Widnes v Wigan

[Brad5926]

Wane should take all the stick for today's result , throwing so many young lads in at the deep end , bottom of the league team or not , one or 2 maybe should have played today, unless seriously injured Sam and O'loughlin should not have been dropped , 2 world class players , one scores tries for fun and ruins defenses whilst the other makes 50+ tackles every game,

Wane will learn from this and I'm sure Lenegan will make sure he gets the message

[Nezza Faz]

Wane made the right choice. Our youngsters needed to be tested and they were. The players on the pitch were more than good enough to win comfortably and when they were 18 points ahead they looked like they could.

The only problem today was indiscipline and that came mainly from the experienced players. Losing Mossop was a blow because the team had to work a bit harder, and then losing Goulding (that was a big turning point with the try they scored) made things a lot harder.

Almost all of the Widnes tries came from back to back penalties. No penalties = Widnes not scoring. The players were more than capable of winning, but we've actually got far more from this game than we would if the full strength side had battered Widnes.

Top of the table means nothing. I'd rather finish 8th and be confident that the squad has enough depth and that the best players are being chosen and the team playing well rather than finish 1st and then encounter issues with a player (like we did with Deacon last season) and have no plan B when a player needs to be dropped.

Good post cherrypie - too many on here are looking at the short term; after all its only one game and remember Leeds lost seven of their first ten matches last season AND...are CHAMPIONS!

There'll have been hell of a lot learnt from this and our players will be fresher, especially when those close Easter fixtures come round. That is an important time when you pick up injuries, and weariness can lead to losing a few matches in quick succession.

[Brad5926]

In another 18 months with ever player picking up first team experience along the way the team played today would be title contenders , but to throw it all that them all at once wasn't the cleverest idea , with the odd player getting a chance here and there or when needed , Hughes and spencer gettin chances are perfect examples , not to just do it because he feels like it

[First Try Tickle]

Wane made the right choice. Our youngsters needed to be tested and they were. The players on the pitch were more than good enough to win comfortably and when they were 18 points ahead they looked like they could.

The only problem today was indiscipline and that came mainly from the experienced players. Losing Mossop was a blow because the team had to work a bit harder, and then losing Goulding (that was a big turning point with the try they scored) made things a lot harder.

Almost all of the Widnes tries came from back to back penalties. No penalties = Widnes not scoring. The players were more than capable of winning, but we've actually got far more from this game than we would if the full strength side had battered Widnes.

Top of the table means nothing. I'd rather finish 8th and be confident that the squad has enough depth and that the best players are being chosen and the team playing well rather than finish 1st and then encounter issues with a player (like we did with Deacon last season) and have no plan B when a player needs to be dropped.

Thanks Cherry Pie, we finaly get a decent post instead of all these people sat at home slagging a team of they can't be bothered going to support.

Ok it was a gamble to rest some players, but how else do we find out what they are capable of.

We lost out to some very dodgy referee decisions, that kept bringing Widnes back into the game.

Better to try these guys out in a nothing match, instead of when it matters in the play offs.

[Toryboy]

Wigan coach Shaun Wane:

"The team I picked was 100% capable of winning that game and I am absolutely gutted. We did not underestimate Widnes. They are a good team and were going to click at some stage. They played well and we didn't. They deserved to win and we did not keep the pressure on.

"I have learned a lot and am very disappointed with the performance. There were a few debuts because I needed to know about these players.

"We need to be stronger and better as a group and I was disappointed with our defence. We can defend better than that. Gaz Hock and Michael McIlorum had a real dig but we clocked off defensively."

Someone at Wigan needs a word with Mr Wane THIS IS Superleague not a new player experiment we are now 3rd on the same points at Leeds [game in hand] and Catalans [game in hand] then Hull on 7 pts [game in hand]. He has put the team under increased pressure so early in a season.

