Last season at Craven Park, I remember Wakefield mounting a stunning, backs-to-the-wall comeback win over a full-strength Hull KR side.

The undoubted catalyst for that victory was a debutant prop called Ben Gledhill who produced one of the best performances from a teenage forward I had ever seen.

Do you really have such a strong squad that you can afford to pack this kid off on loan?

I despair that your club - in the franchise era - has stifled Gledhill's development in favour of flying a blubbery embarrassment half way across the world to give the crowd a laugh for 10 mins or so a game!

He's gone to fev on a duel contract, Kear never played him anyway

We despair too!

Not ready for SL. Hickey is better apparently. That game he showed real spirit and played well. We should have showed confidence in this lad whilst his confidence was high but we did not. We could have made him more athletically imposing in the time following that (which was his perceived weakness), but we did not do that either.

Played today in Fevs victory against Toulouse. Was consistent, ran hard and tackled well (put in some good shots).

Very good at our level. Super League standard....? Wait and see.

Yes I was at that game too and Gledhill was very good. As for Hickey....shame on him, shame on JK (who I still support), for allowing this tub of lard to embarrass our club (everyone is entitled to their mistakes...& this is a big fat one), shame on the team at BV for allowing Hickey in the door in this state. Come on.....send Hickey packing. He is a waste of time & thats plain to see.

How did Hickey play yesterday. How long did he play?

He came off the bench against Salford last season and put a fair hit on a Salford player that was so hard the Salford player got up and tried to fight him. He just casually held two Salford players back at arms length like two cheeky little 5 year olds were trying to get dad!

This is what we've lacked since Elima used to come off the bench and get the boys fired up. Kear hates that type of forward. I don't know what it is with Kear but his forwards seem to get tamer by the match. Hotheads Latu, Korki and Moore all lost the animal within.

I dunno, maybe we need Mr Nasty in charge.

In fairness, Ben didn't really live up to that early promise; his attitude and enthusiasm are not in question but in subsequent games, he was often physically dominated and as a result got bashed about, sometimes losing possession. A dual reg seemed to be the best option in terms of continuing his development into a SL player.

I'll concede however that the continued selection of Hickey makes a bit of a mockery of that; it's embarassing as a fan to see him lumbering around, clearly unfit and overweight, but in the 17 through (I suspect) Mr Kear's pigheaded desire to prove himself right.

The big guy paced himself through a 15 minute spell either side of half-time.

Didn't do anything overtly wrong, just ambled into tackles as the third man in to enjoy a little rest at marker. Never remotely threatened to break the line or produce an offload in a handful of drives.

I thought franchising was meant to stop this sort of signing?

To be honest, from a distance, Liam Higgins didn't look a million miles behind in the 'pork stakes' either!

I have to say, your centre Griffin had an absolute nightmare. He was continuously carved up by the excellent Kris Welham in the first half-hour, so much so that Kear switched him and George around. All this did was allow Jake Webster to carve him up at will for the last 50 mins!

Semi Tadulala. What can I say? It's a long time since I have seen Jake Webster reel in an opposing three-quarter having given them 10 yards start!

Gledhill is a bit of a funny one. We all thought we had found a great player after his debut last year but I think everyone we agree that he hasn't quite lived up to what he showed us but he hasn't really been given much chance. I think he does need to bulk up a bit to be able to compete week in week out as a prop at Super League level.

He was sp[otted by several clubs and signed as stated above because he was agressive and keen. As you say he can hit hard but has been told to use more footwork. This takes away from his natural pace and agreesion and yesterday he showed that under a different regime he is has been allowed to go back to that. I honestly thought he had killed the big French second rower yesterday when he hit him. Knocked him back about five yeards flat on his arris. He did not get dominated once and need 3/4 tacklers every time to bring him down.

Lots of talk about getting dominated but he gets no more dominated than any other Wakey prop ~(apart from Korki/Amor) but they get a slow play of the ball away.

Personally I think he needs to go back to the nasty agressive game that got him notived in the first place.

This is a pointless debate imo. If Ben Gledhill is the answer what's the question. For a start no one is stifling Bens career as in a realistic world he shouldn't be anything other than an occasional at this point in his career even Eric who has to be his dad would conceed that.
The real issue here is that the players he should be looking to learn from and to eventually dislodge and thus force him to up his game are frankly not much better than he is. By that I don't mean Amor, Johnson or Higgins - I mean King and Hickey. Frankly he shouldn't be anywhere near those two, yet he's walk it on my team sheet and I don't think he's close to ready. Ben is better off where he is, he will not benefit from being at Trinity at the moment.

True. (But I am not his Dad. I have seen him play since he was a kid thats all.)

I rate this lad i cannot understand why he isnt playing him.

This was an interesting debate by the way, but I'm not quite ready to take a lecture from a HKA supporter about the wonderful franchising system and its ability to ensure that pointless overseas signings are not a part of our game - the irony is too much for me to bear.

yeah Frankie Mariano anyone?

Maybe a bit harsh on King? he was prob our best forward last year and i don't think he started the season that bad. What was his recent injury? He was certainly poor against Hull not sure about KR, but i'm willing to give him the benefit for now

Maybe, but that's the deal with being a senior and I assume better paid player - you have to be consistent. Obviously injuries are a different matter.

I get the feeling that King has not really been fully fit all season. He will play a couple of games and will then be either left out or he will be injured.

I personally believe that when fit he should play and should be on the pitch ahead of Hickey but it appears that Kear has a different view than me.