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FORUMS > Wigan Warriors > Surely this isn't true?!... Gareth Thomas
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Play For Moldgreen ARLFC Huddersfield Giants Fan:



GARETH THOMAS has completed his shock move to Wigan — as revealed by SunSport.

The 100-cap Wales union star has signed a one-year deal with the Warriors.

It is a surprise switch for Thomas, who saw a one-year extension with Crusaders ripped up when they pulled out of the Super League licence race.

Thomas, 37, will not be regarded as a starting centre — with Joel Tomkins and George Carmont occupying those slots. But Wigan believe he will add more competition.

He will also link up with current Crusaders boss Iestyn Harris, who will be an assistant Wigan coach next season.


www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/sp ... -move.html
GARETH THOMAS has completed his shock move to Wigan — as revealed by SunSport.

The 100-cap Wales union star has signed a one-year deal with the Warriors.

It is a surprise switch for Thomas, who saw a one-year extension with Crusaders ripped up when they pulled out of the Super League licence race.

Thomas, 37, will not be regarded as a starting centre — with Joel Tomkins and George Carmont occupying those slots. But Wigan believe he will add more competition.

He will also link up with current Crusaders boss Iestyn Harris, who will be an assistant Wigan coach next season.


www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/sp ... -move.html


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Quote: DaveO "Please explain how any interest in Wales in Thomas signing for Wigan will translate into a new fan base. Unless our coach in 2012 is bonkers he will never make a 1st team game so why is that going to attract then to our club?

Even if they decide Wigan is their pet "RL" side after they have finished watching the Osprey's or whoever do you seriously think they are going to spend one penny actively supporting Wigan? Armchair fans at best but you know what? They probably already are armchair fans of the game. We might get a coach load if he is ever picked for a game and enough notice is given.

Point 2, his media value is far less than it was than when playing RU for Wales and as he gets older and plays less (well not at all next year hopefully if he does sign for us) it will decrease further.

If in 3 you mean Thomas moving to Wigan is going to raise the profile of the game in any way that will make it less attractive for the likes of Tomkins to go to RU or for high profile quality RU players to come to RL I think you are deluded. If you don't mean that I don't know what you are on about.

Not it doesn't. Leagues draw is limited by it's lack of a perceived International game, lower wages than RU and a lower media profile none of which us signing a 37 year former great RU player player for a year are going to influence in any way because the operative word is "former".

Here we go again. Diminish our own players abilities to justify the Thomas signing. That converted 2nd rower just scored one of the most memorable Wembley tries ever and converted 2nd row he may be, even mentioning that in a post justifying Thomas signing is ridiculous. He is so far ahead of Thomas it is completely disingenuous to even bring it up.

Likewise trying to justify signing a 37 year old for Carmont because Carmont is getting on is daft. It'll be like Dad's army.

It always never ceases to amaze me how quick some people are to pick faults in players to justify actions of the club. No I know you have never been a great fan of Goulding but be honest, if I had come on here two months ago and suggested we sign Thomas you would have never stopped laughing.

I'll pay the club £100 a game to play. The fact he may be free doesn't make him good enough.

He is not a "pretty good playe"r. If he were he'd have stood out in the Crusaders side and doesn't, he just looks average to anonymous. Given that is the truth of it and he is 37 soon to be 38 there is no playing justification for signing him at all. (I happen to think the PR reasons are vastly over stated as well).'"


icon_lol.gif

It's great to see the new lease of life you've got, Dave.

With all the trophies we've won recently. I thought you'd ceased to exist.

Just out of interest, how does Lenagan's failure in this case stack up against his failure to give you a personal phone-call to let you know how Gaz Hock was was doing with his rehab?

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46250_1321514358.jpg
ihatewigan@yahoo.co.uk [quote="boz the warrior":1udbj28j]lee briers is a nice person whoooo luck at lee forming a scrum the wire bum banger[/quote:1udbj28j] wigan skoolz rule!:d7dc4b20b2c2dd7b76ac6eac29d5604e_46250.jpg



Quote: Deano G "A very poor retort? To your nonsensical rant? And as for your fatalistic outlook for tomorrow, I doubt you really feel that way!'"

we'll see, in my opinion the outcome og tomorrow will have no bearing on who does and doesn't get to O.T.
we're overdue a wigan warrington final in my opinion!

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Quote: "]Point 1) Dave, if this signing happens it will not be with a view to encouraging Richards Brothers to run a charabanc from Bridgend every Friday afternoon more to facilitate our acting as a first port of call for young Welsh rugby talent. IL isn't expecting to woo a Jamie Roberts or a George North as clearly they would be mad to leave where they are, but Wales has four professional regions all of whom field several overseas players meaning there are large numbers of talented players who might consider forsaking the remote chance of a summer tour cap in Canada aged 26 for the chance to be the next Harrison Hansen or Josh Charnley. Big talents like Kristian Phillips and Tom Prydie say (both sub 11 second 100m running backs with skill who have been in Welsh squads but can't get into the Ospreys side with any regularity) might be the sort of signing we could chase. IL and Noble have both talked of salary cap exemptions for Union talent and if the RFL have any brains/balls at all this will come in one day and Wigan will be first in the queue to benefit. Gil Dudson was at Newport Gwent Dragons academy, found his way blocked by Welsh and other internationals and decided to try RL, we may be in a position to stop others like him being lost in the system or becoming disillusioned and settling for semi pro at Abertillery or something.'"
]

Are there any salary cap exceptions in place for RU converts? I don't think so apart form possibly Thomas but then that was for him to join a Welsh SL side not a regular SL side. So that is no reason at the moment to sign Thomas (in that we can't sign other RU players outside the cap).

