Wayne Bennett and future coach talk

[cram]

This was always going to happen when the NRL extended Midleys contract. Don't know why anyone is surprised, really

Exactly, especially when all the talk has been about having people around who understand the Newcastle culture etc....

 

[Noname36]

That's what they don't seem to get though. You don't need to have lived in Newcastle all your life or have played for the club to understand it. There's plenty of "outsiders" that are far more qualified for positions that probably understand the club just fine but are capable of making decisions in the club's best interests and not in the best interest of their mates.

On the plus side Midley said that the NRL are in well advanced negotiations with a new owner. Knowing our luck though it'll be Wests or something that'll just let them keep operating the way they are. I want Koukash, but with all the "our town, our team" bullshit that so many of the fans buy into the NRL will probably be too scared to let someone like him (a complete "outsider") buy in (even though the bloke seems to completely understand what we're about).

 

[Joker's Wild]

At the end of the day they're just assistants, plenty of teams have just-retired players in similar roles. Hagan was long retired and was still unable to drop players so there's not necessarily a correlation.

Bedsy would be a bad choice for say a head coach role but perhaps an assistant is a good middle ground. It's not like the players don't respond to him.

If Stone is going to make a real go of it this time the buck stops with him when it comes to team selections.

How many are retired players from that particular club though? Not many I can think of

I love Bedsy and think he will make a fantastic coach in the future but it is too soon for him to be involved in a coaching role in FG at the Knights. He is mates with too many of the current team and Id have serious doubts about his ability to be critical of them. I could be wrong and he could have the plums to be hard enough on them but odds are against it

 

[Whats Doing]

Sounds like Stone is surrounding himself with personnel who are not potential threats to his position.

Not a way to build success where you should be surrounding yourselves with expertise which in the long term makes your job safer due to better results.

Stoney appears to be more interested in self survival than making the Knights a premiership threat.

Bad start already if the rumours are true

 

[Still Nutty]

I wonder what happened to all this talk about Marwan Koukash? He was being sprouted in the media a few weeks ago. Haven't heard anything about him for a while. It's a shame, as someone like him definitely has the balls to eliminate the 'old boys club' mentality in our administration.

Until then, it's going to be a while until reach the halcyon days of 1997-2001. The only positive is giving Stone only 2 years. He knows he will have to produce results right from the start of next year.

Maybe he's now eyeing another red and blue side coming on to the market? :sarcasm:

 

[Newie is God's Country]

I was looking forward to next season but truly this has just pissed me off. I feel let down and that no one has any interest in seeing our club move forward. The coaching setup next year is going to be more of the same.

 

[Joker's Wild]

Wakefield Trinity? :sarcasm:

 

[macavity]

Sounds like Stone is surrounding himself with personnel who are not potential threats to his position.

Not a way to build success where you should be surrounding yourselves with expertise which in the long term makes your job safer due to better results.

Stoney appears to be more interested in self survival than making the Knights a premiership threat.

Bad start already if the rumours are true

Don't agree at all - he is on a two year deal, meaning he needs to hit the ground running. I am sure he honestly thinks he is putting together a good support crew.

Easier to work with people you know at any rate.

 

[Nuffy]

Buderus and Sandercock to be Stone's assistants in 2015 according to Toohey. Excited about Bedsy getting a chance but Sandercock was a failure at HKR. It is a shame Sandercock couldn't bring Greg Eden with him. That kid can play. Broncos are close to signing him.

Why did we expect something different, Stone looks like he is bringing in Bedsy for good PR and Sandercock because he isn't a threat.

This club just craves mediocrity.

Stones reign looks pathetic already. The only good thing in all this is he only has two years, hopefully he gets punted around the same time as Mids and Chief.

 

[Nuffy]

Don't agree at all - he is on a two year deal, meaning he needs to hit the ground running. I am sure he honestly thinks he is putting together a good support crew.

Easier to work with people you know at any rate.

Might be easier but isn't necessarily better.

