St George Illawarra Dragons just need Wayne Bennett to sign on the dotted line
Don’t break out the Penfolds wine just yet, Dragons fans, but the second coming of Saint Benny is almost complete.
There’s nothing certain in this crazy old world of rugby league, and certainly nothing is certain when it comes to the mysterious
Wayne Bennett, but this column has been told that most terms have been agreed to. All that remains is for a contract to be signed, although an announcement won’t be made until late in the year. That will have the league world whirring for months about where the future lies for the 64-year-old super coach.
But, as we understand it, it will require a considerable backflip from Bennett if it isn’t with the Red V. There are some at the Broncos who want him to come home. That being Broncos chairman
Dennis Watt, who has been in talks for the past six months with the seven-times premiership coach. But others at the club believe that horse – pun intended – has bolted.
The Titans’ strange decision to announce an immediate review of, well, everything has been seen as a potential attempt to ensnare Bennett. Sorry, they simply don’t have the cash to pay out the final two years of
John Cartwright’s contract. There had been real interest from the Warriors, too, earlier this year, but that moment has also passed.
So it’s the Dragons, it seems, although there are certain factions in the joint venture who also have cold feet. So is Bennett a good or bad move? For the great survivor, Dragons chief executive
Peter Doust, it’s the buy of the century. Bennett’s likely signature will ease the pressure that has fallen upon his shoulders since Bennett left three years ago.
The question, though, is how Doust will find the dollars to secure Bennett, and then lock down his line of successors: caretaker coach
Paul McGregor and under-20s mentors
Dean Young and
Ben Hornby.
The players adore McGregor, as their results under him thus far show. Can the Dragons afford $1million a season, and then whatever is needed to keep McGregor there, too?
Perhaps the most intriguing plot line when Bennett returns to the club he steered to premiership glory in 2010 is what it will mean for the coach himself.
Bennett’s aura has dimmed after three indifferent seasons at the Knights, where they say he never understood the relationship between club and community. When he took over from
Nathan Brown at the Dragons in 2009, he was in charge of a polished outfit.
The squad for next season will have an accomplished back line, but will still be lacking grunt and size in the forwards. Bennett doesn’t join a club to rebuild. He joins one to win. When he joined the Dragons last time, he snapped the game’s most discussed premiership drought.
This time, if it doesn’t work out, Bennett’s legacy will be slightly dented – but the one who has the most to lose is Doust.
Boyd’s Knight shift
The aforementioned back line will also include
Darius Boyd, who is tipped to play at fullback with
Josh Dugan slotting into the centres, where he played the last two Origin matches for NSW.
Boyd is still feeling the heat for his petulant non-interview the day after game three when he belittled a female reporter outside the Queensland team hotel. Boyd is a complex character. Some of his teammates like him. Others don’t. There are certainly players in the Queensland and Newcastle sides who cannot cop him. Join the club.
http://www.smh.com.au/rugby-league/...o-sign-on-the-dotted-line-20140718-zu19z.html
