You obviously have a high level of technical knowledge of the game from your posts and I’ve learned quite a bit about many aspects of play from your posts but your final sentence is one of the reasons why the game is on it’s arris and why my long love of the game is waning.

Please don’t take my post as a personal slur as I genuinely like your inputs and find them very insightful but in that sentence for me you have summed up why the game will never develop any real class outside backs because they are now almost superfluous to the game where any fit athletes can “do a job”

If Lam is so bad, perhaps you should ask Lenagan why he has never sacked him.

Perhaps he cannot afford anyone better!

Maybe he can’t afford anyone better so the best way to remedy that is to see increased gates.
Which stand will you be in next week?

I totally agree.

Athletes are now taking over.

The game is now becoming “money ball” where teams generally look for their outside backs to be extra forwards.

The cap also means that if you put together a quality spine you will have to make sacrifices in other positions.

I hope I’m wrong but I wouldn’t be shocked to see

1. French
2. Miski
3. Bibby
4. Thornley
5. Marshall
6. Field
7. Smith

As our starting backs next year.

We look to have significantly improved our middles, with the 2 additions, but unless we add quality to the spine I really think we struggle.

With Hastings going we desperately need to bring someone in.

The apparent lack of planning has created an issue in that we have lots of cap wrapped up in 3 specialist fullbacks hence the strong rumours surrounding Hardaker.

The truth is we only have ourselves to blame for this situation and it goes above just the coach. The leadership at the club have made significant errors in recruitment, retention and succession planning and it is one that will take more than one off season to address.

Our left edge last night made 71 carries, our right edge 34.

It’s hardly a challenge for defenders to understand where the attack is going and how they need to snub it out.

We have one of the most attack minded and creative secondrow forwards in the league and he is getting starved of possession due to lack of service.

It was noticeable KPP towards the end of the game was taking the ball up on the left too in an attempt to get into the game ball in hard.

I think that the only way that you’re 1 to 7 will change is if Hardaker stays or we recruit to replace Hardaker. I believe that we have spoken to Miller at Wakefield but unsure if this is now a non starter due to the recruits from the nrl

I’ve said for a while that the squad is totally out of balance and for example the resigning of Bateman just added to that. IL and KR decide the squad so I agree they are to blame for all of its faults and shortcomings.
Unless there are some major changes at the top I’m not sure that even a new coaching set up can resolve the issues. When IL goes then KR will probably follow as the new owner will want his own man in place.
This won’t happen I suspect until the 2023 season.

Things will get better when Lam goes but I don’t see any silverware until IL goes or he gets his mojo back because despite one or two decent signings the retention and other recruits have been nothing but backward steps in recent seasons.

I think that the only way that you’re 1 to 7 will change is if Hardaker stays or we recruit to replace Hardaker. I believe that we have spoken to Miller at Wakefield but unsure if this is now a non starter due to the recruits from the nrl

I’ve said for a while that the squad is totally out of balance and for example the resigning of Bateman just added to that. IL and KR decide the squad so I agree they are to blame for all of its faults and shortcomings.
Unless there are some major changes at the top I’m not sure that even a new coaching set up can resolve the issues. When IL goes then KR will probably follow as the new owner will want his own man in place.
This won’t happen I suspect until the 2023 season.

Things will get better when Lam goes but I don’t see any silverware until IL goes or he gets his mojo back because despite one or two decent signings the retention and other recruits have been nothing but backward steps in recent seasons.

During our success under Maguire and Wane, I felt a big difference was how good we were at shifting the ball left to right. Look at the Gleeson try in the Grand Final from our own half and then the success wingers have had that side over the last decade. Now it might be because O’Loughlin was probably the best left to right link man in the game but it’s still a lot of bodies who need to show a high level of skill to get us over the line. I’ve watched most of the game again and some of the shifts last night were just down to a lack of basic skill. We clearly don’t practice enough from the younger ages and then it’s more difficult to catch up the older the players get. It’s just been alluded to about players being athletes now and that literally sums up everyone except KPP who we are all lauding because he can put in a regular offload in his game! Our forward production line is basically lads who can make 40 tackles but with very little damage done other than an occasional Smithies head in the tackle or a Partington flop.

I think its down to recruitment, keep signing left sided people, I know ive said it numerous times and been shot down but we need people who are natural at being that side, we had, joel, gells and charnely for years, then replaced gells with sarge who was a left sided centre and bateman who is a righty but when he left we sigend greenwood another left sided second row, it seems we just sign people who play the position in general and a preference isnt looked at, Miski is a left winger but have signed him to play on the right, might sound daft but he will have to run with the ball in the other arm and change his step etc, small things but thats the difference in the league

The most dominant Wigan side I've seen was the 2011 one, which went on an incredible streak of being unbeaten in 21 out of 22 games and won the CC Final. That season Goulding, Charnley and Roberts all played on both wings (the first two scored on both wings as well). Goulding and Marsh played both centres, Deacon played halfback on both sides of the pitch, Farrell played and scored in both second row positions. There are plenty big issues to fix but that isn't one of them.

where was richards and carmont? that was our left pairing....carmont wasnt left centre for 3 games the entire season, Tomkins played right centre most of the season due to the sacking of Gleeson, Marsh played centre 6 times and his winger scored twice in them games, Roberts played left wing once all year and twice on the right, when richards came back from injury after the first 8 games he didnt miss a game, so its a bigger issue than you think, the 2010 team was far better than the 2011 also...

Don't remember Coslett, but I equate him to Eric Hughes or maybe even as bad as Andy Goodway.

Coslett a couple of years before my time. I came in under Bamford, a poorer team still recovering from relegation but a sprinkle of half decent signings were made and led the way to some success under Murphy.

We've been lucky over the years. We've only had a small number of below average to average coaches that I can think of.


Millward
Hughes
Dorahay
Goodway
Betts
Lam

No post match interview from Lam?

He looks like a coach who knows his time is up and it’s a case of when not if.

If we fail to respond against Saints next week I think he will go especially if Saints put 20+ on us.

It’s sad to see.

I cannot see what Thornley will bring to your team. Was very surprised when his signing was announced.