Loan deals are difficult and I’m not a fan of them.
You are not really part the club and could be keeping a local lad out of the team. I think moving from a Wigan culture and all the benefits of a SL club to a part time set would a difficult environment for a lot of youngsters.
I’d rather we had a proper reserves competition played on a weekly basis. I’m hoping that this will be part of the IMG strategy going forward.

Agree there

I’d second the statement that Tom Forber is the best hooker in the squad and I’d rather him play than Powell. He’s quick out of dummy half and tackles better than Powell.

What on earth

He hits harder, tackles well above his weight. Book mark this post and review it in a few years.

Sam Powell has been one of the best defending hookers in the league for the past 7 year. But yeah some 18 year old whose never played against men is better defender.

I’m in agreement we need to start looking at alternatives to Powell but some of the comments are ridiculous.

I hope Forbers a great player for us

Just because you’ve not seen Forber do it doesn’t mean you can discredit someone’s opinion who has seen it. Powell works hard and does lots of tackling, Forber hits harder and works hard and does plenty tackling.

If both players were starting their careers now then Powell wouldn’t get a look in.

Dying to know the theory being Cust and Smith switching sides.

French scored a bag full last year when Smith was with him
On the right. Now Marshall has scored a load so far this year now Smith has moved to the left.

Cust is bad.

That maybe the case, but it has no relevance to the current situation.

I’m sure Forber will have s great career but at the moment he cannot be expected to play week in week out in SL especially given the state of the support he would have around him.

He’d get targeted at SL level. Surely you don’t mean that?

He’d get targeted and would stop every player that ran at him.

Are you his agent or his dad? Maybe both?

He’s a very good prospect but he is 3rd/4th choice at the moment, that will probably change next year and the year after but he cannot be expected to play week in week out in this current pack.

If our pack was taking teams apart he may be a good shout for 10 games this year off the bench but better he develop out of the first team cauldron on loan in my opinion.

Give over, he’d get battered and probably ruin his career!

I’m already wondering the impact that Lee Briers might have had at Wigan…?

I always liked the idea of having someone of his quality as part of the coaching team, especially an outsider.

Early days but it’s a drab start.