I agree 100% with this.

Quote ="DaveO"Well you could try discussing the points I made instead of making a rather silly point implying we should be happy to miss a game because we are poor. I can see why NSW tourism has gone for this. For sponsoring a game between two high profile SL teams they get a potential influx for foreign tourists and the chance quite a few domestic fans will pop along. Seems quite a reasonable bit of marketing to me. They aren't the ones expecting long term benefits from this and will be quite happy if they get their projected return on their cash. Once the fans have gone home they will still have spent their money in NSW. From the Wigan point of view which bit or market research has told the club we are going to be in front of the queue to sign Aussie players? Which bit of market research has identified how many potential sponsors beyond the game there are likely to be, in Australia? Which bit of market research has come up with a figure for potential new fans and supporters of the club and what they will contribute to its revenues going forward? What infrastructure have Wigan got in the marketing department to capitalise on any of this? To do something like this it ought to be so well researched it is an absolute nailed on certainty that even at the lower end of projections the club will gain substantial benefits. When I see one of those benefits being touted as being at the front of the queue for Aussie players it gives me the impression it's being made up as they go along. Apologies if this is a typical DaveO post (Gareth) but there you go. It's my ">opinion.'" Both me and you don't have the first clue what research has gone in to this or if it's likely to be financially rewarding. I'm prepared to put my trust in the powers that be though as I believe they've more then earned our trust over the last decade. Every time I feel negative about how things are going, I let my mind drift back to 2005/6 and I get an overwhelming sense of satisfaction at the position the club is currently in. The owner took the club over with it in an absolute mess from top to bottom. It's currently in pretty good health from top to bottom and if he thinks this is worthwhile then that'll do for me. Is everything perfect? No. Has every decision Lenagan and the management team have made the correct one? No. Are they doing a good job overall though? Without any shadow of a doubt.

Quote ="DaveO"Well you could try discussing the points I made instead of making a rather silly point implying we should be happy to miss a game because we are poor. I can see why NSW tourism has gone for this. For sponsoring a game between two high profile SL teams they get a potential influx for foreign tourists and the chance quite a few domestic fans will pop along. Seems quite a reasonable bit of marketing to me. They aren't the ones expecting long term benefits from this and will be quite happy if they get their projected return on their cash. Once the fans have gone home they will still have spent their money in NSW. From the Wigan point of view which bit or market research has told the club we are going to be in front of the queue to sign Aussie players? Which bit of market research has identified how many potential sponsors beyond the game there are likely to be, in Australia? Which bit of market research has come up with a figure for potential new fans and supporters of the club and what they will contribute to its revenues going forward? What infrastructure have Wigan got in the marketing department to capitalise on any of this? To do something like this it ought to be so well researched it is an absolute nailed on certainty that even at the lower end of projections the club will gain substantial benefits. When I see one of those benefits being touted as being at the front of the queue for Aussie players it gives me the impression it's being made up as they go along. Apologies if this is a typical DaveO post (Gareth) but there you go. It's my ">opinion.'" Both me and you don't have the first clue what research has gone in to this or if it's likely to be financially rewarding. I'm prepared to put my trust in the powers that be though as I believe they've more then earned our trust over the last decade. Every time I feel negative about how things are going, I let my mind drift back to 2005/6 and I get an overwhelming sense of satisfaction at the position the club is currently in. The owner took the club over with it in an absolute mess from top to bottom. It's currently in pretty good health from top to bottom and if he thinks this is worthwhile then that'll do for me. Is everything perfect? No. Has every decision Lenagan and the management team have made the correct one? No. Are they doing a good job overall though? Without any shadow of a doubt.

I can understand people having reservations about this (I, myself, am ambivalent about it).



But only at Wigan, it seems, could fans then start concluding that this is happening because the chairman is only here to profiteer from the club.



That's a brave accusation given that in his 10 years at Wigan, IL has paid lots of bills and delivered some pretty decent silverware.



But it's also a pretty aggressive accusation. I can honestly say - having watched Wigan since the 1960s - that IL is easily one of our better chairmen, and yet I can't remember one other who has attracted as much flak from certain corners of fandom.



It may be that malcontents have always been there, only now the internet gives them a voice. But I still find it totally baffling.

Quote ="NickyKiss"Both me and you don't have the first clue what research has gone in to this or if it's likely to be financially rewarding. I'm prepared to put my trust in the powers that be though as I believe they've more then earned our trust over the last decade. '" No we don't know what research has gone into it but that is the same sort of argument that justifies, for example, any signing the club makes despite any reservations from fans. The club must know best. No point discussing it then. Why is this different? If you read what they say about this objectively, they don't say a lot. Quote Every time I feel negative about how things are going, I let my mind drift back to 2005/6 and I get an overwhelming sense of satisfaction at the position the club is currently in. The owner took the club over with it in an absolute mess from top to bottom. It's currently in pretty good health from top to bottom and if he thinks this is worthwhile then that'll do for me. Is everything perfect? No. Has every decision Lenagan and the management team have made the correct one? No. Are they doing a good job overall though? Without any shadow of a ">doubt.'" Just because we were poor in 2005/6 doesn't give the club a permanent get out of jail card. As you say not everything is perfect and not every decision Lenagan and the management team have made the correct one and I happen to think this isn't a correct one for the reasons I state. If you want a positive then us beating Salford and so we have a Wigan v Hull Challenge Cup final is a gift for marketing this game between these two teams in Oz. The question is, who to?

Quote ="NickyKiss"Both me and you don't have the first clue what research has gone in to this or if it's likely to be financially rewarding. I'm prepared to put my trust in the powers that be though as I believe they've more then earned our trust over the last decade. '" No we don't know what research has gone into it but that is the same sort of argument that justifies, for example, any signing the club makes despite any reservations from fans. The club must know best. No point discussing it then. Why is this different? If you read what they say about this objectively, they don't say a lot. Quote Every time I feel negative about how things are going, I let my mind drift back to 2005/6 and I get an overwhelming sense of satisfaction at the position the club is currently in. The owner took the club over with it in an absolute mess from top to bottom. It's currently in pretty good health from top to bottom and if he thinks this is worthwhile then that'll do for me. Is everything perfect? No. Has every decision Lenagan and the management team have made the correct one? No. Are they doing a good job overall though? Without any shadow of a ">doubt.'" Just because we were poor in 2005/6 doesn't give the club a permanent get out of jail card. As you say not everything is perfect and not every decision Lenagan and the management team have made the correct one and I happen to think this isn't a correct one for the reasons I state. If you want a positive then us beating Salford and so we have a Wigan v Hull Challenge Cup final is a gift for marketing this game between these two teams in Oz. The question is, who to?

Quote ="Levrier"Nice to see that the Hull fans seem very positive about the game, and why should they not be? They will take as many to Australia as they would bring to the DW and they do not have to miss a home game, win ">win.'" It would be even nicer to see their club offer to play the return fixture at some neutral venue. Somewhere where we could help spread the gospel but where there would likely be a possibility of negotiating a deal to offset loss of revenue. Toronto?

Quote ="Levrier"Nice to see that the Hull fans seem very positive about the game, and why should they not be? They will take as many to Australia as they would bring to the DW and they do not have to miss a home game, win ">win.'" It would be even nicer to see their club offer to play the return fixture at some neutral venue. Somewhere where we could help spread the gospel but where there would likely be a possibility of negotiating a deal to offset loss of revenue. Toronto?

Wigan and Hull fans based in the UK and Wigan and Hull fan immigrants in Aus. It's not to grow the game, or any of that nonsense, purely to get a payout from the NSW tourism board.