Wigan's success may in part be due to Danson but a lot of it is down to Ian Lenagan surely? He laid the foundation for the success we now have. His recruitment of McGuire in 2010 was a masterstroke. He also placed his faith in Kris Radlinski who over time has created a club ethos and culture which all seem to have bought in to.

Although it is 10 years since we were beaten by the Roosters in Sydney when we put our defeat down to the pack being too small compared to theirs. It has taken time but we now have a huge set of forwards. We've gone from Singleton, Isa, Faz & Lockers to Havard, Thompson, Nsemba, Faz, Walters and Ellis. Collectively they are huge.That is some transition. It has taken time but wow!

Where Danson may come in is that we could afford NRL players under the marquee rules. Also offer the best young UK talent terms to join Wigan which few can compete with.

As a Wigan supporter I want the club to go from success to greater success. Other clubs can and will compete and the RFL/SL just never ever do themselves any favours in managing the sport. The IMG gradings just announced are absolutely bewildering to average fans like me. Cas & Wakey grade A when Hudds and HullFC grade B. Are facilities for the paying customer not taken into account? Hull & Giants have excellent facilities for the paying customer. Castleford's and Wakefield's grounds are an insult to those who pay to watch Rugby League. Absurdity it its finest!

The end of term report for Wigan, Wire, Saints Leigh is excellent. The same report for the RFL/SL/IMG should read "Massive Improvement required"

Super League's club scene is improving and will continue to do so. The sport's management needs to improve.

I'm really surprised that Hurrell has been given a new deal. They look to have sorted out the wing issues but Matautia will be a huge loss, the centres will struggle to get through a full season and a fair chunk of luck will be needed with Walmsley and Paasi to then allow the pack to try and dominate. They'll be up near the top of the table again but it feels like their recruitment/retention needs to be a bit more ruthless.

It will also be interesting to see if he goes Murphy to start off with or if he feels Bennison is worth the no5 shirt

I know there's been different threads on here and Warriors fans about the pack ,but our decision last year to really stack the props seems to have paid dividends as we are settled again for this year, and have depth there too

We're well set across the board for the next 5+ years really and can be really specific with the recruitment now and in which positions they try to fill from the academy. Looking over the hill at Saints, the transition period has started to a degree but there is still going to be an awful lot of change needed in the coming seasons and that is part of the reason I'm surprised Hurrell wasn't replaced now. Within the next 2 to 4 years, they're likely going to need to replace Hurrell, Feldt, Lomax, Walmsley and Paasi. I can't see Percival playing past that period either and Clark and Sironen will be right at the end of their careers. You'd also imagine in that time Welsby may decide to chance his arm in the NRL as well, so lots of good work is going to be needed and it's getting harder and harder to recruit top quality players. They'll bring good players through, as they always do but it won't be easy.

there is a very different feel about Wigan now, to say the previous 10 years

i know there will always be 1 or 2 lads who want to chance their arm in the NRL, and no-one can blame them really given the lifestyle and likely salary increase. However, we seem to have gone from virtually anyone wants to / or can go, even with a long term contract, to players seemingly wanting to play for Wigan. IMO KPP went about his move to the NRL in the right way. He informed the club of his intention, but more importantly played his heart out for Wigan in that last season, and gave his all, as a fan, thats all i want to see when they have the Cherry and White on.

in terms of the feel, its gone from feeling like a major surgery / makeover each off season, to minor surgery / cosmetic . As you said, at the minute we have long term contracts to key players, we know when others are off contract and with smart retention / not renewing for the sake of it, we could see this side together for a good few years, with minor tweaks to it

i suppose the change to when off contract players can talk to other clubs will potentially have an impact, not just on Wigan's recruitment but across the game. Theoretically, from 1st Dec, we could find out that Byrne, Isa and Farrell, are all moving on for the 2026 season as they have signed for other clubs, so that could take some of the decisions out of the clubs hands earlier if the player feels they are going to be offered a better contract elsewhere. i'm not sure yet, whether i like that change or not, but i suppose from a player perspective, the sooner they can sort out their next contract the better for them, so a positive from a players perspective?

The Saints squad is made up of two parts. Aging players several whom seemed past their best, and some young players looking to make the grade. I think there are around a dozen who are over 30