I don't think on the face of things it looks particularly bad, and it would be easy to explain away some of the more high-profile losses due to injuries. I've even mentioned elsewhere that I almost expected a drop in standards given the recent successes - the only way was down after 4 consecutive GF wins and a WCC in Australia. But there's an awful lot below the surface that concerns me.

I don't think any player has dramatically improved under Wellens which is the main measure of any coach (for me anyway). He has no problem getting the team playing to his particular tune, but tactically we don't have much versatility and if a team can exploit our mostly rigid defence then there is little to suggest we have the capacity to claw them back. Easy wins against the bottom half and low-scoring, tight games with mixed results against the top half is the general theme of the last 18 months, which I agree is a considerable drop in standards.

In terms of splashing the cash, transfer fees are so rare I wouldn't even consider one unless there was an outstanding player available for the right price - that not a point worthy of criticism IMO. If we were in a position to act then maybe that would be different, but we are up to the cap (or close enough) as of now. By all accounts they are actively looking at the market for next year but some of the cap space has been dependent on Mata'uita's situation, unfortunately it looks like he's leaving too so we should have a chunk to spend but only one quota space unless we choose to release Hurrell and/or Blake aswell. The market isn't great and internal retentions and promotions will take a bite out of what will be available, but there should be room for an established back and hooker/half depending on where the club see Mbye fitting in next year. The club clearly have long term faith in the most recent professionals and a few more below them who will become full-time next year. I would much rather invest in them and maintaining those pathways than on big fees for players and I'm glad the club see it that way too.

Whether the coach is the one to bring these through successfully remains to be seen, but even in our 'lean' years Saints have never missed the playoffs in the GF era and I've no doubt we will still be competing given the current standard of the rest of the competition. Obviously the kind of success we have recently enjoyed will be far more difficult to attain given Wigan's improvement but we are still going to be in contention and involved in the big games for a while yet.

Competing might be good enough for the club over the next couple of years why the squad transitions but it looks a massive job to balance the squad given we have 9 players out of contract this season (excluding Dodd and Makinson) and 13 as it stands in 2025. On top of that there are the likes of Lomax, Walmsley, Percival and Clark up in 26, all of whom you would expect to retire or move on, and then longer-term we have Welsby and Delaney who already have admirers in the NRL. Some very important short and long term issues at the club right now.

what are you're views on Welsby given the current situation Saints appear to be in? He has won everything there is to win over here at a young age
Do you think he'll show some loyalty and see out this (or his next) contract in a bid to get Saints back to where the fans want them to be or do you think he'll take a chance in the NRL if it comes to him? i'm also assuming there will be some sort of release clause in his last contract

one of the things i've praised Saints with over recent years, has been the ability to know when to let a player go, and not letting them go on for a season or 2 too long. Wigan were masters at it many years ago, and appear now to be getting that little bit of the ruthless streak you need when it comes to contract negotiations. Saints appear to have slipped a little in that regards IMO, do you agree or think some of the contract extensions have been warranted and the players performed to their highest standards (i'm ignoring Roby in this conversation because of the standard / level he played at all his career)

I was resigned to losing Welsby given all the achievements you state (plus the England captaincy) and was very pleasantly surprised when he signed again. Don't think there is a clause in his contract although I stand to be corrected, I certainly hope not as most of our attacking threat is carried by him currently. He's certainly got the game to succeed over there but he's still only 23, I think it's simply a matter of if/when he chooses to go.

The contracts for 2026 I mention above, I don't think an external coach comes in and gives them out personally. Lomax, Percival and Walmsley have all spent significant time on the treatment table and I think we would be in a better position from a cap spend perspective if we had been more ruthless and kept them waiting until this point of the season before making decisions on all three. With that said I can't really speak to the succession plan as it isn't particularly clear given the contract status of most of the squad - there is every chance we have offered them longer deals on reduced terms with a view to naturally phasing them out for the likes of Robertson, Whitby, Vaughan and Stephens. Will be interesting to see how it plays out.

Wigan have a lot of players tied up long term, it looks like a smart move now given the current state of the market but the true test of that will be in another 18 months - how is the cap going to be managed if and when players fall out of favour with time left on their deals, and will it prevent the club from being able to offer good deals to the next batch of players? The short term succession plan for players looks pretty clear but Wigan have been more susceptible to NRL interest than most so even that is not without risk.

