This Betts just too big a risk

For anybody who is not a Widnes fan, this blog will seem all too predictable. It will seem obvious that this a typical fan over-reacting to a poor result and calling for the coaches head. However, a majority of Widnes fans, not just the reactionaries and the boo-boys, will likely understand where I am coming from.

I'm not somebody who makes rash decisions and I am also reluctant to make snap judgements. However, I completely agree that after just 3 Super League games in charge, that Denis Betts should be dropped as Widnes Vikings coach. This is far more than blaming the coach for a poor team's results; the significance goes much further.

Why can't Denis just be given time?

The opinion of most Rugby League fans will be that Denis should be given some time to let his squad gel together and to see if we can get any improvement. I personally feel that this should not be the case, Denis has already been given time to prove himself and in fact done the opposite.

A prior record

When Denis Betts was originally given the Widnes head coaching job, most people welcomed the decision and presumed that his appointment had been a lengthy deliberation. Even at this stage, taking on Denis was something of a leap of faith. Apart from a period of time as acting Wigan coach from May 2004 to May 2005, where Denis took over Mike Gregory's side, he had no experience being a head coach. Not long after he left Wigan, the side that he had assembled lost 75-0 to St Helens. Of course, Ian Millward was the coach at this stage so you can make the argument that he was where the blame lie.

Betts then left Rugby League for Rugby Union until returning to the Widnes club in November 2010. Some concerns were raised about Denis at this stage and his absence from Rugby League, but he was given the benefit of the doubt. Here was my opinion at the time as voiced on the TotalRL forums:

"For Widnes, it's a bit of a risk. He's been in Union for 4 years and who knows how closely he has observed changes in RL. However he is young, has coached a SL club and has played NRL. His playing credentials aren't a problem. I'll look forward to seeing how it pans out."

Initially, his contract was to be for one year and was seen by many as a trial for a Super League contract. Despite having a full off-season, Betts's team started poorly and were clearly having issues in defence. Things were sufficiently bad that when it was announced that Widnes were going to name their Super League coach for 2012, almost nobody expected that it would be Betts. He simply hadn't done enough in the time that he'd had. There was near outrage when the re-appointment of Denis Betts was made. Some of this was anger at how it had been built up but there was genuine concern. Here was my opinion again, just 6 months after the initial decision,

"Denis Betts is totally unproven and what little evidence we have suggests that he is going to be a poor coach. He has overseen our least competitive period on the pitch for probably a decade, with defence being atrocious. This apparently being his speciality. 


I honestly don't care if the board think he might be good, or shows promise. Re-signing him is a PR disaster and a massive momentum killer. The fans haven't taken to him and don't believe he deserves a shot as a SL coach based on current evidence."

Most fans were bemused at the appointment as not only was he now unproven, what proof we had was poor. It seemed a big risk to be starting Super League with. Things certainly didn't improve as the year went on and we were dumped out of the playoffs embarrassingly by Sheffield. The excuse was again made that Betts had not had enough time.

Super League 2012
Time can be a great healer. A mixture of excitement about the new Super League season and some promising friendly results helped to distract most Widnes fans from the issues surrounding Denis Betts.

As we have seen, this has quickly changed. After an OK performance against Wakefield, which I commented on with some concern, we have been embarrassed by Huddersfield and now Salford at home. It seems pretty clear that we are a long way away from the rest of the pack. Whilst it was always going to be hard, Betts has to take a large amount of this blame. He has once again failed to create an adequate squad built for purpose. It may seem harsh but as we have seen, Wakefield have managed to create a competitive squad after signing more players than we did. What's more, the players have continued to look poor in defence, this comes down to coaching. Once again, all Betts has in his favour are excuses: he couldn't talk to players until September; some players are injured; it will take us time to get up to speed etc.

Why the pressing concern?
Last year, Steve O'Connor created a new membership system to revolutionise the way that supporters watch games. At the time it seemed exciting, now it seems like suicide. The Stronghold system inevitably means that more people signed up than would have bought season tickets, but it also means that fans can cancel whenever they wish.

Into just our second game of the season, the attendance was already down to 5,055. This is actually one of the worst Super League attendances we've ever had. This is clearly because of the Huddersfield result and the lack of enthusiasm for a likely defeat to Salford. After today's result we are likely to see people cancelling their Stronghold memberships in their hundreds. Who is going to pay to see us get battered by most clubs and maybe even see records tumble?

In an ideal world Betts could be given a few more games; under this system he needs to leave now. Steve O'Connor needs to accept that he has made a mistake or we could see some the lowest crowds Widnes have had in this division. This could also prove to be a mistake that we struggle to recover from in time for the next licensing period. Many fans will take a great deal of convincing to return if we have gone half a season without a win.

Steve O'Connor has done great things for Widnes RL but his biggest flaw is being too loyal to coaches. He brought back and then held onto Steve McCormick, when most were relieved that he had gone in the first place. Now he appears to be sticking with Denis Betts and listening to the excuses; all Denis Betts seems to have on his CV is excuses. Barring a miracle, it is inevitable that Betts will eventually be sacked later in the season. O'Connor needs to bite the bullet and do it now before the situation is irreparable; bring in somebody like Brian Noble who could at least steady the ship and provide some optimism. 

Sacking Denis Betts wouldn't be a rash decision but an acceptance of a mistake made. The only question is how long will it take Steve O'Connor to realise he has made a mistake?