The RFU, in conjunction with O2, have made arrangements for each England player in the 22 for the South Africa game on Saturday to have a personal mascot. Each mascot will come from each players original club. Apart from being a good idea that RL could copy, what's this got to do with Wigan? Well two of the kids (all U12) are from the original clubs of Chris Ashton and Owen Farrell. They will appear at Twickenham in their Orrell St. James and Wigan St Pats kits.
If any of you want to know a little more about this initiative there is an article from the RFU on the Stockton RFC website.

thats very good to hear, thanks for posting

Brilliant for the 2 lads involved and the 2 clubs

But also a bit of gorilla marketing for RL

Why oh why can the RL marketing team not develop our sport?

Owen Farrell is less than half the player his Dad was, Chris Ashton is still the same- can't tackle, and his "attempts" at fighting were hilarious. He still needs a good kicking.

Yet 80k people turned up for this? It's a crying shame.

Credit to the RFU for representing their actual origins

One of the problems is how the game's own fans continually bad-mouth the product themselves.

Look at the rubish that gets sprouted about Rangi Chase being selected yet not a tap about England Rugby union selecting an illegal import from Samoa, multiple South Africans, New Zealanders and an American. Still look how committed they all were to England RU fron such an early age, going off which junior clubs they apparently represented they all travelled 1,000's of miles to play junior RU.

Definitely. Sick of fans slagging off the game (especially at international level) and then wondering why we're struggling. RU fans just turn up to support their country no matter who they're playing. Representing their country is the pinnacle of their sport as it should be ours. I'm hoping next year's World Cup can maybe push the sport on to the next level (*waits for people to say we've got no chance etc, etc). We know the RFL are next door to useless, but sometimes (or should that be all the time), we don't help ourselves...

I started reading the last post, thinking that at last we had someone who was having a go at those supposed supporters who slag off the game, then in the second last line he does the same himself!
I put this on the Wigan site for two reasons. One is that I've got a personal interest in this, the second is that it gives a bit of positive publicity to our game and the conveyor belt of talent that continues to come out of amateur RL in Wigan.

raise a good point but i think a goos solution would for the rfl to team with all english super league teams to offer international games with all super league season tickets and increase the price by say £15 per year, then use it as a junior away season ticket system where it is first come first served to who swaps there "game voucher" for an official ticket, you could have more tickes going to the bigger clubs to ensure they are all taken e.g. wigan, wire, leeds and hold every game at a big ground such as ellend road or the etihad, this way your paying around 5 pound for a ticket 8 months in advance plus only have to pay around 8 quid etc for the coach or chipped in petrol money for a day out and could result in 30,000-50,000 capacity internationals, id go for this any day...

If you don't think there is debate among Union fans about "foreign" players you don't know many Union fans. I have come across quite a few given my son played Union for Chester juniors for years and I can assure you such selections are just as controversial in the other code. So it's a bit of an odd one to pick up on IMO.

If you reckon RL fans bad-mouth the game more than RU fans you may be right but I'd suggest that could well be because RU fans have not exactly got a lot to complain about.

Not because they are minding their P's & Q's because it might put the game in a bad light.

This might just be of interest to Wigan fans too... www.jacamo.co.uk/shop/page?pageI ... iors_intro

This might just be of interest to Wigan fans too... www.jacamo.co.uk/shop/page?pageI ... iors_intro

Farrell shortlisted as International player of the year.


The nomination comes after just nine caps for England, the first of which was won in February this year.

The Saracens fly-half, 21, is up against three-time winner Richie McCaw and Dan Carter of New Zealand, and France's Frederic Michalak.

The winner will be announced at the Rugby World Cup 2015 pool allocation draw in London on 3 December. '"