like i said last night ....

john dorahey(sp)

got us a trophy (or 2) then was sacked

Shaun Edwards and Dean Bell coached that team that season , Dorahy was a lame duck!!

What has been missing and still is, are the props Noble has identified and IL has failed to sign.

If we win anything, give Nobby another year.

But I am not going to buy a season ticket. I will just pay at the gate late on in the season.

Noble is definately the luckiest coach in rugby league.
If pathetic Smith had not got crocked he would still be in the team, noble would have left SAM in the reserves and we would have probabley lost the last five games.

he's right about not playing sam though



injuries have defo forced his hand regarding certain selections who wouldnt have got near otherwise

No, he isnt.



But that is what happens at any club in any sport. Don't delude yourself that Eastmond played because Long was dropped for example

lets stay on topic , not interested in what goes on over there ..

sam t would not have played all of the last 4 or 5 games if smith was still here

this is such a key position and sam has made a massive difference

deny it and you are deluded

Yet Sam played while Smith was here.

What about the instances where Smith wasn't injured and Sam played or are we just choosing to ignore that?

Ahh, so a relevant example that disproves your nonsense is "off topic", wonderful logic there....

Of course, im deluded, explain what happened when Smith was dropped then.

Ignore it and you will make yourself seem an even bigger wit.

I think Sam's performances have cemented his place this season, he has had several superb performances, a couple of decent performances but in my opinion he's yet to have a stinker that deserves him to be dropped=red**.

=red** [size=75Said whilst touching wood in the hope this continues. [/size

You are not suggesting young players in other teams or in other team sports only ever get a chance when a senior player is injured are you?

The difference between any sport and Noble's Wigan is not that injuries sometimes open the door for players but that at Wigan the evidence shows that it is the only way the vast majority ever get a chance.

Do you think J Tomkins would have got a chance without Lockers injury last year? I don't. Had Mathers not got suspended and Smith been so woeful would his brother have got a chance? Not IMO. Events occurred that opened up a slot for these players and when you add to that to how Noble played Colbon all across the park in 2008 rather then use a reserve player, the conclusion is pretty obvious he only uses these players when forced into it.

People who watch the reserves have said Ainscough does not deserve to take Roberts place based on the current form of both players. Fair enough but it is my opinion, which is based on the way Nopble has handled the side over the last three years, that were Ainscough scoring 10 tries a match and if Roberts were letting 10 in, he would stick with Roberts. Ok I exaggerate but you get the point.

Dave

If we finish 4th/5th and win the double, Noble stays and next year we finish 1st/2nd but don't win the CC or GF, have we gone forwards or backwards?

personal insults allready ?? if you cant discuss the point with resorting to petty name calling then you have a weak argument

as i said , im not concerned about other teams , just mine

we can argue the toss all day if you want , but smith's presence kept sam out of the team rightly or wrongly

there has been numerous threads on these boards bemoaning the fact that tompkins had been dropped in place of smith

smith was accused of not being fit to wear the shirt at times

Forwards.

By coming 1st/2nd would have meant we would have been more consistent throughout the season regardless of silverware.

Form at the business end of the season (Again)

80 mins from Wembley.


Yes Nobby is doing an awful job isn't he?






Even more amusing is the fact that a lot of the people who were moaning about young British players being squeezed out of the team by Aussies now want to replace a proven successful British coach with an untested Aussie!!

You couldn't make it up.

un tested aussie ?

who's that ?

But... the big difference is that some of the British-born players are as good as if not better than the aussie imports - whereas the majority of NRL coaches tend to be superior to their British counterparts.

But he wasn't.
Sam played his first game of the season off the bench at Quinns
Smith was DROPPED for the next two v Bradford h(won) and Leeds away (lost) and returned to the bench v Salford (won)

In the next game v Huddersfield Smith was DROPPED again and Sam started. (lost)

Barrow away (won) saw Sam again start with Smith on the bench.

Saints at home (lost) Sam started and Smith was DROPPED.

Are you getting the picture.

Catalan away (lost) Sam started no Smith

Celtic home, Wakefield away, Murrayfield, Wakefield away (Challenge Cup) (all wins) saw Smith start and Sam on the bench.

Hull KR home (lost) was the FIRST time Sam was left out of the team

Warrington away (lost) Sam started and Smith was left out of the squad

Salford home Cup ( won) Sam started, Smith was not in the squad

Salford home (won) Smith came back Sam was not in the squad, he played in the reserves but wasn't meant to Noble wanted to give him a couple of weeks off as he was going to France with the England squad

Celtic away (lost)

Smith started Sam was unavailable.

HKR away Smith started Sam was on the bench.

Smith got injured and his season was finished

So Noble has picked Sam ahead of Smith more times than not.

ok , i have just wasted about 10 or 15 mins of my life looking on the official club web site at this seasons match reports and it looks like you are wrong rogues

from the wakey game (1st in super league) ...to when smith got hurt at HKR

smith has STARTED 12 times

sam ??? 9

not interested who was on the bench or not in the squad

so , just going of that figure , disregarding when both players have been either injured or unavailable , who would you say started the most games under noble??

that doesn't show the whole picture though does it.

The amount of times Sam has started on the bench, which was the correct call every time imo because he's a young lad in his FIRST SEASON!

Noble and everyone else couldn't and shouldn't have expected him to start every game and to do 80 minutes.

i never said it did ,
what i said was the was a perception on this board that smith was keeping sam out of the starting line up