Interesting thread, I think you have to judge Anderson not only based on what he did with the first team, but on the processes and structures he set up throughout the club, the benefits which were enjoyed by both Potter, and now Simmons.
Whereas previously under Ian Millward we had been a bit of a slap-dash operation, Anderson brought in a structure to the club that was, and is, as professional as anything in the NRL. On Anderson's first day at the club he arranged appointments with every single member of staff on the football side of the club to begin putting these structures in place.
Potter always gets a lot of credit for bringing through the young players but was always keen to point out that the work had been done by other people before him. Simmons commented that when he came over to interview for the position he was in awe of how professional the football set-up was.
What Anderson also did was bring a new culture, and fresh ideas, to the first team in 2005-6 and put his own mark on an already outstanding group of players. Our coaching co-ordinator that year Alan Wilson also got lots of credit from the players for his defensive coaching which sorted out our hitherto leaky defence in 2006. All in all I think Anderson's legacy at Saints was much greater than people realise and it's a shame that, with the lost Grand Finals, the trophy haul doesn't totally reflect our dominance in what was a great era for the club.
