Excellent news!!!

Fantastic news.

Who are our marquee players next year then, as I'm sure this year was Hastings and G.Burgess, and we said Bateman would be marquee next year.

But how many would get in a combined team with Saints players?

AngryDave says none so that's that.

Hastings and Gildart?

Lockers is retiring. He's announced it to the playing staff.

Hastings confirms Lockers retirement pretty much in his interview on Wigan TV, saying they want to send him out on a high.

Such a shame he’ll go out with no crowd but hopefully the players can get the job done for him.

Hopefully once crowds are let back into the stadium he will walk on to the field to speak to the fans, allow us to show final appreciation.

I always used to like the last league game at the DW (and Central Park) where departing players did a final lap of honour. Brett Dallas centre spot boots.... etc.

Well, that news on top of the re-signing of French has put paid to those who have taken great delight in saying that both players were leaving the club.

Now, all we need is another announcement that Lam has signed a new contract to sicken them all together!

Well, if there was any doubt before, that's just sealed the deal.

Strong looking team coming together for 2021 - if you add a top prop then it will be a heck of a side to beat.

Not according to redvee. French is s$*t I read on there this morning. I'm glad we have got a s$*t player like him in our side though. Oh and Lomax is much better than Hastings. Should have no problem winning it next year then Saints with their self proclaimed amazing side that is actually very average without one prop in it.

Absolutely gutted he’s going out either in a empty Dw or empty KCOM.

I’m 27, so haven’t watched a Wigan team without Lockers in. He’s captain for 15 years!!!

So little fanfare about his potential last ever game for Wigan next week. Just doesn’t seem right.

Such a sad way for him to go

He'll get a good send off in time. If anything playing at an empty stadium GF will be one more unique experience in a career where he's done everything.

To be honest it was the same with Andy Farrell but for different reasons. He started the season injured, then a month into it announced he was leaving for Union, so we never got to watch his last game whilst actually knowing that's what it was.

Thoughts on your recruitment? Thompson looks a safe bet to be a good buy, more uncertain with Taasi and Matautia.

True.

He got a cracking send off at Leeds in the playoffs though

Brilliant news. I think we're already the team to beat next year. As FTV says, add another top class prop and we go even further ahead. Looks like Saints are keeping LMS and Amor too so good news all round!

I am quite excited for next season with the squad we have at our disposal. Lam is set to stay (not unexpected) and the pressure will really be on him next year to produce the goods consistently.

Ah fair enough, was the writing in the wall then? I couldn't get over the pennines in time for that one so watched on TV. I do remember he got a squad number in 05 so it can't have been properly confirmed by the time of that Leeds game. I remember Ryan Bailey causing us massive problems in that game

Go on I'll bite...



Just to put your comment into context, LMS and Amor will be 4th and 5th choice props next season. Only 1 of them would be in our strongest 17 on paper. If these two were our headline retentions/signings I would be worried but they aren't.

We are also keeping Knowles, Lees and Bentley, whilst already having the best prop in the competition and adding 3 NRL regulars to boost the pack as well. I think on the whole we are very strong in that department.

No denying your squad for 2021 is looking very good. Retaining French is better business than any signing that will be made for 2021 by any SL club and obviously we all know what Bateman will bring. Lots of excitement over Field which I understand to a point given his comparisons in some quarters to French and his raw speed, however I think he is in danger of being over hyped slightly. He's played 17 games in 4 years so he's hardly the proven article. He *could turn out to be as good as French or he could turn out to be a bit of a dud. It'll be interesting to see what happens with Leuluai/Smith next year and if you will put Field straight in at 6 alongside Hastings.

Overall though your backline is frightening on paper and if they all click then you lot are in for some fun next year. I do think though that barring any other signings from you lot (please not Thompson) our pack is still the stronger of the two. There'll probably be two contrasting styles on show again next year I imagine with Wigan being much easier on the eye than Saints no doubt. We will continue to try and dominate and bully teams up the middle and more often than not we will be able to do that. Personally I think our weak spot is the lack of that little bit of magic, which you have in French. When we can't run over the top of teams struggle a bit and that's why I would personally chuck Dodd in as starting 7 next year over Fages.

Overall Saints and Wigan are looking at being the top 2 again for next year at this stage and it should be a great battle. Plenty to go at this year yet though of course...

No it wasn't confirmed, but as he was our best player by miles (playing at prop) we were singing "one Andy Farrell" and "Farrell, Farrell man of steel" (which he won, as well as the golden boot when it was a real trophy) for ages.

Not a bad summary

It was tongue in cheek tbh mate. Just taking a leaf out of the Redvee book



For the sake of discussion though I think you may be being over optimistic in your assessment of LMS in particular. We said the same thing about Tony Clubb but here he is with the number 10 shirt and seemingly a shoe in whenever he's available. As a 5th/6th prop on low money he was fine but beyond that..

I reckon you'll be seeing more of LMS than you might hope or imagine next year.

As for the rest of your points, I concede you still have the best prop in the league but without him your pack is a shadow of what it is with him. I've not seen anything in your proposed signings that suggest any are in the same mold and able to take up his role in his absence. Sure, Paasi may well compliment him when in harness together but, as yet another prop/2nd row hybrid, he's not going to take you forward in the way Walmsley does. In addition Lees has yet to show any pre injury form so I wouldn't necessarily count him as a given.

To say your pack is the stronger is an oversimplification too. If you're saying you have the better front row, that's worth further debate. However to suggest you have a better back row is, well, just wrong. Let's see which of your back row get international recognition in 2021. That's not the be all and end all, of course, but to suggest you have better than last year's best 2nd rower in the world (Bateman) and superleague's best (Farrell) is at the very least, pushing it.