He was alright, him and andy bennett shared the 9 shirt for the first half of SL1 then dorahy brought kris watson in from newcastle reserves. Who didn't pull up any trees or improve the side in my view, but hey, an aussie has got to be better than a young uk kid, right?

we also had willie swann play hooker for most of 1997 after we released him and then brought him back.

I don't know if anyone else recalls this, but hooker in 97 was like the defence against the dark arts position at hogwarts, its was cursed AF.

i was amazed and baffled in equal quantities when he was signed, i'd forgotten he existed and dont think he had played first team at wigan for nearly 3 years after the emergence of martin hall.

From a time best forgotten.

We were foooked, financially.
Harris had to go, Sculthorpe not long after.
The remainder of the time, we were picking up people's scraps, Hulme, Eyres, Mann G, and trying to cobble a team together.
Dark days, indeed.

I miss Yed lots, when he first started posting on here, we had a massive blazing row over something, i can't recall what that was, but we didn't like one another, fast forward a year, to Saturday the 11th of July, 2009, we'd played saints down here (it was the night of that length of the field try by carvell that they chalked for for a BS knock on) and i was staying up to watch UFC 100, which was the biggest ufc show at the time.

About 2am i noticed he was still posting on here so i shot him a pm, he was up as he has previously been knocked off his bike and was on pain meds that was causing insomnia, we ended up being pretty pally after that.

We were supposed to be meeting up at Wembley in 2016 for a beer and one of the tarts drinks he used to like, i couldn't bring myself to go down there and didn't watch the game that afternoon either. It just wasn't right.


Fatbelly and I went to his funeral in Golborne, they had 'Abide with me' with me as one of his hymms, i'm not a religious person in anyway, but because of Wembley, that always gets me. So if we ever get to the challenge Cup final again, when you're singing that, remember you're also singing it for one of ours that went too soon.

Love you mate
x

A fine poster, Yed

someone could and should write a book on what happened during 1997. i always remember that as it was the first year i paid for my own season ticket and as a i kid was obsessive over it, even though we were e.

I even bought tickets to all the WCC games and was amazed how poor the crowds were, which tbf was probably accurate as we were garbage (for you younger folk, compare it the Cas play off game last year)


it was soul destroying as we were being pencilled in along with bradford as being one of the threats to saints crown, having invested heavily in the best of Auckland Warriors reserves, Mead, Vagana and Tatupu, the experience Dermot was bringing from Wigan.

Daryl Van de velde tipped us at the team to beat in his pre season Daily mirror column. i bet hhe didn't think that when he took over 2 months later. I'm amazed that he lasted as long as he did here, he was never happy, and the club was a show extraordinaire.


Losing a load of players pre season in the gary sanderson testimonial, mead his knee, hilton reinjured his shoulder

getting battered on sky opening night away at bradford

the harris saga being resolved after the off season of 'will saints buy him, wont they', and him turning out for the reserves and then the first and everyone hoping it was rectified only for him to end up at leeds 2 weeks later.

john smith sacking all the reserves and a lot of the first team, including mafi, willie swann and dermot that first week. After realising we didn't have enough money to cope with being full time ALL YEAR ROUND.

Using 47 players throughout the year, including the aforementioned cast offs that were left out of other teams, doc murray, richie eyres, and a supporting cast of many

the aforementioned hooker merry go round.

The return of Derbs and tony thorniley.

And then THAT game against paris at the back end of the season to secure safety from relegation (something popped in my head that day)

The death of princess diana.

going to oldham for the premiership/play offs on the same day, and seeing john fieldhouse turn out for us as i think warren stevens missed the bus.

i was never a big fan of higham before coming here, and wasn' much when he was here, but during 13 and 14/15 both him and monas should have been MOS, i can't remember which way around it was but they both had years where they were unplayable.

I remember going to that game (if only to escape the inevitable media onslaught).Oldham. In August. You guessed it. Cold and rainy.

Bar the poohshow of 2002, and the debacle of Reggie Bowden's 1984 winter of discontent, the nadir of my Wire supporting years.
From where we were, just 3 short years before, it was scandalous.
Mind you, Oldham (iirc) haven't been in SL, since.

it was that weather, and they had wire fans sat in the uncovered paddock, it was a couple of quid more if you wanted to get undercover. bastids.

Best couple of quid I ever spent

That, and whats happening with the pandemic at the moment, hits home that there's more important things in life than rugby league.

Aye, was tongue in cheek.

Very Red Vee type editing on Wiki. 10th most successful? https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warrington_Wolves ‘Warrington are a joke of a rugby club’..!

Very Red Vee type editing on Wiki. 10th most successful? https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warrington_Wolves ‘Warrington are a joke of a rugby club’..!

Clark (D) and . Honourable mention for J Dalgreen as a “might have been”.
Also feel this is a good time to remember that there is a real person behind the username who may be going through a difficult time in real life so try to be gentle* . Stay healthy everyone.
* obviously doesn’t apply to certain Saints trolls!

Edited for accuracy