But all those mentioned so far bar Monaghan are primarily scooters. None of them are particularly good at opening up defenses with a pass (again bar Monaghan), and certainly they don't hit as hard defensively as McIlorum.

I remember having this discussion re Higham, and wasn't it surprising how Wigan tries increased when he left.

Roby is a brilliant athlete with a fantastic engine, but I still think Saints would be better utilizing him at loose forward for parts of the game.

Granted McIlorum hits the hardest, but with him that comes at a price, penalties. If used his brain he would be ruthless in defence, but from a opposition point of view i think run at McIlorum he may hit hard but we've got a good chance of a piggy back up the field.In big games i would prefer a solid steady defender rather than a error prone hard hitter.

McIlorum gives a beautiful crisp pass off the ground but I'm struggling to remember him splitting defences in open play or supporting breaks the way Newton always did. At one time if Wigan broke up the middle you knew that Newton or Radlinski would be there without fail. He needs to forget his Queens background & stop pretending to be a hard man. 4 or 5 times against France he made strong physical contact as first defender but then dropped off the tackle.

One of the most overrated players in SL. Looks a lot better than he actually is because of the better players around him at Wigan.

I don't think the Wigan head coach would agree with you. McIlorum was Wanes player of the year.