Wayne Bennett would be the wrong appointment at this moment in time. It would be a ‘safe’ appointment, doesn’t show much daring or thought to a long-term vision, more a quick fix.
On the plus side:
He certainly would bring instant respect and attract the high quality players we need. He took the Broncos to within a minute of the flag with our current halfback. It may be that he’s simply a great fit for us. That unexplainable chemistry. He had us well under the radar the best part of his first two seasons With Saints. He would toughen us up instantly. He makes a lot out of a little, usually only needing a couple of flair players surrounded by a lot of worker bees and tough guys.
now the negatives:
Let’s look at his record since leaving Saints. In the ten years since he’s made one GF and one prelim. He had a blow out tear at the Knights and cried off a year before his contract finished.
He manoeuvres to his next gig before the last one ends. And takes players with him. He took several key planks of our side away with him to the Knights. Been moved on from two of his last three clubs as the third weighs up doing the same.
These days he also brings the whole sideshow. He brings a hard edged and tough winning culture but at times also looks bereft of solutions such as in 2011 when we won 5 of our last 13 games in an Uber late-season fade that rivalled any under Mary.
Maybe most tellingly, he hasn’t left a legacy of success anywhere He’s been after he’s left. Just pale Xerox’s of his style which is set up to fail without his personality to steer it. And also the style of football. It’s ugly, conservative, defence-oriented. Our points high tally for the season in 2010 was 32, twice. Even the current side put 34 on Cronulla this year, 40 on a couple of teams previously.
As much as Mary failed to deliver, the 48-18 SF win against the Broncos eclipses any win we had under Bennett, from a pure fan perspective. I mean the enjoyment of the football played, not the stakes. Maybe it was the surprise of it rather than just expecting to collect the wins as we could Safely do under Bennett, I don’t know.
to me the worst thing about Mary’s tenure was the dull, unimaginative, structured football we played. The lack of players with flair to get you on your feet. We would be trading that in for a winning, high-octane version of it.
But let’s face it, he hasn’t set the world on fire at Souths and there are no excuses. He’s mis-managed certain areas of their roster in my view. The magic seems to be wearing off.
it’s a no to Bennett. Show some imagination, let’s get away from dull football. Appoint somebody who will guarantee an entertaining journey along with a good win percentage. Let’s face it, No club (without unlimited resources) can win comp after comp. You have to enjoy the down years as well.
1983-84, 1998, 2002, 2005, 2017. These were not premiership or GF years but they gave hope, excitement, promise. Pleasure.
