You are being far too generous there. We dont defend any differently against Saints than anyone else and certainly make no special plans for Roby. We tackle well, control the collision, have 3 men in the tackle etc just like we do every game and that just happens to nullify Roby, and therefore Saints. We dont do it especially against Saints its just that Saints have no plan B when Roby is nullified.

Come on everyone knows it: Saints' only threat is Roby, so why wouldn't you base your game-plan around keeping him quiet?



Anyway why are you all jumping on an irrelevant point in terms of this thread?!

It really should come down to something as simple as Charnley and Goulding are an inform partnership at SL level so why split it up at international level?? McNamara really doesn't have a clue!! 1st he goes to Australia with a list of players who can play for England and now this!! Prepare for humiliation on home soil at RLWC2013

We dont though, we defend as normal and it doesnt really take any special treatment to keep Roby quiet. That just happens to mean that Saints dont get a quick play the ball and Roby cant do his trick. If he offered a little more in attack and was a little less predictable then maybe he wouldnt be so easy to nullify.

Well done for repeating yourself! Anyway the Roby thing has been discussed to death...



We should be looking at a team like this for the WC:



Tomkins

Briscoe/Hall/Charnley

Reed

Goulding/Atkins

Briscoe/Hall/Charnley

Widdop

Brough

Graham

Roby

Burgess

Ellis

Hock

O'Loughlin



Pretty impressive side I think.

If you keep making the same false claims then you will get the same answers









I agree, a fairly good side and probably the nest we can do, certainly any changes are much of a muchness and a matter of personal choice. I am still unsure on Brough, as I always feel like he goes missing in big games, but a goodkicking game is vital and he is easily the best kicker we have. This team also gets rid of the past it deadwood like I have been calling for, Peacock, Sinfield et al and average players like Jones-Buchanan and Wilkin. I cant see McNamara doing it though.

Gary Schofield's take on things and he speaks an awful lot of sense:



[urlhttp://www.dailystar.co.uk/rugby/view/256007/Steve-McNamara-has-missed-big-chance/#comments[/url



I find it amazing that McNamara can get his squad selection so wrong and Schofield picks up on just about everything most fans disagree with.

I think Schofield talks utter pap most of the time but the quote "It seems harder to get out of the current England set-up than into it" is absolutely nail on head.

I agree with every thing he has said there, I know he can be out of touch with the game but every point he makes is valid and it's what most England supports feel towards McBanana's selection policy.

Goulding should be in the squad, McIlorum on the other hand is playing well because he play behinds a winning pack every week, put Roby at wigan and he'd do a better job than him and put Macca at saints and he'd struggle tremondously.

Surely hookers are one of the main reasons why a pack is so successful? They are responsible for distribution and allowing the forwards to receive the ball at the right moment in time.



From what I've seen Saints have struggled against Wigan because Wigan have closed down Roby. When Saints play other teams Roby seems to do much better. McIlorum is one of the most important players in the Wigan pack and he has a big influence on how well the forwards perform.

At the end of the year the team has to be something like this



Tomkins

Charnley

Goulding

Reed

Hall

Widdop

Brough

Graham

McIlorum

Burgess

Hock

Ellis

O'Loughlin (capt)



Bench



Roby

Westwood

Mossop

Crabtree