I cbf making a new thread, but here's another reason we need a cleanout.
North Queensland Cowboys CEO Peter Parr rues Wayne Bennett snub
By Peter Badel
July 23, 2010 North Queensland Cowboys chief executive Peter Parr was left gutted after a club boardroom faction scuppered his successful raid on master coach Wayne Bennett.
The Courier-Mail newspaper revealed Bennett, now at St George Illawarra, had privately agreed to coach the Cowboys from 2009 onwards after being satisfied with the club's lucrative offer following high-powered talks with Parr and chairman Laurence Lancini.
The revelation came as Parr on Thursday night backed the club's contingency signing, Neil Henry, who is under mounting pressure to turn the misfiring Cowboys into a finals contender after two failed campaigns.
Bennett was prevented from officially signing the seven-figure deal when Lancini failed to secure a unanimous board decision after two Cowboys officials dissented.
The decision left Parr devastated and sent the Cowboys scrambling to sign Henry, who was handed a five-year deal and has embarked on a major signing spree to reignite North Queensland as a premiership force.
Seven days after being snubbed by the Cowboys' board, Bennett was snapped up by the Dragons and has transformed the club into raging favourites for this year's premiership.
Parr on Thursday night refused to comment on the botched deal but North Queensland sources said Bennett had been committed to coaching the Cowboys.
In his biography, released in November 2008, Bennett detailed the Cowboys' pursuit and his interest in North Queensland as the club began the search for Graham Murray's successor. But what has never been revealed was the club's formal four-year offer to Bennett.
It is understood the coach outlined his required salary. A delighted Parr agreed to the terms and left the meeting convinced he had his man, only for the Cowboys board to torpedo the deal.
In his book, Bennett wrote: "At the end of the meeting Laurence said he certainly wanted me to be the coach there and I thought the Cowboys would be a great fit for me.
"A few days after the meeting with Laurence and Peter, I got a phone call to say I'd missed out on the job.
"In the end, I thought: 'Thank heavens I'm not going to a club that runs by democracy'. Give me leadership over daily democratic meetings every day of the week."
Parr defended Henry's long-term deal and demanded everyone at the club take ownership of the club's plight.
"Neil has been under some pressure but we have faith in him - he's part of the solution, not the problem," he said.
