Time gentlemen, as Noble, Crooks and Powell deliver expert verdicts

Brian Noble: Yes. But the question isn’t is there too many games? It’s about the quality. Are we where we were when we started 15 years ago? I’m not sure that over the last couple of years the standard has been as high as it has been. We’re getting some ordinary games now when we didn’t before but am I looking forward to it kicking off? Yes. Definitely. It’s about time we saw some rugby.

lee crooks: We’re trying to expand the game without the quality of the players so the player system gets diluted. If you have less teams – 10 perhaps – but higher quality players you’d have better quality games. The one good thing to come out of the last two years is more young English players getting the opportunity to play at an earlier age. That bodes well but what you’ve found is if we have too many of those players at one particular time it doesn’t work and you see 40 point scorelines.

daryl powell: There’s the right quality of players coming through and we should be at a better point now than where we are. If you look at Hull KR and the way they are getting people through on passports it can’t be right. I argued the point years ago when I was at Leeds that clubs have got to make a stance about the quota. Just because you can get them in doesn’t mean you should. I don’t think they (Rovers) have changed for years. I was going to sign there as a young kid, a time when you had a full team of overseas players. We’re still not far off that now.

DC: Wigan seem to have only got stronger. Who is going to challenge them?

BN: There’s a bit of a north-west axis. There’s Wigan, Warrington are strong, Saints have recruited well and I don’t think you can go away from those. Leeds have dome some recruiting with Weller Hauraki out of the Crusaders, who is a very good player, and Ben Cross. They have beefed up because Peacock’s not there but they’re going to miss McGuire for sure.

DP: It will be interesting as there’s also six new coaches. There’s going to be changes in philosophies. Everyone’s talking real well about what’s happening at Saints.

BN: Crooksy’s here and there’s a big expectancy on the Hull clubs. Rovers have recruited well – albeit with overseas players! – and Hull.

lc: Although it galls me to say it, looking at both Hull clubs, at the moment Rovers look stronger.

BN: Depends which pub you go in!

lc: But I think again it’s about the injury situation and strength in depth. Hull’s problem is they’ve got no creativity in the halves and that’s what Rich (Agar) has been looking for for some time. There needs to be someone who can do something out of the ordinary and it’s just not there. We all know Richard Horne is more of a support, strike player while Longy is the leader guiding the team around but after that they have got nothing.

dp: He’ll look at Westerman to be more creative won’t he?

dc: Well, Rich is saying this first year – of a four year contract – is going to be him settling him.

BN: There’ll be none of that trust me – if you lose three games on the bounce there’s three blokes around this table who will tell you there’s no settling in! Get out there and win some!

lc: Joe is a footballer and he’s in the back-row so there might be some creativity down one side but what about the other? You’ll see him gravitate to the middle. He wants to be a loose forward and has the skill to be but, unfortunately, as Terry Matterson eluded to last week, I think Joe needs to realise what being a professional is all about first.

DC: What are your thoughts on the Hull KR signing of Willie Mason?

BN: Great big hair! He’s had some off-field problems and that might be the challenge for Justin (Morgan) – making sure he’s here to play rugby. If he comes over to enjoy himself I’m not sure he’ll be the impact player people make him out to be.

dc: I remember Mark Carroll coming over with a big reputation and soon heading home...

BN: Mark Carroll never made the best statement did he, saying he was going to smash every Northern prop in the game. You had eight stone reserve graders trying to get a crack in!

dp: He played against Morley in his first game. It didn’t do him any good that!

BN: No doubt there’ll be a lot of attention on Mason but I think the other kid Rovers have signed – Blake Green – is a very, very good player. I tried to get him at Crusaders last season and was so close. He could have a similar type of impact as Mick Dobson did when he came to Catalans.

lc: Green is a great asset, Dobbo on his day is as good as anything but Rovers’ problem is whichever side he is he’s the go-to player and you know where the ball’s going. Green will help change that. Also, if anyone can handle him (Mason) Morgs is probably the right person. He’s very good at discipline, making sure people toe the line. If you don’t, you’re offski. Has he come over for a pension or to prove himself? If it’s the latter you could see some fireworks.

