Don't be so frigging wet. Take a peek on their website if you want to see venom being spat. They are a horrible little set of fans.

Reebok would suit me - much easier to get to from Yorkshire!

I see plenty. Just wind your neck in.

Lordy, Lordy, Lordy.

All this for what - seat colours? Seriously? I couldn’t care any less what the colour of the plastic is that I sit my backside on. I couldn’t care less if a mural of Andy Liddell appeared in the tunnel. It’s a stadium that isn’t owned by us and ultimately the parent company of WA can do whichever it pleases aesthetically with the stadium. At the end of the day it’s our home ground, I’ll go and watch us wherever we play. If some aesthetic changes bothers you that much then you’re beyond help IMO.

The debate about having a stadium again has been rumbling on since we moved in. It isn’t going to happen anytime soon. The stadium itself is too big for both teams save for the rare sell out - I can’t recall when that was for either side.

This whole vile mantra towards WA from some WW fans and vice versa is as embarrassing as it is ridiculous. We’re 2 different clubs in 2 completely different sports. I don’t know why a minority section from each club continues to carry a chip on their shoulder. We should actively celebrate and congratulate both teams success. I’m no football fan, in truth I never have been so WA mean nothing to me but that doesn’t mean I won’t be glad if they get promoted, sad if they get relegated.

Wigan is truly a backwards town sometimes and this faux rivalry is the epitome of it.

Did anyone else have to Google who Andy Liddell is?

I think the point is mate that it isn’t about seat colours is it? It’s a flexing of the guys power to increase his popularity with the exact Latics fans who he really should ignore. They are the minority who hate Wigan rugby but can’t tell you why, boo players taking the knee but can’t tell you why and so on. I can’t stand them and I can’t stand the Wigan rugby fans who throw the same bile the other way. All this will do is increase that from both sides. I don’t see how it does anything this move but cause further division.

I can't believe that anyone would think the aesthetics don't matter? If they didn't, then why are Latics changing the seats and why do clubs spend millions on getting them right at other clubs.

They play a huge part in creating an atmosphere and making home feel like home.

On top of that, it's a slap in the face for us imo.

Not a pop at you, but personally I'm sick of all this "get over it" attitude from our fans when it comes to stuff like this.

His methodology may be questionable for sure but his reasoning certainly isn’t. He’s right in what he’s saying, the fans of both clubs should (and still could) be less vile towards each other and support the other. Support doesn’t mean go out and buy the kit, get a season ticket and all that jazz. It just means be glad a team representing the best town in the country has been successful.

I, like you, can’t stand fans from either side that throw that bike around. I find it extremely embarassing continuing a rivalry that isn’t even a rivalry. I can’t help but feel if both sides had their own stadiums this would subside considerably.

I get what your saying but the colour of a seat doesn’t change whether I’m going or not. The seats, other than white, have never been in our colours anyway. So why would that change bother anyone now?

I’m frustrated more than anything that a faux rivalry and a faux hatred is continuing and has been fuelled by something as simple as a seat colour. When I go to the match the colour of the plastic my backside is going to warm is the last thing on my mind. So much so that it’s never crossed my mind in 20years or so of going to the DW to watch us. I don’t see why I should, or anyone should, now be bothered about it?

Fans from both sides with chips on their shoulders continue bashing out the same old boring lines, and for what? What does it gain? A few likes on Twitter? Beyond pathetic IMO.

As I said, my opinion is that we should unite behind the banner of Wigan. The greatest town in the UK whether that be represented in football, RL, RU or tiddlywinks.

Exactly, some on here evidently don't remember the "Old Oak Tree" pub fanzine run by a Latic's supporter from New Springs who was jailed for his part in the infamous battle of the Foxhall pub on Blackpool sea front at a time when an large element of their supporters were well known for trouble with two brothers from Gidlow banned from all football grounds.

Different rooms of the pub were credited with everything good and wonderful about the Latic's until the Toilets were mentioned where was nothing but vile nastiness about our club and rugby league.

But you don’t call for unity and then in the same breath change the seat colours to one sides. It’s like saying to two kids (and some supporters on both sides have the brains of u5’s) arguing over the tv “come on, share and don’t be falling out but unfortunately Timmy, your sister is having what she wants on from now on”.

I just think it’s a really ill advised move and does nothing to encourage the unity he speaks of. It does the complete opposite and that’s sad from where I sit (somewhere in between both sides).

Having read what Neil Pearson has said on The BBC about the on going discussions about the future perhaps IL could be planning to move the team to some glamorous location like Milton Keynes to tap into the new fan base that we are chasing.

And your last comment is exactly right as that is what it should have been but for Wigan Council making the terrible mistake of siding with Whelan instead of supporting our club in its attempt to obtain a site in Wigan to build a Stadium of our own.

