Michael Maguire leaves club

[gallagher]

Yeah - OK....
That's 2 different players, In 2 Different positions, In 2 different years....
But they got another offer from another club.
There's 15 of those other clubs, That's going to happen.
What other players of those calibres in those positions have come on the market since that time? None that i can think of.
So we had to sign someone else in that Position.
We got Laurie - tried to get Latrell... Didn't work - No ones fault.

If you remember (As I do), There were whispers Latrell was going to souths to replace GI well before he left the Roosters!!
So - Again, What chance did we ever really have?
Yet the fact he didn't come here... Is being held over the head of the organisation of the Club and Coach like it's the biggest administrative mistake since the Dogs let Thurston go.

All you're doing - is reinforcing my exact point.

Your going around in circles. Give me your point in one short sentence.

 

[Glenji95]

Well there you go. I doubt he goes anywhere this year then no matter how poorly we go

Results talk mate never during Madge’s run so far has he had an 0-3 start for the season with us, at least in the first month he always had a win tomorrow unless we get lucky there’s a good chance that if we lose this game the closer it’ll be to Madge’s sacking

 

[TieDye]

I'm guessing you're not from the city? - Asking anyone to drive from the Eastern Suburbs to inner west, Is like asking them to drive to Perth.

I'm from the country but live in the city, Peoples reaction over driving 20kms in the City never ceases to amaze me... It doesn't happen man, most won't wear it...

WTF?

 

[TieDye]

Yeah - OK....
That's 2 different players, In 2 Different positions, In 2 different years....
But they got another offer from another club.
There's 15 of those other clubs, That's going to happen.
What other players of those calibres in those positions have come on the market since that time? None that i can think of.
So we had to sign someone else in that Position.
We got Laurie - tried to get Latrell... Didn't work - No ones fault.

If you remember (As I do), There were whispers Latrell was going to souths to replace GI well before he left the Roosters!!
So - Again, What chance did we ever really have?
Yet the fact he didn't come here... Is being held over the head of the organisation of the Club and Coach like it's the biggest administrative mistake since the Dogs let Thurston go.

All you're doing - is reinforcing my exact point.

And what the Bulldogs are going so much better? You haven’t made a single and clear, concise point.

JAC agreed to terms and was butchered

 

[stryker 69]

They may well need to go - My point is... Who were they buying, And with what money.
Up until last year, We still had Reynolds, Packer and Mbye on the Books - Taking up more than 2 Million on our cap and we got exactly 23 games between all 3 of them.
(It's easy to forget they're costing us money because we can't see them)

The main mistake Pascoe has made was giving full autonomy of the roster to Cleary - He wasn't on his own, That directive came from the board (I heard that out of Go's mouth)

I said it before, There's so much that goes into landing a player (especially a good one) outside of everything....
Tell me - Without considering The Coach or Money or interstate clubs, Where would any player rather be located and who would they rather play for.

Wests Tigers (Concord / Campbelltown)
St George (Wollongong)
Roosters (Bondi)
Manly (Nothern Beaches)
Penrith (Blue Mountains)
South Sydney (Maroubra)
or Parramatta

It's crazy to think because we're operating under the same salary cap amounts and restrictions, That we automatically have the same amount of appeal.
No player is choosing us over Sharks, Roosters, Rabbits, Dragons or Manly... Beaches close by, Coastal Lifestyle... Unless the money is ridiculous - Regardless of the coach.
We're Dreaming!!

We can compete with Parra and Penrith in recruitment, Panthers are on fire and Parra have massive backing (fans and corporate alike)

That's 2 clubs out of the other 7 close to us that have approximately the same appeal - Now that's not even considering Money, Club or Coach. That's just on a "nicer place to exist" level.

On top of that - We have to identify a player we need / can afford, Convince him to move to the inner / outer West, pay him the amount of money he needs, AND beat 15 other clubs to his signature...
We're not the pied piper - It's not as easy as playing a tune on a flute and they all come running... The Game is competitive - And so is the Market.

Missing out on players is disappointing, But that's what happens when you're where we're at.

Bullshit. You can live in a nice locale and travel. Plenty do.
Just because you play for the Tiges doesn’t mean you have to relocate there.

 

[stryker 69]

You don't think he's getting enough?