DC: Gary Hetherington has urged Leeds to play more attractive football this season but the opinion is he is aiming that at all clubs in a bid to get away from the dour ‘wrestle’. Does Super League need to quicken up?

BN: So via your medium, Gary has said “Expand the game for us Dave!” It’s out of a lot of coaches’ hands. One of the reasons the game has slowed down and there is less football is because of the quality of what’s done in the wrestle by the coach. But if you are going to allow it it can be quite dull.

dc: That’s my point. Is it important for Super League to avoid it – are we going to bore spectators to death?

BN: That’s a decision the centre has to make not coaches, clubs or Gary. Whoever is running rugby league – Nigel Wood and his football department – should be saying ‘This is our product, we want it this way, this is how we’re going to police the ruck.” Stuart Cummings will have to come down and not give coaches any chance at all to give reflection because I’m going to coach what I can get away with. Absolutely. And every coach will say the same. We’re going to do this because it will help us to win.

lc: The frustrating thing for a lot of people is how they bring initiatives in and they last six weeks then they are gone. What you’re playing to at the beginning of the season isn’t what you are playing to at the end.

dp: You have got to find a balance between good attacking play and getting the right to play the ball quickly and the balance has swayed a little towards the defensive element. Look at the way the Australians are playing – like we always do – and it’s a lot quicker. I watched a game from ‘91 when I was playing and it looked lightening quick compared to today’s because there was none of it at the ruck.

lc: Maybe there is a debate in speeding the play the ball but narrowing the 10 to eight or five metres, close the space down a little and at least give defences chance to go back.

BN: But the centre has to make the decision. They have to say what they want the game to look like. Don’t give 14 coaches the chance to change anything because they will to the best efforts of their team

lc: The game has done a complete turnaround. It’s gone from taking the lead saying we will do this because it’s in the best interests of the game to the mentality of saying you tell us what you want us to do. You can’t have that – the tail wagging the dog.

DC: Will this year be more about what happens off the pitch with the licences being awarded? Who should get in and who should miss out?

BN: It’s hard as we’re not privy to the criteria and inner sanctum of what’s happening at every club.

DP: There’s different agendas within the RFL as well in terms of traditional and expansion clubs.

LC: If you’d have asked me two years ago about Featherstone I’d have said they’re miles away but I’ve been down and seen what they and Daryl have done and it’s fantastic.

My only worry with regards Super League is whether they can bring in the right amount of people on a regular basis to support it.

dp: One of the key debates which nobody is having at the moment is is licensing the right way to go? There’s two clubs that have really struggled.

LC: It was brought in to stop what is actually happening now (clubs struggling financially).

dp: Last year I reckon our (Featherstone) average crowds would have been 4,000 if we’d have been able to get in to Super League but because people knew we couldn’t and there’s no immediate route up, there’s not the incentive for the fans to come.

BN: You’d have a chance if there was a play-off system. I’d make licensing every two years instead of three with play-offs where three or four clubs could get in and they play the team consistently bottom of Super League. We’ve got to improve the quality for the Super League to get better and go for 10 clubs because I don’t see your Daryl Powells or Lee Crooks’ or rather as many of them. I see the odd one or two and clutches at certain clubs, but not the number of high quality people coming through like there used to be.

DC: I think we’ve already touched on it but what can be done in Super League to improve the international side’s fortunes?

BN: Too many overseas players

dp: That’s a massive problem. Ultimately, licensing was brought in to create more stability as well but that should have allowed more young players to get opportunities. I know there’s arguments from the RFL and probably Steve McNamara saying ‘Yeah, but they don‘t want too many opportunities too soon otherwise they find it difficult and drop out the other end.’ There’s a balance to be got but there’s not enough is there?

At international level we are further away now than when we were playing. The coaching is better, the systems are in place but we’re still further away so something’s not right. We’re not getting what we’re trying to get.

DC: Which player should we watch out for in 2011?

dp: It’ll be interesting to see how James Roby goes with more time on the field and starting games. See if he has the same impact. I think he’ll be better.

lc: Hull’s Danny Houghton will go well and they have a good young centre – Liam Cunningham.

BN: Willie Isa could be a good signing for Castleford.

DC: And who’s going to win it?

dp: Warrington.

BN: He beat me to it. I’ll say Wigan then.

lc: St Helens.