I believe ex Swinton player Josh Barlow is taking up reffing which is good to see.

Like Grimmy said though , there are far too many young referees getting slated/abused/harassed by morons on a Sunday morning . They can only take so much before they leave the game . I’ve seen 14 year olds reffing their first games and getting abuse from the sidelines . That is tantamount to child abuse and is killing our sport . Grown adults swearing and abusing children is totally unacceptable. These are probably some the same idiots chucking stuff on to the pitch

Refs don’t always get it right ,and I have had first hand experience with Grimmy , but I don’t shout and scream at him . The players will always make more mistakes than the officials . If somebody can prove me wrong I’ll donate my house to charity

The problem with local derbies and the big games is that they attract a element including some from football who do not normally go to a rugby league game.

Over the years, I have seen very little racism in rugby league at both professional and amateur games compared to what I have witnessed at both professional and amateur matches in football where it is rife both on and off the pitch.

The token gesture of players in football getting down on the knee will never stop it as the FA and EFL seemed to think it will!

I always struggle with this idea that whenever there are incidents at RL matches, it's because football hooligans have had nothing else to do that afternoon.

If that's true, football hooligans must have had nothing else to do nearly every time Wigan have played Leigh.

I agree that the derby brings out idiots, but RL can supply plenty of its own on those occasions, and Leigh can supply more than most.

To date they remain the only fans I have ever seen who once refused to throw the ball back, chanting 'we've got the ba-all, we've got the ba-all!"' More seriously, they are also the only fans I know who, more than once, have thrown bottles at the visiting team, and even plastic bottles can be dangerous when they are filled with beer, or pee, whatever it is..

I knew several Leigh fans in my first job. They were all in their early 20s, and their mindset was very different from most RL fans in that scrapping and causing trouble was a key part of their matchday experience, and they would openly brag about it on the shop floor. That was back in the 1970s, but on yesterday's form, time seems to run slower in Leigh than anywhere else.

When the day finally comes, we really will be well rid of them.

The only time a RL club has attracted a football hooligan crew at a game (in my memory) was Salford at the Challenge Cup Semi at Burnden Park back in the 80's when the Man United firm decided to have a day out against us. Before the game and during the early stages of the first half a gang of around 100-150 trying to get a rise out of Wigan fans (who were more interested in seeing their team achieve another Wembley final). I think they got fed up at half time and a few left. If I remember correctly if you watch the match on YouTube you can see trouble in the stands (away end) early on.

A few Leigh supporters on social media saying that chants made were 'Leigh, Leigh, Leigh' and not monkey noises. I really do hope this is the case. There's enough decent Leigh fans on this forum that will hopefully clarify or admit the case. Terrace chants like that need to be left in the 70s & 80s.

I’ve been a Leigh fan for around 60 years now , yeah we have our idiots I admit that , but I’ve never NEVER heard any form of racist chants from Leigh fans , nor did I yesterday.
I have plenty of banter with Wigan fans , 90% of my family are Wiganers , not just Wigan fans , whatever was chanted yesterday , I heard nothing .