Mentioning / Blaming him for not knowing how to finish a game against 12 men, Isn't even a thought if the Refs didn't cheat us out of a try

And Laurie could catch (x6)

Thats the breaks. Losers sit and whine, winners get the job done despite adversity.

 

[GNR4LIFE]

Camden and Picton are severely underrated as places, and not what comes to peoples when they think of Ctown. Technically they are out of Ctown, but close enough. They’re within distance of the Gong if the beach appeals to you.

 

[pawsandclaws1]

Bullshit. You can live in a nice locale and travel. Plenty do.
Just because you play for the Tiges doesn’t mean you have to relocate there.

If players are married or have a partner, I'd suggest we get our sponsors to work on wives, husbands and partners. Just because a player is big and tough, a happy wife is a happy life. Many players from various clubs live at Cronulla for the lifestyle. Similarly, Balmain, Rozelle, Strathfield and Concord have a similar appeal.

 

[BAGNF05]

Maguire is a no win situation no matter who he picks. Stick by out of form players or pick some one who is not up to the challenge cant forget the Cini experiment last year. He has the most to lose with very few options to improve our chances and ultimately his fate.

He’s doing the young guys a disservice by bringing them into the frying pan lately.

 

[eyewondertoo]

Harry Grant lived at Stanwell Park last year and still travelled to tigertown.

 

[Jedi_Tiger]

Michael Maguire has blasted talk of a rift with Robbie Farah and insists he is not a dead-man walking amid fears a loss to the Titans on Thursday night could trigger his sacking as Wests Tigers coach.

The underfire Maguire opened up to News Corp as he prepares for one of the most critical games of his 10-year coaching career against the Gold Coast at Cbus Super Stadium.

Maguire addressed the Tigers’ winless start to 2022, hit back at claims the joint-venture club is a rabble headed for the wooden spoon and explained his decision to install a controversial five-man captaincy group at Concord.

Maguire withstood enormous political pressure last season and ultimately survived amid rumours a Tigers faction wanted his scalp, but the premiership coach is adamant a fourth-straight loss this week will not finish him.

“Externally, people want to make out we’re a club with all these dramas,” Maguire said. “But as long as everyone internally stays the path, I’m not concerned.”

IN THE FIRING LINE

New season, same narrative. The whispers swirling around Maguire suggests he is on borrowed time at the Tigers, but he claims new head of football Tim Sheens, who delivered the joint venture club’s maiden title in 2005, has his back.

Asked if he will be sacked if the Tigers crash to the Titans this week, Maguire said: “I’m not worried about being sacked, not at all.

“I’ve been here a while now and everyone is after results, which is where the pressure is coming from. But ‘Sheensy’ and I are on the same page.

“The beauty of Tim is that he is experienced and he doesn’t panic. He gets it. He understands where we are at the moment as a club. Sheensy has been around the game a long time and knows the journey we’re on. I’m comfortable.”

THE FARAH FEUD

Maguire is bemused by claims from one of the club’s own fans that he and Farah engaged in a verbal spat over an interchange bungle in last week’s 16-12 loss to the Warriors.

“This stuff with Robbie Farah is bloody embarrassing. It’s simply farcical,” he said. “It’s the most comical rumour I’ve had in my entire career.

“The truth is Robbie was trying to get Zane (Musgrove) off and Stefano (Utoikamanu) on and he used one word which a spectator picked up. Robbie was saying, ‘Who the f*** is going on’ and the next thing it turns into him having a crack at me.

“Robbie was frustrated with the guy that does the (interchange) cards on the sidelines. We were trying to make a sub, but Zane got cited on a play, so he couldn’t come off and Robbie didn’t know that on the sideline because he was getting the message from me to get Zane off.

“In the heat of the moment, we had a few new guys operating things and Robbie got frustrated, and all of a sudden the whole world is blowing up.

“I am so close with Robbie. On the day of the game, we trained together. I love his passion. The gossip and misreporting in the game is ridiculous. If we win, no one says anything, but we lost the game, so then I have to cop this.

“It goes on in every team. Every team has a guy in the blue shirt who has to pull players off. Sometimes there is confusion. Did he use some choice words? Yeah he did, but they weren’t directed at me.”

PLAYER MORALE

Maguire is in his fourth season as Wests Tigers coach. He has won 26 of 70 games for a 37 per cent success rate and is staring at a seventh consecutive loss dating back to the Tigers’ 50-20 drubbing against Cronulla last August.

