Fans Forum - Status quo, No change

[cpwigan]

Main points:

IL backs Noble.
We need additional coaching & fitness staff (Steve Hampson is being talked to at the moment).
Wants people to stop posting cr@p about players drinking on here - says if you have hard evidence contact him.
Said we need props and a leader. Declined to comment on Carvell rumours.
The players accept full responsibilty for what has gone on and totally accept what the fans said about them.
New sponsor for next year - JJB Gone - Main prospective new guy for sponsorship was sat with him on Friday.
Wants to open club shop / offices / musuem somewhere in town - Won't be Kudos as rent is huge (he is right, it is for all units on there) - Are negotiating for Fitness first at moment but at moment is expensive.
Joe will be implementing several new stratigies over the coming months.
Set up of club regarding player development - praised all the work Noble has done so far and says if you think it's a state now, its nothing to how bad it was when Noble arrived.
Been trying to buy a prop all year.
Reads on here everyday so knows what people think.
Faz wont be back anytime soon - family settled in London.
Feka is putting in 2 hours extra training a day to get fit, shed some weight and improve game time, He started the new training regieme the day he got his court verdict.
Salary Cap is still with auditors.
No rumours have got to him and he normally hears them.
Saw the report we submitted for last season and says it looked fine to him.
We don't have enough coaches or structures in place to support and develop the players.
Noble & Forshaw are working 70hrs+ a week across 3 sides and are too thinly stretched.
No on field leader and no pack enforcers - he is trying to buy them but is struggling within the limits of the cap and as such it is more difficult.
Players have been chucked in at the deep end through no other choice ala Goulding & Prescott. Won't let the same happen to Tomkins.
The players have themselves voted in a new strict code of conduct.
He was very positive about the players. He said its taken 6 months but on Sat morning they finally admitted they were completly to blame, not the fans, Noble, the club. Nobody but themselves.
Said the you're not fit to wear the shirt chants may have helped.
says the players accept they aren't doing what they are told / what they need to do but they accept that now.
He is looking to help them with signings where possible buHe used the word "enforcers" meaning second row / prop. But the conversation moved more towards props.
Didn't say who we had failed to get, wouldn't comment on Carvell, mentioned he knew Fozzard & Wiki were available but was reluctant to sign players at the end of their careers.t it's proving difficult.
He said the team is quiet - Joe said its the quietest dressing room he has seen in his career.
Is looking to sign leaders who can help us
IL said Wigan fans dont boo a losing team, they boo a team that put in no effort and he mentioned Barrett saying after the game on Friday "These fans stuck by the team week in week out when they were losing 2 years ago". They know Friday wasn't acceptable.
The reason for Higham leaving is simply "football reasons", that's basically all he would say. Wouldn't comment on Mathers future whatsoever
Regarding Noble & BBC TV over weekend
IL was aked at meeting and commented.
Doesnt have a problem with Brian fullfilling a contract with BBC.
Joe also commented. After leaving the JJB on friday, Brian was at Orrell till the early hours, was back in at 6.30am, left for Hudds at 11.30, then after game, back to Orrell to do more work.
Pretty much said Pat had taken a pay cut ("a more sensible contract than before") for his new contract because he loves the club & town.


This is a pretty accurate account of what went on tonight. Not my words (have pinched them as my memory is not what it was!!!)

I was quite pleased with the outcome tonight. What we have to remember that Lenegan only took over in December and he can't change things overnight. At least he is prepared to talk to the fans - its more than we've had in the past.

I once worked for a headteacher who at staff meeting,said nothing, then at the end said thankyou I hear what your saying and then totally ignored everything and did his own thing.

I would rather he did not talk to fans than patronise us.

Remember, the first forum. You all had your little ideas, they kept saying, great, we willlook into that. Somebody reminded him about a n electronicscoreboard in the west. Answer not important at the moment, far more important things to worry about. THEY HAVE HAD 6 MONTHS. All IL had to do was get permission of the JJB Stadium Owner, sign a personal cheque and it would have been there in a fortnight.

People need to stop letting themselves be treated like mushrooms.

[jaws1]

The fans forum was announced some time ago. The preparation a couple of powerpoint slides. IL picked 10 questions from random people. The people were 5 males, 5 females all middle age. 10 people gave their comments, questions SLIDE - list of soundbite comments re last game. Usual no effort, not enthusiastic, do not look fit. The things anybody can see. Do they know why? NO

The coach is not under discussion, nor are any of the coaching staff. They just lack assistants. So more people being employed to pursue the same coaching philosophy will in a few years see progress. Lack of long term planning, constrained by the salary cap. They go for some players but get outbid easily. Some they do not go for.

