DRAGONS coach Wayne Bennett chuckles whenever he hears he came down hard on fullback Darius Boyd after his bizarre media interview in Wollongong 12 months ago.
A moody Boyd left journalists flummoxed with a series of "yep" and "nope" responses to eight questions before they lost patience and left.
Bennett later personally apologised to several journalists for Boyd's shortness. But he never, as some have suggested, dragged Boyd over the coals.
"My wife Trish said she'd read an article where I'd criticised Darius or spoken harshly to him about his interview," Bennett said yesterday.
"I said, 'Trish, I'm many things, but I try hard not to be a hypocrite'," he added, laughing. "How could I, of all people, come down on Darius for the interview when I've conducted some of the worst interviews the media has ever had?"
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Those interviews, of course, were more a case of Bennett ensuring the media only heard what he wanted them to hear.
In Boyd's case it was a young footballer not in the mood to talk. He has come a long way since then.
The 22-year-old opened up at Queensland's Origin camp yesterday with an insightful interview touching on his painful exit from the Broncos and Bennett's important role in his life.
Boyd was shattered when Brisbane told him they didn't want him in for 2009. At the time, Bennett was packing up to head to the Dragons following 21 years at Red Hill.
He'd advised the club to sign up its players, never expecting Boyd, who'd been discovered as a tentative 18-year-old, to be released.
"He came to me with tears in his eyes," Bennett said. "I said, 'What's happened' and he said, 'They don't want me'.
"I said to him, 'Don't worry about it, I'll take you with me ... I'd love you to come to the Dragons, so let's go and get it sorted out' and we did."
As he's done with so many players - most recently with Dragons five-eighth Jamie Soward - Bennett has instilled a belief and confidence in Boyd since switching him from wing to fullback that has elevated his game to a new level.
Bennett has drawn comparisons between Boyd and Brisbane champion Darren Lockyer, with whom he shared so much success at club and rep level.
"I can't fault Darius. There's not one thing at training he doesn't do to perfection. I do ratings for players on all aspects of what they do, the similarities [with Lockyer] are uncanny," notes Bennett.
Boyd is taken aback and flattered by such comparisons.
"Wayne's a very big part of my footy career and my life," he said. "It's a big wrap.
"I have enormous respect for Wayne. He's someone I admire and cherish as a friend."
Boyd said Bennett had always known when something was bothering him.
"I'm pretty quiet. I bottle a few things up at times but Wayne is great at detecting when something is wrong," he said.
"He's someone you can really confide in. He's a great person to have in your life."
http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sp...e-of-darius-boyd/story-e6frexnr-1225886880240
