Iv been saying this for weeks now, give smoth some time, on sunday he was bossing the team around so much telling where he wanted to work from,i saw him miss one tackle but you can see he has been training on it,goin back to mcllorum doe anyone think we lack momentum and speed when he comes on the field

He's fooked then....................they can hardly protect themselves!!!

Needs a Carroll/Lockyer style minder.

O'Loughlin could do it, but then who else would make all the tackles he makes?

Hansen/Bailey i suppose.

Doubt Nobby coming up with a plan to protect him though as he's too busy perfecting our 5 drives and a kick play!!!

It's the future.

Hansen's defensive work is vastly overrated. You hear people talking about him as some sort of defensive machine but he makes far less tackles than SOL and PB and misses more.

He was the leading tackler in superleague last year so he must make a few



He doesn't really hurt people in the tackle though which i'd say Lockers and Bailey can do.

Was he really? That surprises me. Is Hansen playing less minutes this year? Or is it just that SOL and Bailey are fit?

Alot less minutes which is probably the reason he's lagging behind.

We missed Lockers for a huge chunk of last season aswell as Hock for big parts.

Yeah he was, he won the Hitman award.

He has played less minutes this year IMO. Towards the back end of last year Lockers was injured and Bailey was mainly used in the centres, so Hansen got through a lot more work as it wasn't shared.

I havent a problem with is defence, its just his attack. If he carries on running the lines he does and with Smith playing, I'm sure it will improve Hansen's game. I can see Hansen becoming a Jones-Buchanan style of player.

Fair point.

I know SOL gets a lot of stick on here from certain quarters, but he's a giant in defence and one of the few who tries to make things happen going forward. I really rate him, better than Sinfield IMO.

Top Tackler in SL 2008, so how do you work that one out?

Doesnt wear a vee

This year's stats would suggest that happened because SOL was injured and Bailey was in the centres.

SOL has made double the number of tackles Hansen has this year. If you hadn't cut out part of my quote, you'd notice I was comparing him to SOL and Bailey.

The player gets a 'tackle' for being part of the tackle, not always that player who is making the tackle.

Hansen doesn't offer anything in defense or attack that I don't believer Bailey or Lockers can achieve.

I dont think Bailey will be here next here so surely Hansen can do his job, and he doesnt take up a quota spot?

Put Lockers in the Saints or Leeds sides and he'd be a star.

His game as been held back at times by the lack of quality around him.

He runs, tackles, kicks, passes and whacks people around the head



Prefect.

Yep, for this season I'd sooner have Bailey, can do what Hansen does and is more versatile i.e covered at centre till Gleeson arrived.

But... Hansen could be taking the place of one of the younger prospects who are looking for a chance to shine at first team level for example:

Flanny
Mossop
Tuson
Farrell

For me, at times Farrell has looked really good.

Either which way Hansen doesn't offer enough in his all round game for a place at a WINNING side.

Isn't Hansen only 23 himself?



Are those players anywhere near regular first team footy of the sort Hansen plays week in, week out? When Bailey leaves as I assume he will, Hansen would be the perfect player to bring on IF Noble had the sense to go with Hock, Lockers in 2nd row and J Tomkins at 13 when a big defensive effort was needed.

Dave

What makes Hansen the perfect player to bring on? Does he offer any impact in attack to mix up the game or trouble the other team? No. Does he offer a spark of genius to crack a defense? No. And you class this as being the 'perfect' player to bring on?

Hansen started his Wigan 1st team career in 2004, have we seen anything within his development in the last 5 years which say to us 'he is one of the best around in the SR and deserves a place in a WINNING team?' Nope, not at all.

We have several other players all looking for a chance to prove they are better in the SR, given the best of them a shot, if they prove to be better, no one will complain.

Every single player at the club needs looking at, of they don't have the potential to be a cracking player, or are already a top player, they have no place at a WINNING club. The drop of standards needs to stop.

spot on.

Farrell and Mossop will be the next two to step up but it wont be till next year at least. They both look cracking prospects as well as unlike Hansen they offer go forward.

I've said this about Hansen for a while.

There are exciting, attack minded back rowers players in our reserves but will still put the graft in when it comes to defence.

Just playing like a defensive 'work horse' and just being too comfortable in the setup will catch up with Hansen eventually. He's got more ability, but I think he's too comfortable/arrogant to break off from the rest and stand out.

I think you missed the point mate. DaveO said:

"would be the perfect player to bring on, etc, when a big defensive effort was needed"

Meaning at that stage in the game where we need to hold out, or close them into their own half then Hansen is perfect, and its not like he can't make metres either, so he isn't a liability in attack, at times last season he was showing the world how to run onto a ball (his try at millenium magic last year springs to mind)

Thank god others can see this!

For me Hansen is a big strong athletic lad, for this he can run around the field tackling players, but doesn't have a 'rugby brain'.

I also agree with the comment about a 'defensive work horse' who can also run the ball and throw his weight around.

Last season

Leeds-JJB and Ellis Both can tackle up and offer lots in attack.
Saints-Wilkin and Gilmore, both can tackle all day long and offer lots in attack.

So you can't have a player who can come on, hold the defensive line and offer ball skills, go forward, line breaks and some aggression?

I think you're missing the bigger picture.

Of course you can, you pointed out four in the previous post. We just haven't got two of them, Joel doesn't do it often enough for me, Bailey is no world beater going forwards and neither is Hansen *shrugs* if we had two Hocks it wouldn't be a problem, but we don't.

At the end of the day, we have 4 players who can play second row, two of which are identical and one is a better loose.