Lam gets appointed as Leigh head coach, 1 day later Leigh's new signing retires with immediate effect. It's starting already for the lobby gobblers.

Leigh dodged a bullet there, would have been an expensive failure.

I'd take Joel on a 1 year deal on the cheap.

I wouldn't - another second row nowhere near as effective as he once was and a penalty machine - we have enough of those. Just what we need!

As a penalty machine, any worse than Partington?

Joel always had the potential to go down as one of the great Wigan forwards, perhaps to be remembered in the same company as Denis Betts. But somewhere en route he really lost his way. For me, and it's an old story, this, his stint in RU seemed to massively blunt him as a rugby player. He went over there the best athlete at Wigan, renowned for his powerhouse runs and 80-minute aggression, and came back a petulant shadow of what he'd once been, having seemingly achieved very little (apart from get rich, though that's irrelevant to the point I'm making).

Memories of Iestyn Harris, Henry Paul, Kyle Eastmond etc. I honestly don't know what they do to these guys in RU to transform them from world-beaters into journeymen.

He made his name from one try and lived off it for the rest of his career, enjoy retirement, the anus of Wigan

*rectum

Absolutely not

Tomkins retired weeks ago, prior to Lam's announcement

That would be a new low in the keep re-signing ex-players fiasco.

Re-signing, re-signing. Don't give Rads any ideas.

I would sooner have Lam than Peet as Coach, what has Peet ever won ?Ive been told he won a Dominoes Cup at the Red Robin a couple of years ago .

I did not know about Peet playing in a Dominoes Cup Competition at the Red Robin, but l do remember him playing at Prop Forward for Wigan St Patricks in the 2001 Ken Gee Cup Final at Central Park.

Big difference from Lam playing in the 2002 Challenge Cup Final at Murrayfield, not to mention also playing for Papua New Guinea in International Competition.

Nothing like having a bit of playing pedigree!

That Matty Peet will do for me, playing in the Ken Gee Cup Final at sixteen years of age on a car park.

Peet may work out, might not. One thing is for sure. My nan could get Leigh promoted with that squad and budget available with only Featherstone to worry about. I bet Lam doesn't though.

The one thing Leigh fans need to understand is that any negative comments about Lam aren’t because he’s gone to Leigh. I’m as happy for Lam as I am stunned that he’s got the job and I genuinely hope it works out for him. An absolute legend of a player but his three years as coach have been torture at times.

As pointed out it shouldn’t matter at Leigh. We couldn’t score more than a try a game most weeks under Lammy but Leigh will have a squad better than anything they’ll be facing and even Lammy should be able to get them winning and scoring points.

It’ll be 2023 when they’ll be able to judge him I’d imagine, if as expected they’re in superleague.

I’m taking nothing for granted , Fev will be favourites to get promoted , and we have yet to announce around 6 players already signed , ido think Lam will be a good appointment .

One thing I’m not is Anti Wigan , a lot of Leythers are but not me, 90% of my family are Wiganers ,one has even Coached Rugby , and it was him who told me he didn’t rate Peet .

I take it your relative is Wayne Bennet or Craig Bellamy then? If not, multi CC and GF title-winning coach and current England coach, Shaun Wane, does rate him.

Didn’t think you were but by the same token, Wigan fans pointing out Lams faults isn’t anti Leigh bias. His three years here were just a horror show from an entertainment point of view and the Jack of development across the whole squad was alarming.

We’ll see how Peet goes, I’m not sure how it’ll pan out and I doubt many are but I can’t see us being much worse.

typical pie fans showing ignorance of championship rl just as they have had heads in the sand about demise of there club which is skint and reduced to recruiting 2nd class Aussies and former sacked coaches to try and bluff the diminishing fan base
all true leythers wish them nothing but the worst for the new season

Don't hold back, let it all out, you'll feel better for it

Merry Christmas to you too mate.

Whatever Shaun Wanes opinions are he is entitled to them , how anyone can rate a bloke who only has amateur Coaching status is puzzling , as for my relative he isn’t who you stated , but well known in Wigan for his Coaching abilities.

I regard myself as a true Leyther , and wish ALL Wiganers well , in fact I would trust my life to the Wiganers I know , for me they are great people .Merry Christmas to everyone on this Forum .