Interesting post to look back on Sally. Obviously the involvement of SJM and his backing was massive for us at a time when it looked like we could be going to the wall at Wilderspool but Cullen deserves much credit.

The Anderson and Plange era was the most depressing and desperate time of watching the Wire in 40+ years for me. We were woeful and couldn’t buy a win until Cullen came in and saved us when relegation seemed a certainty for me. Was it wins over Castleford and Halifax?

We watched some great players under Cullen and some not so good but i think it was a definite turning point in Wire history. I will be forever grateful to him that we wasn’t relegated in 2002.

Also James Lowes proved that money alone doesn’t get you very far post Cullen. Tony Smith was the first world class coach we ever had in my opinion and I’m hopeful that Steve Price can be the second.

Youth development probably wasn’t the best under the Cullen era and he decided to buy in good young players with potential from other clubs but maybe it was needs must at the time. I’m hopeful that is being addressed now with the likes of Livett, Philbin & Patton.

Anyone with P&B blood in their veins knew Cull was one of us, we didn't need graniose entrances to show it. Maybe that was the issue - he was too much of a fan, too close to be objective and dispassionate.

I actually get a genuine feeling of kinship and togetherness from Price, even in the short time he has been here he seems to have developed real affection for the club.

And we had a home win at Wilderspool against Bradford and I thought everything was suddenly on the up....

I get that feeling too, but the thing that sets Price apart from any other coach I’ve seen in recent years at the club is his consummate professional attitude and devotion to the task.

He’s moved over here and for the first six months left his young family 12000 miles away. He’s gone through the club from the bottom upwards and identified all the areas where he transform us as close as possible to the NRL model. He’s got his first team back room staff (in addition to himself) spending evenings after the day shift working with the academy to ensure there’s consistency in the system from the U19s upwards. You can see he really wants this gig to turn out well and he’s proud to be doing what he does.

I really hope it works out for him, and I’ll be the first to admit I didn’t think he’d get us playing this well with a slapped-together-last-minute squad.

Good post Easy

I sort of get what you're saying, but I couldn't really complain about Tony Smith's professionalism.
There was talk on here about how he got even the established players doing the basics like holding the ball correctly - that's how Rauhihi fell out with him.
Rauhihi thought he knew better.
And the dropping of Briers to the bench (iirc) clearly sent a message to all.

Cull brought energy and pride back to the club when we most needed it. He was the right coach at the right time. As usual some 'fans' turned on him towards the end of his time - and many forget what was happening in his personal life. His treatment by some was disgraceful.

I'd rather forget Anderson / Plange / Dorahy / Murphy / Lowes.

Mixed feelings about DVDV, but liked Johnson before him even though I think he didn't have too much coaching experience and iirc funds were tight.