Where do you see the youngsters in 5 years time?

[waterside glens]

keep hansen,goulding and presscott the others would depend on what we bring through from group 2

[DaveO]

Hansen is in the second year of a four year deal which I guess Noble was involved with ?

I am pretty sure Hansen was one of the players who's contract was extended as part of the deferred payments idea of Mo's to stick under the salary cap. Whether Nobby would have wanted him to be given an extension had the circumstances not forced the issue we don't know. He looks OK to me but I would have thought four year deals were for world beaters.

Dave

[ian.birchall]

The young players Wigan have now will probably at Widnes or Huddersfield in 5 years.

My posting in a nutshell. Widnes if they are not good enough for Superleague, Huddersfield if they are. The more things change the more they stay the same.

[cpwigan]

Every Wigan Academy Player will have a professional career. What level who knows.

People write Tomkins off too readily IMO. I believe he has the talent to become a first team regular and see both Tomkins and Mossop adding to our wealth of talent in the second row.

McIlorum = the safe bet Prescott = impressed and proved youngsters need time.

O'Carroll = the one with the biggest hurdle to overcome. Lack of size.

[topskin]

anybody know where ainscough is not been playing in reserves mossop and reay look to be best prospects in reserve team for the future

[butt monkey]

With all due respect, Wigan seem rather adept at producing alot of very average type players, Rarely do any of the latter crop, over the last ten years or so "stand out" as anything impressive. Often lacking in size (as some have mentioned - even for the forwards too), no one with genuine pace or evasive skills, or even just good on their feet that make them difficult to "put down".
Great "natural" ball players too seem at a premium. I am not singling Wigan out for this problem either, just that there are a great many juniors turning out as nothing more than clones for players that where derided/berated years ago, for being poor players.

[lucky 13]

With all due respect, Wigan seem rather adept at producing alot of very average type players, Rarely do any of the latter crop, over the last ten years or so "stand out" as anything impressive. Often lacking in size (as some have mentioned - even for the forwards too), no one with genuine pace or evasive skills, or even just good on their feet that make them difficult to "put down".
Great "natural" ball players too seem at a premium. I am not singling Wigan out for this problem either, just that there are a great many juniors turning out as nothing more than clones for players that where derided/berated years ago, for being poor players.

Think you are rite in part Wigan is a town ok it may have the most famous RL club residing in it but it's still just a town , to expect an endless line of international standard players from each crop of youngsters is not going to happen and never has .
If you look at players coming through over the past few years we have had a few who have gone on to play regular SL Other teams have produced players but I do think it's spread more now , years ago Wigan picked up talent from other areas easier Robinson Betts for example it seems other teams have picked up these sort of players lately, although with the likes of Macolorum Mossop this may now have changed I think out of a full years juniors if you pick a couple up who make it to SL regulars you are lucky a GB player every 3 to 5 years a great may come around every 5 to 10 years again with luck .

[DaveO]

I m referring to the way in which the salary cap will work in an effort to promote from within, ....

I am not sure what you mean by that. The salary cap is an obstacle to junior development not a help. All junior players once signed on a professional contract have part of their wages counted against the salary cap. So clubs must make decisions about who to cut sooner rather than later because they can't keep them all on their books to see how they turn out. This might mean they cut the wrong player(s) who may go elsewhere or simply be lost to the sport.

If you were referring to the new franchise criteria that specifies clubs must have a certain number of home grown players in the senior side, we already meet this criteria and I bet we always have done.

So I think Fraggle was right in basically saying nothing has changed as regards Wigan producing players.

Dave

[thomo]

i just want us to produce some big forwards who will take the game to the opposition - all we seem to be able to produce are second/back rowers - vert fit and fast for forwards but not big enough - a combination is needed of size an speed - we have no size

then again I am obbsessed with big forwards

[cpwigan]

The problem is that genetically big youngsters tend to become unfit at quite a young age and seen as clumsy. So they are marginalised.

What should happen is that they should be identified at a young age and developed to make the most of their physical size.

It does not happen alas