(First of all this topic isn't designed to be an anti IL or comparison thread. I’ve no doubt IL will come up but it was purely set up as a discussion about Wigan’s most famous Chief Exec.)

I’ve noticed across the board recently that a lot of talk has come up about Maurice and how he ran the club. Most of the opinions of him see to be either of love or hate and there isn’t much middle it seems. I don’t think I can name one person other than Dave Whelan who can cause such a reaction in Wigan fans.

So my question is where do people think uncle Mo sits in the history of the club and its legends?

Imo Maurice Lindsey can’t be classed as anything other than a Wigan legend that is up there with the likes Boston etc. Although he made a good few mistakes i don’t think anyone can question the love he had for our club and I truly believe every decision he made was taken in what he thought were the clubs best interests.

At the end of the day he played a massive role in creating, what is imo, the greatest RL side ever seen at club level.

Brilliant innovator first time round, not so second time round.

You know how they say 'Never go back'?.....

In his first stint at Wigan he dragged RL kicking and screaming out of the dark ages by turning RL into a professional game. His signings, Hanley, Offiah, Lydon, Gregory etc put Wigan & RL firmly on the sporting map and brought us a lot of exposure. Hanley and Offiah were household names across the country and our success was unrivaled. He's the father of the modern era (Lays the troll bait ).

He was almost lauded as the prodigal son on his return but it wasn't to be as fruitful as his first tenure. Mistakes were made and the salary structure at Wigan was a shambles. He tried to do what he did in the 80s/90s but when his budget was limited, he struggled. It was a sad day at the Challenge Cup semi final at the HJ stadium when people were chanting 'Maurice Out' and a lot of anger was pointed towards him on here. There was never any doubt that Mo loved our club, probably more than most people on here, but his fate was sealed with some choice book keeping, lack of success and poor signings.

As you said, he's a Wigan legend. With the work he's done at club level, league level and international level, he could be regarded as an RL legend but I think 1 or 2 of the 'heartland' clubs may disagree there.

Lindsay was at the forefront of the 80's revolution , years ahead of the rest of the game and the rfl - making us a pro side , signing Hanley , going ahead with the manly game even though the rfl wouldnt back it , bringing in graeme lowe from aus amongst many other things that made us the greatest side the sport has seen. Ok there were 4 people on the board but Lindsay took the risks which payed off at one time but he left jack robinson in a tough position. A great innovater and vital part of our history.

I dont think Mo ever did anything that he did not think was best for the club. In his first stint he was brilliant his second stint i dont think he ever got to grips with the cap system even if he was the original instigator when he was at the RFL. He is Wigan through and through and only ever wanted us to be successful again.

Wigan Legend simple

When at the peak of his powers, Mo was, without doubt, the most exciting and dynamic chairman British RL ever had.

In professional sport, you can always judge someone by the quality of his enemies. Mo was hated by almost everyone outside Wigan, which proves what an effective leader he was for us - and at a critical time. We'd just come back from relegation, but we'd struggled back. We didn't win the Second Division title. We were unconvincing for our first couple of seasons back in the big time, and our crowds hadn't recovered much. It would have been very easy for the club to slip back into anonymity. Mo didn't just change all that - he made it a distant memory, building the greatest club side in the world in a very short time, generating massive publicity for the the town in the process, and trebling our average attendances. And whatever rival fans say, he did this within the rules of the game, under the circumstances of a genuine level playing-field. Wigan didn't do anything that other clubs couldn't have done. They didn't have a team of full-time professionals until around 1994, by which stage they'd already won loads of trophies and titles, and which was only a season or so before other clubs did the same thing.

Mo's second time round? I just think he was past it. Neither he nor Whelan ever really adapted to the age of the Salary Cap, and, though well intentioned, his various manoeuvrings almost got us relegated, and created financial difficulties which, even two years after he retired, are still causing us problems.

But yes, Mo should be remembered for the glories he brought to Wigan during his first tenure. They're unlikely to ever be rivalled.

Without him we wouldn't be the most famous name in world Rugby League so we'll all always be thankful for that.

His second spell was farcical but if anything it was because he cared too much and just kept throwing money at any problems we encountered getting us into a situation were we became a meal ticket for players.

Overall though a legend without doubt.

Mo should be honoured for his services to RL. As mentioned, he essentially saved the game. He was an innovator, and really made the sport the success it has been.

It is a shame for Wigan that he didn't quite get the hang of his innovations as he bumbled his way through to the end. But that being said, his achievement in getting RL into the modern spot light are not diminished by this.

Agreed.

That is a pretty spot on assessment of his first stint.



I think he gets a raw deal for the those financial difficulties that are still causing us problems. Lets not forget we didn't actually break the salary cap by paying too much in wages, unlike Bradford who did actually pay out too much. All he did was do what was common practice in the NRL, deferring players wages. This is where your comment about enemies is truer than you think. Had any other club done this than a Wigan run by Mo it would not have been a problem IMO. All he was doing was being innovative once again and had it come off he would have been lauded once again as a smart operator. We would have had to pay those deferred wages the following seasons but avoiding relegation was I am sure considered worth it by Mo.

The other thing worth remembering is the Wigan he returned to was one owned lock stock and barrel by DW. Mo wasn't there with another three directors and while DW would stick his hand in the pocket for big ticket signings like Fielden and buying Orrell I get the impression the operation was run on a shoestring. In his first stint we employed sprint coaches and so on, in his second we didn't and even the scouts were IIRC fired off. This I attribute to DW and how much he was prepared to fund the day to day running of the club so IMO Mo was running the place with one hand tied behind his back.



He should also be remembered for his time at the RFL. Does anyone think he would suffer Nigel Wood's hair brained ideas or have suggested the Ashes be played for as a one off game?

I see that idea has been kicked into touch but the comment from Lewis is the reason for that is there isn't enough time to consider such a move properly between now and the four nations. Complete b/s IMO, it was just a stupid idea but he won't admit it. This would never have seen the light of day with Mo there.

Would I have him back in place of IL? No, its just a fact of life people have to retire and clubs move on. Were he twenty years younger? That's a close call!

Dave

Maurice Lindsay was the ONLY man the Australians respected. He dragged the game kicking and screaming into a new era.

What does make me smile though are these "fans" who berated him for buying success.

Yet they forget Alf Davies at Warrington who bought Murphy, Potter, Ashcroft, Bevan, Nicholas, Whitehead, Chisnall, Clarkson etc.

And what about Brian Snape at Salford, Hesketh, Dixon, Burgess, Gill, Prescott, Watkins, Coulman, Fielding, Charlton, Richards etc.

Hull, with Sterling, AuKoi, Muggleton, Kemble O'Hara, Leului etc.

Saints with Newlove, Martyn, Sullivan, Joynt, Nickle, Matautia, Sculthorpe, Goulding, Long etc.

We could go on and on.

Maurice at the time took chances that paid off. Gill and Hanley were prime examples, match winners, characters, bit players to "stay clear of" He then went on to sell Hanley at a profit, something he very rarely gets credit for.

It's ironic that the thing he created (the salary cap) eventually became his Achilles heel.
The game is certainly much poorer for not having him around in some position, even if it is for some fans to have a go.

Just a small note about DW - he might get some flack around here - but from reading a report about our financial situation from the shareholders meeting, it seems he waved over a million quids worth of loans when IL bought the club. Cant be faulted for that.

he left us the first time we was in the , and then we gave him another chance and he did exactly the same the second time round, thats why wigan are still in deep trouble