Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
SYDNEY WANTED ME BUT MY SON SAID,‘NO CHANCE!’ O’loughlin on why he stayed loyal to the Warriors
SEAN O’LOUGHLIN has revealed how close he came to leaving Wigan ahead of his 400th appearance for the club – and the two people who persuaded him to stay.
The 34-year-old captain becomes only the 11th player to reach the landmark for the Warriors in tonight’s crunch clash with Warrington.
Five years ago his head was almost turned by Australian giants Sydney Roosters – although O’loughlin insists his heart was always with his home-town club.
And if he had any doubts, son George and coach Shaun Wane (inset) quickly helped make up his mind.
O’loughlin said: “The nearest time I came to leaving was at the end of 2012. I spoke to the Roosters, and they showed some genuine interest in taking me there.
“But when I mentioned it to my boy he said no chance – I knew it was going to be tough then.
“It was Waney’s first year as well, and when I spoke to him about it he wasn’t too happy either!
“But it wasn’t an ambition of mine to play there. They wanted to know my interest and you can’t be blinkered, especially from the financial side you have to keep your eyes open.
“Some of the lads can’t knock the offers back from Australia, but we managed to come to an agreement here and I was glad I was staying.
“I do wonder about how it might have turned out, but I don’t have any regrets. The year after that we won the Double and being part of that was pretty special. There’s been a few genuine offers from clubs where I’ve had to sit down and discuss it with my family. But it would always have been a wrench to leave here.”
O’loughlin also had interest from Super League rivals as a schoolboy – and spent time with tonight’s opponents the Wolves.
He added: “It was kind of the done thing. If clubs were interested in you then you went on camps with them.
“I went to one at Leeds when I was about 13 or 14, with Danny Mcguire, Rob Burrow and Chev Walker – they were all the same age as me. I got invited to a Warrington game as well.
“But my dad was always adamant I wasn’t signing until I finished school.
“It cost us a few quid but it was probably the right thing to do!”