A mistake they did not make with the building of the Leigh Sports Village Stadium when they realised that they had made a big mistake in allowing Whelan to have all his own way.

While other local clubs like St Helens, Warrington and Widnes have their own stadiums with the right capacities, we have a white elephant of a stadium with a too large a capacity, previously owned by a man who now cares so much about Wigan now lives in the West Indies on the profit he made from the sale of the stadium.

If the intention of the new owner to make the Stadium into a Latics Football Stadium by having all the seats blue and White, it will only cause more friction between the rival supporters.


The chickens have sure come home to roost where the mistake of the nighties is concerned.!


p.s. Perhaps the time has come for a compete re-development of the Robin Park Arena and leave the Latic's to their precious white elephant!

Wait until people see the branding of the stadium when they rock up on Friday.

Correct, but a far better designed Stadium which like many of the other new stadiums makes the DW Stadium a poor comparison!

I do see yours and others points but it’s one of those rare occasions we disagree. I suppose we’ll see the direction this all leads in the coming months

[*

Conveniently forgetting that DW actually offered to renovate CP and have Latics as our tenants. It was only for your much adored Fab 4 who essentially laughed it him that he got planning permission for the then called JJB Stadium. After much more financial mismanagement from the Fab 4 and a fabled move to Bolton we begged DW to let us in. So instead of blaming Whelan perhaps try and see that your Fab 4 weren’t so Fab after all.

Widnes is a poor choice. The stadium for one isn’t owned by them but Halton Borough Council. They are also in a poor financial state and have been for some time. Warrington and Saints I give you.

I still don’t see how plastic colour no one has batted an eyelid at for 20years matters and you’ll never convince me otherwise.

As for Robin Park I think I’m in the minority in saying I think that’s a bad idea in redeveloping it. If we’re looking at a stadium (which we’re not) we should be looking at either land where the current building is beyond help or brown belt land to develop.

I’m probably in a small minority on here in supporting both clubs and I think it’s that fact which makes me a bit disappointed in this move. I want to see everything done to bring them closer together. I suppose I don’t know the facts in reality and for all I know the new Latics guys could’ve said we’re replacing the seats (which is needed) and do you fancy splitting the costs and going red and blue still or do you want to not pay anything towards it and in that case we’ll choose what we want. I doubt there has been that conversation and Lenagan would probably point to the fact that renovations are covered under the rental terms but they’ve the right to do as they please. I just think it’s a dumb move tbh and things like this aren’t helpful.

Whelan had no intention of developing Central Park. He wanted to buy it cheap and then sell it on for a big profit. That was his modus operandi.

I was at that meeting at The Riverside when he started shouting from the back of the room and was then offered an opportunity to come up on stage and debate the sale.

Needless to say he scurried away with his henchmen in tow!!!

As for the colour of the seats it doesn't bother me in the least. I was told about three years ago that the stadium heeded around 5 - 8 Million pounds spending on it.

All sports clubs have just taken a major financial hit due to crowds not being allowed, then limited capacities, and still not the same number of people coming through the turnstiles now. If memory serves we were operating at a loss before all that happened as well. Spending god knows how many millions on developing a stadium next door to the very good stadium we already have access to just because of a petty squabble with Latics would be mental. Thankfully businessmen make these decisions, not fans.

So the new Latics owner is changing the colour of the seats from red (which we don't play in) to white (which we do).

Sounds like a closet Wigan RL fan to me.

warringtons ground was paid for them by Tesco as part of the planning permission, I imagine a fair chunk of Saints was also with its proximity to it, its what councils did to get grounds and social clubs built, Tesco stopped doing this about 5 years ago (I think it was about then)

Just been to a presentation from the chief executive and the launch of the new fan engagement programme at the stadium. I urge Mr Lenagan to get his fingers out of his ears and do something to rival what’s being put in place.

I'd actually argue that he's already been there, done that and got burnt/bored of it.

Tbh, I can somewhat understand why IL doesn't do it anymore too. Some of our fans are, at best hard work, and at worst - absolute knuckle dragging morons. Look at the comments on FB, or Twitter and then imagine dealing with that day in, day out for 10 years. Imagine organising a fans forum (like he used to) and having your time wasted by questions about breakfast cereals.

Take the Millwall games as another example. Most reasonable fans will say that it didn't work out, but will be able to grasp the reasons for trying what he did. Some other fans however can't grasp simple ideas.

Fair play to the new latics mon. It's his new shinny toy and he's doing all this stuff. I do wonder where it will all be in 10years time tho.

Don’t disagree with a lot of what you said at all. Was just painful to see what is going to be a huge and sustained campaign to capture new and old fans and then I compare that to the lack of energy and drive coming from my other other club. I just want a bit of willing, anything other than the silence we have currently. I should add, it was Radlinski’s equivalent Mal Brannigan who leads on all the club infrastructure who was presenting the vision and plans.