When Daryl Powell took over at Warrington Wolves ahead of the 2022 Super League season, much was made of his arrival.
Here was a head coach that had turned Castleford Tigers around in the blink of an eye from perennial strugglers to silverware contenders.
So, when he walked through the doors at the Halliwell Jones Stadium, Powell was expected to turn Warrington from a nearly team to one that would life big trophies.
Unfortunately, that hasn’t been the case with the Wolves languishing four points outside the play-offs and six points above Toulouse Olympique at the bottom of the Super League table.
With Powell wanting to put his own stamp on the club, a number of players have exited such as Ellis Robson, Billy Magoulias and Rob Butler whilst those like Mike Cooper, Jason Clark and Josh Charnley will all leave at the end of the season.
In a recent Fans’ Panel Meeting, Powell was asked questions alongside chief executive Karl Fitzpatrick about potential rifts in the camp, with the head coach defusing the situation.
The Wire Fan Panel said: “We asked Daryl to address the rumours that some players are not on board with his playing and coaching style. Daryl discussed with us that every coach has a different leadership style and that some people receive critique better than others. He talked about how he likes playing and coaching teams to have diaries in which they create goals and reflect on their current form. Daryl has a certain way of playing in mind, and he recognised that we are not playing in that way yet.
Powell was also questioned about the size of his forward pack going into the season, but that the territory battle has been lost more often than won.
“We asked about needing size of players in the forwards as prior to the season, Daryl said the current team were up for the challenge, which has not been successful. Daryl confirmed that we have signed bigger players to support this issue. He also discussed there being a territory battle in games, and it’s a battle we have been losing. We have been making up to 100 more tackles than the opposition and are starting inside our own 10 metres. The team work hard to swing this battle which increases our opportunity in the game to score points. Daryl commented on Thomas Mikaele’s impact in this way as he has brought positive communication and knowledge to the playing group.”
