And has just recently signed a 3-year contract extension, IIRC.

Saying all this though, I am pretty sure IL and SW have already identified who they want and will already have the wheels in motion. They probably spoke about it when they realised Finch was stalling on a new deal. Just hope the players leaving don't leave a huge hole in our squad. We can cope with losing Lima and the centre position should be relatively easily sorted, It is just getting two players in like Tommy and Finch to gel the line and create the magic. Happy with Smith though for a starter.

first of all were not a poor side and how can people say signing dobson would be a backward step when your thinking of signing the very average at best matty smith

Yes you are, 7 losses in 17 games suggests so. You're not on your own though, there are 11 poor sides in Super League (and that is being generous to Catalans). For the 2nd year running two teams are showing they are light years ahead of the rest.

I thought Dobson was excellent tonight and would love to see him back at Wigan. For me though we could only have either Smith or Dobson as they are both similar players. If I was to choose between the two I think I'd go for Smith.

Dream on. Hate to reign on your parade, but Dobsons going nowhere. Settled in Hull, one of the highest paid and apart from that Hudgell would ask for world record fee before he'd see him leave. You gonna have to look somwhere else, sorry.

Dobson turned us down when he returned to the UK and signed for HKR. I've always wondered why but he was adamant at the time that Wigan wasn't for him - presumably we offered him peanuts?

Whoever suggested if it we had known a few months back we could have gone for Cronk, go to your room! Most outlandish and ridiculous suggestion I've heard

Willie was a good player but wanted to have a go back in Aus - it was difficult for a young guy to stamp his authority on a team full of experienced pros as Wigan were at the time. We signed Lam to "replace" Willie and the difference in class was there for all to see.

Nobby was still here...

Dobson may have gone to KR for the money, but he'll want to win things. With respect to KR, who are in a bit of form and played well tonight, the best they can hope for in a season is beating Hull a couple of times in their derby and maybe making the top 8. Any player who would put a few extra quid over winning the Challenge cup or GF (which we could well do), should be a soccerball player and should not be considered. I say make him an offer, If he's money daft tell him to do one.

Why not, I said a cheeky go at him. You don't get anywhere if you don't try, a la Hoffman, Lima and Finch. I merely suggested we could have tested the water. His wages would have surely put us off but we are WIGAN, The greatest team in the history of the sport, Any player, whoever he is would be honoured to be linked.

Dobson is class and I would to see him at Wigan. Dobson is also a top class goal kicker and we need a top class goal kicker!!! People have short memories as he saved us from relegation more than any other player.

They came here under exceptional circumstances. We got very lucky there.

Spot on. I'd love to see him back in the Cherry and White. If IL can find us a better player than Dobson I will be delighted. Frankly, I'd be very surprised if he can. I'm not convinced by Matty Smith and the raising of the SC in Oz is going to make it very, very difficult to get top-class players to leave the NRL in future.

Dobson will always be a legend though, regardless of whether he comes back or not. Like you, I don't have a short memory, I'll never forget the crucial part he played in saving us from relegation.

rain...

unless you're the Queen...

Dobson was great for us in his time here and would have come back except it came down to £££ and HKR had more salary cap available.

I am in two minds about him personally. He can be sublime at times but seems to be suffering more than his share of injuries nowdays. I'd rather we thought more long term and would have loved to have Dureau here but that's not to be.

I do think the half-back situation in UK is going to get more crucial as the Aussie salary cap is raised and the exchange rate means that players can earn more down under. Quality English half backs are a rarity and will command high transfer fees and salary.

No disrespect to Hoffman and Finch but they are the latter end of their career and had their representative honours already, Lima wasn't exactly a marquee player in NRL at the time. Cronk is the new hope of Australia, has always been the guy to take Darren Lockyer's Queensland and Australia spot and is only at the early stages of his career therefore we would never have tempted him over here. He's arguably, along with Thurston the best halfback in the world

That's what I have never understood either, when he played for us for the half season he was brilliant and seemed to really enjoy his time with us and said if he ever returned to the UK it would be to Wigan, then when we tried to re-sign him he said something about a chat with Justin Morgan confirmed that Hull KR was the team for him. I was gutted at the time but we've moved on and think we should leave him in the past as well now, he's settled at HKR and so be it as far as I'm concerned. Thought it was strange that Blarney didn't ask him why he didn't return to us in the recent Superleague supermen programme that featured Dobson, makes you think there was more to it than we ever got to hear about.

...and remember what happened last year to the two teams that were "light years ahead of the rest"

Well one won one of the two major trophies available.

I believe that Jamie Soward is looking for a club. Good organiser but more importantly a excellent field and place kicker kicker and stand out in an average St george team at the moment.

I'd have Dobson from 6 years ago, not now.

I wouldnt like Dobson back. He was great at the time and was just what we neeeded then but signing him now would be a step back I feel and I dont feel he is good enough for the team we have now. At Hull KR he is the main man and everything goes through him and this make him look a little better than he is at times. Saying that I have also seen him have plenty of average and poor games whilst there, admittedly in a poor team.

If i was IL, dobson would be my first choice replacement for Finch. Id be happy to pay a transfer fee to get him too