Nobby and Forshaw will have a plan with the rest of the backroom team (which we have far too many of) of when the team should be in peak performance, hopefully this will be coming into the playoffs? This is usually called peaking or tapering.

As with most athletes and teams a plan will be drawn up. Wigan have been one game away from the GF in the last two years. I think this is probably down to a poor finishing place rather than peaking at the right time.

Seeing us at Leeds we have been the walking wounded in 2007 and tired in 2008. I havent totally given up hope of us doing the same this year but possibly Nobby should get a bit smarter about our finishing place!!

This will require more wins in the league fixtures. It is alright peaking at the right stage of the season but Saints and Leeds rise for 90-95% of their games throughout the season hence finishing 1st or 2nd with only one team winning it from 3rd previously.

As simpe as it sounds we need to rise for every game and win more league games (especially at home) instead of making do with finishing outside the top three or four and having it all to do. I am not taking anything away from our efforts in previous seasons but winning SL outside of the top three at the moment seems impossible.

Think finishing in the top 2 is less relevant this year although it does give them home advantage. Playing Leeds or Saints without them having a week off is a lot easier them playing with them having had a week off.

Top 4 should be Wigan's aim but I think they may have blown that already. 5th or 6th will be our finishing position sadly.

Don't wish to sound pedantic but what is wrong with trying (and planning) to win every game that your team plays in?

Dont be stupid! Everyone knows that the reality of this competion means that nothing is won in March/April! Or some other load of rubbish like that

the problem is that if you start the season badly, you leave yourself too much catching up to do and, as we've found during the past couple of seasons, we just end up running out of steam. I'm all for getting the team to peak at the right time of the year, but it's difficult to see the benefit when we're serving up poor performance after poor performance.

as we have found to our cost over the last few years - finishing strongly is ok but if you finish too far down (ie outside the top 3) the task is just too great
unfortunately, that is the best we can hope for, given our awful start

yer right mate....you only win things in OCTOBER ...so its ok to have zero points in october according to that philosophical pearl of wisdom. ....or NOBLISM as its now known.

I predict the third place club in SL will be about 10pts behind 2nd, but what does that matter

Personally I think if you plan to hit form in the play-offs and finish lowere in the regular seaon, you probably won't make the play-offs anyway.

But starting badly doesn't necessarily mean the season's a write-off. Saints traditionally (or in the past few seasons at least) start the season off badly and they seem to kick on after game 6-7.