Both Australian Phil Gould and New Zealander Dean Bell - a former captain at the club - have been linked with the job.

The removal of Goodway, who still had a year of his contract left to run, and his assistant David Miles was announced by new club chairman Maurice Lindsay.

'Agreed to part'

"We are going to have a completely fresh start at the club," said Lindsay, who resumed a leading role at Wigan last month after retiring as managing director

"I want to re-structure the whole club from top to bottom. I met Andy Goodway last night and we agreed to part company. I stress that it was very amicable. We shook hands.

"I've known the lad for 15 years. He is one of my old boys. It's obviously sad to sit down with a good friend and agree to part."

Goodway stepped up to coach the Lancashire giants in the middle of last season, following the departure of John Monie.

'Position is vacant'

But his elevation heralded the club's worst finish in several years, as Wigan slumped to fourth in the Super League. It was also the first time in 15 years the club had failed to win any trophies.

Concerning a replacement for Goodway, Lindsay said: "We didn't go behind Andy's back. We wanted to be genuine with Andy. The best thing was to have a honest discussion with Andy and let him know first.

"The position is now vacant. We haven't approached anybody and there's no one lined up. We will look for another coach as soon as possible."