Wigan and Great Britain legend Shaun Edwards has paid tribute to Maurice Lindsay insisting: “The whole of rugby league owes him so much.”
The former RFL chief executive, who helped transform Wigan into one of the sport’s greatest sides in the 1980s, has died aged 81. One of rugby league's most colourful characters, Lindsay was a key driving force in starting Super League in 1996 - where he later served as CEO - as the game switched to summer rugby. But it was at Wigan where he first made his name, joining the second division club as chairman in 1980 as part of the 'Gang of Four' with Jack Robinson, Tom Rathbone and Jack Hilton, revitalising them into modern greats.
The charismatic Lindsay helped attract brilliant overseas talent such as Brett Kenny, Gene Miles and Dean Bell plus Great Britain stars Ellery Hanley and Martin Offiah. They won the Challenge Cup eight years running between 1988 and 1995 and seven successive league titles in that golden period as well as becoming the first English side to lift the World Club Challenge in 1987. Lindsay left in 1992 to take over at the RFL where he was key, three years later, in brokering the seismic £87m deal with Rupert Murdoch's BSkyB that brought about Super League, allowing all clubs to go full-time for the first time and a much-needed cash windfall. He later moved from the RFL to head up Super League before returning to Wigan in 2000 for another seven-year stint.
Former Wigan and Lions stand-off Edwards is the most decorated player in rugby league history after being an integral part of those brilliant 80s/90s teams. He told the Mirror: “Maurice was a family friend long before I actually signed for Wigan. Him and my dad were good pals. I’ve known Maurice for most of my life really. There was a four-man board with four, fantastic visionary men that took on Wigan and Maurice was the driving force.
“What I remember most is all those victories at Wembley, where he led us out on a number of occasions, and just the competitive edge that Maurice had. But he was also a very generous man as well. And then, going to Super League and negotiating not in terms of £100,000s but millions and millions of pounds.
“That obviously helped the game at the time and continues to help it as rugby league is still with Sky now. That was 27 years ago. The fact he had the guts and ambition to think ahead, we all have a lot to thank him for.”
Wiganer Edwards, 55, now works as the France rugby union’s defence coach. He said: "There’s a beautiful place about 15 minutes from where I live called Collioure.
“It was Maurice who suggested I go there as he’d been to the south of France many times. So whenever I went there, I’d always give him a ring. Luckily, that happened about four weeks ago. I told him how amazing it was again and we had a brief chat about how he was.
“He was out of his care home and back at his house at Lytham St Annes. He’d lost his mobility and had carers with him. I was very glad I took the time to call him just to let him know just how thankful we all were. Myself, Martin Offiah, Ellery, Henderson Gill…we were all very, very grateful to Maurice. He was the driving force. And I always finished off by reminding him of that.”
Lindsay also had a stint as Great Britain team manager in the early 1990s and later in his life sat on the Wigan Athletic board as well as briefly becoming Preston North End chairman.
RFL CEO Ralph Rimmer said: “Maurice Lindsay will be remembered as one of the most significant leaders in the sport’s history. First at the Wigan club, where the strength of his personality was critical in their emergence as arguably the greatest club side of all-time in this country, one which dominated domestically and flourished internationally, and whose impact extended well beyond Rugby League.
“Then when he moved to the game’s central administration at the RFL, he was the leading figure in driving through the inception of the Super League in 1996, which genuinely transformed the sport. He was a truly unique character, a wonderful raconteur, always had a twinkle in his eye - and he lived a remarkable life. Rugby League would not be where it is today without him.”
