In fairness he only had what 6 months of his deal left so I suppose Wigan did pretty well with him

He was only as accurate as I am in saying that Tom Johnstone is going to leave Wakey. Of course he is. At some point. The bit NT neglected to say was when, and that was nearly 4 years ago. Wakey will be lucky if TJ is still there in 4 years time, so it seems like a reasonable punt on my part.

A little different, Hardaker has been sacked at every SL club he`s been at, when signed your chairman then blamed those clubs mismanagement of Zak when it was quite clear it was the man himself who had chance after chance. Wigan have done everything right by him, in fact you went above and beyond, if it wasn`t for Wigan he`d be playing in the championship at the very best if at all, and look at how he has repaid the club. I do think though you shouldn`t have bothered, he can`t keep himself out of trouble and he`s had chance after chance.

I don`t get the TJ comparison though, you`d be hard pressed to find a Wakefield fan that would disagree with you on that, in fact we thought he`d be off before he signed his last deal however Tom stuck by the club that stuck by him in some very dark times perhaps ZH could take a leaf out of this book.

He didn’t get laughed at for suggesting it would end in tears, he got laughed at for being obsessed with what Hardaker was doing away from the field. Most people on here didn’t want Hardaker but as it’s turned out we’ve had 3 and a bit seasons out of him and it’s all been reasonably uneventful (for Hardaker).

Facts are that he’s not a particularly good player anymore. A solid fullback and a decent centre. We’ll miss him because we’re now short of a decent player and a half decent goal kicker but i don’t think anybody will lose any sleep (well maybe Nottingham Tiger will as he’ll be in Hardakers bushes again).

I think saying he’s not a particularly good player is harsh, he played internationally at centre in the off season just gone and he’s a better full back as well, he’s been stuck on the wing this year so well out of position and a tough place to shine with a lack of pace. I could see him going Leeds and doing well at full back.

There were 2 incidents
So make sure you don't confuse wigans response prior to the Saints game and the reason he got dropped, with what happened a couple of days later and why he's been released etc.

2 different things

I’m not sure it is. He’s decent nowadays but as a centre I wouldn’t have him in the group of better ones in the league. He played for England due to a number of absences IIRC. Maybe it’s unfair to judge him on his wing performances and ultimately I think there’s been a real lack of motivation on his part to play anywhere other than fullback but on his actual performance levels as a centre or winger for us this season and last, I wouldn’t have him as a standout.

I agree if he goes to Leeds and plays fullback he’ll probably improve rapidly. He did play his best rugby for us at fullback early last season but he’s not going to play fullback here, so you’re left with an unmotivated, decent centre. Aside from any debate over his current level as a player, it’s just a relief to know there isn’t a disaster waiting around the corner.

be interested to know what the 2nd was

As would I. I'd hazard a guess at it being alcohol related.

He's supposedly 'tee total' since his drink driving ban yet i've seen pictures of him drinking on social media many times.

Not alcohol related just being an related.

Wouldn’t get on the team coach after Wakefield game and I hear ongoing lateness for training thereafter.
I assume summarily dismissed with no payment.

Not great timing but the club are 100% correct.
I actually applaud their actions.

You wonder if he thought because it was Peet in charge he could take liberties. Peet is obviously a young coach, inexperienced and did not have that top level playing career and Hardaker has always struck me as a guy who rates himself higher than what most other people do. If that was the case, it’s a win for Peet and a feather in his cap to move forward with. There can be no doubt of his ability to make tough decisions.

A bit of short term pain for the squad losing a decent player but it could have plenty of long term gains.

One of my old bosses used to say to me with a wink 'nothing like a good old sacrificial lamb to the slaughter now and again to sharpen the senses of the rest of the troops'.

It’s a blow still as we are losing our best centre and it’s going to be tough to find an adequate mid season replacement with no quota spots available. That said if he’s been disruptive and like has been said 2 incidents have occurred in the last couple of weeks then we are better shut, I certainly don’t think he’s going to be the difference with us winning or not winning trophies, although he would have dealt with Hurrell better than Bibby did last week.

I can certainly go with all that. It’s an area that needs attention for next season (and maybe this if anything crops up). Hopefully Halsall gets some chances and nails a spot.

That was the first incident

I only used TJ as a comparison ... the first Wakey name that came into my head. I wasn't suggesting there was any similarity between him and ZH. Nottingham Tiger was a total buffoon who came on here prophesying doom from the moment we signed Zak Hardaker (who we got at decent discount, by the way), at times almost seemed to follow him around, and had the nerve to come back on here this morning to say he'd told us this would happen. Nearly 4 years later!

The guy was an idiot and a weirdo, and people laughed at him for that.

Now I’m intrigued Jukes.
Not that interested on the 2nd event but deep down we’re all busybodies lol.

For me the important thing in this is that the club has acted swiftly and, I’m confident with integrity.
Our standards dropped for several seasons and at last we have head coach who is putting principles first and foremost.
Peet is going about his business quietly and professionally. It’s early days but so far I’m impressed with the lad.

Your last sentence is absolutely spot on.
The club expects it’s standards to be adhered to and reacts accordingly when they are not applied. This needs to be applied from the ground up to the top of the club.

I’m actually very upbeat about this because as you quite rightly said the long term gains are invaluable.

This was a big blow to my confidence in Bibby tbh.

Up to this point, I've been a big advocate of him and that was predominantly based on his defensive efforts. As a reference point & I didn't want to tempt fate, but all the talk before the Wakey CC game was around Johnstone and how he's a danger. I personally wasn't worried, as I've seen him come up against Bibby a couple of times in recent seasons and I'm 100% confident in saying Bibby has had him in his back pocket, every single time (or at least defensively).

Now Hurrell ripped him a new one and it's undoubtedly damaged the rep Bibby has imo. I'm hoping he comes back from it, but for a lad who's there for his D, it's disappointing. I also can't help, buy think that if Gildart (a player I'm unsure about) was playing on GF, he'd have nailed the pass to Faz. We're then 4-0 up and it's different (especially when Field scores next).

Fine margins, but if you're gonna be weak in attack, you need to dominate in defence. Especially playing for a club that wants to win stuff.

Hearing from a very reliable source that Leeds have been in contact as have Fev.

Possibility he plays for Leeds for rest of this season then goes to Fev.

The amusing one given his issues is that Leigh have offered him the most money and are looking like a genuine option!

If we sell Connor Wrench to anyone, I'll be straight to work on my 'Powell out' banner. The kid is a class act.

that way he continues to be a SL player





shorter commute (slightly! - didnt Scott Taylor do something similar??)

Not aimed at you, but frankly - I don't care.

He's not a Wigan player/Wigan problem any longer, so he can ply his trade in Leeds, Fev, Leigh or the Outer Hebrides for all I care.

Good question, anyone on here clued up about the cap implications when someone is released like this ?

It was be fantastic to see him go to Leigh, him and Beaumont would probably go out on the lash together.