Quote ="easyWire"I think we are quick to forget how Wigan fared when French was out injured. They got pummelled a few times, and scraped first place, after we all had expected them to blitz the league unchallenged at the start of this year.
We've had our own injury crisis during the course of this season, but never lost by more than 10 points, and have never been out of a game. We also finished as top scorers and top defenders. That isn't to take away anything from Wigan's achievements of course, but let's not brush over the fact that Burgess came into a totally broken system and turned it 180 degrees. Nothing to be sniffed at, and a reason to be far less worried going forward than if A.N.Other coach had let us limp out of the reckoning yet again. We also have some of the best developing talent coming through, tied up on long contracts.'"
It was French, Field, Smith and O'Neill missing. The whole spine. I would challenge any team to try and cope without that. It's obviously going to impact any team if your best players are missing. Also, through that period of just over half way you could clearly see an intensity drop off for about 5 or 6 weeks. Somebody on our board says that is a planned drop off every season and then towards the end of the season everything gets ramped up to where every player is at their optimum. Our Pre-season sessions are notoriously savage. I know a former player who went into detail that includes sprinting up steps at Rivington with loaded back packs on. He said most players are physically sick at the end of it.
