I realise I'm about to commit heresy but here goes:

Sam Tomkins is an admirable RL figurehead.

Ouch, that hurt! He has been a bit of a love to hate character for all non-Wigan fans, partly due to his niggly semi-cheating antics at the play-the-ball, his perceived over-cockiness and for his sheer ability to destroy teams with his talent. But watching him on the Sams Team feature on Bootsnall must surely be changing peoples opinions of him? He seems a natural in a classroom helping teach awkward kids and what he is doing is great work.

Well done. (ouch, hurt again!)

And getting well paid for doing it.

I wish Sam was playing for us, he is class, pure class.

Getting well paid doesn't make standing up in front of a room full of kids much easier. He comes across really well in the Sams Team feature, well paid or not.

The only pain from me is that it's only a matter of time before RU get ahold of him.

I've no problem admitting that he is the best talent in British RL.

Tweeted almost the same comment to him y'day after watching Boots n All.

I was impressed with how he came across in that feature as well. To be honest I've always felt he came across as down to earth and having his head screwed on.

On the pitch I don't think he's been up to his previous very high standards this year. That's from the perspective of stats anyway which admitteldy don't tell the whole picture.

I wish we had him. Shame that one day he might leave and take the 9 gold pieces ala Edwards and Farrell. I love watching him against anyone bar us.

Phil Clarke has been saying this for years, now finally people are starting to listen.

I think he is great, he is something that has been missing from the British game for a while, a game breaking outside back.

In the 1980s and 90s we had Offiah, Davies, Schofield, Robinson. After Robinson left there was nobody in that league. The best was people like Gleeson, Senior and Carney, good players but not that calibre of gamebreakers, whereas the Aussies churn out Slater, Inglis, Hodges, Folau and co. Tomkins is up in that league, Eastmond potentially was too.

I would love it if he went to the NRL, if he went to a top NRL club I think he could help change Aussie perspectives on British RL. Guys like Morley and Ellis have gone there and got their respect so they think Brits can turn out players with strength, toughness and work rate but they don't think Britain has got any outstanding athletes in the backs like they do. Tomkins in a top NRL side would be a superb player, score buckets of tries and be regarded as a sensation there.

Sal, who cares what the Aussies think, They're Brits in the sun trying to be Americans.

When Tomkins hot the big time many could see (but could not admit) he was a great talent. What many people used to love to feed on was the negatives (because simply he didnt play for there team)? He had a air of cockiness but too often that used to cross the line and because "it was Sam" he seemed to get away with it. BUT.....does he still have that same impact. Over the last couple of years we seemed to have had the measure of him. Leeds played him superbly in that semi-final where his performance was way off (yep, i think it was Leeds tactic rather than Sam having an off day). Admittedly he is still amongst the best players in SL BUT I dont think he is now the game-breaker he used to be.

Some very fair and unbiased comments on this thread. So thanks for that. I know some of us like a little jibbing and ribbing on the boards, it adds to the fun, but none on the Wire board today from me. All quiet on the west stand front, today!

I think you'll find that everyone (bar a couple) appreciates Sam for the player he is, some just get a little annoyed at some of the things he does on the pitch. Were he to sign for us, all that would change and he would become the hero he is at Wigan. In the early seventies Alex Murphy was very much a 'hate figure' at Warrington. Suddenly he became our player-coach and became a Wire Legend overnight, very similar type of figure within the game.

The same went for Andy Currier when he played for Widnes, we all hated him.
But when he signed for Warrington we still hated him.

I'm holding fire on praising him until he stays in the game of RL by going to the NRL. He annoys me to when he's on the pitch because of all the gamesmanship (he doesn't need it in his game, he's a very good player) but he does look like a good lad off the pitch .

He's spent the weekend with Saracens again as part of his transition program. He's also training a day a week on Union tactics and positioning.

If you believe the rumours of course.

I'd love to see him in the NRL, but the whole Saracens/Wigan partnership thing was just a PR wrap-up of the deal for them to sign Tomkins.

i posted on our rumour board a few weeks ago that i dont know where Sam would play in Union

FB needs to kick the ball not run with it
Wingers pretty much the same and he certainly wouldnt get any ball
Centres are like our 2nd rows
and union HB need to be able to pass both ways quickly, dont run and dont do bugger all else

IMO he would be wasted in Union and get bored very quickly whilst picking up a big pay cheque

i think most Wiganers are resigned to the fact that Sam will move on (hopefully we keep him for at least 2 years), but if he went to the NRL then that would be because he wanted to test himself against the best in the world, if he goes to union then it will be for the money and the exposure that he will get, certainly not to play the game

Well, it's a job, so wouldn't you take the job with more money?

Sam's not like a football player where he's earning £10m+ a year, he needs to maximise his career earnings while he still has a career. His 'skill set' means the only way he can earn more is by moving to the other side of the world and leaving everything behind, or moving down south and changing codes. Whilst it's a completely different sport, the skills he has would transfer over with time and training.

I don't think anybody could be angry at Sam if he went to Union or the NRL. They're the bigger pond, unfortunately.

There'sa thread on the Wigan board about Wigan's form without Tomkins. The hard facts are that since 2009 Tomkins has missed 13 games and Wigan's record in those games is:

P 13
W 2
D 1
L 10

They haven't won a game without him for two years now.

Truly, truly shocking stats. Even in our darkest years of Briers dependency we were never such a one man team.

Given that accepted wisdom is that he's off to RU or the NRL (hopefully the NRL as it would be great to see his un-doubtable world class ability challenged and tested on a weekly basis) within 2 years if I was a Wigan fan I'd have a bit more to worry about than how we will address our aging squad. However we do it I'm sure we'll have a better than 2 in 13 winning ratio.

Great stat. I think defensively they will be okay, I've seen them ina few big games recently and they look great defensively, they do look pathetic in attack without him though.

Tomkins is undoubtedly a great player for Wigan, and a fine ambassador for the game off the field. I don't like his on-field ranting though.

The concern I'd have, were I a Wigan fan, is that he seems to be dropping out of more and more matches.

Ahhhh, the great enigma that is Tomkins' future

Does he stay at the Worriers? Doubtful. I can imagine the cheques being wafted under his nose by other quarters, would be too tempting.

NRL. Where would he play?
He's not big enough to be a 3/4 in Aus.
Full Back. With ball in hand, he's devastating. The best open play runner we've seen since Jason Robinson, BUT, without ball in hand, he's little better than an average SL full back (imo). Over here, he'll get tested a handful of times per game. In Aus, he'll be under the oppositions microscope, EVERY set of six. I just don't see him "cutting it" at that level, in the NRL.
Which leaves the halves. The NRL's "biff-bash" approach to most games, doesn't lend itself to Tomkins' attributes.

Which leaves the 3 point code.
I'm pretty much in agreement with what Pieman said on page 2 re Rah-rah, re Tomkins' place in their relative postions.

I think he'll do a Sonny-Bill Williams
Take Union's cash (maybe his brother's team) for a couple of years, get bored witless, and then move to the NRL to take their wonga (not that you'd blame him).

But then again, there is Dr Koukash to consider.
He needs a marquee signing and coach. That spare cash is burning a hole in his pocket.

very good line that mate!

Finally some sense I thought people were going nuts complementing Tomkins and saying Phil Clarke makes sense he's pretty much gone and jinxed us from winning the grand final by backing us