Don't know why anyone would be surprised by this, could not see it being anyone else.

We won didn't we? People said he gave everything to us on Thursday. Blinkers. It's a bit like how in the past week I have heard posters say that Eddie and Stevo hate Warrington, Huddersfield, Leeds and Wigan!

It was always going to be Silverwood, he has been the Pies tame ref most of the season, they seemed to have had him for all there tough games this season and he lets them get away with murder.
Expect the All Wigan Wrestling Team to turn out and constant attacks on the knees with 2 up top and a third coming into the knees from the side from Micky Mac and Lockers, if he plays.
We just need him to be even handed for both sides.

Hope I'm wrong, Come on the Wire ! you can play them off the park if given a fair crack, keep the faith.

Can't agree with most of this, but as in the semi, whoever is winning the ruck will tend to get the favourable calls. A lot will depend on Monas and Micky Higham.

I've never understood why anyone cares who the ref is. They're all as good/bad as each other.

One thing is for sure, no matter who it was someone on here would have moaned about it.

According to the RL Project, Silverwood has refereed Wigan and Warrington seven times each this year, Wigan have won five and lost two, we have won four and lost three.

Of our three loses two were against Hull and the other against Saints at the start of the season. Can anyone honestly say the referee affected the outcome of those three games?

It means absolutely nothing who the man in the middle is, all that matters is what the 34 other blokes on the field do.

well obviously it must mean something to you as why bother checking all the stats just to prove a point..hope your right about the 34 blokes on the field tho

The worst policer of the ruck of all the refs for me, trust me though Ive noticed our spoiling tactics in the ruck, especially of late, and that could be as beneficial as it is negative. I hate Silverwood but not to a level in which I think he's bent, just inept, like the rest.

Bring back Stevie G I say!

So our winning percentage with other refs is 85% whilst with Silverwood it is 43%.

Yeah you're probably right nothing to suggest there that Silverwood has any influence on it.

I thought that you guys would have been praying for Child to be given the gig?

only wish we could..quite liked him..a character the game is sadly missing

Did you watch any of the afore mentioned games?

Saints- we were awful.
Hull (League)- switched off after half time and Hull had a great game.
Hull (Cup Semi)- lost the plot after the interception try, still couldn't come back despite Silverwood giving us three or so penalties in a great position in the dying minutes of the game.

The percentage is always going to be lower with the senior refs, as they take our big games, whilst we probably have a 100% record with Roby and Hicks.

Bentham, apparently Leigh is now part of Warrington

All of them, just like every other game we've had Silverwood and his 10 second play the balls and only taking the defence back eight.

Do you think this style of refereeing suits Warrington's style of play?

When we're defending it does.

Disagree. Warrington's method of slowing the play the ball down is by holding the player up in the tackle in which case the tackle is not complete and therefore it isn't a case of the referee allowing slow play the balls whereas Wigan's methodology is to get three men into the tackle and on top of the tackled player who then peel off one by one giving an in-ordinate amount of time between the completion of the tackle and the play the ball.

Last three times hes been ref for Wire v Wigan in the league we have won them all.

Simple when on the floor, wriggle like fooook and try you hardest to get up, more so than usual. He'll blow up every time.

Silverwood is Silverwood. He can be Bob on one week and then not give a monkeys the next. I find that like in the Hudds Semi, he gave penalty after penalty but with no team warning. One thing I am aware of is that flat to just forward get the nod at this stage of the season and its something that we will have to be switched on for.

Best of a bad bunch

To be fair I think he will want a good display himself, with the World Cup just a round the corner

Silverwood is the only referee I've ever cursed at for giving us a penalty. He gave us back to back penalties on the 1st tackle against Saints at KR a few years back. Monghan (M) had them by the balls and Silverwood's penalties allowed Cunningham et all time to get their breath back and re-set their line. I don't think he's "bent", either in the sense of a homosexual slur or in that he is paid money to fix games, but I tend to enjoy games he is refereeing less than other referees. Referres are an influence on a game. But they don't decide who wins on their own. If we play to the same standard we did against Leeds, we'll win comfortably and there is nothing Wigan or Sliverwood can do about it.

One more thing - Silverpud is up there with "Stains", "Dire" and "Demics" as the most pathetic "comedy" nickname people can come up with. Can't we just call him a **** if we want to be mean?

Let us hope he ignores Charnley and Tomkins appealing for a penalty EVERY time they get tackled. They were pathetic against Leeds.

Also note Tomkins NEVER plays the ball correctly.

Spot on there Bobby. He will want to ref the WC final and all eyes will be on him WC wise. We always seem to have a good game with him, pretty even across boths sides.

The RL world will be watching two great sides at the pinnacle of the sport in Europe, the officials should be playing a bit part whilst in total control.

In order for him to referee the World Cup final, he will need a good performance in the World Cup, not in the Grand Final. Another poster said that Silverwood will want to have a good game because the World Cup is round the corner; I don't think that will matter one iota.

He will already be a shoe-in for a World Cup place along with Phil Bentham and Thierry Alibert.