Williams and Powell went well, but they are not at Green's level. I absolutely support the need to bring young players through, but they need to learn off an experienced pro, to learn their trade, before being given the role, and then being dropped if things don't go well.

I've said this before but I'm happy enough to go with the youngsters at 6 because there's three of them. If we were heaping pressure on one youngsters shoulders I'd be worried but these three can rest, rotate and have a general scrap for the shirt. I think they will drive each other on and keep each other on their toes.



We've given them every chance to impress now with a big pack to play on the back of.

Whilst i have a lot of time for Sam Powell i don't think he's good enough to be a long term option at 6 for us. He's an excellent squad player but is he good enough to start @ 6 for a team who have real intentions at winning silverware? I don't personally think he is.



Williams, for me, is a 7 or potentially a bench option covering 9. Whilst the 7 & 6 positions at quite similar i don't think it's fair to ask him to stand up play there. We wouldn't see Smith playing 6 so why should we expect Williams to do it?



Rocky is the one with the potential to be our long term 6. He's been the start 6 at academy level and it makes the most sense for him to develop into our long term 6. He's not ready yet however.



What really irks me is that next season we will be weaker because one of the three above are going to be playing 6. For me these three should be on loan at other SL clubs learning their trade, ironing out mistakes. Once they are ripping it up in SL then they should come back to Wigan.

That is two too many. We can't have a season where we play each of them a third of the time or give the one given the job a few weeks off or whatever variation you can think of. We need a settled half back pairing so whoever plays 6 gets an understanding going with Smith.



Last season when Green was out we looked disorganised at times. Wane has already said he is going to have to blood fewer young players due to P&R being back and he should be hoping for a settled half back pairing for the same reason.



If we have to rotate players at 6 that just tells you we definitely are not up to standard in that position.

Obviously at some point it'd be nice to have one of them settle in and make the position their own. In the short term though the hope has to be that the three drive each other on and when one gets an opportunity they fight like hell to keep the spot knowing there's another two capable lads breathing down their neck.



I don't have any worries at all about any of them. They're all top quality players just needing games to kick on. One of them will do a Joe Burgess and rip it up.

Let's not forget we also have bench hooker spot.



Powell and Williams will be in the mix for that with Tomkins potentially.



Hampshire will be going for 6 and with Bowen 1. That's 3 positions between 5 players not that much of a stretch when you factor injuries.

Sarginson could cover 1 and 6 if needs be as well and Tierney also gives us an option at fullback.

That's a good post. We tried youngsters in the halves and it worked to a degree but young lads often take the wrong option so time is needed if Wigan think one of them is going to 100% be the Wigan 6.



Gaskell at saints was going well but took wrong options and had quite game you'd expect from a kid and it didn't pan out and left us we are truly stuffed as good halves are hard to come by.

Any news on Mossop?good player but terrible injury record.He will be on a good wage which I feel would be better spent on a stand off.

Agree. Go back to Robinson and Brown at Wigan. Both were outstanding junior players who did very well when they came into the first team and have gone on to have good Superleague careers. However too much was expected of them too soon and the confidence drained out of them. Sadly wigan had to move them on, it was the correct move for all concerned at the time, but I would have loved Wigan to have kept Brown. In a salary capped sport it was however very difficult to do that.



I'm really hoping that Wigan can manage the transition of Williams, Hampshire and Powell into the first team but spectators are going to have to be more patient than they have been in the past.

Why?



We have the England Knights halfback pairing from 2013, the England academy halfback pairing from 2013 and one of the England halfbacks in the squad for the current series v Australia later this month. I think they need to be given a chance before deciding on anther halfback.

Powell has been in and around the first team for a few seasons now. It's his time to step up IMO and grab his chance that's he's waited patiently for. I would be worried if all three of our options were of the age and experience of Hampshire and Williams but he gives me that bit more comfort because he's further on in his development.



He'll be given the six shirt and the main crack at nailing that spot down IMO.

Because I don't think Powell has the quality to be a stating half back in a top team.Hes solid but for me nothing more than steady.

Sarginson has played predominantly Centre for us and will do from now on especially they way he finished the season in that position.

Williams doesn't compliment Smith for me and the one I see there long term is Hampshire although Wane seems to see him as a full back.

I'm not saying were desperate for a stand off but we played a lot better with green in the side last season and a similar replacement is needed more than another front rower,especially one with a bad injury record.

Why?



I'm sick to my back teeth of the Wigan first team being a development side for 50% of the season. Players, imo, should loan their trade at academy level, have a run out pre season and in cup games and then go on loan to perfect their craft. Once they are then proven at the SL level they should then come back to the first team.

If we worked that way the best young players wouldn't play for Wigan. They would make their names on loan at Huddersfield or the like then go straight to the NRL. Then in time the best youngsters would just not come to Wigan in the first place, better to go to Saints where they will be given a chance. Luckily this will never happen, it would completely errode the competitive advantage our outstanding academy system gives us, turning us into a mid-table team at best.

Thank god we didn't send Joe Burgess out on loan for a year or Liam Farrell or Micky McIlorum or Sean O'Loughlin.



