WIGAN coach Matt Peet has been selected as the League Express Man of the Year after his formidable achievement of winning all four of the trophies that were available to him as a coach in the 2024 season.
It began with Wigan’s heart-stopping 16-12 victory against Penrith Panthers in their World Club Challenge clash in February, continued with their 18-8 victory over Warrington Wolves in June’s Challenge Cup Final and then was consolidated when they won the League Leaders’ Shield and the Betfred Super League Grand Final with a 9-2 victory over Hull KR in October.
Wigan’s success earned them the coveted Team of the Year award from the BBC’s Sports Personality of the Year programme.
Wigan Chairman Chris Brookes, speaking to League Express, has paid tribute to Peet.
“Matt Peet is a man deeply proud of his origins in Wigan, truly ‘one of their own’ who has led his hometown and boyhood team into Rugby League folklore – a feat never before accomplished in a single Super League season,” said Brookes.
“Without doubt, this unparalleled success was achieved by a team playing ‘the Wigan way’ – a thrilling, swashbuckling style sprinkled with panache and pizzazz!
“What’s more, in this stellar season for the Wigan Warriors, the deep bond between Matt, the players and the fans was almost palpable – a communion of admiration, rooted in mutual respect and almost spiritual in its intensity.
“Yet, despite all the deserved accolades that have come his way, Matt remains a humble man, proud of his family, always seeking to acknowledge and recognise the outstanding contributions of CEO Kris Radlinski and his own coaching staff while being gracious and respectful to opposition players, coaches and their teams.
“It is to his credit that he also recognises the importance of Wigan Warriors to the community championing the club’s desire to shift the dial on inequality and be a vehicle for improving health and wellbeing.
“Without doubt, he is a credit to the wonderful sport of Rugby League and a worthy recipient of the League Express ‘Man of the Year’ award.”
And Tara Jones has been named the League Express Woman of the Year.
Jones, an English international who retired from playing for St Helens this year to focus on refereeing, became the first woman to officiate a senior men’s match in the northern hemisphere when she took charge of the League One match between Oldham and Cornwall in April.
In October she was appointed to the RFL full-time match officials squad, becoming the first woman to fulfil that role.
