Just sussed who he is, knew his mum st annes pier 1988 I know I was quick but it was cold.

Like father like son then

www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/rugby-league/21847269 Case closed.

www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/rugby-league/21847269 Case closed.

The DW is too big for the town. It needs 5000 less seats and the corners sorting.

It's still a tricky question.

Forget the whole 'selling your soul' argument (Which I wholeheartedly agree with, but let's forget it for a while) and look at the bigger picture.

There is an undeniable, and understandable, chasm between the level of RL played at SL and that where we are. With the best will in the world, as long as we've got PT players only, we can never match FT levels of skill and fitness.
If you took the Australian national team out of full time RL and made them work a day job before squeezing in their RL commitments, I'd fancy Wigan to have turned them over last night. Talent only gets you so far.

This is where the positives of the DC arrangement comes in. It allows us to have players who train to that level of intensity and talent, and it allows us a limited use of the scouting system that is built into professional RL sides. This in turn makes for more attractive RL, which in turn - hopefully - attracts bigger crowds, which in turn - again hopefully - allows us to invest more in the club, and eventually get big enough crowds that we can get our own full time players, and end the DC arrangement when the time is right.

That's the ideal, dream scenario.

Without, we carry on against a backdrop of annual financial panic as crowds continue to decline as by now we've seen that people will not start coming to LSV to watch 'a local team full of local players'. We've proved that now, move on. We'll never have a side again that can turn a top flight side over in the second half, no matter how much we'd like it.
In the meantime, we are seen as a feeder club for SL teams in general (as opposed to DC, where it's one team in particular), so no real change there.

We do need the DC/partnership arrangement, no matter how distasteful a taste it leaves in the mouth.

Just NOT Wigan please.....

If we had say 5 dc's they would not have been allowed to play last night nor over Easter. How would our team have been better having lost 5 of its team for a match against one of the biggest teams in the land?
I see that there is benefit for the individual players for such a system and the ability to keep all the fringe players who otherwise might play for a lower div team on a full contract basis.
I don't see the long term benefit for the club the DC visits? Unless they weren't good enough for the parent club and then there is a slight chance that some of them may, possibly, sign for the club that they played for.
I don't care that the partnership is with Wigan as tbh that's the best club to partner with as the local lads are more likely to come to us if they get dumped by the parent club. But I think its taking a massive gamble on the future of the game.
Circa 2k fans came last night it was more like 300 against the best in our division. I don't think dc's will solve the real issue of no one wants to watch championship rugby anymore. Of those that do I suspect most don't want to watch a barbarian type side every week. I don't and won't. As the fax fans sang on Sunday we sold out! for a few beans and a prayer.

Don't really want to get drawn into all this again but I still can't understand why people think someone kicked out of Wigan would then 'more likely' come to Leigh.

Perhaps Fylde Warrior should forget stating the "bleeding obvious" and concentrate his fire on the RFL for allowing such a gulf to develop between two clubs who used to compete on an equal footing by completely devaluing the Championship and the clubs in it. And don't say Wigan can do without Leigh: look at tonight's crowd and the 15000 who were there the last time Leigh were at the DW. Oh, and while we're at it we might as well blame Dr Beeching and those numpties who made Leigh part of Wigan in 1974. My chest's a lot lighter now!

www.thisishullandeastriding.co.u ... z2R0TkYNAc One for you Fylde Warrior the system does not work looking at the bigger picture if your able to take it in ?

www.thisishullandeastriding.co.u ... z2R0TkYNAc One for you Fylde Warrior the system does not work looking at the bigger picture if your able to take it in ?

The whole farce is now a lot deeper than just SDL and championship!

In the Wigan Evening Post this week, there was an article about St Judes and Eccles, who will not now play ANY teams at under 18's level if the opposition include Professional players.
Basically, those dropped from Championship sides for SDL players, and are still in their teens, have been turning out for the local u18's amatuer sides.

Its a mess, and all wrong.

We have excellent facilities, we have good morale amongst the squad, and players who join us seem to really enjoy being here.

If Wigan youngsters get to sample the facilities and squad morale at Leigh before Wigan let them go, it must make them more likely to join Leigh. Of course, should a significantly better financial offer come in, they would take that — but if they're only being offered part time money somewhere else then Leigh might be an attractive offer because they're familiar with the club, and it's close to home.

The same goes with those players that opt to go FT elsewhere after leaving Wigan, but find it isn't well suited to their situation or are subsequently let go by those clubs.

I doubt any player will go to a club simply because of the facilities, if all other things are equal then yes, but first and foremost it will be down to cash offered. It is after all a job.

Yes, but the f/t contracts offered to younger players are often pitiful, and far less than the player could earn with a p/t contract with Leigh and a f/t job.

It's not a scenario that covers everyone, but it's my opinion that it really must shorten our odds on landing these players. It also gets the word out that Leigh is not a bad option for local young players.

All IMHO of course.

I don’t completely disagree, but why do we need the ‘Partnership’ for this to happen? Do kids at say Saints not know if they don’t make it there that Leigh have excellent facilities and would be a better option than either giving up the game or going back to Blackbrook etc?