Martin Offiah said on his Sky Sports News matches review programme that coach of the year was between Brian Noble and Michael Maguire.
Now let me see who I think should get it. Difficult one.

I think thats just in his own head, he actually put on twitter the other day that it was between Brian Knoble (whoever that is) and Maguire

i think noble has done brilliant this season. he put a team together in no time at all, and has cause some major upsets. nobby should be proud of what he has done for RL in general by making a welsh team competitive.

To be honest, that comment by Offiah gives a pretty clear indication of who it's going to be be.

Maguire & Noble both have compelling cases, nobody else is in the running imo.

Really?

Does it not put things a little into perspective that the team who've basically won the league in July is almost exactly the same team that Brian Noble struggled to get into the play-offs last year?

Frankly, I'm amazed that Noble isn't hugely embarrassed every time the subject of Wigan comes up.

If he gets coach of the year ahead of Maguire it will be proof positive that not only do we never learn anything in the British game, but that we don't actually want to learn anything. The Aussies will be laughing their stones off at us again, and no wonder.

I agree with what you are saying, but that has nothing to do with the remarkable job Noble has done in Wrexham does it.

The Noble/Wigan thing has been done to death, and their is no bigger fan of Maguire than me!

But those two things are unrelated to the coach of the year 2010 award.

FWIW, Madge should get it IMO.

Why?

One of the two is clearly a much, much better coach than the other one. How can that fact be unrelated to an award like this?

FWIW, I'm not having a pop at you personally for this, but I'm sure this issue will come up - and, if so, it will flabbergast and infuriate me.

Because the success of the two teams this year is relative. In December, Noble had no team & no stadium. If he wins his game in hand, they are in the play offs. I personally think thats a remarkable achievement.

The fact that he under achieved at Wigan is clearly something you aren't prepared to overlook when considering who should win.

Ill repeat, imo Madge should win it. BUT Noble has done a superb job at Crusaders.



I know!! We've been quite pally since he left

Madge should walk the award, but Noble is his closest contender, perhaps thats a better way to word my thoughts.

but taking a team like Crusaders who won 3 games the whole of last year and making them a competitive outfit challenging for a playoff spot in 12 months is a fantastic achievement, Noble should be considered for it

I wouldn't deny that Nobby's done way better than was expected with Celtic (and yes, he is definitely the next contender). But I'll be very miffed if Maguire's feat - which you and I clearly both agree on - is overlooked. He hasn't just inspired Wigan, it's the installation of new tactics, new levels of fitness and motivation, a new ethos, etc.

Celtic were crap last season and are now a solid mid-table outfit. An undeniable achievement. But Wigan were an average mid-table outfit last season and are now the best team in the country. An even bigger achievement in my eyes.

I can't help feeling that, though Nobby is easily the best of a bad bunch (the other British-born coaches, I mean), I still think of him as being old school (a kind of modern-day Alex Murphy in comparison to Graham Lowe), and that Maguire's more scientific approach is the one we should be holding up as the example.

I do not care if Madge wins coach of the year. His legacy will be taking the game in the UK to a new level just like Monie did, that will be his greatest accolade.

He is a real deep thinker with the way he approaches the game, to the smallest detail, and has brought a new level of professionalism with him.