What did people think of his performance today?

Personally I think this whole deal about messing around in the ruck has been blown a little out of proportion in the media and that's reflecting in the referee's performances. I could understand some of the penalties but players can't disappear into thin air. Both sides got caned for it so people can't just say its a Wigan thing. Especially annoying in the second half when players from both sides were fatigued.

Also couldn't understand the penalty for Roberts supposedly taking out Wilkin? Apart from actually moving to one side and giving him a clear path through, what else is he supposed to do? For me an awful decision - he stayed stationary and simply rotated his body.

He cained us pretty much from start to finish but thats fine. It actually made the win a little sweeter.

It is a worry going forward though that the refs seem to be getting sucked in to all this talk of wrestling and the Saints players were coming up with some acting that was worthy of an Oscar nomination!

He was terrible. He penalised both sides far too much and stopped the game too much. He was shocking for both sides imo but he made a couple of dodgy decisions against us that stood out. The sin bin for Roberts was a bit confusing as Pryce was messing around a lot instead of getting on with it, he was a bit unlucky to get sin binned for that. The time where he made Deacon play the ball despite nobody even tackling him! The penalty against Roberts for taking out Wilkin was harsh but that one of them sometimes you get penalised some you dont, he would of got away with it at home imo.

what was the penalty count...?

just got back from the match not watched in on sky+ yet but thought Thaler was abysmal this aft seemed to make up rules as he went away

no idea why Roberts was sin binned must have been thalers way of getting stains back into the game tried his best to get stains to win

WIGAN were awesome put a full shift in today

WELL DONE THE LADS

Pretty even in the end I think. Shouldn't we have had one for Goulding being lifted and carried towards the touchline, too? I know the rule only says one leg, so maybe both is OK?

If a ref can't be fair for both sides then he should out. Saints got stuffed in the fist 20 then when the crowd started to get on his back he switched to Wigan. That behaviour is not good and if there was a bit more needle todays game would have erupted. It's a good job that both teams were good pros managed by two good coaches. Well done both sides but even better pies.

it looked like it was gleeson who did the lifting

Why did Meli's trip on Amos not get penalised ? It was when we broke from the scrum and Lockers passed it to Roberts.

13 each

didn't even notice him!!!

disgraceful performance, didn't pay to watch him blow his whistle all the match. no bitterness on my part, i referring to both sides

I thought the same, a trip is a red card isn't it? Definitely a yellow at least. I don't think Roberts should have been binned, once pryce taps the ball hasn't Roberts got every right to challenge him? Also Roberts never moved when that kick was put over him, but if the ref gives a penalty surely he has to bin and send off Roberts? Of course i don't want to see our player sent off, but I just don't understand some of the decisions Thaler made.

i've not watched the match again, i can't remember the meli 'trip' thought the amos sinbinning was right, it was on the back of two penalties, and he did it from an offside position.

more bizarrely, he didn't sin bin (you can be sin binned twice in a match) him from the kick over, which having given the penalty (rightly or wrongly) i can't see any other decision but to bin him

I don't recall the trip (maybe I'll have more of an opinion on a few things after I see it replayed on TV).

Anyway, my opinion of Thaler is simple:

Whistle-happy game spoiler.

I (like most Wigan fans) felt that he penalised us both unfairly and randomly whilst letting similar things go for Saints.

However, that's because I'm biased toward Wigan (naturally).

I know that the Saints fans that I spoke to felt that he penalised THEM unfairly, whilst ignoring things that Wigan were doing.

Regardless of the rights & wrongs of the 2 views - 26 penalties is FAR too many, and will naturally spoil the game for BOTH sets of spectators.

The Roberts sin-binning was ridiculous - Pryce faked the tap, then when the fullback touched him (being the first to react to a player faking an attack on our line from 3 yards out) - he gets 10 minutes.

When we broke the line and got to within 10 metres, Saints caught the man (can't remember who), then gave away a penalty for lying on.

That was as clear a professional foul as you will ever see, and should have been an automatic 10 minutes.

As I said - I accept that I will only notice the calls that went against Wigan, as I'm a wigan fan, but Thaler did his absolute best to ruin that game as a spetacle for both sets of fans and the TV audience alike.

Just watched it again, he wasnt as bad as I thought at the ground.

IMO he tried to be the centre of attention and disrupted the flow of the game.

Our wrestle is being needlessly highlighted and as such is detracting from games we are involved in.

Roberts being penalised for taking out Wilkin when he kicked over was a shockingly bad call.

The sin binning was fair, but Wilkin should have gone in the first half.

Potter blaming the ref, weather and game speed was utterly pathetic however - were we somehow sheltered from the rain. A man under pressure imo.