They have decided to go for the youth route but it will take years. Alas they even know that a successful team with its culture brings youngsters through but ours will just struggle along. They know the team is boring but they would rather win boring than lose boring. They agree Stuart Fielden has never played as he did for Bradford but he played okay the last few games.

Hey less of the middle age more like old age for me i did manage to get a question in about buying Phelps and Smith instead of using our own youth .Later i got another in regarding putting out our players on loan for a season not just for Wigan but for the whole of SL using a feeder club i said Widnes it could be any of the NL1 clubs with a proviso that the players must return to their parent club and play at least 3 matches at SL level.

[cpwigan]

More convinced than ever that things are not going to improve for a long time. At least until Noble chooses to leave. IL bought the club but you can forget anymore money IMO from his own pocket. However, the supporters of Wigan RLFC will be digging deeper and deeper.

If he wanted to solve the short term problems he would have said, I will fund their salaries, JL go out and recruit world renowned conditioners, sprint coaches etc etc. NOT A CHANCE.

[Dubs]

I'd like to hear people's opinions of what we could do better in regards to what Lenegan has said. I mean what exactly were people expecting him to say? "I'm sacking Nobby in the morning and we've signed Lockyer, Inglis, Folau and Thurston for next year. Free season tickets all round...". FFS

[warrior till i die]

a very productive meeting i thought. Some of the things which lenegan pointed out about us being below saints in money brought in and also how are coaching staff is structured proved how poor mo and whelan where.

Interesting to see that he said we are trying to sign a winger and a prop (mentioned carvell, fozzard and wikis names) and he also stated that phelps could potentially be playing full back more often, read into that what you want but it doesnt sound good for mathers.

Apparently salary cap findings aren't out yet and lenegan looked at our books when he came and apparently they looked ok, he didnt sound convincing i must admit.

lydon said some extremely positive things about the direction we are going in and he is trying to instill some of the old wigan pride back into the shirt.

also some stupid questions asked someone asked whether mathers is playing on friday.

and there was also a comical moment when someone stated this...

"ian i have one word for you....penalty count!" got a laugh from everyone in the room.

[cpwigan]

I'd like to hear people's opinions of what we could do better in regards to what Lenegan has said. I mean what exactly were people expecting him to say? "I'm sacking Nobby in the morning and we've signed Lockyer, Inglis, Folau and Thurston for next year. Free season tickets all round...". FFS

The meeting was pointless. Moreover, if you are going to talk about playing matters and criticise them then surely the head coach should have been present? Why no club captain present to present the players point of view? THey were talking playing affairs and only 1 person out of the 4 club officials is qualified to speak on such matters with authority. IL has the knowledge of you or I. No more, maybe less. No planning went into that forum and it became a cathartic we are sorry that the team played so bad v Huddersfield.

People want real solutions. Soundbites mean nothing. They talked about new discipline rules? then bloody well show them. EASY. New coaching appointments. Where will they recruit from, advertise EASY.

If they are developing a plan - SHOW IT

How do they measure progress? SHOW IT / PROVE IT

Qualify for the play offs - Weak ass target. Why no specific place. Why no real objective targets for 2009, 2010

Do you remember the market stall merchants with the microphones and their blarney. Not much different tonight.

[nathan_rugby]

Sounds like a load of tosh some of that.

I thread should be made with statements from all of us, ie things we seriously think lenaghan should be doing.

Sticky that and atleast he will read it.

After that, nothing else we can do.

[cpwigan]

Historically Nathan, businessmen would become chairmen of professional clubs to give themselves a bit of recognition, to basically give themselves a feel good factor and impress their friends. I see no difference between those old style chairmen and IL.

Football, RL was full of them and nothing ever got achieved.

[Dubs]

Historically Nathan, businessmen would become chairmen of professional clubs to give themselves a bit of recognition, to basically give themselves a feel good factor and impress their friends. I see no difference between those old style chairmen and IL.

Football, RL was full of them and nothing ever got achieved.

IL was a fan of Wigan RL long before he was a millionaire businessman as far as I know. I seriously don't think he classes ownership as something of a status symbol or a plaything, if that's what you are implying?

[cpwigan]

Historically Nathan, businessmen would become chairmen of professional clubs to give themselves a bit of recognition, to basically give themselves a feel good factor and impress their friends. I see no difference between those old style chairmen and IL.

Football, RL was full of them and nothing ever got achieved.

IL was a fan of Wigan RL long before he was a millionaire businessman as far as I know. I seriously don't think he classes ownership as something of a status symbol or a plaything, if that's what you are implying?

When he was a fan is irrelevant. Yes that is exactly what I am implying. There has only ever been 1 true fan / owner in British sport and that was Jack Walker.