Good post. I came in just after era 3 so I didn't see that team at its absolute peak with Andy Gregory there.

I still say era 2 for me was the most exciting but that is because of the age I was, when you are a teenager I think your interest in sport in general peaks, when you are older there are other things that give you the peaks and troughs in life - relationships, family, work, but as a teenager you are relatively insulated and so the real highs and lows come from sport.

The Jonathan Davies season just epitomised hope in so many ways, the dominant power of Wigan that could not be challenged, least of all by a team like us that was usually lower mid table, but suddenly we were challenging them and hope was embodied in one player (albeit he had some good supporting members around him with Mackey, Shelford, Bateman etc).

Era 3 was hands down the best I have seen as a Wire fan and the TS team would have smashed any other Wire team I can remember, but for me the intensity of the emotions was not there, certainly after Wembley 2009. For many years I thought I would never see us win a major trophy so after winning the Challenge Cup in 2009 some part of me was content as a rugby league fan that I had seen it and I was there. After that anything else was a bonus so I didn't get as gutted after we lost the Grand Finals or final eliminator games over the past couple of years. Also maybe part of why I wasn't as gutted was the thought that we are now established as a well run big club and so the feeling is always there that there will be more chances in the future, whereas when we were pipped by Wigan in 1994 that felt more heartbreaking because I think we all knew that it was a one off chance that would not be repeated any time soon.

I do think you are always attached to the players from your past, however strong the team was.

You can see this if you talk to Man City fans, that are aged 30 or older, ask them to name their all time Man City team and you will get some interesting names in there....if they are really honest it should be pretty much full of players from the last few years but you will hear them putting names like Goater, Kinkladze, Curle in it!

give me the boyd jackson and tamati era any day and that day we destroyed halifax at elland road in 86 will be with me forever..and the booze up in the touchdown club that night will also stay with me forever..had some brilliant days watching the wire with a good 99.9% of games on a sunday afternoon not on a monday or thursday...

Nostalgia - great isn't it.

It's difficult to compare players from different eras because the game has changed so much.
You could say Brian Bevan was the greatest winger ever.
You could say he's struggle in today's game because it's far more structured.

Looking back as a young teenager I came in around the Boyd, Tamati, Jackson era and they were really special.
Jackson went into the 2nd row later on but was a full 80 minute player. Unbelievable work rate. Had problems with his back later on but an awesome player.
Boyd was and is small in stature, but almost as wide and someone you'd want with you in the trenches. Utterly fearless and very very skillful. He used to live next to my mate on the road opposite Warrington golf club. My mate was a Wire fan and my mates dad a Widnes fan..... now there's a combination - and quite a few verbals were thrown over the fence in both directions - all in good humour.
Tamati was no mean player too. Worked in the butchers in Stockton Heath.

The fact they didn't win as many trophies as some others doesn't detract from them.

I don't want to compare to others.
Morley Carvs and Monas did a very very good job for us and imo were the best front row of the recent times for the 2-3 seasons they were together.

I'd buy a season ticket for the next 5 years to see the aforementioned players again.Boyd,Tamati + Jackson would walk into the present team.Oh how I miss them times.

I am not a Warrington fan, but have always thought of Boyd and Tamati as two real hard nuts. So maybe someone can shed some light on something that has mystified me for years. A few years ago, I once flicked through one of Maurice Bamford's books, but seriously cannot remember which. It may well have been 'My 50 Rugby League Heroes' or something like that. Anyhow the heroes in question were certainly not all greats in terms of ability, but players he had come into contact with one way or another.

Anyhow one of them was Keith Mason senior, who I think he named as the hardest player he had known. One of the examples he gave for this, was a game against Warrington, where he totally sorted out BOTH Boyd and Tamati, to the point neither would ever mess with him again, or certainly something to that effect. To be honest I found that incredibly difficult to believe, but that's what Bamford wrote. As I say, I am not 100% sure, but I think it was in the aforementioned book, and if it is, you can check it out.

Bear in mind they are Bamfords words not mine, so please don't round on me, and as said I myself find it hard to believe. What I would like to know is can anyone remember the game / incident he was writing about.

I think the game Herbert is referring to was against Dewsbury they had a prop Mason, never mind Boyd the whole pack hit him with everything including the main stand, he was on his last legs but kept going impervious to the attention and pain he was receiving, instead of getting on with the game it became this is now personal! hard doesn't come into it, hands up to both packs that day.

The following week if my memory is right he was sent off against Widnes, never met the man but I would imagine he's a bit of a character.

Just read this article on Les Boyd on "Era of the Biff" site.......Quite funny, & highlights Boyd`s reputation with opposition players:-



Les Boyd. Having read all the stories of Les I couldn't add anything myself although I do recall most of those by others.

My story comes from a mate of mine who was playing against Warrington for St Helens. Many of you will remember Harry Pinner from his Saints days and he went on to play for Great Britain, Widnes and (he'll kill me for this one) Carlisle. He was also assistant coach to John Monie at wigan.

Well this is his story of Les Boyd. Don't know the date but it was a sunday afternoon at Knowsley Road, St Helens, and Les is driving the ball forward and is tackled by two saints players but refuses to go down and is trying to offload.

Saints hooker Graham Liptrot comes in third man and completes the tackle knocking Boyd to the ground on his back. Not content with that Lippy decides to let boyd have one, a forearm accross the nose that is.

Harry as saints captain quickly pulls Lippy off the tackle and begins to tell him what an idiot he is and how Boyd would kill him.

Lippy unconcerned tells Harry "don't worry I'm going off, I've just seen my number held up on the touch line". Harry looked over and sure enough the number 9 is held up and Lippy duly trots toward the touch.

As the trainer spots Lippy coming over he looks at the number held aloft and immediately turns it over to bring the five eigth (stand off) off.

Lippy somewhat pale by now returns to the fray, dreading the next scrum. The next scum comes and there's no way Lippy is getting in that front row with Boyd. He asks Harry to pack at hooker which he declined saying he was dreading going in at Lock (loose foward). No one else would swap so Lippy went in. I don't need to finish the story you can all guess what happened, but it involved a stretcher.

Harry asked me to put this on for him hope you enjoy it.

If you want to include Harry on your where are they now he runs a pub in Grappenhall Village, near Warrington called the Parr Arms.

Now thats a story, brilliant!

haha, brilliant

I always liked Pinner a great all round player and kicker, as Boss mentions one of the many great story's around about Boyd.

Was a good player, Harry.

I'm just mystified how he never went into male modelling, though