it really is difficult and i wouldnt want to be managing the cap. I have a friend associated with the club, and he told me how many iterations of the cap they went through last year to accomodate changes i.e Dupree in and Singleton out plus the signings for this year

i suppose the good thing in our favour now with the changes to the cap is that you can pay Jack whatever you want and it will only cost £50k cap wise, but clearly the club has to be able to afford anything over and above that. You only need to look at Cunningham, Roby, Scully (i know he signed from Wire), LMS to show that you can have a good career over here and dont have to go over to Oz, especially if he's in a side challenging and equally getting good international exposure (if we can ever get the international calendar right)

i know Stu and think there's another poster who speak highly of some of your academy stars, but is all about timing and getting the balance right, whether that be through good planning or sheer luck. i think Isa may have stopped Junior getting some good game time this year, but bad luck for Isa, and good luck for Junior, has meant he's now getting good game time and looking like he can play at that level week in week out (and i know there is likely to be a dip at some point for him, but we need to manage that). From what i've seen on TV, a couple of your lads are looking ready or close to ready, but its bedding them into a consistent / successful team as you've been able to do over the last few years, and i think that makes a big difference to how they go, especially if your team is playing iwth confidence

onto the 5 year contracts, it is a slightly different approach, but hopefully we'll see the best of the players, whilst managing other recruitment i.e. Cooper, Isa likely to go this year, Farrell probably next year which opens up 1st team spots for Hill, Junior and Walters for example, plus all 3 have had good experience this year. There is no doubt we wont get it right with all our player retention, and we'll still lose some good kids, but we cant keep them all. I know i've posted on the Warriors fans forum and Forber could be an example of this, where O'Neill has stepped up probably ssoner than anticipated, and Leeming gone from starting 9 to bench, so highlighting the risks / challenge as we have him on a 4 year contract, with O'Neill and Forber both chomping at the bit for 1st team

I'd be willing to walk over personally but everyone is different. If Welsby is a home bird like O'Loughlin, Roby etc then I won't be complaining.

Agree with the importance of planning and there's been a big debate about it on Redvee. We've heard about this generation of new kids and how good they are for a while now, so I think patience is wearing a bit thin waiting for them to get their chance (Stephens excepted). It's important that they are drip fed into a settled team and with so many players currently injured I can understand why it hasn't happened yet. Maybe London was the opportunity to give Vaughan a run in hindsight, personally I was happy to err on the side of caution and rack up the points difference given they had two weeks off prior and another week off coming up. But when we see the likes of Farrimond and Eckersley fitting in and performing straight away it ramps up the pressure even more and I can understand the criticism.

I still think most are a while off, maybe Vaughan this year and the rest next year, maybe longer still. With all that said, Delaney and Stephens got their chance due to injury and both have took it. Given Wellens' track record with his interchange management maybe they will all only get in due to an injury crisis

Certainly both at this stage. Vaughan has been playing pretty regularly for Swinton on dual reg and I think that is a path these lads will follow after the reserves before coming into the first team picture. He was 18th man against London which would indicate he's nearly ready in the eyes of the coaching staff. I would have no problem picking Vaughan as long as he is given a fair go, unlike Royle or Davies on Sunday.

The likes of Burns, Cowen, Roberts and Bailey have also played for Swinton in recent weeks. Of those Burns is the oldest and most physically developed, he had a good season on DR for Crusaders last term and he should be close to an opportunity. Cowen has had some eye catching performances but the rest are still finding their feet by all accounts.

Below that there are some exciting prospects coming into the first team squad next year who I would expect to follow Vaughan's current trajectory.

Vaughan is too small for an edge forward and too slow to play centre. He’s another Sam Royle.

That’s why wellens won’t play him, despite the mass hysteria on redvee.

There are only 2 good youngsters at saints who haven’t made their debut yet. Robertson and Whitby. Both of whom are massively inferior to farrimond.

Mike rush mentioned a golden generation coming and all the toothless simpletons at redvee bought it lol

Vaughan is too small for an edge forward and too slow to play centre. He’s another Sam Royle.

That’s why wellens won’t play him, despite the mass hysteria on redvee.

There are only 2 good youngsters at saints who haven’t made their debut yet. Robertson and Whitby. Both of whom are massively inferior to farrimond.

Mike rush mentioned a golden generation coming and all the toothless simpletons at redvee bought it lol

I suggest that you watch the England v France Academy game from last night and watch Robertson score 2 tries and have a great game.

He’s not massively inferior to Farrimond at all. He’s just playing for a risk averse coach. Peet would’ve drip fed him in to the team by now if he was at Wigan.

You’ll also be proved wrong by Vaughan too not that it takes much to prove you wrong.

The bit i've highlighted is the one thing that most Wigan fans would be critical of Matty Peet, but thats probably being ultra critical based on what he's changed since he took over

there have been times where he has had Hill, Nsemba or other youngster on the bench, but hasnt played them. That could be because of how the game panned out, but equally, if they are on the bench, why not play them? Again, ultra critical, but the one thing a few would criticise him for, in terms of trusting the young player

Speaking of Farrimond, I'm pretty sure he was called up to the England academy squad.

Why did he not play? Was he not selected, or did we pull him because he's playing on Friday?

Been wondering the same. Hopefully it's because we want him fit for Friday and not because he's injured. There's no doubt he would've been selected if available, so it's either injury or us pulling him out.

Stu, you have been dragged in again!

I know, I should learn really! I did leave it says though to reply but after Robertson's performance last night I had to put him straight