Lineham picked up a knock, so I wouldn't risk him next week.

Maybe give Naughton a run on the wing.

Blimey. Bit injury-prone is Tom.

And if Naughton is sat on the sidelines for most of the season (when we needed an extra prop much more) doing knack-all then yes, pointless signing..or did you not bother to actually read what I'd written?


It's got nothing to do with Radford, it's got everything to do with having a balanced squad and where we need cover most..Naughton's position/s isn't.
If we've kept Rankin, Cunningham and signed Michaels plus having 2 Academy wingers that have already had 1st grade experience plus Logan and Yeaman for cover in the centres then what was the point in signing another utility back (accepted he's primarily a FB). Jordan Thompson has being given the utility back tag by the club so can you not see that we have too many back and not enough props??

No, because neither of you two can see past your petty childishness instead of focusing on a good player and team performances..pathetic

Naughton seems a little short and stocky to be a winger, hopefully will get to see him at FB for at least 40 minutes next week. Lancaster should play if Lineham's a doubt.

Got a chin to rival Gaz Ellis too!

But a good player is a good player. We saw he had great potential, and he was fairly cheap, so we took a punt. What if he turns out to be a superstar and plays for England for 10 years, and we've let him go to sign a 6th choice prop?

Anyone know how Mini went today? I'm expecting big things from this guy.

Only got on for the last 20 mins. Could be a fans' favourite judging by his interaction with the fans when he came on. Seriously solid looking player will add much physicality to the right side.

First game standouts for me were Abdull (who looks real class) and Naughton while he was on. Tough for the young lads up front against some big championship forwards but they stood up well. Second game was men against boys and it's tough to glean too much however our halves looked fairly fluid. Shaul was class and Sa was unstoppable for any York player who attempted it. Talanoa looked in great shape also. Sneyd has a kicking game we haven't seen for years. If he stays fit it will transform our attacking options.

whisper it quietly but we might just have found 2 half backs. thought they had an excellent understanding today and got us round the park efficiently.

shaul was superb today, lightning out of the back line. hope our halves can give him some running opportunities this season, but it is in broken field where he truly excels

like the look of minicello - reminded me a bit of paul rose

rocks and diamonds from the younger players in the first game. great start but perhaps predictably donnys more experienced players got to grips with the ruck resulting in a lot of penalties and field position conceded for holding down/interfering. abdul was terrific, clear man of the match.

there is a chance rankin might not be too bad, possibly a hyper extension or a stinger type injury, we'll have to wait and see

the games also featured perhaps the worst stadium pa announcer of all time

How is thomson a utility back. ? He's not played backs for us once has he? He's played mostly as an unorthodox prop. And been outstanding at it, a revelation even. Also great in the back row. We've got 5 front line props. B t wilson coming through. Thomson as mentioned. N Ellis will probably have game/spells there if only to make space to give 1 of the many young back rows a game/game time

Hahaha - he made Clarkey sound like a pro. I cannot even begin to describe some of the players names he read out but I'm sure we had a "Mark Mini Metro" playing for us. And as for Feka...

And they were getting so exasperated with the driver of that coach

Echo what people have said. I think it was a good hit out for the full squad. Only downsides are the injuries to Rankin and Lineham, although Tom was taken off as a precaution so hopefully there's not much to it.

The announcer brightened up a cold day though. "Setaimata" "Tala, talan,talanoa" "Michinello" "Bobby Tyson-Williams"

We have enough props. Whether or not they are of sufficient standard is a different question, but in pure numbers we have enough. If we were looking to add one it certainly shouldn't be in the same pay bracket as I'd expect Naughton to be.

I am focusing on a good player in Naughton thanks,Rankins picked up a injury and we don't know how bad it is so good job we signed him as no cover at FB if we didn't.As for props,we have 5 plus BTW and Ellis can do a job if need be so not concerned at all.Im happy with the squad balance we have.

he was in the pub - he said i'll go back after i've finished my 5th pint

Found the York game on Youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7BmcmnFHChA Picture not great but still good watch

Found the York game on Youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7BmcmnFHChA Picture not great but still good watch

thanks for that

Paul Cookes take on the first game. Makes good reading for the Hull youngsters. www.doncasterrugbyleague.co.uk/a ... -was-a-bit All the best for the upcoming Season

Paul Cookes take on the first game. Makes good reading for the Hull youngsters. www.doncasterrugbyleague.co.uk/a ... -was-a-bit All the best for the upcoming Season

Quote ="AirlieJo"Found the York game on Youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7BmcmnFHChA Picture not great but still good watch'" Great find. Thanks for posting the link. Praise the Lord (the wife) for a 50" smart telly. Watching it now with a nice sauvignon blanc from that there Chile.

Quote ="AirlieJo"Found the York game on Youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7BmcmnFHChA Picture not great but still good watch'" Great find. Thanks for posting the link. Praise the Lord (the wife) for a 50" smart telly. Watching it now with a nice sauvignon blanc from that there Chile.

There were 2 different announcers..

Good news for Jordan Rankin with shoulder not as bad as feared. Will be fine for start of season, looking at 2 weeks out.

Great news Wilf think FB may be the most hotly contested position this year with three strong contenders.

Watched the York game last night, like others Sa really stood out and when Shaul came on he looked unplayable and really set his marker down for the FB spot.

Was also impressed with BTW in his limited time, ran well and but a couple of big hits in, I would have no hesitation about him playing a few SL games, some gametime at Donny will also help him.

I know it was only against York, but you can really see what an intelligent half Sneyd is, he was doing things that no other halfback we have had in the last few years does, some of the things he didn't come off (and this will happen next season), but I will stick my neck out and say he will be one of our best ever signings, he just had such a good brain and he gives the runners so many options.

Hooker is still my big concern, no idea why Cunningham didn't play at hooker and at times he looked a spare part on the field.

I reckon we are planning to go with Houghton for the 80, which I think could be a big mistake.

Slightly disagree with this, Dave.

I've been a bit of a critic of Houghtons speed of thought, but watching the York game, he looks to be a bit sharper. It's his passing that needs to improve. Some of the passes are quite high - meaning he's trying to pass too quickly and losing accuracy. Cunningham should be given a start against Rovers to give us an indication of his ability. Then Howarth, then Danny.

Overall, with the York game, it was very rough, but I was pleased with the options we had in attack and in particular with Fetuli and Setaimata. Both will be devastating this year. Hardly speed merchants, but their wingers will devour the chances.

Shaul gets better, his individual try was pure skill and balance. The battle between Shaul, Naughton and Rankin for fullback is mouth-watering.

I'm heading towards optimism again, but bloody hell, it's a long way to go.

That's quite a claim for a bloke that's played 80 mins in a friendly against a part time club. You could be hailed as a visionary, or ridiculed as a prat by the time summer comes.