Mossop

[sc74]

We only signed him so IL could prove a point about letting players leave and coming back. Or try to.

A very interesting point.

[gillysmyhero]

I think it might be a mental thing with his shoulder problems that I hope he can get over and start performing a lot better than he has been doing latley.

[butt monkey]

We only signed him so IL could prove a point about letting players leave and coming back. Or try to.

A very interesting point.

And that accusation could also be used to include the return of Joel

[cpwigan]

We only signed him so IL could prove a point about letting players leave and coming back. Or try to.

A very interesting point.

And that accusation could also be used to include the return of Joel

I think you could add to SPIT Leeds off. Maybe Leeds got lucky.

The caveat I would add is that I think if we played our props as props AND we actually worked properly in and around the POTB then MAYBE Mossop or any of our props will look better.

[DaveO]

We only signed him so IL could prove a point about letting players leave and coming back. Or try to.

A very interesting point.

I think IL's stance on this is very disingenuous. He has even used the return of players like Joel and Mossop to try prove he was right all along.

Same with Sam when in fact all three didn't find the grass greener on the other side for different reasons. Lee never got going over there, Sam is homesick and Joel never progressed into the mega-bucks England RU set up.

Had any of them had the success they thought they would or as with Sam liked the life down-under they would not be back here.

It was an excuse dreamt up to soften the blow of them leaving and I bet no one was more surprised they wanted to come back than IL.

The fact he has adopted an "I told you so" attitude since they did come back must mean he think we are all stupid.

When we see a player return at the height of his career after a few years of success in the NRL or Union and turning his back on that success and turning his back on more money to come back to Wigan then I will believe him.

[Mike]

When we see a player return at the height of his career after a few years of success in the NRL or Union and turning his back on that success and turning his back on more money to come back to Wigan then I will believe him.

Sam did. But you've written that one off as not relevant. So I don't think you would ever believe him TBH.

[DaveO]

When we see a player return at the height of his career after a few years of success in the NRL or Union and turning his back on that success and turning his back on more money to come back to Wigan then I will believe him.

Sam did. But you've written that one off as not relevant. So I don't think you would ever believe him TBH.

Oh come on Mike. You are taking that sentence out of contact and you know you are.

If he wasn't home sick he would not be coming back.

As I said it hasn't worked out for all three players for different reasons. Should I have said:

"When we see a player return at the height of his career after a few years of success in the NRL or Union and turning his back on that success and turning his back on more money to come back to Wigan for no other reason than the player said he would, not because has has failed, or is homesick or other similar reasons, then I will believe him."???

None of the players who have come back have seen their deals our and/or had the success they expected. Was IL banking on that?

Well if he was he didn't tell anyone.

[Mike]

I think all of them wanted to come back. For different underlying reasons. What specific reason would you accept? Perhaps a statement like "I have fullfilled my unwritten agreement with IL and spent two year developing myself away from Wigan before returning. I would not have done so had IL not made certain statements in the press when I left."

I agree with you BTW that most of ILs positioning on departing players is spin. However if they are going to leave then he's done a good job of positioning the club so that the players can come back if and when it doesn't work out for them for whatever reason.

Its damage limitation and nothing more, and so far its worked.

[butt monkey]

I think all of them wanted to come back. For different underlying reasons. What specific reason would you accept? Perhaps a statement like "I have fullfilled my unwritten agreement with IL and spent two year developing myself away from Wigan before returning. I would not have done so had IL not made certain statements in the press when I left."

I agree with you BTW that most of ILs positioning on departing players is spin. However if they are going to leave then he's done a good job of positioning the club so that the players can come back if and when it doesn't work out for them for whatever reason.

Its damage limitation and nothing more, and so far its worked.

But only if the players return with the same form/fitness and attitude as when they left. At the moment you could very well say the return of all three has not set Wigan alight as they should have done and we have fingers crossed history doesn't repeat with Sam

[DaveO]

I agree with you BTW that most of ILs positioning on departing players is spin. However if they are going to leave then he's done a good job of positioning the club so that the players can come back if and when it doesn't work out for them for whatever reason.

That is a fair comment but that is not how he is spinning it. Not at all.

Its damage limitation and nothing more, and so far its worked.

Well that depends on what you mean by "its worked". Has it worked as a PR exercise or because we have the players back?

Given I don't think we'd have got the players back if they had not wanted to bail out I don't see how it has worked that way.

As a PR exercise as I have said before you'd have to be a bit thick not to see through it.

I really do think IL is treating the fans as mugs on this one. As a club I am sure Wigan do not need to make a song and dance about retaining a players registration if they leave a contract early as all three did.

That might make them return here if things do not work out but it is certainly not part of some master plan to let them leave and improve just so they can come back which is how IL spins it.