capable of braking the line and most effective doing so out of everyone in the squad. I've said on other threads I can't see a 17 without him.

That may well prove to be case in the future, but not sure where you have come up with that in the past season.

It still doesn't justify why he would be ahead of Ward, who has shown much more in other areas of the game to justify his position. Of course, assuming that Ward does come back the same player before his injury.

As I said, I would like to see both in the side, but IMO Ward has done more to justify being ahead.

I think we will actually get a big season from Mcguire this year. Never looked to have fully got over his injury last year, a full preseason and we may see him come back well, similar to his injury in 2010 I think he came back better post injury than he was in the year or two before. I think it will be a mistake to write him off.

What i hope is happening is that Mcguire is drilling everything he has learnt not in to Sutcliffe, but in to Hardaker. If Mcguire can pass on some of his skills in backing up the play and support running, and drill in how important it is, and how he learned his passing game then there is no reason Hardaker couldnt go on to be one of the best FB's in the world.

But what a shame to lose, when he is gone in two years.

Seeing his natural ability to brake tackles and go through the line. That's where I've got it from. I'm with G on this, seen much more from Sutcliffe so far than Ward.

He was moving to Wigan this off-season apparently, didn’t seem to come about.

I think we should do the best we have, with the best we have. If we turn Hardaker in to the best FB in the world and lose him, we lose him, at least we will have had him.

I opted for Ward on the bench (instead of in place of Sutcliffe or JJB) taking into account the length of his absence. He hasn't yet played since last April and his pre-season last year was spent recovering from the GF shoulder injury. By the time the season kicks off he'll have only played 11 competitive games in 16 months for Leeds.

Considering how much people kick off on here when more senior players are brought back from injury, it's surprising no one has batted an eyelid about Ward possibly slotting straight back in.

If you want your 13 to carry the ball and defend in the middle, which seems to be the way of the modern game, then it's Ward over Sutcliffe every time in that role for me.

if you want an extra playmaker then Sutcliffe have the edge, but I'm not sure that's the way McDermott wants to go.