Zook Ema's Hose wrote this post a while ago. Whilst it's not a bad post by his standards, it unfairly distorts the perceived comparisons between his Hull KR team of last year, comprising the so called departed "superstars" he mentions and the team of 2017 and its newly arrived replacements minus the new Aussies. He is already dismissing and disrespecting these new arrivals as substandard, having never seen them perform under a new proven, world-class coach in their new team colours.



He was rightly pilloried on here for being delusionally over optimistic on our chances in the middle 8s last year when he intimated we would breeze it, provided we just turned up. Problem was we didn't turn up and the rest is history. Also Campese, Kelly, Larroyer and Green didn't turn up for us in the middle 8s for various identifiable reasons as well.



Now he has lurched unsurprisingly to the other end of the spectrum and is the new prophet of doom.



The problem is he doesn't understand the psyche of most Rovers fans. We are conditioned to disappointment and battle hardened to under achievement, especially during this decade.



Given a new approach and a fresh dose of sanguine reconstruction on the field this year, we are right to look forward for now with some optimism to this season. Taking automatic promotion as a given, no way.

The Championship has improved dramatically,both financially and competitively.As a squad you have proven players who will meet some of the best unproven players.What worked in SL for the proven players,wont carry in the championship..



You will take a beating,you wont walk it,you will complain.How thats dealt with is where you end up.

How could you possibly know all those things

Well have plenty of salary cap left over for the middle eights by the looks of it but will we have any quota spots free, does anyone know how many quota places you get and how many we've filled?

We get the same allowance as sl sides apparently I can only think of 5 we have used?

It's a bit more complicated than 'just 7', but for simplicity's sake I'm going to say 7.



We have Blair, Tilse, Clark, Heffernan, Quinlan and Butler-Fleming. There's been rumours of an antipodean prop as well, which'd fill the quota up.*



*Exceptions and vagueries apply.

So if say we sign Shillington, then come the middle 8's I'd guess we'd be looking at bringing in a few squad players from S/L sides, seems a strange way to go about it IMO, personally I'd rather have kept at least one quota spot available

Did tim sheen say we could sign 1 posts 2 on loan cos a few clubs have offered players that is why tim went to see cas

Where did this shillington rumour come from? Hala was obviously linked before hand I know they're different players but we would be pretty foolish to max out the quota before the 8s.....

It wasn't a rumour tim sheen openly stated he wants to sign shillington but would bide time, he is recovering from surgery so not proved fitness also shillington being released from current club

He had a cracking season just gone apparently. Pretty sure we where after him last season and took the cheaper option of Tilse?

According to an interview I read, he had his bags packed ready to join us, but got a last minute NRL offer. Following his decision to stay in Aus we then approached Tilse.