I watched Mac coach a number of sessions and I thought he was good at his job. I have also heard him speak on a number of occasions and spoke highly of RL in London, the problems, growth and the future tasks. The problem he had a QRL was lack of quality not only with personal but the whole set up and wider support of a nomad club looking to put down roots. To give you some idea of personal, I watched a couple of training session where he was running through attacking moves and the players kept dropping the ball! Unbelievable given there was no opposition or pressure other then trying out move, Mac was going nuts every time the move broke down. At Leeds he has found himself with a team in transition and can only be a challenge, out with the old and in with new. Good luck to him in his present job.

Couldn't put it any better myself, good post.

I never realised you'd played under him.

Fair call.

I wouldn't begrudge him anything. I felt he did a lot for our club up to about the halfway point of the 2009 season, then it somehow all went pear-shaped. I got the impression he was a typically uncompromising military individual; not the type to run a team by committee - but probably "the sort of bloke you'd want alongside you in the trenches". (Horrible phrase really, but one worth pondering I feel.)

NO

I do agree with the Prince of Denmark where the wheels started falling off in terms of results during 2009. Yes perhaps he was not the best person for the job of coaching a SL first team side.

However, when I was living in TW2 during 2006, I will always remember my friend who had a son playing junior Rugby League for Elmbridge. I went down with my mate to watch his son play and I met Mac at the game as his boy was playing for the same team. I remember at the end of the game both coaches got their teams together and Mac gave them a talk. This followed by him going through some skills training with them which last an hour. Now consider the boys had just played a match and were tired, Mac kept their attention and enthusiasm for another hour afterwards and all the kids went home absolutely pumped!!!

The Monday after the game on the quins website there was a press release where sessions were offered to all the junior coaches for FREE, whereby Mac would personally take the course with the aim to improve coaching at the junior level.

Mac then took a very close interest in the junior leagues around London and even attended many Junior RL games.

I have never bagged Mac, I think what will happen in the next 5 years with all the juniors he oversaw will reap huge benefits for us. In my opinion, better then any silverware. Like Mac or not, he has most definitely left a legacy in junior development.

I wish him well, unless playing Quins. He did plenty right at Quins and the fact that the wheels came off a bit at the end, first team wise, shouldn't obscure that. He was trying to build a club as much as a first team and did a lot of good in that respect.

I wish him all the best in what he is trying at Leeds.
Like him or hate him, he believed in the "London R.L. Dream" whilst he was down here & seems to have helped put down roots for our future.

Mac didn't have the tools and was working in what is now accepted as a transition period ie dependence on youth coming through

Having said that and Ive said it before he doesnt have the intelligence to be a top level coach(I accept thats a very derogatory remark)

I found his ability to introduce change in the game was always very reactive and the damage was generally done when he changed things. He also took the speed out of the team.

His plan B at the end of his tenure ie throwing the ball around without setting a platform was awful as has been demonstrated with decent players in the first few games at Leeds-Its noticeable he has now gone to a conservative game plan. Even the most respected critics criticised that approach

He hasnt got the brains to out wit Brown, McGuire, Smith to name a few- These coaches are always talked about as they are always "doing things" differently whether it be in defence, attack on the training ground- Mac is just a middle of the road 70/80's type coach based on grunt

Having to spoken to people who new him well he really felt the pressure of expectancy of the south of England when he was at Quins-I think he is a hard working, genuine guy but sadly missing the bit between the ears that is required as a tactician.

Think I said it quite a few times, maybe its the bloke sat at the side that sets the tactics and attacking defensive patterns! BUT its the players on the park who fail to make the tackles drop the ball and give away free mtrs with penalties.
The bloke on the side can only work with the tools that he has, and if they are not working then he is buggered which ever way you look at it
As for leeds in transition!!!! Loads of people are talking about it, have i missed something here, have Leeds cleared out half there squad and replaced em or summat? They are not that different from past seasons, I think he got dropped in the deep end a bit there.
in answer to the question hope he does well, but not when they are playing us

interesting comment from POD I dont think you know how the miltary works do you!!!! its certainly not committee but its not some bloke stood at the front shouting and screaming you know! that why a lot of clubs go away and train at military establishments to build TEAMWORK
combine that with leadership!!!! and leadership does not have to be umcompromising as you say

I suspect in a few years when his tenure at Rhinos has come to an end, he'll end up with some national youth development role at the RFL.

Not sure that he's a SL coach, but his current employers do, but there is no doubt that he has given a lot of time to help in the development of coaches as well as junior player development in the south.

One day, when a lot of the work comes to fruition, he'll be genuinely recognised for his achivements during his tenure at Quins RL.