Wires71:BarbedWire2:Wires71:BarbedWire2:matt_wire:
Can this be described as 'must win' yet? I think every game is, now.
Yes. We need to win this, and if we can get a bit of a bounce and get some points off Hull top 6 pretty much ours position to lose.
When you say "top 6" you surely mean 6th (or 5th at a push) place? Higher than that is out of reach even if we were playing well.
I’m not sure the difference between sixth and third is significant. Leeds may be too far ahead, Leigh have Catalan this week and then go to Leigh so could break away that top four or drop back into the middle block.
But it’s all about us. The teams around us play each other, and we play them too. We can beat Huddersfield, aim up against Hull and we can get them, then two banana skins in Salford and Catalan. 6 points out of 8 gets you in the driving seat. 8 points out of 8 and we’re pretty comfortable.
Yes we may make an away play off game to make up the numbers, but only the most ardent supporter would think we are seriously challenging for a GF win.
Why couldn’t we? Theres no doubt we can compete in big games, it’s about how we arrive there and whether we can be in a better position to back up after a big game.
By play offs, we should have Dufty and Walker back, having had Williams have a substantial rest mid season. Our best players could arrive fit and healthy at the important bit.
The potential third game, a grand final, is a side pot. Form, table position and energy level go out of the window. It’s two back to back that is the issue. We haven’t proved that we can do that, but there is strong evidence that we can beat teams in one off events.
The next 5 weeks are vital. We need to pick up the points from Huddersfield, (ideally) Hull, Salford, Catalan and Cas. 8 points minimum, from there it’s a different outlook.