[First Try Tickle]

I am absolutely fuming, £40 plus petrol to go and watch the reserves

Goulding
Charnley
Hughes ( played the last 4)
Finch
Mossop
Mickey Mac
Lima
Lauaki
Hock
Hansen
Tuson
Flower

[ian.birchall]

Well at least we now know why Maguire was reluctant to rotate his 1st team squad.

[exile in Tiger country]

Wane made the right choice. Our youngsters needed to be tested and they were. The players on the pitch were more than good enough to win comfortably and when they were 18 points ahead they looked like they could.

The only problem today was indiscipline and that came mainly from the experienced players. Losing Mossop was a blow because the team had to work a bit harder, and then losing Goulding (that was a big turning point with the try they scored) made things a lot harder.

Almost all of the Widnes tries came from back to back penalties. No penalties = Widnes not scoring. The players were more than capable of winning, but we've actually got far more from this game than we would if the full strength side had battered Widnes.Top of the table means nothing. I'd rather finish 8th and be confident that the squad has enough depth and that the best players are being chosen and the team playing well rather than finish 1st and then encounter issues with a player (like we did with Deacon last season) and have no plan B when a player needs to be dropped.

Really? We got more from this apart from two vital league points, the chance to go top of the league and increase our points difference? What exactly did we get, apart from embarrassed and a reputation for not showing any respect to opposition sides.
Wane should be hauled over the coals for this team selection!

[DaveO]

Why not? What's wrong with giving the youngsters a test rather than 'easing them in'. It's not going to be easy when they make the step up and lets not forget that a lot of those players will have to be good enough to play at Super League level very soon.
Mellor, Logan Tomkins, Spencer, Hughes, Russell etc will all have to be capable of playing together in the same side either next year or the year after.

As it happens we've just seen how some of those players cope. We've seen Jack Hughes have a torrid time in defence against Stefan Marsh. With a stronger team out that almost certainly wouldn't have happened and we might have to wait a good few weeks before picking up on that weakness.

We've seen that Gelling is strong player but needs to be smarter close to his own line. We know that Mellor is capable of some good touches and can defend very well but needs time to get used to the players around him.

We know that Matty Russell is shaky under the high ball but that he doesn't let pressure get to him and also that he's a brilliant attacking player.

Sometimes you can't get away with bringing young players through slowly because injuries forces them into the team too early. Might as well find out where the young players are at as quickly as possible.

Cherry, you are talking utter b@llocks.

Wane will have learned nothing from today and neither will the players. How do you learn anything about players when the team has never played together before and is so much weaker in key positions? So many changes mean you have no idea why things went they way they did there are just too many variables.

If you take out five senior pros and replace them with youngsters you end up with a team isn't a team that does not know each other and one very likely to blow an 18 point lead. How on earth can you learn about players strengths and weaknesses when they are playing in a side so disrupted?

And saying certain players would not have been shown up if we had a stronger side out is just nuts. It's team game and if the sum of its parts is stronger than the individuals then that is the whole point.

The ides introducing players gradually is too easy is a complete joke. It is hard for any young player to step up to SL level even if they are the only new player in the side. There are only 13 men on the pitch each with a job to do and anyone making their début has their work cut out as it is.

What we had today was a situation where instead of young players playing alongside the likes of Tommy and Lockers and learning from them they had to replace them. Utterly stupid.

That has never been the way to do it and it suddenly didn't get to be the right way because a Wigan coach did it.

As someone else pointed out and I mentioned before next week is a must win game because if Leeds and Cats win games in hand we drop down to 5th I think. So instead of one or two youngsters in this week and one or two next in the side it will have been wholesale changes this week and back to the first team next. Pointless. Especially thet noen of our first team players should need a rest a mere five games in.

[Toryboy]

Wigan: Russell; Gelling, Goulding, Hughes, Charnley; Finch, Mellor; Lima, McIlorum, Mossop, Hansen, Hock, Tuson.

Replacements: Lauaki, Flower, L Tomkins, Spencer.

Without skipper Sean O'Loughlin, Sam Tomkins, Pat Richards and Thomas Leuluai,

To many changes for a single game