Jon Wilkin is one of the most outspoken pundits in rugby league which is what makes him great to listen to.
Wilkin has now called on player to be similar and truly express their thoughts and feelings after and before a game rather than providing the shades of grey and the respectful answers we currently see in the sport.
Speaking on The Bench Podcast, Wilkin sid:
“I want players to come out and really think about what they feel or think about the game and say it in their own words.
“I think in this country we’ve become petrified, this football-centric media means that what we’ve decided to do is these straight-back questions but it creates dull interviews where nothing’s said.
“Bring the personality to the table. If you’ve got a personality then get it out there, don’t be scared.”
This led Jenna Brooks to say that this is what IMG want as they re-imagine rugby league: “Back to IMG that’s exactly what they want. They want to see the person behind the player.”
Brooks knows all about interviews and sadly one of the best interviewees in the sport has recently retired in the shape of Jake Mamo.
He and Brooks served up some brilliant interviews which got the sport talked about beyond its usual fan base and this needs to happen more frequently in the eyes of Wilkin.