The former Souths mentor, who broke the Redfern club’s 43-year premiership drought in 2014, rubbished suggestions he has lost the dressing room.

“I can see every day the attitude the players have. There’s no issue in that regard with morale,” he said.

“We’re in a better spot than people think. We have eight first-graders sitting on the sideline and that doesn’t help. The challenging part of coaching in the NRL is getting through the tough periods when your roster has been decimated and you need depth to fight through it.

“Of our 30-man squad, I’ve got 20 players available for selection. I know people say that’s an excuse, but that’s the reality of the situation.

“Stefano is one of our best young props and he’s out for eight weeks. Tommy Talau is gone for the year. Jackson Hastings is suspended. Adam Doueihi won’t be back for a while (due to injury).

“I know where I want to take the team and that’s all I’m focused on. I know how quickly in the NRL teams can turn their fortunes around because I’ve experienced it first hand. We have to stay focused on what we want to achieve here.

“All I want is a team to come out and have a crack every single week. The boys had a crack last week, but we bottled it at the end of the game. It got ugly at times and we lacked a bit of class in the big moments.”

THE SPOON

After three rounds, the Tigers are the only team in the NRL yet to win a game, fuelling the belief they are specials for the wooden spoon.

“When people say we will win the spoon, it doesn’t annoy me, it motivates me more than anything to prove people wrong,” Maguire said.

“I don’t believe we will finish last, but we need to learn from experiences like the Storm game in round one and last week’s game and learn how to close out matches.

“I won’t be giving up. I believe in the players at this club. I believe I have systems here that can work and we showed in the Melbourne game our systems can work.

“We could easily be 2-1, but the reality is we are 0-3. We’ve made modifications to our attack and any coach will tell you how important continuity of selection is at this level.

“If Daine Laurie (fullback) scores last week, we win that game and people are talking about some other team. I know the talent is there to make this club competitive.”

THE BROOKS DILEMMA

There is a view Luke Brooks has gone stale at the Tigers and both he and the club should consider an amicable divorce.

The 27-year-old, in his 10th season at the Tigers, plays his 176th game this week and has shown no sign of taking the Tigers to a second premiership.

But Maguire believes Brooks is an easy target for the club’s wider collective problems.

“If you look at his workrate in games, Luke is putting in,” he said. “But people do focus on the big moments, which is understandable because Luke is our halfback.

“As a team, we need to do our jobs at a higher level so he can just concentrate on what he needs to do. That plays a part. Against Melbourne, Luke led us around the park well, but any team on the back foot will put pressure on their halfback.

“We need to help Luke a bit more.”

CAPTAINCY CHAOS

Maguire has been hammered for naming five captains in James Tamou, Doueihi, Brooks, Ken Maumalo and Tyrone Peachey, the former Titan who hadn’t played a single game for the club.

“I wanted to strengthen the levels of expectation around leadership at our club,” he said.

“As a front-rower, James Tamou is only on the field for a period of time, so I had some discussions with Jimmy about how we can develop more leaders in the team. He was supportive of having other guys involved.

“The funny thing is I had more than one captain at Wigan and it was the best thing I ever did. It put more accountability on the group, rather than making one player carry the load.

“I did the same thing at Souths and we won a premiership. Other teams have done it in the past, so it’s not new. A lot of teams have co-captains. Melbourne and the Cowboys have two captains this year. If I had two captains, would people blow up?

“But because we are under the spotlight, everything becomes an issue.

“Ultimately, if the guys keep putting in the way they are, I know we will come out the other side.”

I notice Peter Bodel interviewed Maguire, a Qld journalist I wonder why one of the Sydney guys didn't..

 

[pawsandclaws1]

Harry Grant lived at Stanwell Park last year and still travelled to tigertown.

It's a great surfing beach and quite a heavy break.

 

[Tim Sheens]

Michael Maguire has blasted talk of a rift with Robbie Farah and insists he is not a dead-man walking amid fears a loss to the Titans on Thursday night could trigger his sacking as Wests Tigers coach.

The underfire Maguire opened up to News Corp as he prepares for one of the most critical games of his 10-year coaching career against the Gold Coast at Cbus Super Stadium.

Maguire addressed the Tigers’ winless start to 2022, hit back at claims the joint-venture club is a rabble headed for the wooden spoon and explained his decision to install a controversial five-man captaincy group at Concord.

