We can improve on what we have but I don't see how we can fit one in until the end of 2010.

Under tomorrows date

Good luck Paul and thanks for your great commitment to the club.

Great deal for both clubs in my opinion and once again demonstrates the good working relationship between Bradford and Wigan.

Good signing but I wonder how they work the contract out in terms of the salary cap? - I think it just shows that Lenagan is doing his best to try new ideas out and get the most he can from the non-capped coaching staff.

Either that are demonstrates how daft we are at keep taking Bradfords deadwood on



On a serious note these moves today suit everybody. The Wigan club have an Australian coach in charge who's been guided by the best and are looking at him now passing on that experience to young 'Wigan' coaches like Wane, Rads and Deacon.

It's shrewd stuff for me.

Noticed that too - they've changed it now.

I always thought Wigan was stuck in the 1950's not ahead of everyone else.

A very positive move made by the club.

We now have excellent cover for the halfbacks in case of injury/international games, don't forget that Leuluai and Tomkins could both be on international duty during the season so Deacon will be a very useful player for those dates. Not to mention that if Riddell or McIlorum aren't playing up to scratch we can move Leuluai to nine and let Deacon partner Tomkins. It just keep everyone on their toes and really enforces the theory that no-ones position is safe.

It also mentions in that article that Deacon will have specialist duties as a kicking coach and halfback coach, which is fantastic news for all our halfbacks. To have an experienced and professional player whose main attribute is his kicking game and ability to organise a team coaching Leuluai and Tomkins (whose weaknesses are Deacon's strenghts) is fantastic news.

I am not sure what his coaching potential is like, but Mike MaGuire has said this:

“Paul is a great student of the game and is very tactically aware having been the main pivot for both Bradford and Great Britain during his career. I am really looking forward to working with him both as a playing member of the squad and in helping him to develop his Coaching career.”

It does look encouraging. I very much like the look of Mike MaGuire, Shaun Wane and Paul Deacon coaching Wigan in 2011, that along with the amount of players coming out of contract I am not sure which season I most looking forward to - next season or 2011!

Mike MaGuire - Head Coach
Shaun Wane - Lead Assistant Coach
Paul Deacon - Assistant Coach, halfback coach & kicking coach
Kris Radlinski - Reserves Coach
John Pendlebury - Academy Coach
Mark Bitcon - Head of Strength and Conditioning
Mike Forshaw Turner - Strength and Conditioning Coach
Mick Turner - Assistant Strength and Conditioning Coach.

All looks very good to me.

He's got all the facial bumps of a veteran but he still looks like the age of an academy player!

We're an extra prop forward short of making me giddy with excitment ahead of the new season

He looks like a little lad on a site seeing tour

He looks like a seal pup

Perhaps after a culling session

The 'baby faced assassin' is home.

I don't think we will get that lucky and that could be one of our drawbacks next season, but hopefully we will see a much fitter Feka, a much more fired up and enthused Fielden, a more experienced and improved Paul Prescott & Eamon O'carroll and Andy Coley to follow on from his good form last season.

All realistic IMO.

MM stated in an interview a few week back that they where looking at possibley signing 2 players one was a current SL player (obviously Deacon) and t'other was an NRL player, if true maybe we could be looking at a forward that was involved in the 4 nations, hopefully it will be a big NZ'r

(could of been IL who mentioned it)

What interview was that?

Can't remember, it was from a link someone posted in the rumours thread

If Prescott keeps progressing as I think he will and Fielden and Feka work their backsides off for new contracts as I expect them to I still think we'll go pretty well.

One more aggressive prop forward would really give us some good balance though.

I remember reading something like that. I'm sure it was on Wigantoday.

If we bring another prop in, I'd hope/expect O'Carroll to join Ben Davies in going out on loan.

Has O'Carroll ever had a full, consistent season of Super League without getting injured or being dropped?

Not thrilled about this myself another 'quick fix'

We should be looking forward to the future not signing 30 year old players

Not sure, i thought it might have been in the Sydney Sun Herald or League HQ for some reason

So I imagine he will not be earning too much in 2010, followed by a rather large increment for 2011 and 2012....

Against the spirit of the cap - almost certainly!

Good work IL. I like the commitment to developing local coaching talent as well as playing talent.

Part of this deal is 'looking to the future' with his coaching role for 2011 onwards.

It could never be described as a quick fix when the main aim of signing the lad is in the hope that he could go on and become a top class coach.

It's a long term investment with the short term benefit that he can cover as a player for the team.

Super business.