I can remember a young Mark Roberts breaking into the WIRE team. The year of Andy Greg, Les Boyd and Co and thinking what a tallent this lad is. Then through injury Mike Gregory came in the spot light. Who if you can remember do you recon INJURY FREE would have been the better player?

=#BF0000[size=150Anymore of your immature posts like this and you can take a break from the fourm this type of post adds absolutely nothing. Wolfette[/size

Why? did you not see Roberts play?

Pot calling kettle i think.

vaguely remember him. but its like saying if che was born a girl would he of bin good at netball?

I try and make allowances for you at times based on the fact you're obviously quite young but what a ridiculous post. The fact that you weren't born at the time of the players mentioned does not make a thread about former Warrington players stupid does it?

I didn't see Mark Roberts play either but some of us actually enjoy reading a bit about our history from those who have seen more of it than we have.

andy holbrook were better.

Imbecile.

What I can remember it's 50/50. But I can remember a try by Roberts agains Leeds at Leeds witch was as good if not better then Gregs against Wigan at Wembley.

It's not exactly comparing apples and oranges, its more like comparing Granny Smiths to Golden Delicious. Roberts peak was a bit before my time so I can't give a definite answer but I would have said Roberts would never have had as much to his game as Gregory, but as an individual he was probably more of a handful for the opposition because he was stronger and more dangerous on the break. Both fine servants of Warrington RLFC. Roberts was the kind of player who in summer rugby would have done damage (he would probably have been a bit leaner in the modern game) like a Lee Gilmour or Paul Johnson type player. There's no good comparison for Mike Gregory in the modern game, ie a player who was basically a workhorse forward but had good hands and read the game well, and would have halfbacks running off him and doing run-arounds. Luke Ricketson was similar in some ways or Scott Sattler at Penrith but Gregory had better hands.

sally, do you recall Joe Ropati? He was the threequarter equivalent of Roberts; both direct runners, monster fends and short sidesteps. There was no better sight than Roberts coming onto an inside ball as John Woods drifted across the pitch waiting to lay it off. Jesus, he could shift when he went through a gap.

We lost Keith Holden to another knee injury at around the same time. Another who had their career taken from them.

I`m suprised nobody has mentioned Ronnie Duane, injury ruined a potentially great centre.

In answer to the original question, Mark Roberts for me. He had the lot, pace, power, footwork and a great pair of hands. Ive don`t think ive seen a quicker second rower than Mark Roberts.

I'll go a little further back in time and nominate Jackie Edwards. There's a fantastic article by Shaun that mentions him.

[urlhttp://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/columnists/paul_kimmage/article7009548.ece[/url

Roberts was definitely more of an attacking threat than Greg. At the moment I think Harrison is nearer to Greg in style although if he feeds of Monas breaks as he did in the Wigan semi then we may see him as a rampaging runner in his own right.

Not sure. two different types of players really. Mark Roberts though would have been a world beater. Probably oe of my fave 5 ever warrington players.

York 79

A player in the Mike Gregory mold in todays game would probably be Bird, a forward with a half backs touch and vision.
Who would you say in the modern game compares to bob jackson? Neil turley could have been better than what he was.

i remember him scoring a hat-trick at leeds when we won 54-16..he had pace to burn,and the balls he took off andy greg were pin point accurate...very unlucky not gain international honours a certain dennis betts kept him out...

My uncle always waxes lyrical about him.

Rogues, that was a really good article, did anyone else notice the comments about Wasps RU being no where near as professional as Wigan RL when Shaun first went there. I never saw Jackie, he was just befgore my time, but had he stayed injury free then what would have happened to Parry Gordon?
Going back to the original argument, Greg and Mark Roberts simply can't be compared. Mike Gregory was an absolute Workhorse, whereas Roberts always needed someone to run off. Had he stayed fit then he would have been a magnificent second row forward. It was a shame that quite a few good players from that mid to late eighties side had serious injury problems, Holden, Ronnie Duane, and Roberts al retiring early, with considerable injury problems for Paul Cullen.

mark roberts second row but as fast as any centre. if i recall wasnt he diabetic.or some type of illness

Comparing Roberts & Gregory is a bit unfair as they were 2 different types of player....Certainly if you are asking if Roberts would have become a superstar, then most definitely yes......Without sounding cynical, Wigan would have had him snapped up and feeding off Andy Gregory, and Denis Betts might never have been seen in the Cherry & White!!...

At that time Wire had one of the most complete packs you could ever wish to see on a Rugby League pitch...Front row of Boyd, Tamati & Jackson was simply awesome in a very scary way....Boyd had all the skills, whilst the other 2 backed him up with fearsome aggression.....The back row of Roberts, Sanderson & Gregory complemented them perfectly, Roberts dynamic running, Sanderson's workaholic tackling, and Gregory's all-round skills were a joy to behold.

For about a year when that pack was on form, watching Wire was probably the most enjoyable experience I have had watching ANY sport...

I'd forgotten about Gary Sanderson, there's yet another player who finished early through injury.

Mark Roberts was always a victim of head high tackles for some reason. Uncanny how many times he got decked. Very very unlucky player who could/should have been a GB international IMO. Quick, classy and powerful.

What a team!!!!-



All time favourite kit too, I proudly wore that top watching Greg score at Wembley 20 years ago