I reckon he will come back to coach in rugby league as Warrington's coach after Tony Smith is finished there.

Maybe, who knows, but I'd love him back in rugby League in some coaching position.

I didn't know his dad played for us I remember seeing Shaun Edwards outdside the ground before a match at the Zoo scared the crap out of me.

Long couldnt lace anyones boots......hes that stupid hes still on velcro











EDIT: Just seen the article Longs now done with the Beano..............Just when I think he cant make more of a Tw@@@t of himself or rugby league he surprises me!!! Sean Long is a waste of oxygen and to even compare him to a legend like Edwards is quite insulting IMHO.

I remember meeting Edwards outside Central Park the day after we beat Oldham 50-6 at Watersheddings to win the Stones Bitter Championship in 1994. I'd driven up to the club shop for something (a training top, I think) and as I got back to my car he came out of the Pavilion offices under the Whitbread/Billy Boston stand carrying the League Trophy, and stuck it in the boot of his car. I pulled my new top out of the plastic wrapping and asked if he would mind signing the cardboard insert. He was happy to do it and chatted for a few minutes before going back into the ground.

Would love him back at Wigan. You get the impression that with Edwards, failure is not an option.

a great read

Compared to Shaun's interview, Longy's is frankly embarrassing.

I don't know who's advising Sean Long, but has it occurred to him that this wild young yobbo thing is rapidly going to lose its charm once his playing days are over (which, given that he's 33, may be closer than he realises)?

Shaun Edwards once had a reputation for being a bit of a wild man - but that was when he was about 18. He's now known across the sporting world as an arch-professional, but also a family-oriented man, who's never let his fame and fortune go to his head. Long's going to be remembered as a vain prat, who thought the world wanted to know that he had a pendulum on his todger.

I once had a dispute with a Saints fan, when I argued that past Saints stars like Geoff Pimblett, John Mantle, etc - who were well known as being gentlemen off the field as well as on it - were better role models than someone like Long, who arguably has been a better player. The Saints lad said "no, it's all about how good at RL you are". I wonder if he still thinks that.

Edwards is family oriented? Not sure he even has a wife/gf, does he?

Superb article.

He lives in London to be close to his kids. Trust me, Shaun is a good dad. I'm not saying Longy isn't, but for a bloke of his age his reputation is a bit of a joke.

Stand those interviews side by side, and there's only one of them that registers as a huge bloody embarrassment.

Agree 100% with the comparison. Wasn't sure if your family man tag meant he had a "new" family, or whether he was back with Heather Small. Certainly sounds like she still has a candle for him! (and Search for a Hero was the greatest song ever to walk out to a final to!)

Looks like you are being chastised on here too....




It's more than a little contradictory to state that "Long is never fit to be mentioned in the same breath as this man", when you compared the two in the first place!

I'm sure he'll come back to Wigan one day in some coaching job..........................'You can take the boy out of Wigan, but you cant take Wigan out of the boy', it's in his blood.

p.s. I heard Shaun and Heather were back together.

A valid contribution. Come back any time.

I'm glad that you also spot the irony.

For what its worth, I think the Edwards is one of the most driven people I have ever met, and he would be successful at whatever he wanted to be successful at. I just don't understand why some have a chip on their shoulder with regards to a player that defected 'over t'hill' and the constant need to make such contradictory statements.

Probably because Longy, someone who's playing carreer stands up with the best and who should have been a figurehead for Rugby League, is a total emabarrassment to the sport.

It's actually a reasonable comparison.

Both guys were once the best British halfbacks of their era. Both guys figure prominently in national newspapers this week. Both guys give long and personal interviews about aspects of their private life. And what does Longy do with his opportunity to boost the game's profile on the eve of the new season ... ?

I understand that you wish these things weren't publicised about a former Saints great. But even if you were to gag all Wigan fans, there'll be plenty of other people this week talking about what a fool Sean Long has made of himself (again).

They say that there's no such thing as bad publicity and Oscar Wilde famously said the only thing worse than being talked about was not being talked about. In Sean Long's case however.....

Excellent article. I'm surprised that none of you Wigan fans have picked up on the comment he makes about the lack of professionalism when he first went to Wasps compared to what he was used to at Wigan. RL in general, and especially Wigan should be proud of a comment like that. We need people like Shaun Edwards back in our game now.

I had the privilege of training in the same gym as him when he was doing extra sessions after joining the Broncos. Very intense trainer, didn't suffer fools gladly, impressed some of the meat eaters on my team with the amount of iron he could shift for such a slightly built fella. And had a good sense of humour once the initial defences were down. Inspired a lot of admiration for Rugby League and its players.

He is certainly the media darling at the moment, another good article in yesterdays Independent. I like the way he can always twist an interview so the reporter has to mention rugby league at some point.

[urlhttp://www.independent.co.uk/sport/rugby/rugby-union/international/edwards-it-is-less-than-ideal-we-are-having-to-train-with-two-teams-1886190.html[/url

'Edwards did not achieve iconic status on either side of the rugby divide by allowing mere agony to gain the upper hand.'

His views on football -

'Did Edwards see any virtue in the union code's administrators adjusting their disciplinary system along football lines, thereby allowing a player banned from one competition to continue turning out in another? "I don't really like soccer, so I've no idea what they do there," the rugby league maestro from Wigan replied. "When I was a kid, my dad made me switch the telly off when football came on. But the situation we have in rugby at the moment does seem a bit peculiar, so maybe it's something to look at."'

I'm sure he will return to League one day, and what a boost it would be to have such a high profile Union coach back in the code where he belongs.

My favourite player as a kid. I'm sure it's a matter of when rather than if he come's back to Wigan. There's not a whole lot left for him to achieve as a kick and clap coach

I imagine there'll be a limit on what he can achieve as well.

Can we ever see a day when the old boy network permits Shaun Edwards to coach England or the British Lions?

I'd be stunned if that ever happened.

No, but maybe head coach for Wales, or Ireland?

Fantastic article, Such a good Read.