Paul Rowley is doing a sterling job for Leigh Centurions in difficult circumstances from what I've seen and his relationship with Wigan has given him support and assistance in doing so.

Of course I looking at it from a Leigh point of view, I'm a Leigh Supporter that's why I keep asking what are the benefits for Leigh.

I don't think Chris Hill was to disappointed with the way his development was treated by Leigh, when did we become so bad that we need Wigan to show us?

You only have to ask yourself, do Wigan want to help Leigh become a successful SL club?

Answer No - because Leigh are only a few miles down the road and if successful in SL would impact on Wigan's young fan and young player catchment area.

What's in it for Wigan then?

A feeder club with an excellent stadium and facilities. A larger catchment area for young fans and young players.

It is so bl00dy obvious!!

Unfortunately, Leigh are being forced down this route because of their financial predicament. This has always been the SL agenda - feeder clubs.

When info is forthcoming reactions like the one we are seeing now occur so do you blame them?

You do realise that Trevor and other people are giving up there own time for free with nothing but good intentions and a love of all things Leigh don't you?

I see that was a little to subtle for you Frank ,its £18 in the west stand,the only stand that will be open soon.

Your right i haven't been a regular this season and its for the same reason i haven't bought a ST for the first time in god knows how long.
I told you months and months ago YOUR club had linked with wigan but like a few others,you stuck your head in the sand and hoped it would just go away,well its not owd lad,its for real now.

Whats your prefered name for your new club mate?,centurion warriors sounds pretty good to me



I'll get you a red wine when i see you at Leigh miners and Leigh east when this bloody weather sorts itself out

Chris Hill was and is an exception to all rules lets be honest.

The club was a shambles for years with no vision or structure for youth.

Ask Paul Rowley the benifits to him and the club I'm sure he will tell you.

So why tell fans there would be no partnership at fans forums.
Why not be honest and say 'well actually I need the support and assistance Wigan can give me' so would like to start with 5 Wigan Players in my squad as it gives me more options etc, etc ?
Heck he was on Radio Cumbria after the Whitehaven win hardly giving a resounding endorcement of DR and was damn critical about it then.

Not sure I am the "Canadian" referred to so here is my opinion anyway. It is best to adopt a wait and see approach as I fear that a further retaliatory drop in attendances can only push us deeper into wigans grasp. Someone has stated that this is the thin end of the wedge. Actually the whole dr program started was that...and many of us were not happy with it in the first place. Gradually our independence is being chipped away and this formal agreement risks further erosion. Where the board had failed is to explain the benefits for Leigh fans because at the end of the day all I care about is the impact to Leigh and not grassroots rugby in the borough. Others may take a broader view but that is up to them.

Someone with an ounce of marketing and PR needs to help the board out because their announcements are terrible!

Have you noticed this year we don't have any imports at the club what's moe damaging to Leigh's youngsters a pile of crap overpaid aussies and kiwis etc in first team or a few young Wigan lads who are from the community and want to learn and develop weather wearing a Wigan or Leigh shirt???

So are you seriously telling me that Trevor is so naive in thinking that putting out a press release with a header of 'Leigh entering a partnership with Wiga'n despite him and others REPEATEDLY denying it wasn't going to cause a huge backlash ?
Surely you give him more credibility than that ?
Its a damn mess and another own goal during his leadership, whilst I respect you might be happy with 5 players from another club in the squad I personally am disgusted that a established high end Championship club has resorted to this when the benefits for Leigh Centurions (thats the club not the town or district) are so low.

Paul is a RL coach so would not make the ultimate desision on the matter I'm sure firstly

Secondly what was he quoted as saying and in what context? I don't know but maybe he was quoted at the time when likes of swinton and Hunslet we're being heavily critised by all for the partner type agreements they are using. it's clear our agreement with Wigan is not the same.

I see our agreement as more of a framework for the benifit of RL in the bourgh which we operate in.

It's a club that is seriously in need of help and finance and is hanging on by a thread and people need to wake up and help put to one side stupid grudges and local hatred of all things Wigan.

We need this type of agreement if we're to stay allive and the community is to flourish generally.

How many other options have we got ignore the opportunity and slip out of contention thier is no white night and very little reality of SL wake up please take you head from the sand.

Like I said the post was not aimed at anyone, but if you now wish not to support Leigh because they MAY have some D/C in from Wigan that is your choice and no one can make that decision but you. The guy from Canada would obviously come under " some have very good reasons not to go "" quote I'm my original post

as for Steve ( starbug ) he has on many occasions over the past few months told us he has given up on Leigh now so I don't see why this would effect him personally and needs to comment on it, but that is my opinion and no one else's.

