We that is a complete revision of history. IL bought the club in 2007, the year after the 2006 relegation fight season. We were not relegation candidates when he took over. Noble was already in charge. Two of IL’s first signings were Mathers and Pryce.PGH1449 wrote:Really? Since IL came in he turned us from relegation candidates to serial grand finalists, champions and world champions but you despair at how the club is run? Our Multi millionaire chairman clearly understands better than most how to run a successful business.fozzieskem wrote: ↑Mon Jul 15, 2019 7:20 pmYes just what Wigan need..not a prop forward or two oh no not Wigan I disparity at the running of Wigan at times
It wasn’t until a full THREE trophy-less years after he bought the club that Noble was let go and Madge arrived that that he brought success with the GF win in 2010.
Since he has owned the club we have won 4 Grand finals and 2 Challenge Cups (the last one of those SIX years ago). “Peak IL” was 2010 to 2013 in my opinion when we won a major trophy every year bar 2012 including the double in 2013.
Since then we have won two GF’s in the following years, 2016 and 2018.
This is no coincidence. The squad we had in 2010, much of which carried on for the next few seasons, was very good. It’s slowly but surely deteriorated in quality over the years. Players retired or left for RU or the NRL weakening the squad year on year. IL’s answer was to give the players who left a way back and invariably all came back worse players than they left. Even Sam T was injured when he cam back though he was instrumental in in the 2018 win. With the odd exception signings were of a lower standard such as Sarge and Gelling.
If you look at his record in the cold light of day it’s not that good for a club supposedly the top team in the land or at least one of the top four and the last real quality squad we had was in the2010-2013 years.