Sack Tony Smith. Sack Tony Smith. I've never read such rubbish. We are 4 games into the season. Not 10, not halfway, not after the 23 regular season games. Just 4. The game we played 5 matches ago was at old Trafford in front of 70000 people to decide the best team in the league. We had already had a trip to Wembley and been within millimetres of victory and been presented with the league leaders shield.

Yet just 4 games later we have people calling for our coach to be sacked. For gods sake.

I agree that our back line is poor , especially without Ratchford, but the decision our coach made was to stick with what he had and to strengthen the pack. The way some people think that we should be able to just sign a quality back because we are a cash rich club is just laughable. If a superleague club has a quality back at the moment they hang on to them for their life. They are a very rare commodity. I'm sure if a top quality back had been available we would have been interested, maybe to the detriment of bringing in the 3 quality players to strengthen the pack.

I agree our form is awful. The league table doesn't lie. We aren't performing anywhere near our potential yet. We have a new half back who in 4 league games has had 3 different partners. We are searching for the right combinations but now is the time to do it.

This isn't blind faith in the club. It is faith based on 8 years of Tony Smiths coaching and management. A lot of people have very short memories. 4 trips to Wembley, 3 to Old Trafford , a couple of league leaders shields as well. Does that not merit some loyalty and belief in our processes.

So to quote a phrase that seems to have been forgotten

IN SMITH WE TRUST

IN SMITH YOU TRUST. I don't. Last season was still a failure, the season before dreadful, this season...well it doesn't look good.

This isn't a knee-jerk reaction at all. Many of us have been saying this for a good while now. Tony Smith is not a panacea.

Last season we well exceeded expectations. With our poor back line and powderpuff pack last year we managed to top the league and got to both finals. That's skewed everyone away from the reality that we have Clark Hill Ratchford Westerman and Currie so everyone thinks we're this amazing side, but everyone else is average.

The other thing to note is that the standard of football last season was atrocious across the board. We only had to beat Oldham, Widnes and Wakefield to get to Wembley. We had a healthy lead at half time at the final. Wigan were awful at the Grand Final.

Yet we still messed up in farcical fashion! But if people want to delude themselves into thinking that last season was a roaring success, they are welcome to!

No knee jerk reaction from me, i have been saying i want rid for 3 seasons now on this message board.

We are an utter shambles with a terrible side and no game plan.

IN SMITH WE TRUST?

do me a favour.

I'm really split here as to what I think should be done.

I think we need a fresh start with a new coach at the helm, but at the same time I'm not sure there's anyone available right now AND whether it's the right time to do it bearing in mind our precarious position at the foot of the table. I have no doubt that Smith can save us from the bottom four, and would therefore be tempted to write off this season and let us secure our place around 8th while we undertake a search for a decent replacement.

If we pull the plug now that might just destroy any remaining confidence in the players and condemn us to a relegation battle.

The game against Wigan in the super 8s last year did it for me. Recent performances just confirm it. That game against Wigan depicted how mentally weak we are. We were 3 scores up with about 30 mins to go with a one man advantage and lost. Yes I know we won against hull the week after to claim the LLS but HULL FC were mentally on holiday after the Challenge cup win.

No matter what is said about Evans, Russell etc the group of players that have played this season are good enough to win all the games we have played. There is a deeper problem than just players individual performances. You can see that psychologically there is a problem. They either don't believe in the system and methods that they are being asked to carry out or just have lost respect for the coaches and each other.

You can see the little things. Livett goes clean through and nobody within 15 yards of him. Escare goes through and there is a Wigan player on each shoulder.
A Wigan forward takes the ball up and there are 4/5 Wigan players all in motion. Cooper takes the ball up and the rest just stand and watch. The players have mentally switched off.

I have loved what Tony Smith has done for us and I didn't want it to end this way but I just hope Simon Moral is on his phone now trying to sort out a replacement.

Smith has got to stay. He can only be judged when he has his full team out.

Chris Hill and Stefan Ratchford are not going to stop us conceding 38 points against Wigan.

