well said Martyn


[urlhttp://www.independent.co.uk/sport/general/rugby-league/wigan-warriors-tactics-defended-1939385.html[/url

[urlhttp://www.independent.co.uk/sport/general/rugby-league/tryline-podcast-featuring-martin-sadler-editor-of-the-rugby-league-express-1939395.html[/url 9.55

While he is "defending" our tactic, he is also like every other moaning coach basically heaping more pressure on the refs, which i feel will ensure we are given much more scrutiny in the collision than any other club.

Would personally have preferred he say nothing at all.

I agree. He's not helping us much here, which possibly was his intent.

I'm disappointed that the tactic which is used to stop the scoot as much as anything, thus forcing a more expansive style of play is bemoaned so much.

The scoot leads to a middle of the park dominated game with quick and easy yards gained by hookers with little skill other than pace over a short distance. Does anyone find Roby et al running five meters, often using the returning defending players as a shield entertaining? I have watched five drives and a kick rugby long enough.

Personally anything that gets the ball moving around the park with fast attacking play required to breakdown set defensive lines is a good thing. Hang on, isn’t that the style of play that St. Helens got named “The Entertainers” for?

The ref's will be on us like a shot now... watch the penalty count go up starting Sunday.

There are two ways that referees can respond to these deliberate attempts - by Sadler as much as anyone else, IMO - to draw the judiciary's attention to our style of defence.

They can either act like sheep and start penalising us at every opportunity - because a number of less than adequate coaches and journalists have told them they should. Or they can remember that they are the law-enforcers in RL and that they know the letter of the law better than anyone else, and make a decision that they will NOT be influenced by those who are trying to do their job for them.

Some refs, I think, will have sufficient pride to take the latter course. Others I'm less sure about. I'll be watching this with interest.

I'd rather you didn't use the tactics you use but if i was a supporter i'd want my coach to play the tactics that win the game, so really what i'm saying is people like Kear should shut up, lump it, and try to come up with a tactic to counter it. He's a coach, so coach a tactic to overcome it.
I'd rather watch a winning side than an expansive side sitting near the bottom like Castleford

Tactics like tackling? Thats all it is! If we lie on at the play the ball we are rightly punished!


And we are both a winning side and an expansive side, so as far as im concrerned long may it continue!

Ahh another member of the RL press writing a "fair" article. Im sure that he on some level thinks he is being fair and balanced, but as has been said already, it is merely bringing more focus on something that is WITHIN THE RULES but something that people dont like because its Wigan that are doing it the best.

I've got no issue personally with Wigans style, winning rugby is winning rugby. It's all fans care about.

If for instance you look in the history books in the future and it said 2010 winners Wigan, I'm quite sure people won't go
"Well, yes we won that year, but god was it boring"

Kear's 'exciting' rugby as got him what exactly ?

54 against v Wigan
32 against v Wire
52 against v Huddersfield

and if watching Wigan is like watching paint dry

54 points v Wakefield
24 points v Leeds
36 points v Castleford
48 points v Hull FC
58 points v Catalan
32 points v Hull KR
38 points v Crusaders

and game of the season by a long way

Warrington 20 - 22 Wigan

boring rugby ?
Kear needs new glasses, either that or he's a clueless fool

1. I'm sure you would. Tactics like winning games by good, solid defence and getting up FASTER than the opposition, but the rest of the team being organised (and fit) enough to get back and reset EVERY SINGLE TIME.

2. Personally, I'd rather watch an expansive, winning side sitting at the TOP of the table, like Wigan.

Face it. We are basically fitter and stronger right now than pretty much every other club in SuperLeague.

That leads to us being able to turn opponents BEFORE they hit the ground, which means that we effect a DOMINANT TACKLE, which in turn means that the rules give us longer to stand up (although we don't generally use the extra time, as it gives the opposition longer to get their collective breath back).

bar probably us, and that's not Wire bias, we had you in the last 10 minutes, you guys were out on your feet.
But yes i agree with you, fitness is the main key to winning games, it's what has stood wire in good stead this year. We are killing teams in the 2nd half because we just look too sharp for them

Nice one Cameron Phelps. Has a pop @ those taking shots at the leaders in his interview on the website.

It's ok.

Once the rest have Super League have got over the fact Wigan are doing well they'll soon stop whinging, like they have done with Huddersfield.

Opposition supporters joining in with the crying wouldn't even notice these ''tactics'' if it wasn't for their own clubs coaches starting it off. The whole media attention is simply giving them an excuse and topic to have a pop at Wigan as there is so much positivity around the club at the moment.

