NEW SIGNING FOR NEXT SEASON

[Deltic3]

Today i have been informed from 2 Very reliable sources ( one with a contact close to the club) that we have signed/are about to sign Gordon Tallis for next season.

If this is true with the announcement about Pongia then will we have a fearsome pack to next year. The signing of Tallis will only help to further the learning of the younger players and act as a lift to the whole club.

With Lam not now counting on the overseas list we still have space for 1 more import for next year. Who that is we shall just have to wait and see.

[robjoenz]

i hope your reliable sources prove to be unreliable. pongia has been great and i woul'nt mind him stopping another year,but tallis is past it. how many young players would we have to sacrifice to pay the wages of another ozzie has been?

[Deltic3]

The source is generally reliable. He told me that Orr was going to sign 2 weeks before he did, when all the talk was of him going to Hull.

[DaveO]

Deltic3 posted:

Today i have been informed from 2 Very reliable sources ( one with a contact close to the club) that we have signed/are about to sign Gordon Tallis for next season.

If this is true with the announcement about Pongia then will we have a fearsome pack to next year. The signing of Tallis will only help to further the learning of the younger players and act as a lift to the whole club.

You have got to be joking. Lift for the whole club?

He is past it.

Wigan of all clubs should not be functioning as an old peoples home for retired antipodean players.

If Pongia manages to keep up his form of recent weeks (which is decent but not outstanding) for a season I'll be amazed.

If we sign Tallis I doubt he'll play half the season.

As to the young players learning from him we have C Smith, Faz, Cassidy and O'Connor - all forwards with experience.

If we want a mentor we need it for the backs not the forwards.

Not impressed by this rumour.

Dave

[Deltic3]

Don't shoot the messenger! As for providing a lift if the kids cannot learn off a World Cup, NRL Grand Final, Ashes winner then who can they learn from? As for Tallis being past it i would like to think that if this rumour is true then he would have to prove his fitness first.

As for some experience in the backs, i couldn't agree more, where is this world class centre that we were supposed to be signing? From where i sit it appears that all the "world class" centres are on contract for next year. There is still one place on the quota so let's hope that the club choose wisely.

[Fraggle]

I've been away for a week and a half so haven't kept up with all the rumours, but this one troubles me. Having successfully got under the salary cap I can't imagine how on earth we would be able to afford Tallis. He's hardly going to be cheap, and we're not (assuming / hoping Dallas and Lam re-sign) releasing any expensive players. Nick Graham isn't going to be costing too much so him leaving won't make much difference, and I can't think who else is going?

Also, whilst I respect Tallis (and I wouldn't tell him if I didn't rate him!) do we really need anymore backrowers? We've got 2nd rows all over the place and there's no place for him in the squad. Wild, Hock, Tickle and Cassidy are all competing for the two slots, PJ can slot in there as well and I'm sure there are others as well, so where would Gordon fit in?

[Portsmouth Warrior]

I am sure he would be very glad of the nice 12 month paid holiday in good old pommie land, like so many of his mates before him ....