In a break from the usual column, Giants favourite Eorl Crabtree answers a range of questions submitted by fans to the Examiner.

Why do you think the Giants haven’t made such a strong start to the season this time around?

To be honest, there are a combination of reasons for that, and I could probably fill the entire newspaper if I mentioned everything!

But, for a start, we have changed quite a few things in respect to the way we’re playing. We all know if we didn’t change anything we’d just stand still.

So there have been slight changes in our tactics and obviously in player personnel as well.

There’s no doubt at all that our new signings, Chris Bailey, Jodie Broughton and Antonio Kaufusi, are quality players and quality people who will help make us a better team.

But we are still at the stage where we’re learning about them and they’re learning about us – that’s never a process that’s completed overnight (just ask Salford on that one!) – and that it is only a matter of time before everything comes together.

The bottom line, however, is that we’re just not playing to our full potential, either as a team or as individuals.

But it will come, we know that 100%

Head coach Paul Anderson was confident this season’s bulked-up Giants pack would dominate the opposition forwards. Why hasn’t that really happened?

It’s true we haven’t smashed our rivals’ packs as much as we’d hoped, and that’s probably another of the reasons why we haven’t started the season as strongly as we would have wished.

It was all about size at the beginning of the year for us, because that’s something we felt we were lacking a little last season, even though we did enjoy a considerable amount of success, of course.

But it’s obviously going to take a lot more than simply bulking-up and trying to smash the opposition to guarantee success at this level. Opponents soon wise-up to that sort of approach, because they’re all too smart to just let their rivals come along and smash the life out of them.

Success in the forwards is down to having the right balance of size, power, speed and skill, and if you get that mix right you’re well on the way to achieving your objectives.

For example, how can you expect to use your size to get over the opposition if you’re too slow or keep dropping the ball? It’s just not going to happen.

But I think everyone saw with the way we got the better of the Salford pack on Good Friday that we’re starting to get that balance right.

Salford have a formidable pack at their disposal. On paper, they have to be one of the strongest and experienced around.

Yet on the day, we were too good and too strong for them, hence the final scoreline of 42-22.

Those are steps in the right direction in anyone’s book.

Do you think Danny Brough would have made a more effective start to the season if he didn’t have the added responsibility of being captain?

Well, it certainly didn’t seem to affect him last season!

I suppose that school of thought developed because Broughy hasn’t been on fire so far this season, but I don’t think anyone here thinks the captaincy has anything to do with it whatsoever.

For a start, I think everyone would agree the added responsibility of the captaincy has taken Broughy’s game to the next level. He really has thrived on it.

Having said that, even though Broughy has the title, he’s certainly not the only ‘captain’ who’s actually out on the field during a game.

Instead, we have a group of senior players who effectively take the lead, players like Luke Robinson, Brett Ferres, Scott Grix and myself. David Faiumu is also included in that group when he’s around.

Furthermore, I think it would be wrong to single out Broughy for why we’ve slipped up in a number of games.

After all, how can we expect him to lead us to victory if the forwards aren’t providing an attacking platform or the backs are coming up with uncharacteristic errors?

In other words, it’s the way we’re playing – or not playing – as a team that’s causing our downfall, not the failings of one or two individuals.

How’s Paul Anderson been straight after a game when you’ve been losing?

He’s a typical coach, who can be harsh but fair.

If he thinks our attitude has been wrong and has been un-Giantslike he’ll certainly go off on one, and rightly so.

But, on the other hand, if he felt we’d given it our best shot and were unlucky not to win, he’ll be fair with us.

In other words, it’s a case of getting the balance right, and Baloo does manage that. He’s very honest in his assessment, and that’s what players like and respect.

For instance, when we lost to St Helens in the Challenge Cup in such controversial circumstances the other week, he told us not to worry about it. He praised the way we had played, and said we deserved to win, which was all he could have asked from us.

And on that Saints point, have you spoken to referee Phil Bentham since he ruled out Danny Brough’s late drop-goal attempt which would have won you the tie?

I’ve not seen him since, although I’m sure he wouldn’t want to see any of us anyway!

To be honest, he seems to have gone under the radar since that game, which I’m sure is no coincidence at all.

But when I do see him next, I certainly won’t be out of order with him, and I don’t think any of the other boys will kick-off with him, either.

The best thing we can do as a group is put it all behind us and focus on what really matters, and that’s working on making the improvements required to get us playing to our full potential.

Generally, how is the relationship between players and referees?

Unfortunately, I’d have to say it’s reasonably poor, which is a real shame.

There are times when we’re out on the field when we do feel the referees talk down to us.

I’ve got a lot of respect for the job they do. There’s no way I’d ever have the bottle to be a referee, because you know that every decision you make is going to be popular with one team and its fans and unpopular with another. And a lot of those decisions are incredibly tough to make, particularly as they have to be made in a split second.

As I said, I do respect them for what they do, but at times I just don’t think that respect is mutual.

What do you think about the standard of this season’s Super League competition so far?

It’s been a great start with some high-quality games.

It would obviously have been even better had we not had the likes of London Broncos and Bradford Bulls struggling so much at the foot of the table.

But the battle for the top eight already looks a very exciting one, with some top-quality clubs facing the prospect of missing out on a play-off spot come the end of the season.

And it’s pretty obvious there are still a lot of twists and turns to come before we know who’ll win the Leaders’ Shield and who’ll be crowned Super League champions.

Until last weekend, for example, there were some who thought Saints could go through the season undefeated, but they then lost two games on the trot over Easter, while Castleford continue to exceed everyone’s expectations. Can they maintain their challenge?

It really is an interesting competition.

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