111 The DENTISTS DIARY.
I had a fabulous night at Headingley on Friday, it rained, we got beaten and the traffic was horrendous, but after the performance’s of earlier in the year, the effort, commitment and sheer determination of my team in the first 60 minutes was great!
From the moment I saw Danny Tickle being physically sick during the warm up, I knew they were really focussed on this one! OK we were beaten by the best team in the world by a clear 16 points, but when we arrived to hear that Washy and Raynor were both added to the list of the injured, I think we would have settled for that. We were literally down to the last 17 men standing! At 18-0 up after half an hour, the fans were in fairyland!!!! Unfortunately so were some of the players.
Most of us knew that would not last, but we could perhaps just have won, I believe, if we had stuck to our game plan. However when we were 3 tries up, the younger members of the team suddenly started to believe, so much so, that instead of being a bit more adventurous as Richard Agar had requested, they became so flamboyant the game plan went right out of the window. Leeds spotted this and they were in! We made errors, the Ref. became inconsistent and we gave away penalties, suddenly we were under the cosh.
If we had stuck to the no penalties, 6 drives, a good kick and the in your face gang tackle defence of the first 30 minutes, we might just have won. But to sustain what we saw in that period, after that massive effort at Bradford, would really have been too big an ask. Unforced errors and penalties conceded were our eventual, and I suppose predictable, undoing!
Still a great performance by a team who before the kick off were choosing between Hall, Dowes and Tickle to fill in at halfback!
A turning point, well who knows? We have had so many false dawns this season. However one thing is for sure in the last three games we have shown that we are definitely heading in the right direction! The passion and wanting is back, and we can ask no more!
In this weeks Diary we will look back to Headingley, at were Kingy is likely to be playing his Rugby next season, and at our possible next Assistant coach. Then there is news on Calderwood, the Cup semi-final venue and ticket fiasco, the departing Pop Lakin and a look back at the most memorable point in his career, Johnny Whiteley and the Freedom of the City. Plus there is Washbrook about to sign? Taxi for Judas, Burying the hatchet Blunderside style, James Rule, Sharpy’s demise, Carvell, Thackerey, Jowitt and much much more!
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The journey to Headingley, was again, as was the previous weeks to Odsal, one of hope rather than expectation. Amongst the thoughts going through my head were how we would miss Berrigan, how we would turn round from that mammoth performance at Bradford and quite frankly how we would ever keep the score down. However I also thought, amongst other things, that if Washy continued his good form, and Raynor could get away, we stood a chance of at least competing. When we arrived and found that they were both declared unfit in the lead up to the game, I was really worried. The fact that Richard Agars post match comments included the phrase “At least we had 17 fully fit players out there” was indicative of the fact that the days of playing half fit players week in week out are past. He would I believe, rather have fully fit youngsters, than seasoned professionals playing on one leg! After watching the game on Friday, I would tend to agree with him.
Our game plan, obviously hatched by the master tactician Mr Agar, was nothing short of inspirational. We were in the Loiner’s faces from the first set of six and it was only when we got 18-0 up, veered away from the master plan and became, perhaps, a bit over confident, that we started to come apart! In the first half hour we played good forward stuff in the first couple of tackles, ran at the gaps rather than the players, and protected our only real kicker, Adam Dykes, who was able then to despatch the ball well on the fifth or sixth tackle. There is no doubt that Leeds did not like it in their faces at all, and our defensive tactics of getting into their line fast and gang tackling their forwards certainly took them by surprise!
Then, we got a bit too casual, one or two of the less experienced lads seemed to think it was won already, and it was a tale of unforced errors and conceded penalties, which were, in the end, our downfall! Thaler did not help either swinging from a measured and steady approach to the first quarter to dishing out some strange decisions! It is at these time’s that you need a Kierney or, dare I say Crocker, on the pitch to get everyone’s feet back on the ground! Most of us always knew that Leeds would come back, and they did, but for me it was another gutsy performance full of passion and endeavour and that’s all we can ask at present!
We had just one kicker and playmaker on the field and I thought that Adam Dykes had a great game. He was sin binned, but only for holding down and effectively saving a try! He was into everything, although in the second half I wondered why he persisted in trying to run the ball on the sixth tackle, rather than kicking it deep! Still I thought he played well and coped well with the responsibility placed on his shoulders! Skinny Byrne however is fast becoming my player of the season. He put in another classy display at full back and showed again what an asset he is, even when the game was lost he chased everything and was sound at the back.
