Ye that's true, always thought our precky could've been a class player if he had more aggression in him.

In that second half I don't know what was going on but Smith seemed to get tackled with the ball so much on the 4th tackle so that when it came to the 5th our only half on the field was playing the ball and we ended up with farrell and tautai kicking the ball down field....

I don't know whether it was down to lack of leadership or communication or what but our attack just wasn't good enough.

in fairness though I do feel that whilst matty smith isn't exactly a world class player he was pretty much on his own when we lost lockers. Sarginson went back to his side step and firm grip on the ball... and whilst we showed good determination and aggression to get back into the game a bit there just wasn't enough cohesion in the attack to really trouble wire.

we are missing williams and tomkins more than ever now. when those 2 come back and there is less pressure on smith I think all 3 of them could start to combine/click and we can get a decent attack going again.

Smith Can be an effective player when he is alongside another capable half/playmajker. but on his own he just isn't effective enough...

I think it's harsh to make smith the scapegoat. Granted he's not a world class player but he is a decent scrum half who at the moment is obviously suffering from a lack of confidence the effect of which shouldn't be underestimated. I applaud him for having a go at the goal kicking, as it did last year for some reason it seems to be affecting his game. It's time to give the kicking to Charnley and hope for the best, let Smith concentrate on what he can do well. If in the future a top scrum half becomes available then I'd say thank you and good luck else where but at the moment he is the best option we've got. We are also missing our 1, 6 and 9 which puts huge pressure on Smith to compensate for their absence, we also lost SOL and has a kid who was playing second row for the 19's at stand off.

What cost us tonight was poor discipline and poor defence in the first half. The only player I would single out was Farrell, he was dumb tonight. The sin bin was the most blatant I've seen in a long time, he was lucky not to go to the bin again for the 8 point try and he was dumb for the obstruction, if he had carried on through the line regardless of making contact with the defender it would probably have been given, the fact he stopped and turned his back made it an easy decision for the VR.

Might be a tad controversial but I don't see the Sutton potential. Big lad, looks the type to bully his way through junior rugby and be lauded as the prop of the future but for me another Bibey.

Think that's fair, I don't think there's many half backs that can carry a team on their own.

That Sandow is some player though, could've been embarrassing tonight if he'd stayed on.

There is carrying a team on their own and then there is basic game management. I see teams get beat by 30 or 40 points but never see the last tackle options I saw tonight by the losing side let alone having props and backrow forwards kick the ball on the last tackle.

More then a tad I'd say. That may well be the most insulting thing I've ever seen written about a player comparing him to Bibey

I've got to admit I was frustrated with him at times last year because I thought he'd started to drift and he wasn't putting in the hard yards but I think he's been excellent recently and is really starting to kick on. I thought all the props gave it a good dig tonight tbh.

I wouldn't say Smith is being asked to carry a team on his own. It's not like we've been hopeless this year. Until tonight our defence has been outstanding, we've had games where our pack has dominated the opposition and we've barely put any points on the board despite so much pressure. That's where the criticism of Smith is coming from. Tonight things were tough for him, but there have been plenty of games where we've been on the front foot and he's been putting passes to ground, putting in ineffective kicks and generally making poor last tackle plays. I know it's difficult when losing a halfback partner but he wasn't exactly thrilling anyone last season either. O'Loughlin was in line to play prop this year and yet has moved into the halves and shown creativity and passing far beyond anything Smith has shown in his time at the club.

Tonight we did have the ball near their line on a few occasions and they were continually let off the hook by poor kicks from Smith. It's not like the team is preventing our playmakers from making smart kicks because Powell and O'Loughlin has produced several. Even Bateman, Farrell and Joel Tomkins have surpassed Smith's current level of kicking in recent games.

At some point he's got to take control. It's not like he's under a huge amount of pressure. He's playing for one of the top sides, alongside a very good passer and one of the best players in the league, with three England internationals in the back row and a fullback who is starting to pick out some very good passes.It was arguably harder for him when he was at Salford but he actually impressed for them. At the moment he seems to be failing to cope with the responsibility. I really hope he can start to take control of games and improve his decision making.

Smith will only improve if we bring in a specialist halves coach like Andrew Johns at Warrington. He's clearly deteriorated since Deacon left Wigan and the club have failed to replace him. No longer worthy of the cherry and white.

Tonight was the first time I started to think we should be considering a Tomkins/Williams partnership when they both recover.

No way around it - that was a desperately poor performance for a Wigan 7. In all areas- passing, kicking, running, defence and leadership.

I would have settled for Smith putting in a decent last tackle kick in the second half, letting Wire start the set from their 20. I'm sure he threw a long looping pass to a forward (who had to kick it) on the last tackle four or five sets in a row. We were chasing the game and had half a chance to get a result and he looked to completely lose his composure...unless he was injured and didn't feel he could kick!

I've been a fan of Smith for a while, but he needs to get back to basics. Forget game management and leading the team round the park, he needs to focus on finding the man with the pass and putting a decent kick in at the end of a set. It's a worry that this is aimed at one of our most senior players and not a young lad!

We are so flat and very few runners which gives a Smith very few options. He also appears to be very close to the ruck on all ptb situations which again limits our options.
A new 7 wouldn't fix everything but for me is part of the rebuilding required.
We have no shape and devoid of any flair which unfortunately has to be attributed to Smith and/or the coaching.
Tonight was no different since Green left so for me a new 6&7 combination is a must but won't happen this season as ST I think will revert to FB.

I'd happy to ignore those who say Sarge can't pass, and give him a go in the halves. Tierney will do the job at f-b. Really, this can't go on all season, can it? BTW I was very impressed with Gregson; thought he showed some great touches and put in a good shift, and the other lads were fine as well.

You're having a laugh, Smith wouldn't get a game at Pats. If we had JT we would not have been beaten this season.

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