Cleary loses coach at troubled Tigers
PAUL Stringer has become the latest staffer to part company with Wests Tigers, but believes the remaining members of the club’s ‘‘big four’’ should not follow suit after being afforded ‘‘red carpet’’ treatment to stay.
Stringer was one of three assistant coaches at the club, but felt he couldn’t remain after a series of controversies, including the axing of Jason Taylor and the saga surrounding controversial ‘‘football whisperer’’ Joe Wehbe.
The former Eels, Rabbitohs, Northern Eagles and Bears prop had attempted to continue at the Tigers under new coach Ivan Cleary, who wanted to shift him into a pathways role. However, Stringer had become disillusioned with the direction of the club and Taylor’s sacking proved the last straw.
‘‘It wasn’t the sole reason, but I’m a pretty loyal, trustworthy person and when something like that happens to a mentor [I couldn’t stay],’’ Stringer told Fairfax Media. ‘‘JT was a mentor of mine as a player and he ended up being my coach in my last year of playing. For us to have a relation- ship and work with him years later was pretty special. I think he’s a good coach and he wasn’t treated the best.
‘‘It’s not all about me, I’m just one person. But, personally, the way I felt when that happened to Jason, I felt the last two or three weeks I was there in body but not in soul. I was going to work and ticking off the boxes, coaching the boys and doing the right thing. But, mentally, I was struggling really bad.
‘‘I had a talk to the family; I was struggling mentally and not sleeping properly. I was thinking I was doing all the wrong things for my personal wellbeing and that of my family’s wellbeing.
‘‘I decided to sit down with Ivan, have a chat and tell him where I’m at. I spoke to [head of football] Kelly Egan, we came to an agreement and parted ways on Tuesday.’’
Before Christmas Stringer felt the Tigers were in the best possible shape. That pre-season was the best he had been involved in, players posting personal bests across a range of performance markers. However, the 40-year-old felt there was a different vibe in the new year amid rumours about Taylor’s tenure and the ongoing contract negotiations involving key players Luke Brooks, Mitchell Moses, Aaron Woods and James Tedesco.
‘‘I don’t want to go into it too much and bag the place, especially with JT being the one who brought me on board and the way he treated people,’’ Stringer said.
‘‘The respect he had for the players and squad and staff, he would walk into the place and shake everyone’s hand every single morning and that’s the way I was brought up. There are other people in the organisation that aren’t like that, I suppose.’’
Taylor, during an appearance on the Fox Sports program League Life, said he believed Woods and Tedesco owed it to the Tigers to stay and fulfil their undoubted potential. Stringer agreed with the assessment.
‘‘The club has done everything in their power to keep them there and sometimes you can do too much for people as well,’’ he said.
‘‘I’m a bit old school, a bit treat them mean, keep them keen kind of thing. Sometimes when you lay out the red carpet too much they get too used to it.’’ The Sun-Herald