Wigan Warriors: Martin Offiah 'forever grateful' to Maurice Lindsay for the opportunity he gave him

The former Warriors chairman, who played a huge part in the club’s success during his time in the role, has passed away at the age of 81.

Offiah was signed by Lindsay in 1992 for a then world record fee of £440,000.

He said: “I’m forever grateful to Wigan as a club and Maurice in particular for giving me the opportunity. I used to say jokingly that even if I had scored a million tries at Widnes, I wouldn’t have had a statue.

“Wigan is the greatest rugby league club the world has ever seen, and they gave me the platform to do the things that I did. I have to thank Maurice for that because it’d be a hard push to get a chairman to pay £440,000 for a winger today, let alone in 1992.

“I’m thankful that he took that risk on me, and that along with my teammates I could repay that trust.

“Life is risky, and he took risks. The things the club did, like the game against Manly with £100,000 on the line or taking Wigan to Sydney to play in the World Cup Sevens in the middle of a Challenge Cup run. Takes some balls to do that and for it to come off.

“He was a visionary and an innovator. You can’t look back on his life without saying he really turned Wigan into the club it is today. When you think of the players who have gone on to play for England, it stemmed from Maurice doing what did.

“Without that platform, the sport of rugby wouldn’t be what it is today. There’s so many things you can trace back to him.

“Wigan had some great players in the past but what Maurice achieved is the basis of what Ian Lenagan is building on.

“Billy Boston was his hero, and the reason why he fell in love with Wigan as a kid in short pants. Although he couldn’t play, he went on to be just as big a legend as Billy was.”