I'm thinking one of two things...

Get Clubb fit and move him back into the centres. We see, to have enough cover in the forwards as it is.

OR...

Building 2 Wigan teams. Then we can rest our star players and still field a team to compete, especially with the lower end teams.

TEAM 1

Bowen
Charnley Goulding Thornley Gelling
Gree Smith
Flower McM Dudson
Faz HH
Lockers


TEAM 2

Tierney
Manfredi Sargenson Gelling Burgess
Hampshire Powell
Crosby Tomkins Taylor
Pettybourne Lloyd
Clubb

Obviously the interchange bench would consist of both 'teams' (ps I know I've named Gelling twice!)

That is a fair point. After all Lauaki was/is also on a similar deal but it does seem odd to sign a player who isn't what might call a star on a four year deal and you have to be careful what message that sends to the younger players.

Don't get me wrong, if a top player becomes available you sign him and if that puts a few noses out of joint well that is tough because you always want to add top talent to your squad. At the moment though I don't think Clubb justifies being put that kind of bracket especially when the club is about its own production line of talent.



Well the coaching staff did wonders for Flower but a lot of credit goes to the player for showing the right attitude of taking the opportunity presented to him as well. Clubb has an early Christmas present so lets hope he approaches the chance given to him like Flower did and Bitcon and Wane can justify signing him for four years by turning him into a top player.

So what IS Clubb's real position? Anyone? You have it 13, Jonh has him pencilled in at prop I think yet I think I am right in saying he has played most in the 2nd row and at centre?

I do not have him pencilled in for any position, the club though I do feel need to make a call on this asap.

It look like Wane is going to run with him as a forward, I would not mind getting him conditioned for an outside back position. I think it may be a long shot and I have no idea what shape he is in at the moment, but if we stripped him down I would like to see him potentially on the wing.

I'm happy with these signings.

Hopefully Sarginson can develop in a similar way to Ratchford - he's a nice addition to cover all the backs for a while, with the potential to move into the halves in the future.

Personally I think Clubb will be somewhat an heir to Joel Tomkins - wide second rower rather than another defensive grafter.

The Knights side is weird: you would've thought you'd keep players in their club positions? Hardaker at fb, Thornley at centre and Makinson on the wing? I can only guess that they want to see if Hardaker is worth considering as a backup in the centre position (don't see it personally, he should be 2nd choice FB and 4th choice winger imo).

If that is his role he is going to have to fight Faz for that slot. Faz will have four more years to go on his contract as of next season as well.

Given both those two are on long term deals a horrible thought has just crossed my mind. For next season Wigan took up the option on Hansen's contract to extend it for a season so I hope the long term deals Clubb and Faz are on do not shut the door on H getting another deal. He was outstanding in the GF and will be a top player for several seasons yet. We need to keep Mr Koucash's mits off H!

Forget putting him in the backs unless you have an injury crisis at centre, I think you can use Clubb in one of two ways:
- Use him as a wide running second row, leveraging the fact that he spent a lot of his early career as a centre and has a decent turn of pace for someone who is over 16 stone.
- Do what Broncos have been doing recently which is playing him in a "13 as a extra prop" role, which reflects his willingness to do some hard graft, but also his ability to come into the attacking line like an extra back. He's not a "creative 13" as we're often acustomed to in the British game, but he's okay in the more physical 13 role the Aussies often prefer.

If he can stay clear of injuries I think he could surprise you as an impact player, he could fit into a high tempo gameplan quite well, get him hitting holes and he'll be charging off down the field given half a chance. And if you just need someone to come in and soak up some work in the middle he can do that.

The probelm at Broncos has been that he's been in an underpowered pack that always starts too far down field to create impact let alone give him opportunities to shine. But injuries aside he's done his best for us and that's involved being messed around to suit our needs, some fans are just annoyed with him because he said in an interview what everyone with half a brain thought was bleedingly obvious.

I have a feeling Clubb will impress once he's been in the Wigan training environment. He's 6 2" and nearly 16.5 stone which makes him bigger and heavier than Ben Flower and he could still add some good weight to his frame. I see him as a replacement for Prescott as a athletic front row forward. Wane will rotate during the year again I imagine and unless one of Tomkins, Hamphire, S Powell or Williams demands a bench spot through performances I think he'll revert back to an extra forward on the bench for the big games.

Flower Mcllorum A Powell (Depending on his preseason progress)

Bench ... Taylor, Pettybourne(as a SR), plus 2 of Clubb/Crosby/Dudson/Hopkins/Hughes.

I think Clubb will be a very good player for Wigan. Forget him as a centre, he will be a utility forward.

He is a big lad, with our team he could become a beast.

Also looking forward to getting Andy Powell fit for League. Lets not forget he didnt have a preseason. He only had a few weeks off between finishing a poor season with Sale. Give him a full preseason & he will be a good addition.

People tend to dismiss Powell and what he has achieved in Union. His style of play was perfect for League and he can be a real enforcer for us. Our pack is looking more and more dominant.

I don't think Powell will make it. It's playing the game that gains you the understanding of it, not getting fit pre-season and he looked lost at times when he did play. He has the physical attributes but even a young Scott Quinnell took virtually an entire season to learn the ropes and time isn't on Powell's side. And players like Taylor, Crosby, Dudson and Flower are not going to make it easy for him to get in the side.

I also thinks he lacks mobility which cold be fixed to a degree with a better pre-season but if he is just intrinsically not agile enough for the game Wigan play I can't see him getting many games over the next two years.

I agree to a certain extent. I wouldn't go as far as bluntly saying he won't make it, but it's the positonal aspects of the game that he needs to get a grasp of quickly, rather than his fitness or general rugby ability.

I definitely don't see him as a starting prop, but could be useful making an impact off the bench in short spells.

Depends on where Wigan wanna play him. I think that's one of the points of his signing, a utility forward as stated in the news article about him.

I actually think differently, Powell is mobile union 8 turned into a league prop, he has the mobility to be a great prop in league.
Powell is a big lad, great stength and power, plus he's a little bit of nutter which is a good thing when you're a prop.

After a good full pre-season he'll learn the position and prove to be a valid player. Afterall he's a prop, not a half.

I won't state that he's going to be a star. However I'm far more optimistic he will add value to our squad. He offers something that none of our other forwards do, which is proper size combined with aggression. If we can concentrate on his strengths and minimise his weaknesses he could be a very useful player and a real crowd pleaser.