I can see your point and I know the clubs financial difficulties but the problem is that this is the first step to becoming a feeder club. That is the SL agenda that they are forcing this on Championship clubs.

I don't know what clubs can do to stop it.

Can someone explain to me how this arrangement is for the financial benefit, in particular in relation to how the lost revenue from a reduction in the existing fan base (potentially) will be addressed?

At a time when the board are crying out to the faithful to help increase the gate, I couldn't think of a worse initiative than this. We could be looking at a sub 1000 gate next game which is where we were when we were losing to south wales mark 1!

A couple of things here.
1) Whilst picking to go into partnership (or whatever you want to call it)with Wigan it was probably the worst club they could have choosen (from a Leigh fans perspective) , however I think its safe to say the vast majority would still be up in arms if it was Saints, Salford or anyone else we was linking up with.

2)If we are in such dire straits then why not cut our cloth accordingly ?
Why pretend we are better than what we really are as if we are so poorly run we now need Wigan to help us out we are no better than a Hunslet saying they need Leeds players to keep them in this division - in effect we are living beyond our means and being totally unrealisitc long term.

I would say however to point 2 that maybe we should ask why are Leigh underperforming so badly financially ?
Our gates are not the worst in the division and we are hardly miles behind Halifax, Sheffield and Featherstone on who all seem to be staying solid to their beliefs.

I realise my view differs from others (and respect that) but personally I'd take 2nd bottom of Championship 1 over Top of the Championship every single time if it meant my club was fully independent and not dependent on others.

Use it to suit us as best as best as we can I'm sure Paul will and get on with the task at hand.

It doesn't take away the bigger issue and main challenge of trying to build a club. Focus on getting people through the gates again and working long term to building a comunity club which eventually can challenge for SL on a sound financial basis.

Massive challenge as we all know but far more important at this time in my opinion is getting the shares of the club back into the clubs and fans hands and away from people holding on to them which is ultimatley stoping investors and new directors stepping forward.

There will be no future till we have a proper board with a shareholding held by either an operational forward thinking board or a supporters trust. The old ways don't a didn't work we need to cut aside the past and get a mechanism to move forward rolling.

Talking of a team loseing it`s identity , watched the "Swinton Team " walking away from team coach when they played at Fax ,at least 6 or 7 in Warrington leisure wear , water boy and one other all wearing Warrington stuff..When watching the game we did not know which were Swinton players and which were Warrington it`s a sad situation all round. The Super League Clubs have been allowed to just use the Champ` sides for their own totally selfish ends ,it`s not about the "Family of Rugby League" any more it`s about Super League nothing more. This is the start of Champ` sides just being second teams to their Super League partnership partners , the Champ Clubs have been stifled of money from the RFL for so long it has led to a situation where the Champ Clubs feel they have no alternative but to sign a pact with the devil.
When a Town like Leigh ,who for years and years have supplied the Family of Rugby League with countless players that have been brought through from your own grassroots in a natural player pathway now has to resort to playing Wigan players which in turn keeps your own players out of the side is something I don`t understand.I could understand it if you were short of players but you are not so why do it ? Why help the Super League sides who have decided to save some money on runing a second team so they can pay over paid Aussies more money and in turn end up leaving your own youngsters out?
If my own Club went down this road to be honest I would call it a day , I like a game that is honest unfortunatly it isn`t any more thanks to people like Wood and Heatherington and the rest and sometimes feel bad enough to be part of it .So another step into the abyss would be the last straw for me but I wouldn`t vent all your anger at your own Club it`s the RFL and the Super League Clubs at fault for this , how many more fans walk away from the game before as fans we try to make a stand against them or do we simply let them take our game just for themselves ?

But honestly getting fed up of attempting it, as many on here won't/don't want to believe anything they are told anyway. There's a lot to be said for just going watching matches and letting others get involved.

Dont I know it, it auto corrects wrongly

Here we go again - let's make it up. I'll tell you what, ask Wigan and Kris Radlinski whether they want Leigh to be a SL club. (don't know about a successful one!

) I know the answer - it will surprise you, but please don't take my word for it - ask for yourself.

Bloody hard work had a crash course off my 12yo but not managed to perfect it yet lol

Why let facts and truth get in the way.

The truth is what exactly, cut all the ' Bull ' , why has the club agreed a partnership with Wigan that could see anything up to 19 different Wugan players eligable to play for Leigh?

Is it because they are paying us money?

Is it because the clubs currently are not producing junior players?

Is it to save us money?

Why?

That is exactly what people said about having HKR in Super League a few years ago. You will struggle to find anyone still saying it now. Did the promotion of Rovers affect attendances at the KC or their youth development?