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Widnes ‘want to be the Wigan of the Championship’ as coach shares ambitious blueprint vision Widnes ‘want to be the Wigan of the Championship’, with Vikings head coach Allan Coleman laying out his vision to follow the Warriors’ blueprint of producing talent of their own en-masse. Three time champions of the British game and seven time winners of the Challenge Cup, Widnes have been out of the top-flight since relegation from Super League in 2018. It took until 2024, Coleman’s first season at the helm, to make the play-offs in the second tier: a feat they have managed again this term as well as reaching the 1895 Cup final. But the reality is that the Vikings are still some way from being considered for a return to Super League, and one of the first steps – for Coleman – is to get their house in order where young talent in the area is concerned. ‘We’re trying to create a monster like Wigan have done in Super League, but in the Championship on a part-time scale’ Born and bred in Leigh, Coleman has a strong connection with the game at community level having headed up Leigh Miners Rangers in the National Conference League as well as England’s Community Lions on the international stage. The former Swinton Lions man spoke to members of the media, including LoveRugbyLeague, last week during the build-up to Widnes’ 1895 Cup final showdown with London Broncos and was passionate in his delivery of the Vikings’ vision. He said: “The best team in our sport at the minute is Wigan Warriors, head and shoulders. “How they produce talent, how they perform, how they go about their business, what they do on and off the field… it’s just head and shoulders above everything at the moment. “We’re a part-time club in the Championship, and as soon as I got here, we identified that we needed a youth development team. “My background is in community rugby. At Swinton, I had (players like) Matty Ashton, Louis Brogan and Frankie Halton who are all now full-time. They all came through the local community game, which we identified. “We didn’t have a youth team here, so we created one and this year we’ve had an under-19s side. They’ve trained every Tuesday alongside the first-team to engage with the community.” Widnes’ under-19s are headed up by Championship stalwart and former St Helens man Ste Tyrer, who hung up his boots back in 2022. Coleman continued” “We’re not taking them away from local community clubs, but we’re giving their talented players extra training sessions with quality coaches and better facilities – weights and conditioning programmes and games against other clubs. “We can monitor them but we’re also improving them for those community clubs. “Next year, we’re aiming to have our under-19s training twice a week, Tuesday and Thursday, alongside us. “It increases our chances of having better sessions of 13-on-13 and moulding that by engaging with younger talent. “We’re trying to create a monster like Wigan have done in Super League but in the Championship on a part-time scale.” ‘It’s vital that we produce our own talent… we want to try and be the Wigan of the Championship’ As is the case with the vast majority of the clubs in the Championship, Widnes have had to lean on Super League clubs for loanees throughout 2026. Only last week, Castleford Tigers duo Aiden Doolan and Alfie Lindsey arrived on loans until the end of the season, and may even find themselves involved in the 1895 Cup final come August 31. Before that though, the Vikings face a midweek away game against Sheffield Eagles, and in that, evidence of the under-19s programme may well come to life for the first time. Coleman said: “”There’s a salary cap coming into the Championship, so it’s vital that we produce our own talent. “Widnes has got a real hotbed of talent, as you can see in Super League, but we’re behind the eight-ball with that talent at the moment with Warrington, Wigan, St Helens and Leigh Leopards. “We’ve got to take the ones that the big clubs don’t want, and we’re fine with that because we’re not in a position to argue that toss as things stand. “In an ideal world, it’d be great if we had six or seven players from our under-19s who could step up to play (in a busy period like we’re currently going through). We’re probably not there yet, but we’re striving to be. “We want to try and be the Wigan of the Championship, where we focus so much time and effort into our talent that it pays dividends in the long run, and I really do think that is key. “In the Sheffield game, there’ll be one or two of those under-19s making their debuts for Widnes, which in our eyes is a fantastic achievement for us and for them as individuals.”