Maguire withstood enormous political pressure last season and ultimately survived amid rumours a Tigers faction wanted his scalp, but the premiership coach is adamant a fourth-straight loss this week will not finish him.

“Externally, people want to make out we’re a club with all these dramas,” Maguire said. “But as long as everyone internally stays the path, I’m not concerned.”

IN THE FIRING LINE

New season, same narrative. The whispers swirling around Maguire suggests he is on borrowed time at the Tigers, but he claims new head of football Tim Sheens, who delivered the joint venture club’s maiden title in 2005, has his back.

Asked if he will be sacked if the Tigers crash to the Titans this week, Maguire said: “I’m not worried about being sacked, not at all.

“I’ve been here a while now and everyone is after results, which is where the pressure is coming from. But ‘Sheensy’ and I are on the same page.

“The beauty of Tim is that he is experienced and he doesn’t panic. He gets it. He understands where we are at the moment as a club. Sheensy has been around the game a long time and knows the journey we’re on. I’m comfortable.”

THE FARAH FEUD

Maguire is bemused by claims from one of the club’s own fans that he and Farah engaged in a verbal spat over an interchange bungle in last week’s 16-12 loss to the Warriors.

“This stuff with Robbie Farah is bloody embarrassing. It’s simply farcical,” he said. “It’s the most comical rumour I’ve had in my entire career.

“The truth is Robbie was trying to get Zane (Musgrove) off and Stefano (Utoikamanu) on and he used one word which a spectator picked up. Robbie was saying, ‘Who the f*** is going on’ and the next thing it turns into him having a crack at me.

“Robbie was frustrated with the guy that does the (interchange) cards on the sidelines. We were trying to make a sub, but Zane got cited on a play, so he couldn’t come off and Robbie didn’t know that on the sideline because he was getting the message from me to get Zane off.

“In the heat of the moment, we had a few new guys operating things and Robbie got frustrated, and all of a sudden the whole world is blowing up.

“I am so close with Robbie. On the day of the game, we trained together. I love his passion. The gossip and misreporting in the game is ridiculous. If we win, no one says anything, but we lost the game, so then I have to cop this.

“It goes on in every team. Every team has a guy in the blue shirt who has to pull players off. Sometimes there is confusion. Did he use some choice words? Yeah he did, but they weren’t directed at me.”

PLAYER MORALE

Maguire is in his fourth season as Wests Tigers coach. He has won 26 of 70 games for a 37 per cent success rate and is staring at a seventh consecutive loss dating back to the Tigers’ 50-20 drubbing against Cronulla last August.

The former Souths mentor, who broke the Redfern club’s 43-year premiership drought in 2014, rubbished suggestions he has lost the dressing room.

“I can see every day the attitude the players have. There’s no issue in that regard with morale,” he said.

“We’re in a better spot than people think. We have eight first-graders sitting on the sideline and that doesn’t help. The challenging part of coaching in the NRL is getting through the tough periods when your roster has been decimated and you need depth to fight through it.

“Of our 30-man squad, I’ve got 20 players available for selection. I know people say that’s an excuse, but that’s the reality of the situation.

“Stefano is one of our best young props and he’s out for eight weeks. Tommy Talau is gone for the year. Jackson Hastings is suspended. Adam Doueihi won’t be back for a while (due to injury).

“I know where I want to take the team and that’s all I’m focused on. I know how quickly in the NRL teams can turn their fortunes around because I’ve experienced it first hand. We have to stay focused on what we want to achieve here.

“All I want is a team to come out and have a crack every single week. The boys had a crack last week, but we bottled it at the end of the game. It got ugly at times and we lacked a bit of class in the big moments.”

THE SPOON

After three rounds, the Tigers are the only team in the NRL yet to win a game, fuelling the belief they are specials for the wooden spoon.

“When people say we will win the spoon, it doesn’t annoy me, it motivates me more than anything to prove people wrong,” Maguire said.

“I don’t believe we will finish last, but we need to learn from experiences like the Storm game in round one and last week’s game and learn how to close out matches.

“I won’t be giving up. I believe in the players at this club. I believe I have systems here that can work and we showed in the Melbourne game our systems can work.

“We could easily be 2-1, but the reality is we are 0-3. We’ve made modifications to our attack and any coach will tell you how important continuity of selection is at this level.