I thought Yeamo was a bit quiet at times but tackled and drove from first man well, and Hall, who tried really hard at half back and looked sharp at times was mostly good, he should however never turn his back on a tackle he thinks is complete, never ever!!!!!
Sing, always trying hard, ran the ball back well and had a second good game under the high kicks, whilst Graham Horne had another exceptional match, being at the centre of lots of good play and taking his try well!
For me though the pick of the backs had to be young Briscoe on the wing. What a game he had. That afternoon he was sitting the second of two A level papers, and he had done another two the day before! However he stood up to the plate magnificently, tackled really well, made a couple of half breaks and in one sensational scurry back in the first half saved a certain try when Leeds’s fast hands left him stranded two on one on our left hand side. He never looked out of place at all!
The forwards were, for the most part, magnificent. I wondered if they could sustain the level of intensity that they showed at Bradford, but for well over an hour they did just that! Dowes had another good game at prop as did Scott Wheeldon, whilst Thackerey and Carvell, (the latter however perhaps to a lesser extent than at Bradford), caused the Leeds defence a lot of problems. It was however I thought, Danny Tickle’s best performance of the season. His goal kicking was spot on and his forward play and running with the ball, top notch. He took his try really well too! Willie Manu, although watched closely by the Leeds forwards, was not too far behind and Radford again got stuck right into the Leeds six where it hurt! Danny Houghton stayed the pace very well and looked classy shooting out of dummy half and recently recalled Matty Dale got through a mountain of work! Mike Burnett too deserves mention for a tough display.
The referee Mr Thaler, as I said, had a good first half, when he let the game flow, but he became picky and inconsistent in the second. However a missed “Sing tackled in the air” incident in the first half and a ridiculous off side against Dykes in the second cost us dearly!
In the end it was not even a case of “Close but no Cigar” because in fairness by the seventieth minute, we had run out of petrol, hope and ideas. But that’s Leeds for you, you just cannot let them get on a roll. However if you compare our showing with the home game against the same opponents, it was a big improvement. The passion and team spirit is certainly back and as a supporter you can ask for little more! I enjoyed the banter on the terraces as about 2500 FC fans stayed, to a man, to the end to applaud the lads effort! Just down the row was James Webster, or as some would have it, our assistant coach elect, and he seemed to enjoy the game too!
So what was happening in another busy week in the life of our club. Well, the hand of Richard Agar was seen for the first time as he changed things around in the camp a bit this week, and had Richard Whiting and Richard Horne involved in the video analysis work on future opponents and past performances. There is no doubt that Agar wants everyone to be involved and doesn’t want the past practice of injured players being marginalised, if they cannot train, to continue. It’s a family approach to everything the squad does now and, for me that can only benefit us in the future!
The cup draw was a big plus for the club and I would not be surprised if we do not out number the Wakey fans at least 3 to one on the day, if the RL let us. It’s the good news and bit of luck that we have been waiting for I think! At first glance it is the easiest draw we could have hoped for, but for me, as is always the case at the semi final stage of the competition, fraut with problems. John Kear has the Indian sign when it comes to the cup, and Danny Brough will be all out to make fools of us, to no doubt try to prove a point to our board and coaching staff.
I mean to say, if it was Leeds or Saints we would have some hope, but if we are honest, not a lot! With Wakey it is a case of expectation in some cases, outstripping reality! Only one of us can win, and if that is not the FC, we will feel a lot more let down than if we had been beaten by the Saints or the Rhino’s. It’s a real pressure match for the coach and the Directors this one! The season hinges on it! It’s a sort of a master and apprentice tussle too, but it’s a semi final and I can’t wait!!!!
The announcement of the venue for the game was greeted with some consternation in both Cities, as fans panicked about being able to get seats at the match. The RL wheeled out some well-rehearsed arguments about average gates at previous finals, but I believe personally on this occasion that they have got it woefully wrong! Why, well if you consider that this is Wakey’s first semi appearance for almost 30 years and it is the make or break game of our season, I would expect more fans than usual to travel to the game.
