MOVE over Bennett, Bellamy and Hasler, Rabbitohs coach Michael Maguire is about to become the most wanted man in the NRL.
With South Sydney charging towards their first minor premiership since 1989, The Daily Telegraph can reveal there is a genuine fear within the Rabbitohs that other clubs are already trying to pinch their coach.
Maguire is contracted until the end of next season and has been in negotiations with Souths boss Shane Richardson for some months over a long-term extension, believed to be for another five years.
Richardson said there was no hurry to get the deal done, but privately the talk within the club is that the hold-up could directly relate to interest coming from other NRL clubs.
It's no wonder given how quickly Maguire has transformed the Rabbitohs, who are five points clear in the race for the minor premiership and the TAB's $3.25 premiership favourites.
St George Illawarra, Brisbane and North Queensland are three clubs whose coaches are under the pump to keep their jobs. All three clubs have plenty of cash at their disposal to sign the right coach.
The Dragons missed out on signing Craig Bellamy at the start of the year and only re-signed Steve Price until the end of next year, when coincidentally Maguire becomes a free agent.
Brisbane just scraped into the finals last year and are now outside the top eight and struggling.
The Cowboys have been one of the season's biggest disappointments and there has been plenty of speculation about Neil Henry's future. Henry is also signed until the end of next year.
SOUTHS PRESSER
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Souths presser
South Sydney coach Michael Maguire says he is very pleased with the way his players 'played for each other'.
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When Maguire arrived at Redfern last year he was untested at NRL level and would have signed a deal worth around $350,000-a-season, boosted because of his success in England.
But his amazing success at Souths has him being hailed the next big thing in coaching. And when he does finally sign his new deal, he should expect his pay packet to reflect his new standing in the game.
Wayne Bennett, Des Hasler and Craig Bellamy are all on $1 million-plus a season and locked in at their respective clubs for the long-term - which puts the focus on Maguire.
If Maguire can take the Rabbitohs to their first premiership since 1971, his value will surely rival the game's best-paid coaches.
After Friday night's win over Canberra, Richardson was reluctant to go into details about how negotiations were going with Maguire.
He did say the club would do everything possible to ensure Maguire stayed long term and he was confident the deal would get done.
But the longer it goes on, the more nervous people get.
Maguire is only 39 but his success rates him among the elite.
In two years at Wigan he had a winning strike rate of 79 per cent.
He won the English Super League title in his first year at Wigan and the Challenge Cup in his second.
Now he has Souths on top of the table with a winning strike rate of 70 per cent and climbing fast.
Club legend Mario Fenech captained the Rabbitohs to their last minor premiership in 1989 and said he could see plenty of similarities with the current team.
"We want (Maguire) here for five or six years to create a dynasty," Fenech said.
Get that chequebook out Doust!
