I don't think we have replaced Graham, who would we replace him with.
Man for man we match other top teams, if not better them, with our pack depth.

Basically we've had Graham + 1 maybe 2, for the last few years.
Perry/Clough were injured for most of last year, TP also had a few weeks out at a time. Good friday was a prime example, we had 3 props, all started the match but at some point we had to rest graham and his +1, at that point Wigan came back into it as the 2nd rowers could not hold the line.

This year Megennis is a year better and CLough and Perry would be hard pushed luck wise to be out for as long simultaiously.

We have 4 true props plus Megennis, Sia and La Frank who can offer cover from the bench if we had 3 props out injured. With dixon, wilkin and flanaghan covering their roles in the back line.
That still leaves people like Flannery who is very decent cover struggling to get a bench spot.

As a pack we should not need to head into a game with less than 4 props even if one or 2 of them are the likes of sia or La frank.

I think having Graham, we just loaded more work on him because he could take it, rather than trying to balance the pack. Now we don't have that luxury so will have to hit each game with 4 fit props.

We couldn't match his quality, but we could have signed someone to help bridge the gap.

Flower, Dudson, O'Hara, Bryant, McPherson, Hill, Moore, Chan, Cahill, Tonks, Lynch, Davies and Griffin have all moved clubs and are big forwards that would have made our 17 or added significantly to our squad depth at least. Yet the club claim no one was available?

Hopefully Perry would be available as well. Like The Offside Monkey, I think Clough will have a massive year if he stays fit. I'm not convinced by Magennis as a prop, though. He strikes me as more of a back-rower, and he's certainly not physically ready to make a genuine impression in the front row at the minute. Forster's a bit of an unknown quantity, so we'll see what happens there.

I'd argue Saints have only three out an out props next year, in LMS, Perry and Clough. Puletua while he does a great job as a prop isn't as effective in that position as he is in the backrow. The fantastic offloads and barnstorming runs he used to produce have all more or less dried up. More than likely because he's running at similar sized individuals who he can't physically get the better of. Laffranchi is a backrower who'll no doubt play 13, acting as a third prop whilst still not really being one.

Wigan in contrast have five out and out props, in Mossop, Prescott, Fielden, Lima and Dudson (who I'm really looking forward to seeing play). There's also two young props who could fill in if needed, but are unlikely to get much game time unless we hit an injury crisis.

As for the backrow we've got Lockers, Hock, Hansen, Farrel, Flower, Tuson, Hughes and Burke (our very own Paul Gallen in the making)

And Finally not forgetting Wigan's secret weapon Lauaki!

Who I'd imagine will flitter between rolls.

Wigan are anything but short in those two area's. Hopefully from a Wigan perspective Wane will rotate the squad next year, something Madge failed to do this year, that IMO cost us hugely towards the back end of the season.

If Wigan are short anyway it's in the centres, something we have in common with yourselves, and we're also short in some respect at halfback/hooker. We've got the numbers, but their untried youngsters. A lot will hinge on whether these young lads are able to step up and make an impression. But then again they are four time, consecutive GF winners.

I dont buy the TP poor form arguement. His poor form tend to cover the month and a half he did not play. When he did come back he was not 100%. But his contribution was enough to contribute to over turning the wigan pack twice and pushing leeds back till our twenty minute collapse.

Graham also was below par in those matches. Basically those two props carried our season and where busted by the end of it. LMS on the other hand got better as the season progressed. If we spell the props pproperly forty minutes each in twenty minute spells with La frank offering support at loose. The the likes of wilkin and sia runninf out wide maybe more effective and we wont have a prop with a busted back come end of season.

We really used graham to the extreme. But with the young props also injured for the entire season there was no chance to blood tyhese like our young backs

But that was a Wigan pack missing three/four forwards.
Fielden, Mossop, Cross & Hock.

yeah because Lima, Prescott and Coley wouldnt get in the squad if they were fit

But O'Carroll, Tuson and Farrell would have struggled.

anywho, back on the saints forum,




I'm quite happy with our squad for next year. We've recruited better than our rivals, and that is all we can ask

In best pantomime mode.


"Oh no you haven't"

I agree. Two world cup winners and a good looking bloke from Oldham (via Wigan and Wests) is not a bad bit of business!

Which two?

Jes rouges you love us saints dont you.

For me the wigan pack looks weaker. Why hoffman. He was the most dangerous forward for wigan. He knew how to make things happen. Hopefully La Frank will bring a bit of that for Saints. We've been temporary filling that role since scully left.
Thats a longer period than our well known temporary centre problem.