“If Daine Laurie (fullback) scores last week, we win that game and people are talking about some other team. I know the talent is there to make this club competitive.”

THE BROOKS DILEMMA

There is a view Luke Brooks has gone stale at the Tigers and both he and the club should consider an amicable divorce.

The 27-year-old, in his 10th season at the Tigers, plays his 176th game this week and has shown no sign of taking the Tigers to a second premiership.

But Maguire believes Brooks is an easy target for the club’s wider collective problems.

“If you look at his workrate in games, Luke is putting in,” he said. “But people do focus on the big moments, which is understandable because Luke is our halfback.

“As a team, we need to do our jobs at a higher level so he can just concentrate on what he needs to do. That plays a part. Against Melbourne, Luke led us around the park well, but any team on the back foot will put pressure on their halfback.

“We need to help Luke a bit more.”

CAPTAINCY CHAOS

Maguire has been hammered for naming five captains in James Tamou, Doueihi, Brooks, Ken Maumalo and Tyrone Peachey, the former Titan who hadn’t played a single game for the club.

“I wanted to strengthen the levels of expectation around leadership at our club,” he said.

“As a front-rower, James Tamou is only on the field for a period of time, so I had some discussions with Jimmy about how we can develop more leaders in the team. He was supportive of having other guys involved.

“The funny thing is I had more than one captain at Wigan and it was the best thing I ever did. It put more accountability on the group, rather than making one player carry the load.

“I did the same thing at Souths and we won a premiership. Other teams have done it in the past, so it’s not new. A lot of teams have co-captains. Melbourne and the Cowboys have two captains this year. If I had two captains, would people blow up?

“But because we are under the spotlight, everything becomes an issue.

“Ultimately, if the guys keep putting in the way they are, I know we will come out the other side.”

Well, 26/44 is better than our 0/3 start to the season despite improving last season's defence by some some eight points a match.

Scary reading either way.

 

[Cobarcats]

If players are married or have a partner, I'd suggest we get our sponsors to work on wives, husbands and partners. Just because a player is big and tough, a happy wife is a happy life. Many players from various clubs live at Cronulla for the lifestyle. Similarly, Balmain, Rozelle, Strathfield and Concord have a similar appeal.

Free hairstyling at Pascoe's barber, child minding at COE, self-defence classes for women at Campbelltown Police Station. 🤭

 

[TSP]

Madge is feeling the pressure, but no one should kid themselves, he’s the sole reason for the next loss.

On my count, it’s getting close to half a first grade squad suspended or injured.

Senior players really need to take a good hard look at themselves.

I don’t mind Brooks, but he’s not very good value for his coin at the moment. He takes awhile to warm into the season. I don’t know why.

I’m disappointed that Madge hasn’t ingrained much resilience in the side. We look at our toes too early and too often. They don’t seem to listen to him.

New assistants seem to be creating a small lift in areas, but the mental side is lacking.

I wish I had a solution. It’s a tough start for us. We desperately need a few wins to get us going.

On the plus side, the loss against the storm against their starting side of almost full power, definitely showed a pulse, especially considering our humble and much less fancy and illustrious line up.

A win this weekend would do a hell of a lot for all concerned. I want to see a do or die effort.

 

[hank37w]

Of course it is!! as you say....

If it's the club, Why are we sacking the coach?

The coach deserves a medal for the shit he has to deal with.

 

[pawsandclaws1]

Free hairstyling at Pascoe's barber, child minding at COE, self-defence classes for women at Campbelltown Police Station. 🤭

With the cost of living and childcare, offering significantly discounted or free childcare services would be a huge attraction for WT recruits.

 

[Cobarcats]

With the cost of living and childcare, offering significantly discounted or free childcare services would be a huge attraction for WT recruits.

I've had a bit of a rethink about this as the concept has some merit.
You often hear the greats at their farewell or acceptance speaches thanking their spouses anf family for their support.
If the wife and kids had a real connection and attraction to the club then that would translate to a happier playing group 🤔

 

[Demps]

With the cost of living and childcare, offering significantly discounted or free childcare services would be a huge attraction for WT recruits.

It's a genius move.

No reason the COE can't accommodate a creche.... like most gyms have these days.

You're onto something @pawsandclaws1

Outside the box thinking.
Great work.

 

[Geo]

Barber, creche throw in a day spa ...who could resist..