Cowboys legend learned from ‘honest’ coach Paul Green
Northern Pride coach and Cowboys legend Ty Williams has paid tribute to departing North Queensland coach Paul Green, predicting it won’t be long until the premiership-winner lands at another NRL club.
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Northern Pride coach and Cowboys legend Ty Williams has paid tribute to departing North Queensland coach Paul Green, predicting it won’t be long until the premiership-winner lands at another NRL club.
Williams has worked closely with Green throughout the course of his four-year stint as Northern Pride coach.
Cowboys players are allocated to the Pride for each Intrust Super Cup season to allow for their development, in the hope they — like hulking lock Peter Hola did most recently in 2019 — will return to Townsville and play at the highest level for North Queensland.
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For Williams, it was Green’s work ethic which stood out the most over the years, and there were plenty of lessons the 2018 Intrust Super Cup coach of the year has learned from the premiership-winning Cowboys coach over the years.
“Very thorough work ethic and very honest in everything he does,” Williams said.
“I enjoyed my time that I associated with him and it was a bit of a shock this morning to hear that it’s effective immediately, but he’s of that calibre that he’ll have the potential to find a job elsewhere as well.
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“From the discussions I had with him, he made sure that you have the right people surrounding you, that was one thing that I picked up from him, and how honest he is as well, with players and everything like that.
“He was very open and honest about where he wants to see them playing and what he sees in the future for players.
“That’s something that I picked up from him, just being honest with them and creating that direct relationship.”
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Williams, who played 151 games in nine NRL seasons with the Cowboys, said Green could be proud of his achievements from his seven-year stint, which included the club’s maiden NRL premiership in 2015.
“He’s done a lot of very good things for that club down there,” Williams said.
“One premiership, two grand final appearances, two Nines competitions, World Club Challenge — he’s done a really good job.
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“Obviously we’re going through a bit of a phase at the moment where we’re putting the young fellas in and you see the transition, where there’s not too many of those guys left from the 2015 grand final.
“There’s some promising signs moving forward and a lot of credit goes to him, what he’s done and what he’s set up.”
Originally published as Cowboys legend learned from ‘honest’ coach Paul Green