Martin Crompton was who I thought of straight away and I still think he would do a good job. Other than that none of the others really stand out bar Stanley Gene. Not so much for his coaching ability initially, though I am sure he will eventually become a very good coach but a) to give the club more exposure due to his profile in the game and b) for the chance he may get a genuine gem over from PNG, the next Menzie Yere for example.

Martin Crompton was the name that first came to my mind too. Having said that, it seems like Blackpool splashed the cash to allow him to assemble a side. Blackpool played some very attractive rugby, but the downside was that they were niggly bordering on the dowright dirty. I'm not sure if that was the coach or the nature of some of the players.

I'm not sure about Stanley Gene. There is no doubting the effort he has put in during his playing career, but the noises coming out of Halifax were that he was a very unsettling influence on the dressing room. A good player from PNG would be a bonus, but I still think we should have a coach who wants to make the most of local talent (where possible).

Edit: Gene not applied, according to T&A.

Didn't realise that my initial post would produce so may replies!

For my half-pennorth, I'd like to see Jason Demetriou as our player-coach. He's still got a few years in him at Championship level and forget about him reneging on his contract with York; He'd always said that he'd like to go into coaching (which wasn't on offer at York) and you've got to feed your family so he took a part-time job to combine it with part-time playing at York. That said, how many games are York going to win in 2011 and would that money keep the wolf away from the door?

In working-life, as I discovered only too late, LOYALTY is only one way - and it is never from the bosses to the workers. You've got to look after yourself (just like they do - haven't we seen too much of this at Cougar Park in recent years?) and that's what any family man would do.

For someone who paid his own fare across here originally and then played amateur league before signing with Lancashire Lynx then you have to admire him. He's never let any of his sides down (in my opinion) and he deserves a chance.

As for Martin Crompton, well look what's happend to Blackpool - we certainly don't want that to happen again a Cougar Park do we?

Only time, and the Directors, will tell; but keep the comments coming.

Blackpool fell because of the directors,+ to much winning pay etc Crompton is the only choice out of that bunch, learnt his coaching at Widnes under Kelly in S.L. then made Blackpool into a top squad.

Personaly Brad Drew for me

Hes a big name in RL and still has strong links to Canberra

He is still a great player and he can play at 7,(which we need)He has done coaching at Hudds with their academy, I think Personaly he could be a great candidate working with Baraclough and Bramald

It would be a big signing

Gene personaly a no go, Great player but he has had a few problems of late, with Fax and the whole Villnerve fiasco

Out of the experinced coaches Crompton for me he did so well with what he had on his plate at Blackpool and a genuine RL man he was the reason that the panthers didnt go bust sooner


I dont rate Thornton

ST –Jim Bergerac – I think you’re wrong to dismiss Thornton.

GT did a good job at the Bulldogs – he probably stayed a year longer than he should – but during his time there did a solid job keeping Batley in NL1 – against I might add, some strong teams with massive budgets and full time squads – Cas, Salford, Celtic, Widnes, Fax, and KR. He gave some good local talent from amateur game a chance in Ash Lindsay and Jonny Campbell, and also brought some quality local players who had been cast aside from super league in John Gallagher, Luke Stenchion, Paul Mennell, and George Flanagan. He was well respected by his players. And I reckon his budget during that time was less than Keighley’s is now too.
I have also heard he has doing a great job at Cas where he is highly rated by the club. Lots of experience and knows the Championship – I reckon he’d be a decent shout!

Apologies, but Thornton is most definitely a poor, poor coach, who hid behind the 'lack of resources' spiel for season after season at Batley. If you look at some of the squads he had to work with, which were filled with talent and experience, the results he achieved were dire. Fine, any coach faced with the odd professional club like Hull KR and Salford would struggle to make an impression, but the results he achieved and the performances he 'inspired' against clubs of equal standing to Batley, and indeed clubs from the league below, were nothing short of shocking. Quite literally, any young players quickly saw any talent they brought to the table drained by his awful training standards and general incompetence. How he got the Castleford job as a supposedly proven 'developer' of young players, God only knows. He's actually quite the opposite of that. If you are someone who's been looking in from the outside, don't be fooled by immediate impressions. A coach with half a brain would have achieved more than he did at Batley with what was available. He didn't even bother to watch videos of the opposition before games, and thats a fact.

If only you knew the truth Mr Bergerac you would stop posting your anti-thornton rubbish which makes you look so foolish-still thats not stopped you in the past!

Pardon me, but I've seen enough humiliating and effortless 60+ point defeats at home and away, players who had been quality assets at other clubs reduced to carthorses, talented young players stripped of all ability over a period of time, ridiculously bad loan signings and diabolical tactics to be able to make a decent judgement.
If you can sit at your computer and deny what I suggested in my previous posts - i.e. childlike game-plans written on bits of A4 paper, training sessions that consisted of a jog round an all-weather pitch, and lack of opposition analysis by video (a tactic used by coaches since the year dot), then please feel free to do just that. Then it'll be you that looks foolish.

Sounds youve got an axe to grind!
I suggest you think closer to 'home' before you start diverting blame.

Of course I've got an axe to grind. The bloke presided over the most frustrating under-achieving, soul-destroying 7 seasons that I've watched Batley. A lot of people were far too accepting of that underachievement thanks to a blind belief in the age-old 'limited resources' spiel/excuse, despite the fact we had, on paper, good playing squads in each of Thornton's seasons at the club. The squads of 2004/2005, especially, were filled with quality players, yet failed absolutely miserably in terms of performance.
I note that you haven't tried to defend your man against anything I've said, apart from my overall suggestion that he 'isn't very good'. Thats because you can't.
As for him now being some kind of Academy 'guru' (which is the next response you'll no doubt throw at me), name me one young player he signed for Batley that developed under his tutelage? There isn't a SINGLE one. Quite frankly, its laughable that he's in the fortunate position he now finds himself.

Is this board becoming a resting place for disgruntled Bulldog fans , Thonrton Cronies and the like ...????

Think you may have got lost from here....rlhttp://www.totalrl.com/index.php?showforum

Still ,yet again with my supporters hat on , saying Matty Bramald should be the man for the job ...with Glen in tandem ..no arguments

Other than that completely cant believe that no one has mentioned Dave Clark in the equation , he could be a real asset for Keighley .... Northern Rail Cup Winner , tried n tested and a real grounding in community / development work , also a hell of a nice guy to boot..