Brian Noble took over a reasonable squad of players who simply refused to play for Ian Millward. Brian Noble was then party to cheating and we did cheat, breaking the salary cap in order to avoid relegation

We have not finished third for 3 years. 3 Years is incorrect. We did not finish 3rd either in the league.

[uwith players he didn't want who were still under contract. [/u Show me a coach who gets to coach the perfect tem of his choosing? EXACTLY. He got players he wanted, we cheated for him. Look at the players he wanted!!! Withers OML Fielden Mathers OML Pryce 18 months and ? Phelps OML

look at the players he did not want Joel Tomkins!!! EXACTLY

Did you miss the bit where I suggested we finished third after being bottom, How can you seriously argue with that record?

You're passionate about the game I'll give you that, it's a shame you channel it negativity.

I am not a huge fan of the Noble style of Rugby but I do think he is a good coach with a good track record at the style of Rugby that he gets his team to play.

The whole anti Noble thing is getting tiresome now tbh. Just lets all get behind the team and if he is as bad as some people think he is then he will get found out this season.

Admit it your Mickey Higham or another player who Noble doesnt rate. It is 100% not normal to be so obsessed with Brian Noble as you are.

Oh make no mistake I am sure that NO coach "want's" to be judged by chairmen.


Sadly (for them) the chairmen are their bosses. They WILL be judged by their chairmen, like it or lump it.


Now what exactly IS your point?

You need to realise what gets you to 3rd place is winning two games in the play offs. That is all. It is no achievement.

If you are happy with that we can end the discussion here.

I am not.

I pay a lot of money and drive a lot of miles to be entertained in the regular league season. 2007 and 2008 were dire in that regard.

The idea he got to third despite it was "not his team" is ridiculous given whenever he is criticised the mantra is "oh well they played crap because they were not his team". The fact they were not his team has been trotted out time and time again whenever they have been poor.

Two games in the play-offs proves nothing.

What we need to see is a good regular season and then a good run in the play-offs. If we get that then we are going in the right direction. The sides who have won the thing in recent years have done that. It is because they have been good sides well coached. You can't IMO go into the play offs with a negative points difference expecting to win the thing.



You always do but a blind man on a bus would be able to tell you some of the performances last season were utter sh! te. Is the regular season a write off? Do we go to games to see dross performances for 20 odd rounds and if we win two games in the play-offs declare the season a success? Despite the fact we win nothing? Where did this come from?

When the game went to a GF format it was as plain on the nose on your face that any side could get knocked out of the play offs as it IS a knock-out competition. So therefore to expect to win it is like expecting to win the cup if you get what I am saying. So given this is the case I for one was not expecting to see anything like a run we had in the cup in 80's and 90's at all. Knockout football is too unpredictable for that. So I have always thought fans had to adjust to enjoying the regular season and hoping for the best in the play-offs. Because when the play-offs start what has gone before is written off.

The trouble is what has gone nefore at Wigan in 2007 and 2008 has been rubbish.

Dave

So being a good coach is about winning trophies and results?

Is Brian Smith a good coach? Neil Henry? Mick Potter? Justin Morgan?

I am a Wigan supporter who wants a successful Wigan RL who play exciting / attractive RL. That is not possible with Brian Noble.

Higham an Calderwood both came to Wigan from very successful clubs, both gained international honours in 2008. Both were wanted and signed by other SL clubs. Hardly hopeless players.

Brian Noble has always had a decent squad IMO. He's also had the best player in SL. However, even if we agree with your assumption, the job of the coach is to make those players individually/collectively better. The true measure of ANY coach. Oops Noble failed.

He may well have got us to third two seasons in a row but to then claim that proves he's a great coach is so naive it's unbelievable.

We play some of the worst rugby in the league with a negative points difference! How can anyone be happy with this?

We are majorly inconsistent week to week and only come good for two or three games at the end of the season. It's far too late by then and it's not good enough IMO. We need to be as high up the table as to stand a chance of getting to the GF and the only way to do that is by having consistency in the weekly rounds.

How can we go from beating Leeds at Leeds and then lose to the likes of HKR or an injury ravaged Hull side? Add to that the pi$$ poor performances every time we meet Saints and the way we bottled it in the CC semi against Catalans there are A LOT MORE negatives than positives imo.

