Everyone seems to have an opinion which they are not shy about sharing. So with nothing to do this Valentine’s Day but wade through the pile of mail which will no doubt prevent me from getting back into my house this evening, I’m joining the debate.
The first point to make is that we are not quite sure whether Richardson will go on loan, or whether that was ever part of the plan for him. Mike Critchley of the St Helens Star wrote a piece yesterday (Wednesday) suggesting that Richardson would only be available to Leigh on dual registration. However, Lasttackle.com countered today with their view that a month-long stay at Leigh Sports Village was still very much on the cards. Either way it seems likely that Richardson will turn out in Leigh colours at some point soon, possibly in their home game with Featherstone Rovers this weekend.
That’s because Theo Fages is now the man in possession of the first team shirt. Richardson played almost an entire season at halfback for Saints in 2018 as they romped to the League Leaders Shield before falling flat on their collective face in the Super League semi-final against Warrington. While that was happening, Fages couldn’t even make the bench as a relief option at hooker for the Duracell-sponsored James Roby. The Frenchman seemed frozen out and it did not appear beyond the realms that he would start 2019 somewhere other than at Saints. Yet by the time of the season opener against Wigan Fages was in the starting line-up at halfback and Richardson, who coach Justin Holbrook told us had been suffering from a groin injury in pre-season, was nowhere to be seen. It’s quite a turnaround in fortunes for the pair.
We can argue until Wigan get off zero points in the Super League table about the rights and wrongs of replacing Richardson with Fages. It is what it is. In Justin We Trust. The argument for dropping Fages is dealt a further blow when you consider that Saints have opened with two wins out of two. They followed their 22-12 victory over Adrian Lam’s side with a 24-18 win at Wakefield last weekend. Fages was instrumental in both wins, to the point where the main criticism of excluding Richardson from the fans appears to be that Mark Percival missed a couple of goals. But you can no more include Richardson for his goal-kicking than you can drop him for his defensive frailties.
He’s not really in the team for either. It’s not the NFL where you can have 53 players in your squad and each one can have a very specialised role. Nor is it the halfbacks job to do the bulk of the defensive work. Arguably it requires more defensive solidity than Richardson currently provides, but equally nobody cried too loud if Sean Long missed a tackle or six during his pomp, not when he was tearing a strip off opposition defences at the other end. Despite comparisons to Long Richardson has not convinced at the nuts and bolts of the role, creating space, attacking the line, putting team-mates through holes and kicking intelligently in a tactical sense.
Not that Fages is anywhere near Planet Long in those areas either. The key thing might just be the Richardson injury that Holbrook has alluded to. There is a reasonable argument that suggests that if Richardson is fit enough to play for Leigh then he is fit enough to play for Saints, but if the opportunity is there to get some games to improve his match fitness without jeopardising the prospects of the first team then why not take it? Far from the interpretation that turning out for Leigh could signal the end of Richardson’s days in the red vee it could actually be an indication that Holbrook wants him ready for first team action sooner rather than later.
That’s why dual registration, as ludicrous a concept as it is, would be a significantly more sensible option than any loan deal. A loan deal has to be for a minimum of one month (28 days) and if agreed it means that the loaned player cannot play for his parent club until that 28-day period has expired regardless of whether he is turning out for the loaning club. That represents too big a risk. If Fages were to get injured then the halfback slot would have to be covered by one of Jonny Lomax or Lachlan Coote, neither of whom scream seven at you unless you're thinking in terms of the way Len Goodman does it. Beyond those two we would be entering the realms of letting a so far underwhelming Joseph Paulo play in the halves. Nothing in this world smells more like Jon Wilkin under Keiron Cunningham than that. Spare us, Justin.
There would be no need for loans or dual registration if the Super League clubs could bash their heads together and come up with a viable reserves competition. At the last count only Leeds Rhinos were against that idea. That is has not materialised is perhaps an insight into the amount of power held by Gary Hetherington and the Leeds club within the corridors of power in rugby league. All the other sides in favour of a reserve competition should have started one and just left Leeds out if they didn’t want to play ball. Or better still, the RFL could have done what it is there for and governed. If one club out of 12 won’t fall in line then tell them they either do so or face the consequences. But the RFL don’t tend to want to impose that kind of authority. Even the increasingly vocal Super League body under new head honcho Robert Elstone aren’t pushing too much for a reserve competition at the moment, so we are where we are with some regret.
The situation doesn't particularly help the Championship either. How healthy is it for the future of our game that a club like Leigh - a Super League club themselves less than two years ago and one of many fancied to be in contention for promotion to the top flight this year - need to rely on Saints to make their squad competitive? What does it say about the integrity of the Championship and the concepts of promotion and relegation if Leigh rock up to an important regular season or even playoff game with a boatload of Super League stars in their ranks? Dual registration may offer playing time and opportunities to Super League players who aren’t quite making the grade at their own clubs for one reason or another, but as it does so it denies others an opportunity to gain Championship experience which could aid their development into stars of the future.
Saints are not in action this week thanks to the double whammy of some absurd Challenge Cup rules and a minor squabble going on at the DW Stadium on Sunday night (February 17). Their next game is at home to the reserves-fearing Leeds Rhinos. Of the happy couple Fages looks a certain starter in that one while it’s a wait and see on whether Richardson can play himself back into the affections of Holbrook by impressing for the Centurions.
If he does go to Leigh I’m sincerely hoping it is just for a fling and not a long-lasting, meaningful relationship. Happy
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