King of the Hill
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By BARRY TOOHEY
November 13, 2003
STUART Raper, widely touted as the man to replace Chris Anderson if he is sacked as Cronulla coach, has revealed it was Anderson who appointed him to the assistant's job at the Sharks.
Anderson will meet with the Sharks board when he returns from the Kangaroo tour on November 26 where his future at the club will be thrashed out.
Sources say the Sharks will attempt to terminate the Test coach's contract and hand over the coaching reins to Raper.
The feuding between Anderson and the Sharks hierarchy has been festering for some time.
It gathered momentum when Anderson issued a "sack me or back me" ultimatum to the board midway through last season and reached fever pitch when the coach reacted after his son Jarrod was cut from the playing ranks at the end of the season.
Anderson promptly did some sacking of his own, getting rid of long-term assistants Theo Burgess and Greg Pierce, the son of Cronulla president Barry Pierce.
But Raper, caught in the crossfire through no fault of his own, is steering well clear of the controversy.
"I'm staying right out of it and not getting involved," Raper said.
"At this stage, I am the assistant to Chris and overseeing things while he is in England.
"What happens when he gets back is up to the club and Chris to sort out."
Raper, a former successful lower grade coach at the Sharks who has strong ties to the club, has spent the past seven years coaching in England.
He had four seasons with Castleford and three with Wigan. He was sacked as Wigan coach prior to his return to Australia.
Raper, who lost out to the Kangaroo coach when Cronulla appointed a coaching replacement for John Lang more than two years ago, said Anderson was responsible for providing him with the opportunity to rejoin the Sharks.
"I didn't really know Chris but when he knew I was coming home, he offered me the assistant's job through a mutual friend," Raper said.
"With him going to England on the tour, he obviously thought I could help out here while he was away. He had everything in place as far as the training schedule goes before he left."
Asked was he ready to step into a first- grade coaching role in the NRL, Raper was again careful not to push his own barrow.
"I was head coach at two clubs in England for seven years but I'd rather not say any more than that at this stage," he said.
November 13, 2003
STUART Raper, widely touted as the man to replace Chris Anderson if he is sacked as Cronulla coach, has revealed it was Anderson who appointed him to the assistant's job at the Sharks.
Anderson will meet with the Sharks board when he returns from the Kangaroo tour on November 26 where his future at the club will be thrashed out.
Sources say the Sharks will attempt to terminate the Test coach's contract and hand over the coaching reins to Raper.
The feuding between Anderson and the Sharks hierarchy has been festering for some time.
It gathered momentum when Anderson issued a "sack me or back me" ultimatum to the board midway through last season and reached fever pitch when the coach reacted after his son Jarrod was cut from the playing ranks at the end of the season.
Anderson promptly did some sacking of his own, getting rid of long-term assistants Theo Burgess and Greg Pierce, the son of Cronulla president Barry Pierce.
But Raper, caught in the crossfire through no fault of his own, is steering well clear of the controversy.
"I'm staying right out of it and not getting involved," Raper said.
"At this stage, I am the assistant to Chris and overseeing things while he is in England.
"What happens when he gets back is up to the club and Chris to sort out."
Raper, a former successful lower grade coach at the Sharks who has strong ties to the club, has spent the past seven years coaching in England.
He had four seasons with Castleford and three with Wigan. He was sacked as Wigan coach prior to his return to Australia.
Raper, who lost out to the Kangaroo coach when Cronulla appointed a coaching replacement for John Lang more than two years ago, said Anderson was responsible for providing him with the opportunity to rejoin the Sharks.
"I didn't really know Chris but when he knew I was coming home, he offered me the assistant's job through a mutual friend," Raper said.
"With him going to England on the tour, he obviously thought I could help out here while he was away. He had everything in place as far as the training schedule goes before he left."
Asked was he ready to step into a first- grade coaching role in the NRL, Raper was again careful not to push his own barrow.
"I was head coach at two clubs in England for seven years but I'd rather not say any more than that at this stage," he said.
