sad, but hey we have to just move on. god knows when things will get back to normal
I think it's clear to see that this is over a falling out with someone whether that be PF or the board. You don't just immediately resign like that and there be no further comment. If it's to do with not being able to keep his assistant then those in charge at the club need to take a serious look at themselves as this would have been inevitable all along if they had told him months ago the assistant had to go.
If this is the case, i will be really disappointed with the club as it would feel like they have bigged everything up to retain as much season ticket money as possible, albeit on false pretences... There wouldn't have been as many fans donate their season ticket back to the club (myself included) if we knew we were heading for yet another shambles.
We have been in a right mess on a number of occasions over the last couple of years and it always ends with us (the fans) being out of pocket. Something needs to change, it can't carry on like this. I am Widnes born and bred and love this club but i'm am beginning to feel a bit distant from the club (obviously Covid hasn't helped the matter!).
We need stability. We need to get back to the Widnes we once knew!
How is it possible that every bloody team in the championship has a number 2 but Widnes? surely someone like Stankovic should have been brought in or even a terry o'connor, can't just be financial when teams like barrow have 3 or 4 coaches at the club we have 1.
Taken from TRL.Com Several months ago, the club is understood to have informed Sheens that they would not be able to retain video analyst Jamie Elkaleh, a man who has acted as Sheens’ right-hand man since coming to the UK in 2015. Elkaleh was Salford’s Performance Analyst when Sheens arrived at the club and followed him to Hull Kingston Rovers when he took on the coaching role with the Robins. He then linked up with Sheens again upon making the move to Widnes. But it’s believed the club notified Sheens earlier this year that they would not be able to retain him next season and that is thought to have deeply hurt the 69-year-old.
Makes no sense, he was told "serval months ago! that they couldn't retain the number 2 but he resigns now? Really don't see how these are related.
Non plussed, myself.I was never over excited about his appointment in the first place.He almost got Salford relegated,was almost 70 and would have cost a pretty penny too.Also good for the club in not entertaining one of those fake roles of performance analyst or statitician or whatever.We move on.
Was the guy an assistant coach or just a video analyst?
If it's the latter then, as a club generating no money, can we really afford to keep him?
<p style="text-align: left;">With furlough ending I dont think we could claim any cash under the new system, I don't think we would count as a viable business if we arent playing rugby.</p>
It's a shame but to me it's just part and parcel of the times we are living in, as said by others maybe one of the senior players might fancy a crack at it
“.. .He was almost 70 and would have cost a pretty penny too...”
Tim Sheens has coaching experience and abilities that others can only dream of.
Betts, Cummins and Purtill were all well under Sheens age, what does that prove?
We need to get back to the Widnes we once knew!
As someone born after the WCC this is completely in fitting with the Widnes I know.
“.. .He was almost 70 and would have cost a pretty penny too…” Tim Sheens has coaching experience and abilities that others can only dream of. Betts, Cummins and Purtill were all well under Sheens age, what does that prove?
I agree to a certain extent, but how long would Sheens remain here with his age, I always thought it will be a 2 year job then he'd leave. That is why I wasn't overly excited.
Tim Sheens has coaching experience and abilities that others can only dream of.
Makes you wonder how he ended up at Widnes, then.He must have been inundated with offers.
I agree to a certain extent, but how long would Sheens remain here with his age, I always thought it will be a 2 year job then he’d leave. That is why I wasn’t overly excited.
Absolutely valid point.
What did good look like for Tim Sheens? Ultimately, he gets us back into SL and does another couple of years and hands over the reigns? He may have done 2 years and gone back home regardless.
Ideally, having someone like Matty Smith with aspirations to coach long term could have been the ideal transition, however this rarely happens generally even though it should.
The arrival of Sheens at the club was one of the few moments to give you hope for the future. You could see he had a good judge of a player and a great understanding of the game A 100% step-up on Purtill, Cummings and Betts and a bad loss for the club. There have been players eg Baker whose game has improved under his coaching and would we have attracted Smith and Tomkins if he had not been here.
I suppose we will have to wait and see what has prompted him to leave with no real explanation from the club or Sheens. There may well be a perfectly good personal reason or it may well be a difference with the club. If the latter, the club need to be honest with fans and explain the situation.
The game (and sport generally) is in financial meltdown and clubs like Widnes must be struggling, with no crowd income and little likelihood of much in the way of ST sales or sponsorship for 2021 until there is some clarity on the resumption of the game in 2021 - maybe as late as April or even later !!! - the furlough ending and the council no doubt looking to re-start ground rental payments. Will we be losing players next whose wages we may not be able to pay?
I am really beginning to wonder if we are now seeing the inevitable decline and end of rugby league below SL, which will please some.
Seems to me that a statement hasn't been forthcoming because it was so sudden and I would hope that a more detailed statement or even an interview with the CEO or Chairman would be done in the next few days. There are people here questioning the transparency of the club, which is a slippery slope that can be easily avoided by a statement or interview.
My concern now is more over the calibre of the replacement.
Maybe Radio Merseyside might get an phone interview with someone (finney?) on tomorrow nights RL hour.
Yvette Copper MP has made a case to the Govt that RL is at risk of failing. She has stressed the particularly 'community' status of our game and its importance for bolstering public spirits.
As several posters have said the game, as an organised sport, is under threat, as is lower league soccer. Contracts etc, I would guess, will become meaningless if games aren't played and they are unlikely to be played without spectators to defer costs.
It is becoming almost like a wartime situation in many ways. Players and spectators loyalty and feeling for game and club will be tested.
Stay safe and be there when the recovery starts!