Interesting isn’t it how Gale, Mellor, Martin, Dwyer, Myler, Briscoe respond for 2022.



You’d like to think they’ll work hard for their spots in the 17, one or two might even be extended.



They all have competition for their place that wasn’t there at the start of this season, and Sutcliffe must be looking over his shoulder too.



Also interesting if we get a new break-out next year. Nobody saw Gannon doing what he ended up doing.

Just for fun to demonstrate depth of squad.



Probables



1. Myler

2. Fusitua

3. Newman

4. Sutcliffe

5. Handley

6. Sezer

7. Gale

8.Oledski

9.Leeming

10. Prior

11. Bentley

12. Martin

13. Tetevano



Possibles



1. Walker

2.Briscoe

3.Broadbent

4. Edwards

5. Tindall

6. Austin

7. Johnson

8. Holroyd

9. Dwyer

10. Thompson

11. Mellor

12. Gannon

13. Smith



Interchanges



Sinfield

Hall

Mustapha

Donaldson

Walters

O Connor



Thats a decent squad with plenty of depth barring one more big man

And unless I’m mistaken all out of contract at end of 2022?

Briscoe, Newman, Gale, Mellor, Dwyer, Martin, Holroyd, Thompson, Broadbent, Austin, Mustapha, O’Connor all OOC.

Briscoe and Gale presumably retiring, Martin will be aiming for a new deal, Newman, Holroyd and Broadbent hopefully will get new deals announced early, Austin is playing for Gale's salary, Mustapha and O’Connor need to have big years to get renewed, Mellor and Thompson released with thanks for their efforts. Dwyer.... who knows.

What it really highlights is how the depth in quality we've got for 2022 is really likely to be short lived given the salary cap.



We have star young players who will very soon need upgrades and quality established players like Austin and Fusitu'a are being paid by Leeds below their market values, for now. Those circumstances won't last long so it's a very big year for the club.

There's a thread on the pies board about Sam Powell. It appears that a "quality hooker like Dwyer" is on the wish list of some of their fans. My first thought was to wonder what the hell Powell's been serving up but it then made me think that some of our "possibles" could actually land quite favourable deals elsewhere. Regardless, I think most with deals to shortly expire will go; I'm not sure we could get the incomers under the cap unless their contracts have been significantly backloaded.

You can't backload contracts under the cap.



Dwyer is an interesting one. I really don't think it works when he starts but he is a great bench player and we know he can really change a game. How much value does someone like that have on the open market? Hard to say but I'm pretty sure it's more than he is currently on given he has shown more since signing the current deal (and notwithstanding the crisp packet comments).

Having said that he does seem to place a premium on a stable environment so we may be able to extend without a significant upgrade - if we decide that's the route we want to go down. I suspect Wigan fans are seeing his good bits and assuming he's an outstanding all-round hooker, which he definitively isn't. He's also a Wigan lad but I wouldn't advise anyone to join that club right now.

As a Wakefield supporter looking from the outside.



I expect that Gale will leave, but even so that looks the strongest looking Leeds team that i have seen for a long time. You should definitely be right up there next season IMO.

So we are still a centre short , a metre making prop and a coach from being able to challenge Saints ( god help us if Briscoe is first choice centre )



How the hell Walker would get in before Myler is beyond belief

The prop is the only issue there. Like the club I've got a lot of faith in Sutcliffe being very, very good at centre next year - and very few people who have actually worked with him say Agar is anything other than an excellent coach.

Yeah I struggle with this too. He wasn't a top 4 full back before his injury, nor will he be on his return. And a side supposedly challenging for honours goes with its strongest spine. For me, that means Jack provides cover