Two Super League coaches have lost their jobs within the past two weeks, both due to a poor run of results and teams underperforming when they should be challenging for honours. Two seasons ago Hull were in the Grand Final, now they are second to bottom of the league having won only four games and managing a draw over their French counterparts. This was enough to see Peter Sharp in the job centre chauffeured there by an inpatient Hull board, who have a known record for sacking the coach all too easily. And while Richard Agar takes over knowing the axe can easily slip out of the executioner’s hand after an improved performance against St Helens, over on the other side of the Pennines it was a sad end-of-an-era for Warrington who saw their very own Paul Cullen jump before he was pushed.
If truth be told, Cullen was like a cat with many lives. There were many opportunities that could have seen him go, but he always had an uncanny ability to bounce back and restore many of the fans faith in him until the next opportunity came along. One such excuse for his sacking was the Challenge Cup loss to Hull KR in 2006, when KR were still in the lower tier of British Rugby League. And this lead to a run of five successive losses which was the start of the fans revolt, with a minority realising the Warrington-born coach could no longer take the club further and demanded a change. However the club scraped into the play offs and one of Cullen’s finest moments as a Warrington coach was witnessed by 12,000 fans at Headingley as Warrington won their first Super League play off game in dramatic style by a single point. The dream of a Warringtonian leading his home town club to on-field success was still on for another week until they deservingly crashed out of the play offs against Bradford, the first quarter being the catalyst for a Yorkshire win. And as the club slowly slid down the table the following year despite the signing of big names within the competition such as Adrian Morley, Paul Johnson and Vinnie Anderson, with the promise of Louis Anderson joining his brother in twelve months time, the anti-Cullen group was growing. Only the mid-season signings of Michael Monaghan, Matt King and Chris Hicks during the 2007 season kept him in a job, as 2008 would have to be the year he delivered. And with a good, if unconvincing, start the promise was seemingly being delivered. However the beginning of the end was, ironically, against Castleford on Easter Monday when Lee Briers limped off and the team lacked creativity for the remainder of the match. A last minute win was Cullen’s last in the north of England, when a form of one win in seven (the one being in Cardiff) lead us up to Castleford at home where a collapse within the last ten minutes saw four Cas tries. As they saw, the rest is history.
But Paul Cullen must not be remembered for the past two years as coach. Instead, the fans must remember the good times. Paul dragged the club away from relegation when he first took over in August 2002, he took the club to a play off place for the first time the following year therefore leaving Wilderspool with dignity and a memorable final game against Wakefield. The year after can be excused as it may have been possible the team over-achieved to reach the play offs, considering twelve months beforehand the club were celebrating surviving relegation. And then there was Cullen’s most successful season as coach. Not only did he lead the team to a series of wins, spoiled only by a one pint loss at Knowsley Road, he also lead the club to their highest league place in Super League and brought in Andrew Johns who gave the fans a series of memories that they will never forget.
As for Peter Sharp, he installed life into an already cohesive team and produced the goods for Hull bringing them to Old Trafford within the first twelve months of his role in charge. After which he steadied the ship the following year until the current campaign when he was tipped by many to be the first coaching casualty. He never failed to disappoint and leaves Hull having been sacked. The Black and Whites have since given the role to assistant Richard Agar on a two and a half year deal. Where will the Warrington board go next? Wait and see...
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