In case anyone is interested - Faz is on Radio 5 tonight at 9pm, and will be talking about both League and Union.

I think it's 9:30 to 10pm now. Been bumped for Breaking News.

'We' and 'Our'

Still an RL boy at heart!

In which case it's a pity he didn't stay on when we needed him.

I know all about wanting to secure his future and all, and I don't blame him for that - but our slow dive towards near-relegation started after he left. Not saying it was Faz's fault, but we couldn't half have used him at the time.

I think most things happen for a reason, and I don't think we would be where we are now as a club had the 2006 season not gone how it did. I'm almost certain that Whelan and Lindsay would still be in charge, the squad would be completely different, and we certainly would never have got Madge on as coach.

You could put this case for every bad thing that's ever happened in history, and I don't deny it.

But I still find it difficult to celebrate players who left us to go to RU.

Would never deny them the extra cash, higher profile etc that it earned them, and would certainly never ostracise them. But to my mind at least, it tarnishes their rep as Wigan heroes. He may still refer to Wigan RL as 'us' and 'we', but I don't feel that way about him.

To be fair I think he knew his time was up and the club knew this as well. He was struggling with some major knee trouble and I personally like to think the last thing he wanted to be was a Paul Wellens or a Jamie Peacock way past there best but drawing a big wage when in truth they are not worth it.

Union was an excellent escape route for all parties.

May be my rose tinted specs but this is how I would like to see it.

Andy Farrell has been , and always will be , a Wigan Rugby League legend !!

Without a shadow of a doubt and deserves his place in the Hall of Fame.

Will never forget his contributions over so many years, but the ending was soured. Cost us Owen as well.

What a lad

I fully respect your opinion but for me he had earned the right to do whatever he wanted to do. Whether it was for financial reasons or whether it was genuinely because he wanted a new challenge, its irrelevant. He wasn't to blame for the balls up Maurice Lindsay made of it all.

On a slightly related note, Jason Robinson announced his retirement today.

Andy Farrell gave everything he had for more than a decade to the club and left when he'd done almost everything there was to do in Rugby League. It was hardly a Chris Ashton type of defection.

He is a legend and deservedly so.

I would certainly never deny anyone the right to idolise him for all the good things he did in a Wigan shirt.

But I can't help feeling that it all ended rather ignominiously.

Fair enough mate

Everyone is entitled to their opinion as you said but I've got to say I couldn't disagree more. Would you have rather he played the 3(?) extra years that he did in union as a shadow of the former player or, having given his all to his one and only RL club, take his leave at a time that was best for all parties? I know which I would rather happen and I'd hazard a guess that the Saints fans (Scully) and now the Hull fans (Longy) would agree. Big wages and players on the decline just don't mix! Wigan legend for mine. The way he carried our team on occassion was unlike any player before or since.

I'd rather he'd ended his career at Wigan, with a massive send-off from the Wigan club and fans after years of stalwart service, rather than suddenly disappearing from the game and (allegedly) refusing to give interviews to RL journalists while at the same time appearing on the opening titles of the Sky RU programme as the latest star convert.

But as you say, it's a personal feeling, and I would never pretend that the previous glorious years didn't happen. I also wouldn't pretend that the money wasn't a great and understandable incentive or that Maurice and Whelan weren't at least partly responsible due to their increasingly inept management of the club.

But the key thing for me is that HE did not go looking to switch.
Union contacted Mo and offered a price he would accept.
Mo then out it to Andrew who after everything he has done for the club is suddenly told that there is an offer on the table that the club would accept... would you like to talk to them?

Now, dont get me wrong.
Thats professional sport. We all know that.
But I think with hindsight we would have been better keeping him at the club and seeing how Owen would have progressed whilst easing Andrew into coaching. (which for the record I think he could do standing on his head).

Its funny that with some players they go to Yawnion and they might as well disapear for me. But Faz will always be a legend in my eyes.
He was made up after the Grand Final Win last year ~ Always a Wiganer!

Not just a Wigan legend. A legend of Rugby league on the whole.

Letting him go to union was a great bit of business, admittedly it was sad to see him leave and a player of his stature deserved a Dallas style send off but he was shot, his knees were gone and subsequently he didnt play a game IIRC for nearly 18mths after leaving us (partly down to a crash in which he suffered injuries to his foot) and with the wedge he was on at the time it would have been a mess for us to be paying such a large sum to one player that wasn't even fit. I honestly believe he was thinking of the club as well as himself by moving on.

Andy Farrell's wigan career has not finished. Yes his playing career might have but ive no doubt that he will be back in a coaching capacity at some point

We got a good deal out of him leaving as it turned out. His body was knackered and he wouldn't have kept us up near the top sitting in the stands.

He's a legend of this club and a player I loved watching.

Lets all move on he was a great captain as well, in fact better captain than player a great leader, at the end of the day he took big bucks from union, and he'll be a legend from the past just like all our other great players who have donned the Cherry and White.

I caught the show about half way though and didnt realise it was Faz at first due to his 'posh' telephone accent. I must admit I thought 'what the feck is he doing on a RL programme?'. Ive rarely seen or heard him talk about RL since he left for Yawnion. It just screamed of trying to ensure a decent listening audience due to his new found RU links.
I would have preferred to listen to a RL legend that hasn't got the smell of RU on them...

Was Faz a RL legend? 90% of me says yes.....