Wigan Warriors secured second place last night, and coach Adrian Lam insisted he never felt the heat despite a rough start.
The Warriors struggled at the start of Lam’s tenure and were ninth on the league ladder heading into June.
But 12 wins in 13 games have seen the Warriors surge up the table, and backed by many to defend the Super League title for the first time in their history.
Lam is now signed up for next season, but he revealed he was never concerned about his future.
“I had the support of Kris and Ian all along, and that was helpful because rather than make a panic decision like Leeds did, they were supportive.
“Because of my communications, I knew I was always okay. I’m friends with Dave (Furner) and at the time I thought, ‘Wow, that’s pretty tough’. And as a new coach here, we’d lost three senior players, Liam Farrell to injury, it was always going to take time, just not as long as it did.
“But during that period, the spirit was always high and I’ve got to give credit to the players and to my staff.
“The amount of pressure we’ve been under has put us in good stead.”