- For the darts player see Mike Gregory (darts). Mike Gregory (born December 16, 1956 in Bath Somerset) is a former professional darts player who reached the final the Winmau World
| Personal information | ||
|---|---|---|
| Full name | Michael Keith Gregory | |
| Date of birth | 20 May 1964 | |
| Place of birth | Wigan, Lancashire, England | |
| Date of death | 19 November 2007 (aged 43) | |
| Senior clubs* | ||
| Years | Club | Apps (points) |
| 1982-1994 | Warrington | |
| Representative teams | ||
| Great Britain | 20+(?) | |
| Professional clubs coached | ||
| 1998-2001 2003-2005 | Swinton Lions Wigan Warriors | |
| Representative teams coached | ||
| 1995 2002 2003 | Welsh Dragons England Academy Scotland | |
* Professional club appearances and points | ||
Michael Keith "Mike" Gregory (20 May 1964 – 19 November 2007), was a rugby league player and later coach; the former head coach of Wigan and player for Warrington and Great Britain. Events 325 - The First Council of Nicaea &ndash the first Ecumenical Council of the Christian Church is held Year 1964 ( MCMLXIV) was a Leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar of the 1964 Gregorian calendar. Events 1095 - The Council of Clermont, called by Pope Urban II to discuss sending the First Crusade to the Holy Land Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Wigan is a large town in Greater Manchester, England. It stands on the River Douglas, south of Preston, west-northwest of Manchester Warrington is a professional Rugby league club in the town of Warrington, Cheshire in England. Great Britain was traditionally one of the major national teams playing Rugby league.
Contents |
Playing Career
Mike had a distinguished playing career captaining both Warrington and Great Britain, gaining over 20 caps for the Lions. Warrington is a professional Rugby league club in the town of Warrington, Cheshire in England. Great Britain was traditionally one of the major national teams playing Rugby league. He captained a Great Britain tour to New Zealand. New Zealand is an Island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses (the North Island and the South Island He made his Warrington debut on 05. 09. 1982 and playing his last game on 12. 02. 1994, Making 222 1st team starts and 24 substitute appearances and scoring 45 tries and a total points of 176.
Coaching Career
Gregory started his coaching career as assistant to Shaun McRae at St Helens. Shaun McRae is the head coach of the Salford City Reds. Shaun McRae nicknamed 'Bomber' was born in 1959 and began his Rugby league Coaching career He spent three successful seasons at Saints between 1996-98, before taking the head coach job at Swinton. Swinton Lions is a British Rugby league club from Swinton and Pendlebury, Greater Manchester, England. He later joined Wigan, taking charge of the Senior Academy in 2001. Senior Academy The Senior Academy is the highest tier in the Youth Development system He led the youngsters to first place in the 2002 Academy Championship, before being promoted to assistant coach for the 2003 season.
Following the departure of head coach Stuart Raper in July 2003, Mike was appointed head coach until the end of the 2003 season. Stuart 'Chook' Raper, (born January 5, 1965) is an Australian former Rugby league player and coach After Raper's announcement, Gregory had announced his intention to run for the job permanently. He spent three months as caretaker coach, remaining unbeaten for 11 matches and guiding Wigan into the Grand Final - becoming the first side from outside the top two to make it all the way - before being awarded the job full time on a 2 year contract. It was the first time since Colin Clarke, in 1985, that a Wigan-born man has coached Wigan.
Gregory has international coaching experience with Wales in the 1995 World Cup. The Wales national rugby league team represent Wales in international Rugby league tournaments 1995 World Cup may refer to 1995 Rugby World Cup, held in South Africa for rugby union 1995 Rugby League World Cup, held in England and Wales He also guided the England Academy team to a historic series victory against the Australian Schoolboys in 2002. He was assistant coach of the Lancashire Origin squad for 2003 and was also appointed as head coach of Scotland for the 2003 European Nations' Cup.
