Excuse me for prefering facts to speculation.

Or alternatively you should get on the next plane. Because I doubt IL is going anywhere fast in the near future, so you're now going to be even less happy following Wigan than you have been at any time since the golden age ended in about 1995. It would work for the rest of us too, because if it came down to it, he's still a lot more use to the club than you are.

Site blocked at work, anyone care to share the content?

It's very easy to use the expression "Happy clapper" It's a snappy little soundbite, and i'm sure you feel the "big man" when you use it as a supposed insult. I would like you to cast your mind back to where we were a s a club in 2005 when IL took the tiller... If you think we were in a better place as as a club back then, fair enough, i don't. Take a look at the present, not a lot to complain about. And the future, well lets see shall we, but much has been done behind the scenes to ensure we produce young players for the club, which also has positive effects on our community.

Sam is without doubt an exceptional once in a lifetime talent, of that there is no doubt. Do i want him to leave, no i bloody well don't!!! But if you seriously think IL does, you are certifiable, and if you think he does not have the best interests of Wigan at heart, you are also certifiable. We will never know what goes on between between individuals at meeting over contracts, but people always seem willing to blame the club when they have no info to the contrary. Sam and his agents will have been talking to clubs, it would be naive to think otherwise, and who can blame him, its a short career.

If i was Sam, i would be off too... The stewardship of RL in this country is a complete shambles. If you want to blame anybody for Sam leaving, blame the RFL for not ensuring we have the money in the game, with a profile to match to keep our better players... For what its worth, i believe Sam would go no matter how much we were able to pay, he needs/wants to test himself.

AUCKLAND: The Warriors have got their man.
Two separate sources have told Fairfax Media the deal to bring Sam Tomkins to the club next season is done.
The Warriors tried to tick every box to lure the biggest name in the Super League to New Zealand, and it seems they have been successful .
Warriors chief executive Wayne Scurrah would not comment about Tomkins, but it is understood part of the agreement with his release from Wigan is they play a part in the announcement. Initially other clubs were interested in bringing Tomkins to the NRL, most notably the Titans, who flew their then chief executive David May to England this year to meet Tomkins's representatives.
But as time went on the Warriors emerged as favourites.
One of England's greatest players, Martin Offiah, said Tomkins would bring his winning attitude to the Warriors.
''Apart from his skills and physical attributes, Sam is a winner,'' Offiah said. ''He is a person who wants to test himself and, like most players, he wants to test himself in the best league in the world. He has won most things, the Man of Steel, Super League titles and the Challenge Cup. He will get to test himself in the World Cup soon, too.
''If it is true and he does move on into the NRL, then I wish him all the best. I had a couple of stints playing in Australia during my time, for St George and Easts, and it was a fantastic lifestyle.''
Offiah, who scored 501 tries during his 14-year career, is an ambassador for the World Cup in England later this year.
He rubbished suggestions that Tomkins was too small to make it in the NRL.
''People like Benji Marshall aren't that big,'' he said. ''The days are gone where rugby league was a slow, tough game.''

Thanks Lee

Something i havnt seen mentioned re this supposed done deal is Logan. It was rumoured that Sam wanted Logan included in any deal? Maybe he wanted his bro for company? idk.
Anyone have any inkling about this?

Let's wait for the facts.

Doesn't look good for WRLFC on the face of it though.

It makes depressing reading (it was inevitable really).
This so reminds me of the time Hanley fooked off to Leeds!

Sam talked about creating a dynasty at Wigan, winning the cup and league again and again. He could finish up with a few hubcaps, one cup winners medal and one Grand Final ring, with little chance of the Warriors winning the NRL in the foreseeable future. From whtever angle you look at that, other than the purely monetary one, that's sad for both parties.

This is a place for us to voice our opinion. If I don't want a chairman who sells our best players I shall say so and that is out of order because of what? You don't like it?

If Sam is sold you will, in my opinion, be kidding yourself if you want to hide behind this idea that IL is some sort of master of the business world and he knows best.

The coach knows best, the chairman knows best. It's a stuck record.

I'll be sad to see the back of Sam, but I'm not sure there's a lot IL could have done. If he had put his foot down he would have had to play a player every week who didn't want to be there, I'm not saying he would do an Eastmond, but it's a big gamble to have so much of your cap space invested in someone who wants to be released.

Also making him stay would send out a big warning to youngsters that if they break into the first team, they'll have to wait till their contracts are finished to go to the NRL. Which sounds good on the face of it, but if the other top clubs don't then take the same stance, we could see the best youngsters choosing them over us, in order to have a shot at going to the NRL as soon as they hit good form.

Looking at this both ways at present.
Very bad news that Sam is going but he was going at some point so why now?
Is it because the NZW have the money on the table that IL wants, whereas other NRL clubs are not coming anywhere near our valuation of Sam?
So rather take the money now as it may not be there next year? If it is a large transfer fee that would put off many NRL clubs, however the fee could be spread over the length of the contract as in soccer to overcome NZW's salary cap problem. NZW may go with this where other NRL clubs may not.
There has to be some very good reason IMO for IL to negotiate Sam's departure when he's so important to the team's success.
One other matter is that we are rumoured to be in for Tom Briscoe to replace Pat, it has also been suggested there maybe a couple of NZW players coming here as part of the deal.
I just can't see IL throwing Tierney in at fb when he's 18.
Until we get the full details of why, where, who and how much, I think I'm leaving judgement on this.
Up to now when it comes to SL/Wigan and business matters IL seems very much ahead of the game.
Still very disappointed Sam is leaving end of this year, the reasons stated will make interesting reading.

Pot. Kettle. Black.

If you hadn't adopted the arch-skeptic approach from the outset, I'd take you more seriously on the matter.

We're still a better-run club (and team) that we have been at almost any time since the early 1990s, when of course we didn't have a Salary Cap to contend with, and when there was no big money interest in our players from RU or the NRL.

But don't let that prevent you enjoying the platform this crisis is giving you. You've enjoyed all the others, no matter how small (Higham, Ainscough, etc)