How did Richards get on today?

Average display, Amor was the best prop on show.
Greenwood was very good again.

This is what I wrote a couple of weeks ago in response to Wiganers lavishing praise on their pack. Today again, they rocked up at Saints and got battered up front. They cannot compete up front with Saints, nowhere near with Crosby, Clubb and co. Not big or strong enough. Forget their fancy plays and bluster, in this game if you can't play the middle of the park, you're going to lose. Three times now, Saints have dominated the centre of the field against Wigan and three times been victors. Obviously, Mossop, Tautai and Flower were missing today and you'd expect them to sure things up a lot but in truth, none of them are in the same league as Amor or Walmsley and none of them match Masoe's sheer size. Savelio is going to play quite a bit and Vea is going to play a lot of centre field as well icon_wink.gif

Oh, and Smith and Williams were as pedestrian as it gets as well.

Lots to work on for Wigan.

Lomax came out of a tackle late in the first half limping. Looked like the same injury as he was holding his leg like be did last time it went. He didn't come back on second half

Cheers. According to KC on the website it was a knock to his back but he's OK.

Odd as he was certainly limping!

Could just be left over from the injury last year? Generally when you pick up a knock it seems to make everything else hurt a little bit more!

I feel as though Lomax needs an injury free season though, another season of scrapes and bruises and he's in danger of falling onto the Gary a Wheeler path ...

No it won't. Joel Tomkins was giving it back to burns just as much.

No mention of Farrell either? Two penalties in a row (one for dissent - lucky not to be sin binned) and then we scored.

From my viewing point it looked like he got some knees to the back from Joel Tomkins.

That's exactly what it was. It happened in front of the West Stand. Those of us in the West Stand who saw it made our feelings known at the time!

What was the attendance ?

6888, I read.

You were right. Fair play to you.

Yes. Correct.

Your props bossed ours. The fact that Wigan gave a better display in the second half meant nothing, because the game was over at half time. The final score flattered us.

For me it was an embarrassment. Whilst the result is meaningless the performance certainly isn't. If I were Shaun Wane I'd be very worried because Wigan took no positives from the game.

I'll be honest mate, I was surprised at how weak and flat you looked. Your forwards made very little ground and the majority of Smith's kicks came from his own half.

I suspect Wigan's pack will be a tougher prospect once Mossop, Flower, O'Loughlin and Tautai are in the lineup.

I said to Brian on one of our threads that is be worried if I was a Wigan fan with their front row.

Looks small, weak and lacks any quality. Clubb and Crosby are decent but just your average run of the mill props. Flower won't be seen until April and then needs to get match fit and mossop is injury prone.

Mossop and o'loughlin are both injury prone.

True.

So was Is I!!!

The pack were completely dominated. On one set Hampshire picked it up on about 15 metres and Smith was kicking from the same place five tackles later.

I would have thought that KC would be delighted with that performance - with Walsh to return too.

I don't think anyone will write Wigan off. Lots to do though. And we are always rudderless without SOL (which in itself is worrying).

Unlike our forwards?

I bet all our forwards played more games than mossop and SOL over the past two years.

Mossop had a bad year in Aus last year but in his last two seasons at Wigan he played 26 and 24. O'Loughlin played 27 and 21 in that same period

Last season O'Loughlin played 23 games.

I guess that wouldn't be too much different to the likes of Wilkin, Amor and Flanagan (certainly last season)

Mossop`s a poor player

Correct. I'd also reserve jumping to the conclusion Wigan aren't up to much because of a pres eason friendly.

The problem with a match like this, between two quite even sides, is that when one turns up more focussed than the other (for what ever reason), they walk away with it.
I don't like picking a derby match for a friendly for exactly this reason. it cheapens it imo.

I was, however, surprised that it was us that turned up to play and not Wigan. They've been a more ruthless side over the past few seasons and I thought they'd have a real stick up their about the GF loss.