Mostly because he didn't have Sorensen and Grima in the middle of the park frightening the living daylights out of people so he could run at outside backs all day. Eyres was, much like Paul Medley, all flash and no substance.

I think that's a bit harsh. He like Medley just had to be used in the right way.

Medley went alright for us with Karl Fairbank and Kelvin Skerrett looking after him.

Medley would've been superb nowadays with the game being less dirty.

Even now though, second rowers have to be prepared to roll their sleeves up and do the unglamorous stuff of 40 tackles a game and driving the ball away from your own line. That wasn't Medley. Didn't get interested until the ball got over halfway.

TBF I think you do him a bit of a disservice. He wasn't that bad.

With modern training & conditioning methods allied to playing mostly in the summer on better pitches Medley would likely have been an outstanding player.
His pace & size would have troubled any opposition.
Only my opinion obviously.

Good game that. I remember having to be dragged out of the club with strippers on Manningham lane to make kick off.

As for Eyres his only issue at Leeds was that he was, like most players at that time, there purely and simply for the £££££ and he took hte urine.

I think the conditioning regimes at the two clubs were quite different. Can't quite figure it out but all Widnes's players seemed a stone heavier and a yard quicker than when they moved elsewhere. Perhaps something from all those chemical works had got into the water supply.

Widnesdid seem to have an imposing presence when they ran out onto the field

They did have a monster pack back in the late 80's with Grima, Morriarty, Sorrensen, Koloto etc..Add to that 2 centres in Andy Currier and Darren Wright (both 6"4/6"5 tall) they were huge across the park.That 87-89 team which had Offiah,Davies and Tait in too was the most complete team as iv'e seen watching RL. it just gets overlooked a bit because it didn't have the longevity of the all conquering Wigan side that succeeded it.

I agree. That Widnes side of 89 was probably toughest and most entertaining I’ve ever seen

Tait, Davies, Currier, Wright, Offiah, Myler, D,Hulme, Sorensen, McKenzie, Grima, O’Neill, Koloto, Holliday as a starting 13 takes some beating.

Add too the likes of Faimalo, Paul Hulme, Derek Pyke, Moriarty etc.

Roy Powell was a great player but he was an even better person
R.I.P Big Man

The reason was that we bought individuals and assumed that would make a great team. We had no idea what it was that made those individuals good at their previous club, never mind making any attempt to replicate that to get the best out of them.

You see this type of recruitment so often in teams desperately trying to make up ground. Salford are the obvious recent example but there are many examples throughout team sports.

As for players signing for the cash. Yeah I agree they did but that's not really their fault. It's up to the club what players get offered. More fool the club.