Didn't do them much harm. We're a strong enough side playing in a competition that's as weak as it's been for years and can afford to give these lads chances here IMO.



Loans are for players we don't need at the club 'presently' to ensure their development doesn't stall. We've loaned out Burke and Hughes because we can't get them games here. We won't loan out Powell, Williams and probably Hampshire because we can.

Why should other teams be a feeder club for Wigan? We have no god given right to expect our youth players to be sent out and played until they are good enough for Wigan, then brought back! Also what makes you good enough for wigan? I would prefer a slightly more raw player that understood our culture, team and patterns than a more mature player that had no experience of the real wigan way!



Quite frankly i am very surprised anyone could write what you have!

Strange thought process.

In reply to NK, Liam Farrell went on loan to Widnes some seasons ago.

Think him and Crosby were there about the same time.

Although Joe Burgess had the shirt number 32, I always thought he was likely to be Pat Richards' successor.

The loan players Hughes, Burke and maybe Taylor are loaned for different reasons.

Micky Mac is a true exception. McGuire starting him in the 2010 GF made his name amongst us Wigan fans I feel as when Piggy sub'd him we were 16-0 up which Saints were never going to pull back. After that MM was going nowhere!

Micky Mac wasn't a junior by any means when he played in the 2010 GF like Hampshire and Williams are. He could have gone before that but was deemed to be good enough to be required for first team duty much like those young lads are now and Burgess was last year.



As for Faz he played 6 games in the championship for Widnes which is totally different to loaning a player out for a full season to a superleague club until they're ready for us as suggested.



I'm all for loans in the right circumstances with the right players. I'm happy though to play our three young halfbacks then loan them out because I think they're good enough and obviously they're needed here.

Agreed.



You simply can't have that level of talent and potential on your books and then go and sign Danny Brough. That is the type of poor management that happened many years ago. Halfbacks are a rare commodity. Other Super League clubs would give anything to be in our position. Look at Warrington for example in having tried to replace Briers.



If you are going to go with a rookie as your six then you have to get two areas right. You need the experience in the rest of the spine of your team and in Bowen, Smith, McIlorum and Lockers we have that in abundance. Secondly you need a good set of forwards. The basics of RL have always been simple. Props win you pots. Your forwards have to lay the platform for your backs to play off. And you can see this in our recruitment. We have Tautai, Patrick and Mossop. Joel Tomkins has come back mid-season to beef up our back row with the talented Liam Farrell and John Bateman. I see Gil Dudson and Jordan James out of the picture. It will be a shame to see Scott Taylor leave, but we went well without him from mid-season and we have recruited well. You have to say with Flower, Crosby, Clubb and Pettyborne (who took us to the final) we have added Tautai, Mossop and Patrick. That is a tremendous set of forwards. Not to mention Greenwood who has had a years experience at London and Ryan Sutton too who has tasted first team experience. I would say we have the strongest pack in the league.



So I think all the ingredients are there for someone to really make a name for themselves. I think whoever takes that spot out of Hampshire/Williams/Powell will win the young player of the year award because the talent is there and they have the team around them to flourish.

So many assumptions there. I don't know how you can write off Sam Powell yet given the spits and spats of first team appearances. Same with Williams not complimenting Smith - how many games have they played together? I am not saying you are right or wrong here, I just don't know what evidence there is to make that assumption.



Of course we played better with Blake Green in the side last season. He has how many years experience at the top level? You would fully expect us to as a senior player in the side. However, if you don't give a lad like Hampshire/Williams/Powell a chance when a position becomes available then how do they ever get in the first team? Just signing a like-for-like replacement (I don't believe there is one available btw) just blocks any chance a young lad has to develop. If you have the two best young english halfbacks in the country on your books - you MUST give them a chance. You can't go and sign someone like Danny Brough.



Fans will need to be patient - me included. I don't think there have been many kids who haven't been written off in the past only to then go on and have successful wigan careers. I think back to our captain Sean O'Loughlin, Daz Goulding, Micky Mac, Liam Farrell, Joel Tomkins - all came under some flack from fans - not big enough/quick enough/good enough etc.



See my above post, but there is a very good reason we have recruited another prop. You need to get your fowards spot on if you are going to enter a season with a rookie halfback. If your pack is getting dominated then you are going to struggle. The spine around that player has to be spot on too with plenty of experience so that there is less pressure in the big games. I am really excited to see how three of the best young british halfbacks in the game go on next year competing for one spot with a top forward pack and an experienced spine around them. I think a real gem will emerge I really do. It is not a time to be concerned, it is a time to be excited!

I really rate Danny Brough and think that for one season, with his inclusion I could see us being unstoppable.



However your piece is so well argued that you've swayed me to your way of thinking. Good post.

I'm really looking forward to seeing our youngsters at stand-off. Williams and Hampshire have speed to burn and I think they will be better than Green.

Taylor to Salford on a years loan? viewtopic.php?f=20&t=576305&start=10 thats much closer to home for him and he will have a great chance of winning something there next season

Taylor to Salford on a years loan? viewtopic.php?f=20&t=576305&start=10 thats much closer to home for him and he will have a great chance of winning something there next season