IL has also talked about the fact raising the salary cap is rather pointless at the moment because the idea if it was raised Wigan could go out and sign more players is a none starter. So how would players being exempt form the cap square with that? We can't afford to go beyond the current cap limit so there is little point in them being exempt.

If RU converts were exempt form the cap all that would translate to is RL side going looking for potential RU converts because they didn't count on the cap, not because they were any good.

Just like what used to happen before we had the new rules on federation trained/home grown players. Sides signed umpteen Kolpak players because that was the easy option and they could. Well if RU players are exempt from the salary cap there will be a similar fashion for chasing RU players. And of course that is before we even consider if clubs can afford to pay £1.65m to the RL players PLUS whatever wages they give to the RU converts. And also before we consider the fact we have plenty of talent right on the doorstep.

Quote: "]Point 2) Is wrong any way you look at it. I have supported Wales all my life (as well as Wigan having been raised here by Welsh parents) and despite 'Alfie' having been a leading player since 1995, a Lions captain, formerly Wales's record try scorer and cap holder nobody outside Wales or union fandom would have had the first idea who he is. However, in the last 12 months he has been a prominent guest at the Royal Wedding, subject of several national media profiles-including a business partnership with the French shoe designer Christian Louboutin- appeared on American chat shows and a major ITV show seen by millions of non-sports specific viewers until last week. He is now a household name and all this without the added kudos of a Hollywood film fronted by an Oscar winning actor, it may well be awful but the narrative at the heart of it will do our association no harm, it will certainly be better than 'Up and Under' with Neil Morrisey and Adam Fogerty.'"
]

I just did a straw poll round my office. One person knew who he was - he is an RU fan originally from Leicester. One chap lives in Conway (yes he is daft enough to commute to Runcorn) and has no idea who he is. The other three are all footy fans (of those one a Everton season ticket holder and one Man Utd so not just casual sports fans) and they don't know him either. Not scientific admittedly but he just doesn't have the profile you seem to think. What is more the main point I am making is that it is no use to sign him and not play him as I fail to see how doing that is of any use in the PR stakes. And he is not good enough to play for us.

Quote: "]There are no top quality centres/wings available at a decent price to the club, we know this, is it really so bad to get a vastly experienced, mentally tough professional who is also big enough to feature in the pack if needed to be around the club for 12 months? He can share the benefits of a different life to King Street and Bondi Beach with the lads as well as hopefully helping to put in place the sort of gangway we had with the Valleys back in our first heyday in the 1920s. His versatility and big match temperament may well see him play more than Goulding and Roberts have this year in 2012. '"
]


There is no playing justification for signing a 37 (soon to be 3icon_cool.gif player at all. End of. He's not even that good!

Quote: "]A final point. If we had signed Keith Senior (another once brilliant, now older and slower large bald man) on cheap wages for next year ]would there be this amount of opprobrium? Nope]. Yet if you compare the two careers I know who has achieved more in their sport it just happens that sport is the one that cannot be named and I can therefore only assume this is an anti-Union thing.
'"
]

Of course there would! Has anyone suggested we give Senior a go? No, because it would be a stupid idea given his age and the fact he clearly can't play to his former standard. Thomas has never even reached that standard in RL.

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[img:2b6g88ns]http://news.google.co.uk/news/tbn/ryI1dIYrb1oJ[/img:2b6g88ns]:d7dc4b20b2c2dd7b76ac6eac29d5604e_42175.gif



Quote: Deano G "You have to hand it to IL.

This is pure genius.

All the talk for weeks and weeks has been about Sam Tomkins.

We have a massive game at the weekend against the Wolfs and the lad would have been under a huge spotlight.

So what does IL do - think of the one way to take the pressure off Tomkins, make a signing that will get everyone talking, a signing of the only current RL player with a bigger profile than Sam Tomkins.

I'm sure IL being canny has an eye on the commercial advantages and the experience he brings, but this signing is a stroke of genius simply for the media distraction it offers at this moment in time.

Sam can go out now on Sunday and tear the Wolfs apart. I imagine the cameras will probably be focussing on Gareth Thomas sitting in the Wigan dug-out while he's ripping them to shreds.

IL, we are not worthy!


That went well icon_wink.gif

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Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery....... I will look to the moment, and miraculously, the future will take care of itself. Radio 5 Live, Sat, April 14th, 2007,...Dave Whelan, "In Wigan, rugby will always be king" 'I was certain, positive, convinced, and yet..........unsure' 'It's only rock 'n' roll, but I like it' Worry will not prevent destiny from unfolding.:d7dc4b20b2c2dd7b76ac6eac29d5604e_3632.jpg



Quote: MattyB "With regards to the movie starring Mickey Rourke as GT, rumours are as followsMalcolm Mcdowell as Ian Lenegan.






Sean Bean as Shaun Wane






Jamie Bell as Sam Tomkins





Orlando Bloom as Sean O'Loughlin






And finally..............


Ben Kingsley as the ]Wigan 'Assistant Kitman' (Twentysevenzero).]







I was thinking more............George Clooney, as I have been mistaken for him in the past. icon_lol.gif

356 posts in 25 pages 
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Subscribe | Moderators: Admin, DaveO , Wigan6/Leeds1 Andy , Bilko , Pemps
356 posts in 25 pages 
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Subscribe | Moderators: Admin, DaveO , Wigan6/Leeds1 Andy , Bilko , Pemps



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