Then, for me, with average gates of 13,000 at the KC and 6000 at Wakefield, the Rugby League should at least ensure that each and every one of those supporters has the OPPORTUNITY to attend! I know they all will not, but when you substitute those who do not want to go, with bandwagoners, of whom, I am told the resurgent Wakey are expecting a lot, then 20,000 would be about right! Don’t get me wrong because the Doncaster venue is a great little ground, little being the operative word though!
The rumours about the ticket allocation being 2 for Wakey pass holders and one for FC pass holders were unconfirmed at the time of the Diary being published. However the fact that Wakey are now selling mini season tickets on the pretext that those purchasing these tickets will also get allocated a semi final ticket is interesting indeed.
So what was wrong with Headingley or a double header weekend at the Galpharm? Once again the RL parachute something into the midst of the supporters without any thought for their needs and well being, and the clubs are left to pick up the pieces! If less than 15,000 attend then the League’s decision is vindicated however, if just one fan from either club misses out on being able to get a ticket then I believe, for the sake of a slightly larger venue, the RL have goofed again!!
It was interesting to hear what Jamie Thackerey had to say, in the RL press last week, about his return to the club! He said how amused he was when the Faithful sang “FC reject” to him at the Leeds game last season. He explained this was because what actually happened at the time of his move, was that he went to Peter Sharp and asked if the club would release him to go to his home town team of Leeds. Sharpy said he would, if it was what Jamie really wanted, but warned him that the other man’ grass is not always greener. Thacks agreed that Sharpy was right in the end, and went on to say how happy he was to be back and how much he was enjoying playing in front of the FC fans again. He is desperate to get a contract for next year and I think he is now playing as well as he did in his first spell for us!
I would give him a deal tomorrow, but Mr Agar wants to monitor him for a while! I would keep him myself!
Good to see ex FC player Warren Jowitt being named as the new coach at Dewsbury this week!
I hinted in the Diary last week, as much as I could, that the media ban on Radio Humberside was about to be lifted. Of course the Sports editor and his Rugby League staff were nowhere near the discussions that took place with the club, they were conducted at a much higher level than that. In fact, I am told that the BBC’s regional supremo’s were involved in the talks and the eventual resolution.
For me, well, I welcome the lifting of the ban, if only because it gives us once again all the means possible of reaching our supporters and customers. I also know that some of the out of town supporters have difficulty getting access to KCFM and so having Humberside, warts and all, is better than hearing nothing about their club! It is a step forward, and I will try and embrace the new regime and follow the clubs lead, I will give them a chance, but will always be watchful of their attitude to my club!
However, you can call me bitter and twisted, but although now moving on, I will not forget for a long time the way they handled the Judas affair and the relish with which they tried to poke fun at me and the rest of the FC Faithful at that time! Nor will I forget the “Peter Sharp is Toast” incident. Lets hope they have learnt their lesson. One thing is for sure as a totally biased and fanatical FC supporter, if I think they have got it wrong, or are showing any bias, I will not be sparing them in this Diary!!!
An unprecedented hour and a half phone in with James Rule on Sports Talk heralded our welcome back into the media fold at the BBC, last Wednesday. They really pushed the boat out and with Messr’s Lloyd and Burns conspicuous by their absence, I thought it was a great show. Of course James Rule was his usual cagey self about contracts and transfer deals but once again, you really could not fault his performance. He was honest, answered all the questions, and came across very well. I have said before that I like his style, and his no nonsense approach to public relations, and that, once again, came through in the programme.
The fact that he alluded to Danny Washbrook as being “there or there about’s” with regard to his contract talks, was great news and his “Never say never” comment on Balsawood’s possible arrival at the club for next year will also fire the rumour mill again. Some of the more incidental stuff was interesting though, particularly the comment about us making a profit in the last two years and being one of the only Super League clubs to do that. I did a bit of digging at the weekend and I believe that there was only ourselves and one other club that made a profit last year and the other was certainly not from this City!!
On the subject of Gareth Carvell, our Chief Executive re-stated that the deal was the very best the club could offer, and included a benefit after 3 years! He said that the deal was still on the table but that he had not heard recently from Gareth’s agent, so it was just a case of wait and see! He also prepared us for the worst, by saying that people would without doubt, leave the club from time to time. Personally I want Gareth to stay, but not at the expense of breaking our pay structure. That would, in my opinion, be unfair on the rest of the players who have signed up already.