There was a moment last night, may have been wigans 3rd try.. camera panned to the players under the posts. No one was saying anything... they were all just looking around in different directions avoiding eye contact with each other... A beaten team within the first 20 minutes. No fight, no heart, none of them bothered.

Stefan Ratchford has said that at least 13 players have injuries

Were they all playing last night?

yeah, we played that team again last night, look at the two seperate directions the two teams have gone since the grand final.

interesting that the OP thinks its a knee jerk reaction to want a change, that has been discussed for along time.

It's more a knee jerk reaction to harp on about trophies won 5 years ago and give it 'IN SMITH WE TRUST'.

its a line that's been trotted out for 4/5 season now by the blind faith Smith fan club. I have lost all trust in him.

Get a grip kids!

Wait until your a year down the line from winning the Treble, followed by the worst season for 20+ years and then start the new campaign with exactly the same culminating with your heaviest ever Super League defeat to your in form near country bumpkin neighbours and STILL no sign of your clueless head coach being replaced.

You lot don't know you've ever been born!

As soon as I saw the team and in particular the bench I had a fair idea what was coming. The Wigan debutants on the wing, our lad at scrum half, only 2 front line props, a bench that would be considered lightweight under any circumstances. And I don't know what the question is but the answer is not Matty Blythe.
Throw in a lack of confidence and last night was entirely predictable. I'm not concerned that we will be involved in a relegation dog fight, but our best bet for silverware this year is the Challenge Cup, too much ground lost too early for anything else.
On a positive note, I think Lineham is a different player this season (in a good way).

The knives have been out for Smith for a while now, hence the '2017 and Tony Smith' thread that has been ongoing before a ball had even been kicked in 2017.

Look, we've got some really big frailties, ones that have been evident for a while now and haven't been addressed. Can I honestly see us getting out of this current slump? Based on our Brisbane performance, I'd say yes we've certainly got it in us. However, based on our first four Super League games, I'm not so sure. There aren't a lot of positives to take at the moment, are there?

Will we improve when we've got Hill and Ratchford back? Will we look better with Toby King and Penny on the right rather than Russell and Evans? I'd say yes to both, but we need to buck up and quick otherwise our season could be over before it's really begun.

Smith won't get sacked, I feel he's fire proof in Simon Moran's eyes. The only way he'll go is if he resigned, but that's just my opinion.

Like him or loathe him, he deserves respect for what he's done for the club and for what he's achieved, even though he's come up short in us reaching our ultimate goal. I'm willing to give him a bit more time to turn things round and if he can't then something obviously has to give.

Regardless of what the future holds, I think the bloke deserves a bit more respect than being called a cretin, a chancer and a bluff merchant amongst others that he's been called on here since last nights gane.

I don't think 8 years of failing to win the grand final and now losing patience and confidence in smiths ability to deliver it given the team and the recent performances we are no closer to winning it this year than we were when he took over, he inherited a great core of players who with a few additions looked very good and if we had won a gf who knows could have been the catalyst to a period of winning grand finals and being able to attract better players however that did not happen and we are now left with what we have

how anybody can defend the team and smith after last nights performance is beyond belief and to imply those unhappy with smith are over reacting is farcical harping back to winning a cc a few years back now lets ignore that at every opportunity to win the grand final we have lost

I think we have far more important issues!!!


I should be top of the Prediction Competition now - and we see NOTHING - Keep Smith - Sack Uncle Rico !!!!!

Rico out, Rico out, Rico out !!!







Only joking of course!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm sure he'd look positively better still if he actually got a pass from time to time-"!

Even a tub of butter has its sell by date.I'm just sick + tired to my back teeth of the drivel he comes out with after every defeat.He'd get more respect off me if he just came out with it + said we was e or at least showed some passion as Shaun Wane would have done with a hammering like that.Thanx for all you've done Tony but time for change as this team is devoid of ideas + now team spirit as quite clear for all to see last night.

I can imagine it's horrendous.. Multiple grand final wins and a treble winning season.. Followed by an indifferent season then two wins out of 4 the season after ...
Hope you're ok Hun ..