Well given we’ve already lost the last seven and haven’t lost this one yet, it kind of is I suppose.



But in all honesty it isn’t setting the bar very high.



It shouldn’t be a lambs to the slaughter 17, but of the four players widely considered key pre-season to our chances (Lunt, McGuire, J. Carney and Masoe) none are chosen/available. Hopefully McGuire will make his derby debut in 2019. And those ‘chances’ were, realistically, of getting 8th.



I liked it better back in the day when we used to argue about who had the stronger team. At least, now and then, it’s usually us that are right. Yay.

Ooh they won't like that sort of factual analysis. Awkward.

Don't be silly. You seem to be saying only 4 on Dave's list would be selected. Palpable nonsense. Get that champagne on ice, relax & enjoy your first derby win since Easter 2015. Sheens is better than Morgan, right, and look how he dealt the derbies, we could scarcely buy a win then.

Rovers backs look like they'll be shocking. Gotta get Carlos and Griffin some early ball so they've got a bit of space in front of them to work with. And little crash balls to Faraimo coming back on the angle near the line I reckon can pay off well.

It’s weak and even Dave has had the good grace to admit it’s a bit of a wind up.



But let’s say, for the sake of argument, that it is a good argument - it also applies in reverse to several of your posts.







IMO, the motivational ability of the coaches isn’t anywhere near as important as the teams available to them. I think this narrative was born out of a reluctance of Hull fans to accept that we had a better team than them, back when we did. If we’re going to borrow a BS argument from those times I think it should be to do with Karma and Kelly, which at least has the virtue of sounding like a briefly successful late-1980s pop duo.



Hull have pushed on, as evidenced by two cup wins and successive top 4 finishes. They’ve dropped back a bit this year admittedly, and we look to be competently run under Sheens, with a proper understanding of what we need to do to improve, so have hopefully turned the corner. We’re still a fair distance from crossing over, but over 80 minutes it’s not impossible. However, we’d need a more favourable set of circumstances to get to ‘very possible’ or ‘likely’.

It is, but there is no way you have 13 out who would make your best 17 and we have 6 big players, you have 5 players banned, so I'd say injuries to key players are about the same

I think if we win our next 10 games, there's a very good chance we'll be Super League champions, it's that simple.

I know. If those BIG 5 had been available you'd have been world champions we all know.



Another day another PhD on the shark's injury crisis in the local paper. Get over it. You have had two good seasons and won cups because your 1,6,7 and 9 didn't miss a game with an injury for those two seasons.

Typical of your terrible sense of entitlement that when it goes wrong half your lot blow their dummies into orbit. Best thing I thought Radford did was address this but looks like it's not gone away.



We have our first choice 2,3,4,5,6,8,9,11,12,13, and 16 not available today 4 making their debut. Only Quinlan, Atkins, Blair and Mulhern would be in our starting 17 for sure. Maybe Jewitt, Scruton, on the bench. Yeaman was better prepared than all of ours when he played in the last derby. At least he knew the plays and defensive set up. It was worth him playing just to see him try and pass it again. That pass for the winger who had a walk in was priceless.



I miss the days when Newton made a mug of him each derby.





Derby just what you need after that wretched humiliation at Wakefield.



Your forwards will bully our ineffective back row. Sharks by 20-30.

Maybe. We have fewer 'big' players to start with, so the loss of those we do have is more of a problem. Basically, one of our challenges is that you have a better team.



It's a good game for bans to fall, if we had to get them, so I'm not going to moan about that - it doesn't help our chances any though.



Who are your 'big 6' missing btw? Kelly and Connor, I'll give you, but if you're including Hadley, Bowden, Green and Westerman it's a bit of stretch - no disrespect to them, but they're hardly your stars.

Tonight is go with:



Shaul

Faraimo

Griffin

Tuimavave

Talanoa

Harris

Sneyd

Taylor

Houghton

Matongo

Manu

Mini

Abdull



Paea

Fash

Washy

Lane/Downs



I really don't think that's too bad a team and with the diatripe that was served up last week, I fully expect that team to win tonight. Which worries me, I hate being confident before a derby