100th appearance tomorrow and I would like to say thanks but also, what a great servant to the club he has been. True gent, and one of the consistent players in his time here.

I hope he is still here next year, in a role similar to Deacon's, a player-coach style

Does a lot of the hard graft that goes un-noticed.

I'll second that. Top bloke. I'd like to see him stay at the club but with Joel, Hansen, Mossop, Farrell and Tuson coming through we're blessed with a lot of young talent in the back row and it's hard to see a place for Bails, although his experience is an asset

love to see him stay at the club in a coaching role..what i hear hes one of the most respected guys in the club

top bloke

He was an excellent signing at a very tough time for the club.

I remember we announced his signing shortly after the 70+ hammering at Saints and mo said something along the lines of that won't happen again with guys like Phil Bailey in the side. He was right and his attitude and leadership can't be questioned.

Personally I wouldn't give him another contract tho. We've seen the development of Joel into a top class 2nd row this season. Hansen looked very strong before his injury and Faz + Mossop all need more game time. For me the time is right for Bailey 2 take the u18's job if Hampo moves into Forshaw's old role.

His leadership will be missed but if sign a player like Luke Bailey or Lima they will fill this role.

Totally agree, well done Phil, get us a win tomorrow.

I echo what everyone else has said, he's not a world beater but he's been a safe pair of hands during years when they've been few and far-between, sounds like just the kind of guy to keep on in a coaching role if he wants to.

agree with what has been said but can imagine somoen like salford offering him the cash and fulltime status that we might not. phil still has a year left in him a la dave furner at leeds when we let him go

Sorry, can't say I really rate the bloke. I am sure he is an OK guy, but as far as being a decent centre or second row, I disagree. He isn't good enough for us.

We seem to be getting overloaded with future coaching people. Deacon is another who was a poor signing, late in his career. But some folk seem to think he will make something in coaching. This 'hope' thing is an imponderable. I can't have food today, but I 'hope' we will have food tomorrow.

I echo what others have said ! Phil is never going to dazzle us with his skills or get Man of the Match awards, but all the hard graft he does in both attack and defence creates the platform for the likes of Sam & Pat to show their skills! He is a very hard-working player, never takes a backward step and is highly respected by both the players & coaching staff (as shown by his role as one of the club Captains)!
I think he will get another season at Wigan & I hope he does! He is a big influence on the young players at the club, some of whom are not yet physically ready for week-in, week-out starts in the first team!

Thanks Phil & lets hope your 100th appearance is a happy one!

Well said



It shows how poor our team has been these last few years that Bailey has even managed to rack up 100 games. I acknowledge that he is a great leader off the field, particularly with the younger players, and is a good influence on the team but as an actual player I dont rate him one bit.

Sorry mate but you don't play State of Origin and get two full test caps for Australia by being average

He was well past it by the time he came over here IMO

I wouldn't say that. He may be past his best now but he was only 26 when we signed him and he spent his first season here playing centre, which isn't his best position

Jamie Ainscough played State of Origin

Course he was!

I mean what a ridiculous decision it was to Sign an Origin/Aus International when he was way past it at 26 when he signed for us!
Someone who hardly missed a game in his first 2 1/2 years at the club and was one of the most influnetial and instrumental people in turning a shambles of a club mid 2006 into a team challenging for honours the year after through the proffesionalism he brought to the club.

A guy who leads by example on & off the pitch and by all accounts from those who are in the dressing room with the guys a Real Leader!

Yeah, maybe it will be time end of year for him to move on, but no-one should criticise anything this guy has done for us over the last 3 1/2 years on & off the pitch!

And your point is?

He was another Scapegoat that the "Experts" got stuck into early on and didn't let go!

Another player that because he didn't set the world on fire from day one the fans got on his back until he left followed by a string of others and we ended up with David Cackaleaki etc etc and we all know how that ended up!

Thank god the short sighted, short termed mentality of the club seems to be a thing of the past and instead of chopping and changing 1/2 the team every year we seem to be going for the more stable long term view!

But the scapegoat culture of the fans is still alive and kicking.

I would give Bailey 12 more months with a view to coaching. We need to keep experienced players to help develop players like Joel, Mossop and Farrell. Bailey is not a world class player but he is a world class leader. Look at the way he had protect Sam and Tim Smith last year in defense. We could end up loseing Fielden, Coley, Feka, McIllorum from the pack at the end of the year. That is too many to lose all at once, we did it before when the likes of Craig Smith, Mick Cas, O'Connor, etc left and the team fell apart. Bailey loves it at Wigan, he has pride in the shirt and always gives 100%. He is a natural leader and is the kind of guy who would help develop our younger players in the under 18's and under 20's.

I think you missed my point

He has been a good signing for us, and i mostly agree with what you say, but you cant say hes reached the highs that got him into a NSW jersey

Nobody is saying that he has. Bails has never really been a flashy highlight-reel kind of player but he's a solid pro and someone that the younger members of the squad look up to and respect, therefore we should think carefully about what course of action we take with him. His leadership qualities will be sorely missed

Give him a new three year deal on big money, the youngsters can really learn how to tackle by watching Money Bags.

Tomkins and Mossop don't need to develop. They are already better than him. Farrell had a much better game than Bailey today.

He had a poor game today.

Spot on sadly.

Bailey is no longer good enough to displace Hansen or Joel in the starting 13 and I'drather have Mossop, Faz or even Hock on the bench.

Yes he offers us leadership but with an obvious need for a new prop why don't we sign one who is a leader e.g. Luke Bailey?

If Bailey is a good guy 2 have around the club then make him a coach.

You could say that about many players that have been signed from Australia over the years...

But not Phil Bailey.

He had a stinker today but there are other reasons why we lost todays game imo.