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Matthew Elliott is upbeat despite the threat of being axed
By Christian Nicolussi
January 28, 2009
THE threat of being the first NRL coach axed in 2009 has not ruined Matthew Elliott's pre-season at the Panthers.
Elliott, who was spared a lifeline at Penrith after a horror season last year, said his desire to succeed had not changed because of the continuous speculation over his immediate future.
The fact Penrith meet Cronulla, Manly and Melbourne in the first five rounds is bound to keep Elliott's shaky position in the spotlight.
But the coach revealed he could not wait for the new season and hoped his young and inexperienced side could copy AFL counterparts Hawthorn and go from one-time competition whipping boys to powerhouse premiership threats.
"By end of World Cup last year I have to say I wasn't sad to see end of footy, but I cant wait to get back into it now," Elliott said.
"Has it (the threat of losing my job) been a catalyst for me to work harder or coach harder? No. And that would be a pretty sad indictment on myself if I needed that to happen.
"At the end of the day all I can do is prepare the team the way I know they're capable of playing. This is a developing football team, it's a club that has had to go through a restructure and I look at some of the great models of that.
"I look at Hawthorn, I look at the process they went through and the support their organisation provided while they went through some pretty tough years while their young players came through. I think that's a really good model for us to look at.
"I'm not concerned about how young we are, I'm more interested in how talented we are, and that's something we've certainly got ... I'm really excited about the prospect of seeing these guys play over an extended period."
Elliott said Penrith needed to make the finals and he was not prepared to see one of his teams miss September football for a third season in a row. Skipper Petero Civoniceva returns to training this week and Elliott was delighted to see how enthusiastic the Australian prop was to get back on the paddock.
Civoniceva, who was on hand to help the club announce its new partnership with the Australian College of Physical Education, expressed his desire to again play representative football and help Queensland to a historic fourth consecutive series win.
Luke Lewis will be used in a pivotal role this season, said Elliott, while Wade Graham and Jarrod Sammut will trial as the halves combination.
http://www.foxsports.com.au/story/0,8659,24971702-23214,00.html
By Christian Nicolussi
January 28, 2009
THE threat of being the first NRL coach axed in 2009 has not ruined Matthew Elliott's pre-season at the Panthers.
Elliott, who was spared a lifeline at Penrith after a horror season last year, said his desire to succeed had not changed because of the continuous speculation over his immediate future.
The fact Penrith meet Cronulla, Manly and Melbourne in the first five rounds is bound to keep Elliott's shaky position in the spotlight.
But the coach revealed he could not wait for the new season and hoped his young and inexperienced side could copy AFL counterparts Hawthorn and go from one-time competition whipping boys to powerhouse premiership threats.
"By end of World Cup last year I have to say I wasn't sad to see end of footy, but I cant wait to get back into it now," Elliott said.
"Has it (the threat of losing my job) been a catalyst for me to work harder or coach harder? No. And that would be a pretty sad indictment on myself if I needed that to happen.
"At the end of the day all I can do is prepare the team the way I know they're capable of playing. This is a developing football team, it's a club that has had to go through a restructure and I look at some of the great models of that.
"I look at Hawthorn, I look at the process they went through and the support their organisation provided while they went through some pretty tough years while their young players came through. I think that's a really good model for us to look at.
"I'm not concerned about how young we are, I'm more interested in how talented we are, and that's something we've certainly got ... I'm really excited about the prospect of seeing these guys play over an extended period."
Elliott said Penrith needed to make the finals and he was not prepared to see one of his teams miss September football for a third season in a row. Skipper Petero Civoniceva returns to training this week and Elliott was delighted to see how enthusiastic the Australian prop was to get back on the paddock.
Civoniceva, who was on hand to help the club announce its new partnership with the Australian College of Physical Education, expressed his desire to again play representative football and help Queensland to a historic fourth consecutive series win.
Luke Lewis will be used in a pivotal role this season, said Elliott, while Wade Graham and Jarrod Sammut will trial as the halves combination.
http://www.foxsports.com.au/story/0,8659,24971702-23214,00.html
