As I’ve said in a previous post I don’t like to disparage referees but the Shorrocks decision was totally awful.
I agree with your summary of the tackle 100%.

I'd give a shout-out to Smithies, I haven't watched the match back, but live, I thought he really put in a shift.

Not sure but I believe it is now.

Wonders never cease, a Wiganer giving Leigh some credit, I suppose we are now up with the big lads , it’s great , in the next week we will announce some signings and hopefully make an effort to get to the Grand Final .

You have to give credit if it is due and Leigh are a good team at the moment no doubt about that.
Good luck in the final

We played our best rugby last year with French on the wing, he played his best rugby on the wing. Yet apparently he's wasted there, and now we are disfunctional because we are trying to ensure he's not wasted. Peet has had the same core for 18 months and still doesn't know how to get the best out of it.

I have family in Leigh and they love to get stuck in when they beat us or certainly on occasions like this weekend but I don’t think they or many Leythers understand that many Wiganers hold zero animosity towards Leigh. Hatred is the wrong word but I’m sure most Leythers have a dislike for all things Wigan but it’s pretty much a one way rivalry. There just haven’t been enough meaningful contests over the years to get our fans going and our main rivals are Saints and to a lesser degree, Warrington but hopefully that will change.

I wish Leigh all the best for the final. I’d be really happy for Adrian Lam if they get the win.

I'll keep saying this until I'm blue in the face, but we can't lay all the blame at Peet's feet. What coach wouldn't say yeah to keeping French? What sadly needed to happen is a Director of Rugby, a person who you'd assume has overall sight of the playing budget, stepping in and saying no to a new deal for French. Not because he's not wanted, but knowing that a proper 6 and prop would be more beneficial to the overall balance of the squad.

This isn't a one off occurrence by the way. Think back to when Burgess retired and we spent his salary on Hastings and French, but had Clarke and Clubb as props. We've had countless squads over the last decade that are stacked in certain positions and paper thin in others. The balance never seems to be there.

I was one of the 1st to bag Lam and I stick by that too. That being said when you hear that he wanted to bring in a centre and Radders cucked him instead - it builds a picture of a guy well out of his depth. Looking at the England squad and some of the baffling selections Wane made and the loyalty shown to some of his mates, I doubt he's the guy to make those tough decisions too.

I agree, worked in Leigh years back. Animosity goes further than rugby. Pit strike humbles firstly and then because we have a bigger Christmas tree at the town hall than them. That said, I've a few mates from Leigh that I'm happy for, fifty years is a long time to wait for a trip to Wembley (I never thought I'd see it in my lifetime), should make for a good game with a healthy crowd for once which is good for the sport.

Leythers will travel to us in good numbers at the weekend I'd expect, their supporters will no doubt rubbing it in, let's dust ourselves off and send them home with a loss of we can. Then aim for a place at Old Trafford.

Never a red card in a million years.

Another terrible decision that ruins it for one team.

It's also worth noting that Lewis' head goes forward at the point of first contact, not backwards as it would have done with direct contact. Also no KR players run in and the ref was going to play on which further reinforces that their was no issue with the tackle. I thought Sam Tomkins tweet summed it up rather nicely:

Red card?????

Madness


I couldn't agree more.

I think you'll find plenty Wiganers have given credit to Leigh this year, and rightly so. What you're doing there at the moment is worthy of credit. I, and I suspect many others, will be cheering you on in the final. Good luck.

To be fair, when you watch the NRL the Aussies do say Jye not Jay when they say the name Jai so i can see why Noble would think that. I just call him Field now to stop the debate happening

9.2802734375:10