OK here is my team. Starting 17 at the beginning of the season on the left, easter monday team in brackets.

1. Paul Wellens ( 24. Nathan Ashe)
2. Ade Gardner ( 21. Tommy Makinson)
3. Michael Shenton, (26. Josh Jones, )
5. Francis Meli,
22. Jamie Foster,
6. Lance Hohaia, (20. Lee Gaskell, )
7. Jonny Lomax,
8. Josh Perry, (25. Carl Forster, )
9. James Roby,
14. Anthony Laffranchi, (29. Anthony Walker,)
4. Sia Soliola, (13. Chris Flannery, )
12. Jon Wilkin, (23. Scott Hale, )
11. Tony Puletua, (18. Shaun Magennis,)

10. Louie McCarthy Scarsbrook, (30. Jordan Hand.)
16. Paul Clough, (19. Andrew Dixon,)
15. Mark Flanagan, (28. Joe Greenwood, 27. Danny Jones)
17. Gary Wheeler,

Looking at the two teams we are very forward dominated with not may players that can switch between the forwards and the backs except maybe Flannery. Given that we have only 4 backup backs it makes you understand why we resigned Gardner. Hohaia also provides some great utility covering 6, 7, 9 and to an extent 1. If we get more that 1 injury in these areas then we are struggling.

In the forward we have numbers but not a lot of experence. I do not agree with the squad numbers over 22 not getting near this year idea. In fact I expect to see a lot of Hale and Forster. Forster I expect to be a regular by the end of the season.

Ok The squad may not be limited to the 22.I would certainly hope not. but I also doubt that the squad will change so radically on easter monday.

From last season meli could not backj up games so close and was rested. ie exiles game. Ireckon wheeler would play on easter monday.

Also cant see us playing wigan without a kicker. Gaskell for wigan game. LOmax for cas game. With the young forwards I'd hope they were drip fed into ythe team one as a fifth prop most weeks. Depends if Royce has seen enough to try them.

Who is this secret signing the only "she" seems to know about?

Calling them the Easter Monday team was a bit tongue in cheek. Maybe I should have added Joey Hayes and Tommy Hodgeson so it was obvious.

We look very strong for next season if everyone's fit and stack up well against aging Leeds and Warrington squads and a thoroughly uninspiring Wigan lot. We're screwed when the usual Somme-like injury crisis hits though, but then so is everyone else and Christ knows we're due some luck in that area next season. The trophy shakeup depends entirely on whoever's players are available and firing for the mere 3 or 4 games during the entire season that actually matter even slightly (thank you clueless ****s of Red Hall) and on that basis the whole thing is basically just a lottery, but we have at least as good a chance of having the luck needed at the right point of the season as anyone else does. For once...

Sorry completely went over my head. Maybe if you called them the Season opener team against London I may have caught on a bit quicker.

I think that is what I was trying to say but more eloquently put. People (Saddened)

say we are shallow in depth if we have 3 props out, but then so are comparable teams if their first 3 props are out. You can actually juggle our team around with 3 props out and still not have to use a player outside the 22. Hence why I think we look stong. If we actually use our young props we are even stronger. I no longer count megennis as a young prop, (strange that).

Anyone being more eloquent than my good self? I think you'll find that that's a bit of an impossibility there me old china, but I shall let your impertinence pass this once...

Anyway, it's good to see that this board has a gratifyingly rather lower population of clueless signing fantasists than that which infests [ia certain other Saints-themed discussion website[/i, and even the doom-mongers like Saddened exhibit a degree of common sense with regards to squad depth and player availability, so give him a bit of leeway, eh?

Another prop or 2 would make me a lot happier for next season, but in the real world they simply aren't either available or affordable so we'll just have to hope we have 4 of them fit when it matters. C'est la vie.

There are lads who played in the U20's last year more than capable of stepping up. Ant Walker, one to watch!!!!!

Looking back to 2006 we had Graham and Roby coming through on the bench as well as the emergence of Maurie as a top notch player. Fringe players standing up and making a real contribution goes a long way to having a good season.

One player who is likely to have a make or brake season is Andrew Dixon. Maggenis seems to have shown he has what it takes and the likes of Hale, Jones and Greenwood are likely to be pushing for a chances at some point. Dixon needs to show he has it in him to play like a first team player week in week out or he may slip down the rankings.