Daniel Anderson's win could have saved job
* Phil Rothfield Sports Editor-at-large
* From: The Daily Telegraph
* August 14, 2010 12:00AM
DANIEL Anderson is the last person Parramatta chief executive Paul Osborne wanted to sack
.
Osborne and the besieged Eels coach have struck up a close friendship over the past 18 months despite constant boardroom pressure to remove Anderson from the job.
Earlier this year, Osborne approached the board and tried to extend Anderson's contract but directors rejected the request when the Eels won only one of their first four games.
Pressure mounted as the Eels continued to underperform and two directors sent emails demanding Anderson's sacking after the recent thumping loss to the Warriors.
Osborne refused to react and, with the support of chairman Ray Spagnolo, resisted pressure to look for another coach in the hope Anderson could repeat last year's charge to the grand final. Last week's loss to the Gold Coast at Skilled Park forced Osborne to act.
Under instructions from Spagnolo, Osborne secretly boarded a flight to Melbourne for talks with Craig Bellamy's assistant coach Steve Kearney. The irony of the talks on Monday is that Kearney was originally interviewed for the job by former boss Denis Fitzgerald before being overlooked for Anderson.
To protect his friendship with Anderson, Osborne was determined to keep the talks with the Storm assistant coach secret and even booked the flight to Melbourne without any of the football club staff knowing. He met with Kearney to sound him out as a "Plan B" option if the Eels failed to make the grand final.The Parramatta board see New Zealand Test coach Kearney as the ideal type to handle the large Polynesian element at the club.
He is extremely well regarded by The most influential figures in the game, including Bellamy and Wayne Bennett. Cashed-up Parramatta are prepared to offer Kearney one of the richest coaching deals in the NRL to make it happen.
But Eels board members are understandably anxious to get off to a flying start in next year's premiership because they are under pressure to be re-elected at the annual meeting next April.
The majority of directors feel it is too risky to stick with Anderson, in case Fitzgerald's old supporters mount a campaign to get rid of them.
One would find this comment hard to believe?!!!