The whole ''tactics'' situation and massively blown out of proportion. A couple of people highlight it and everybody else jumps on the bandwagon, like the 'Wigan walk''. These tactics and the ''Wigan walk'' are done/attempted at every other club in Super League and nobody can deny that, but with posivity must come negativity.

People can't wait to shoot us down. It's brilliant.

im really getting fed up with all this rubbish now, how blind some people are is untrue. Rugby League is not just about points being scored, but the pace power and athleticism that makes the game great to watch.

all those that are jumping on the bandwaggon need to take a step back, because boring rugby is a penalty-a-thon with teams scooting there way down the field on the back of penalties to get 10 meters out an then maybe they will pass the ball.

this tactic makes teams create things an play fast flowing rugby not just 5 drives and a kick. England has always struggled to produce creative HBs, is that any surprise when there has been no real need for them in our game.

rather than trying to put Wigan down other teams should be following suit and hopefully improving the standard of Super League and the creative players England produce!!

I think Martyn was really positive about Wigan in the interview. He praises the way Michael Maguire has got the team playing and says in the podcast that they are very entertaining. Check it out for yourself rather than just relying on the lifted quotes - itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZSt ... =207178087

I think Martyn was really positive about Wigan in the interview. He praises the way Michael Maguire has got the team playing and says in the podcast that they are very entertaining. Check it out for yourself rather than just relying on the lifted quotes - itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZSt ... =207178087

It seems my signature might get pretty long by the end of the season.

At least spell our coach's name correctly.



How about:

The Official "I've been shown up by Michael Maguire and I'm going to whinge about it" list:

He's missed the point entirely if you ask me. The "tactics" we deploy don't refer to how long it takes our defenders to leave the player being tackled. We're no quicker or slower than anyone else in that respect. What we do is win the contact and before the tackle is complete, put the attacking player into a position where it takes him longer to get up and play the ball. What we're actually doing is making the actual tackle itself take longer, which the referee has no control over whatsoever.

It frustrates these coaches becase they can't do anything about it and, with the scoot from dummy half pretty much neutralised, they're stumped because their team has nothing else. It says a lot about our competition that when faced with a set defensive line that's moving forward, teams are generally clueless as to how to get through it. Bet the Aussies would be laughing their heads off because in the NRL, that's all they face

We were out on our feet because we defended what seemed like ten consecutive sets on our line.

Plus, we seemed to be doing our thing that has plagued us for a number of years now: not being able to see out games. At times we don't know what to do when we're ahead. Despite the new regime, this is one faucet of our game that still remains. Tbf I think that problem could be that we don't have that many big game players, although that is hopefully changing with time.

Utter rubbish.

Congratulations to MM imo.

He has looked at the rules, and exploited them, fairly and to the letter.

Imo that is a sign of professionalism and attention to detail.


Boring rugby? Are you sure? Maybe I have dreamed about the tries we scored this season?

Hit the nail on the head. The concern I have is the notion that Wigan are exploiting the rules as they are and given we are being successful that will become a reason to change the rules!

I find it amazing it takes Wigan to play like this for it to become a talking point. We are not the first to do this but the first team doing it that causes it to become such an issue.

Dave

I think you'll find TAPping up is not allowed.

As for the 'tactics' as has been said, it's all up to the ref on the day. Childs and Thaler lost the plot, Ganson called held early and penalised us.
As long as we release when the ref calls it, I can't see there being any problems.

To be honest I'm getting sick & tired of opposition coaches (who have usually just lost) moaning about Wigans tactics, to the point where for periods of the game I'm counting how long from impact with the floor to full release and pretty much invariably I'm getting a count of between 4 and 5 when Wigan tackle.

When the opposition tackle........... I also get a count of between 4 and 5. I've even done it when watching other teams on Sky and there's no real appreciable difference in count. The only thing which is apparent is that Wigan & Huddersfield have turtled the tackled player so he takes longer in recovering his feet.

There is nothing whatsoever wrong with this, and it's up to the opposition coaches to train their players to resist the attempts to turn them over during the tackle, and also to train them to turn their opposition on their backs when defending. If they are incabable of teaching their players to do this or their players are incapable of putting into practice............ they can always whine about it in the press.

So Kear, Agar et al stfu and get on with what you are supposed to be doing - next they will be moaning that we run faster, pass better, and kick better than them.

If you can't beat them, then whine about them - cries of "miss miss ! not fair, not fair" are becoming a bit boring now - it's rugby, adapt and get on with it.