Noble needs to do more and the people who are happy with what we have "achieved" after the relegation season have their heads in the sand.

I guess it ultimately stems from what you want out of a Wigan side.

If you want results then I would argue it is difficult to criticise Nobby thus far.

If you personally disagree with his playing style, then ofc you can criticise.

The difference is that point #2 is subjective, point #1 isn't.

Unfortunately results show we went backwards. The Challenge Cup if you take the results option proves that. You cannot keep saying we finished 3rd either because in the league season we did not do so.

We alongside Warrington are the biggest underachievers in RL

Depends if you think good results are having a completely inconsistent season, getting spanked by Saints more times than i care to remember and then failing at the semi stage as they've given themselves to much to do by their inconsistency in the weekly rounds.

Yes I can. That is part of the point.

The current SL season is based around a playoff structure. Like it or not (and I feel that, especially this year, it has gone "too far"icon_wink.gif all the coaches know this at the start of the season, and must coach their teams with this in mind.

Therefore I CAN state with 100% accuracy that Wigan came 3rd.

You, however, CANNOT state that we didn't come 3rd.

Btw for the record, I actually think that this year is the year that Nobby will have a team that is "his".

I still think we are shy of a half and a prop, but maybe I will be proven wrong. Interesting to see how our style develops with a team that is more suited to Nobby's tactics.

Ah the trap door opens and BK falls into it.

BK you claim Noble was held back by players he did not want etc. In that case can you explin how you justify saying Noble got his team to third place but Calderwood's try and play v Bradford in that famous victory are irrelevant. Indeed, Calderwood held Noble back



You keep talking about the League. How then do you exlain that the team that finishes top of the league receives a League Leaders Shield but may not win SL ?

Even the RFL seem to treat the league as different than the play offs



Neither have you answered my questions based on your method of assessing coaches are the following good or bad coaches?

Brian Smith?
Neil Henry?

What are Nobby's tactics?

What would you say to Leeds fans, they finished 2nd in the table last two years but are the champions...

Leeds won the SL Competition, St Helens won the League Leaders Competition.

Who was the more consistent? St Helens or Leeds?

BK et al tell me coaching is all about results. If this is so how can one finish 6th in the League Leaders Competition and yet with SL?

Truth be told SL makes a mockery of judging teams by results.

Wigan Warriors 6 - 12 Wakefield


That's why.

There was no performance from that side. I ranted all week along with many others about Noble's team selection and as the saying goes I hate to say I told you so.

Richie Mathers is a waste of space. We don't have a fullback. Never have last season and yet we extend his contract, shocking in the friendlies and yet Noble still plays him. He will most likely play next week.

The decision to have 1 hooker in Mark Riddell proved a sh*t one. In one substitution we have to change our stand off, scrum half, hooker and loose forward. 4 most pivital positions. Tomkins moves to lock, lockers move to stand off, Smith moves to scrum half and Leuluai moves to hooker. Ridiculous when we have Michael McIlorum who can play there or bring Sam Tomkins into the frame but once again Noble refuses to play local talent.

Mark Riddell looked unfit and didn't impact himself in the game at all.

Tim Smith looked very good at times just the team doesn't know what he's doing. There's no communication. He looks a liability in defense though.

Our attack is no different to last season. Predictable, that's what Wigan are. Paleaasina drives and Gareth Hock offloads are all we can offer. People criticise Hock for his "daft" offloads. There not daft, there made to look daft because no-one reads them.

We don't have a rugby league brain in that squad. Brad Drew orchestrated everything Wakefield did and has a real rugby brain on him. Cracking little player. We don't have one throughout our squad.

Our mistake has been that Trent Barrett carried us for 2 season. How IL could criticse that man I don't know. It shows our chairman knows sod all about rugby.

Brian Noble is not the man to take us forward. I got ripped for saying it before a ball was kicked and I will get ripped for saying it after just one game. But you just watch, call me mystic meg but we'll win bugger all under Noble.

leave him alone he`s doing a great job....5 year extension

Noble out already on GMR???? Pathetic Wigan, just pathetic,, how you call us I dont know, its the 1st round FFS

You wire fans are ones to talk. Paul Cullen out every five minutes. Jimmy Lowes will be next.

The plot has been lost in round one...