Illness
In 2004, it was revealed that Gregory had been suffering from progressive muscular atrophy, a form of motor neurone disease affecting his nerves and muscles which he had possibly contracted as early as 2001. Progressive muscular atrophy (PMA is a rare subtype of Motor neurone disease (MND which affects only the Lower motor neurones This is in contrast to the most common The motor neurone diseases (or motor neuron diseases) (MND are a group of progressive neurological disorders that destroy Motor neurones the cells that control voluntary A nerve is an enclosed cable-like bundle of peripheral Axons (the long slender projections of Neurons. Muscle (from Latin musculus, diminutive of mus "mouse" is contractile tissue of the body and is derived from the The illness blocks signals from the brain getting to muscles, causing weight-loss and affecting speech. Gregory went to the USA for a week in May 2004 to receive specialist treatment. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Ian Millward was appointed as head coach of Wigan while Mike was still recovering from his illness. Ian Millward (born August 22 1960) is an Australian born Rugby league coach and is currently head coach for North Queensland Cowboys It is believed that during rugby league duties in Australia in 2003, when Mike was a coach, he was bitten by a tic which was carrying an infection known as Borrelia. Borrelia is a Genus of Bacteria of the Spirochete phylum It causes Borreliosis, a Zoonotic, vector-borne disease Though Mike was totally unaware of the bite, he later developed a large red-ring rash, unbeknown to him at the time that this rash was the hallmark for Borrelia (the causative agent of Lymes Disease) – and ushered in the beginning of the biggest fight of his life.
Controversy
In September 2004 there were reports that Mike's illness would prevent him from returning to his job at Wigan. September 2004: January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August Maurice Lindsay said that Wigan would continue to employ and pay Mike while he was on sick leave and then wait on advice from medical advisers. [1]
Mike felt that during 2004, he was able to return but the club blocked his return to work. This resulted in Mike taking Wigan and the club's owner Dave Whelan to court claiming that Wigan should have done more to help him carry on. David Whelan born in Bradford on 24 November, 1936, and raised in Wigan, is a former professional football player with Blackburn A court is a forum used by a power base to adjudicate disputes and dispense civil, labour administrative and criminal Justice under its The case was settled by the two parties out of court with Wigan agreeing to pay Gregory £17,500. After the settlement Mike Gregory said:
| “ | I feel robbed of a once in a lifetime opportunity. I am Wigan-born and bred and I was very proud to be head coach of my home town team. As it is for players, it is for coaches, to represent your home town is a special privilege. The support of the players and fans has been exceptional throughout and this has been shown in many ways. If it had not been for them, I do not believe I would have been chosen for the head coach in the first place. This was my dream job. I was proud to lead my team out into two finals. The supporters had belief in me and the team. I would never have betrayed this loyalty by returning to the job, if I felt incapable of doing it. My health was no different when I wanted to return to work than it had been at the Challenge Cup Final at the Millennium Stadium. The Challenge Cup (as of 2008 known as the Carnegie Challenge Cup for sponsorship reasons is a knockout cup competition for Rugby league clubs across Europe The Millennium Stadium (Stadiwm y Mileniwm is the National stadium of Wales, located in the capital Cardiff. However, I was ‘frozen out’ from that then on. I feel the management of the club failed to do their duty as a good employer. Never once did I feel they were trying to aid my return to work. The continuing support of the fans and the players has made a horrific experience bearable and I thank you all. | ” |
Death
Having been confined to a wheelchair for the past year, Gregory died from the disease on 19 November 2007 with wife Erica, parents Joan and Keith, sister Christine and brother Philip by his side. Events 1095 - The Council of Clermont, called by Pope Urban II to discuss sending the First Crusade to the Holy Land Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Mike will live for ever in the hearts of thousands he is a ture legend and will always remain a much loved icon. [2]
External links
References
- ^ Warriors deny Gregory exit BBC Sport - 3 September, 2004
- ^ Former Lions skipper Gregory dies BBC Sport - 19 November, 2007
| Preceded by Stuart Raper | Coach Wigan Warriors 2003-2005 | Succeeded by Denis Betts |
| Wigan Warriors Rugby League Football Club |
|---|
| Wigan Warriors |
| History • Records • Stadium • Players • Honours |
| Seasons |
| 2006 • 2007 • 2008 |
| Stadiums |
| Folly Field (1872-1877) • Prescott Street (1877-1901) • Springfield Park (1901-1902) • Central Park (1902-1999) • JJB Stadium (1999-) |
| Captains |
| Andrew Farrell (1998-2005) • Sean O'Loughlin (2006-) |
| Coaches |
| Andy Goodway • John Monie (1995-1997) • Frank Endacott (1999-2001) • Stuart Raper (2001-2003) • Mike Gregory (2003-2005) Denis Betts (2004-2005) • Ian Millward (2005-2006) • Brian Noble (2006-present) |
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