Wests Tigers lucky to have 'Wally Lewis of football administration' Shane Richardson as interim CEO

The Wests Tigers may not have ever signed Wally Lewis - but they have just gained the equivalent of 'The King' in football officials in the mercurial Shane Richardson.

That's the view of premiership-winning Penrith coach John Lang, who worked alongside Richardson with great success at three Sydney clubs - Cronulla, Penrith and Souths.

The pair came down as a 'package deal' from Brisbane, shining everywhere they went and winning a famous comp at Penrith over the Roosters.

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"In 1993, my dad John Lang told (Sharks boss) Peter Gow in their first meeting at Cronulla, that Richo was the Wally Lewis of football administration coming out of Queensland," Lang's son Justin recalls.

"He wasn't wrong. Successful everywhere he has been."

When Richardson was hired by Russell Crowe at Souths, the club was a basket case.

In an eerie co-incidence, they had won back-to-back wooden spoons - just as the Tigers have done - before the Richardson magic helped the Bunnies to an historic grand final win in 2014 after decades in the wilderness.

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Richardson was appointed interim CEO of the rabble that is the Tigers in yesterday's coup that saw the departure of the board, CEO and chairman.

With a rookie coach in Benji Marshall and a young team, the Tigers have much work to do to become a football powerhouse again.

But they have signed the right man to get them back on track - even though there is no quick fix, the guy known throughout the game as 'Richo' will put them on the correct path.