CHRIS Joynt’s autobiography is called The Quiet Man - and that is nothing to do with the John Wayne film or a pub in Huyton, rather it is a reflection on a captain whose actions spoke louder than words.

And when he did need to speak, those around him listened.

As a captain Joynt was the glue that held together a team that, despite its abundance of star names and big personalities, invariably needed a steady hand on the tiller.

Aside from his obvious playing qualities, two things made Joynt stand out according to his peers — his workrate and his time for people, particularly younger players breaking into the squad.

The former Wigan St Patrick’s junior was missed by his home town, and their loss was Saints’ gain when they signed him from Oldham in 1992.

He had caught the eye in scoring against Saints in a keenly fought Regal Trophy game at the Watersheddings and the 20-year-old slotted in seamlessly in his first season, producing a strong display in the 5-4 Lancashire Cup final defeat by Wigan.

Saints lost the title to Wigan on points difference that year, but they and Joynt got some reward winning the Premiership Trophy and Harry Sunderland respectively.

Joynt’s workrate, his desire to make as many tackles as established workhorse Bernard Dwyer and his dedication to training made him stand out in those early years.

In the summer era Joynt prospered amid the left-hand gang of Tommy Martyn, Paul Newlove and Anthony Sullivan – and they terrorised the opposing defences en route to the 1996 Challenge Cup and Super League double.

Joynt showed his early leadership qualities when, with Bobbie Goulding banned, he assumed the skipper’s armband and lifted the cup at Wembley 1997.

That became permanent the following year, and behind the scenes Joynt is credited with saying the hard truths in ears to get the Saints back on track after a troubled year and a half.

The rest is history and he lifted the title in 1999, 2000 and 2002, skippering the side to Challenge Cup success in 2001 and being part of the victorious team in his swansong 2004 campaign.

Joynt not only knew the game, where to run, how to pull defenders out of shape, he had the physical attributes of pace and power to execute that.

It was not by chance that he polished off some of the greatest tries in Saints’ summer era history.

Wide to West is probably the most famous, but the one he scored against Brisbane in the 2001 World Club Challenge or in the 2000 Grand Final were arguably more important.

But Joynt was always dismissive of those who judged players purely on their tries and breaks, and would want any plaudits reserved for his tackling stats.

Appearances: 382.

Tries: 121.

Points: 484.

Saints Super League Legends XIII: Wellens; Albert, Lyon, Newlove, Sullivan; Martyn, Long; Graham, Cunningham, Perelini, Joynt, Soliola, Sculthorpe