Best Wire Coach - not the 'transport' type. : Sat Jul 08, 2023 5:46 pm  

Since I joined this forum many moons ago - and a couple of name changes due to IT issues (rather than being banned!) - I can't remember ever a time when there was't an ' "insert name of current coach" out ' thread.

So on a positive note which Wire coach was the best, and why?
(and please try to keep it to this rather than hijack it to a 'moaning' thread about other Wire coaches).

Since I started watching in the 70's, there are 3 that stand out - for different reasons.
In no particular order -

Alex Murphy in the 70's, not 2nd time round - for the trophies he won and his playing career with us, but he did come across as quite 'old school' - bawling and shouting, rather than necessarily 'coaching'. Could be wrong here. Game was different in the 70's.

Brian Johnson - I don't think he had the money we have now so ended up creating workmanlike teams in a period when Wigan just bought the top stars. We had the ocassional good season (3rd one year losing out by goal difference) and won Regal Trophy 90/91. He and his assistant (Clive Griffiths) introduced a sliding defence that's commonplace now, but was almost revolutionary (iirc) back then. Obviously it ended badly with an 80-0 thumping by Saints at KR that I doubt any of us saw coming. Given the (relative) lack of funds the owner (Peter Higham) was quite forward-looking employing a strategy of getting the best youngsters in early - Sculthorpe, Harris etc. - as well as Andy Gregory and the Welsh contingent - Davies, Ellis, Bateman.
Johnson's focus was on defence but not sure how technical he was

Tony Smith - didn't deliver the GF win and came in when we had money and stars (Gleeson, King etc), but won a stack of trophies and was/is a modern day coach. Tactically astute and always seemed to be interested in improving the players both on and off the field. Could be ruthless when needed (Gleeson, Rauhihi etc) but many argue he had his favourites and led to arguments with younger players (Savelio etc). A number of his signing didnt come off either.

Take your pick.
Name yours and why.

Re: Best Wire Coach - not the 'transport' type. : Sat Jul 08, 2023 5:54 pm  

Didn't we have a good spell under Tony Barrow? Late 80s?

Re: Best Wire Coach - not the 'transport' type. : Sat Jul 08, 2023 6:13 pm  

Might be the rose tinted view from my childhood, but I enjoyed the Billy Benyon era, where we always seemed to be there or thereabouts when it came to going for trophies. I recall a season where we really should have won the league, but a massive fixture pile-up led to us playing every 2 or 3 days towards the end of the season and saw us lose the title to, I think, Bradford. That era also had some great players, like Ken Kelly and Tommy Martyn, while also having probably my all time favourite, John Bevan, a player who would have been an absolute beast in today's era.

Like I say, my memories of that era are probably hazy, but I don't recall Benyon's sides having any real rotten spell and I'd be intrigued to know what others remember of his time and how he ended up losing favour with the fans or the board.

P.S. And how could I forget the magic of that night in 1978, when we took on, and beat, the mighty Aussies!!

Re: Best Wire Coach - not the 'transport' type. : Sat Jul 08, 2023 6:36 pm  

Dita's Slot Meter wrote:

P.S. And how could I forget the magic of that night in 1978, when we took on, and beat, the mighty Aussies!!

And copious amounts of vaseline on the ball at kick off if I remrmber vorrectly (one of many such tactics employed.....)

Re: Best Wire Coach - not the 'transport' type. : Sat Jul 08, 2023 6:53 pm  

TF and the wire wrote:

Didn't we have a good spell under Tony Barrow? Late 80s?

Turn the form on its head and we went on to win the Premiership… now known as the Grand Final!

Re: Best Wire Coach - not the 'transport' type. : Sat Jul 08, 2023 6:55 pm  

The one that wins us the Grand Final.

Re: Best Wire Coach - not the 'transport' type. : Sat Jul 08, 2023 7:03 pm  

Was actually the Tony Barrow and Les Boyd coaching setup that sufferred most at the hands of the full-time, uber rich pieeaters.

Tony made some great signings (Drummond, Woods, Holden) and was a superb motivator whilst Boyd brought innovation and tactical nous. If Wigan hadn't been at the peak of their buy it if it moves powers, we'd have dominated from 86 onwards.

Johno was also a deep thinker of the game, but as a club we were starting to wane by that time. He could, however, probably claim to have come closer anyone (inc. Tony Smith) to winning the league. Miĺliseconds, the time it took for Russell Smith to blow his whistle.

The Tony Smith era gave us champagne rugby, money, success, some great players but I still wake at 3AM wide eyed and baffled as to how it never delivered a GF win.

For me, Barrow/Boyd. We didn't have a bottomless pit of money, but we spent it well. We played some great stuff and nobody, nobody yanked our chain.

Re: Best Wire Coach - not the 'transport' type. : Sat Jul 08, 2023 7:06 pm  

rubber duckie wrote:

Turn the form on its head and we went on to win the Premiership… now known as the Grand Final!

End of season knockabout back then. Still was nice to win a trophy.

Re: Best Wire Coach - not the 'transport' type. : Sat Jul 08, 2023 8:51 pm  

Dita's Slot Meter wrote:

End of season knockabout back then. Still was nice to win a trophy.

It was a brilliant day at Elland Road for those that were there. Halifax were the league winners and we/Boyd destroyed them.

My happiest times were when Tony Barrow was in charge. We played some good rugby and took no poop.

Re: Best Wire Coach - not the 'transport' type. : Sat Jul 08, 2023 9:01 pm  

Tony Barrow once gave a team talk (away vs Salford I think) where his instructions were simply ‘I want violence’. I’m not ashamed to say I bloody love that.