I was always told to hire people better than yourself. Sandercock has just been sacked and as much as I love Bedsy, he needs to earn his spurs, his role looks like good PR and not much else.

Stone's first decisions seem more about protecting himself than building a true high performance team.

But it's Newcastle so as long as the knights nannas and Chief agree, then it's acceptable.

 

[undertaker]

Sounds like Stone is surrounding himself with personnel who are not potential threats to his position.

Not a way to build success where you should be surrounding yourselves with expertise which in the long term makes your job safer due to better results.

Stoney appears to be more interested in self survival than making the Knights a premiership threat.

Bad start already if the rumours are true

Well, our club administration has tolerated mediocrity for many years now. What makes you think the status quo is going to change anytime soon?

 

[undertaker]

I want Koukash, but with all the "our town, our team" bullshit that so many of the fans buy into the NRL will probably be too scared to let someone like him (a complete "outsider") buy in (even though the bloke seems to completely understand what we're about).

The part in bold has given me the green apple splatters more than anything. We have under-performed for many years due to this motto.

 

[Newie is God's Country]

Koukash has been quiet of late in regards to this club but on twitter he is fairly quick to be upfront when a deal falls through. His silence may be a good sign. Fingers crossed.

 

[Swarzey]

The part in bold has given me the green apple splatters more than anything. We have under-performed for many years due to this motto.

Yet look at the team that won us our premierships and the years that included those players. When we get it wrong, it's horrible and we're a considerable joke, but when we get it right? It's successful. Sure, we had the luxury of having the greatest of all time and some very talented players, but surely we as Knights fans, regardless of how poor this season has been can see enough talent to believe there's success coming through to believe that the motto can be successful?

We can have a shit CEO and not even the strongest coaching staff, but if we can avoid the same off field drama we've suffered through this year, then our players will shine and some success will surely come our way.

 

[undertaker]

Yet look at the team that won us our premierships and the years that included those players. When we get it wrong, it's horrible and we're a considerable joke, but when we get it right? It's successful. Sure, we had the luxury of having the greatest of all time and some very talented players, but surely we as Knights fans, regardless of how poor this season has been can see enough talent to believe there's success coming through to believe that the motto can be successful?

We can have a shit CEO and not even the strongest coaching staff, but if we can avoid the same off field drama we've suffered through this year, then our players will shine and some success will surely come our way.

I never said that we have always under performed when we have been a 'home grown' team. But, for many years now we have. We achieved to our potential when we had the quality and depth of players in the lower grades and local Newcastle RL competition, as well as them gelling well as a team, and obviously our team from our inception, right through the '90s and early '00s was predominantly home grown.

Also, I know the decision to give Rick Stone the top job next year has been questioned by many here for good reasons. However, he has only been given a 2 year gig, so he knows he will have to produce results right from the start. He won't be getting the luxury of other coaches on longer-term deals, where they can 'settle' into the club.

 

[Burwood]

Two years is too short to affect any real change. Once again, Stone has inherited a roster that is not his. His first 12 months will be spent working with a number of guys he likely doesn't want in the squad. By the time his second year comes around he'lI need early success for us to avoid 20 rounds of speculation around the security of his job. I could understand the short contract if he was inheriting a successful squad from Bennett, but that unfortunately is not the case.

Under these circumstances, I think 3 years would have been better- it gives the coach security to do what he needs without the chance for complacency like 4-5 year contracts can have. I can't imagine Stone went to the coach selection panel (if there was one...) and sold them on the idea of his two year plan for the club.

 

[Newie is God's Country]

Stone's two year deal is fair because he has been there before. He has a much better squad than the one he left in 2011. Like I said before his true litmus test is 2016 cos the club will know by then if he is capable of attracting talent to the club. If not he needs to be moved out because that sort of stigma never leaves a coach. Ask Brian Smith.

 

[Whats Doing]

Irrespective the relative merits of how many players we had out, it was noticable the little things the Broncs were doing better than the knights such as the forwards taking the ball on the ad line whereas our forwards were receiving it 1 or 2 metres back. The difference in the wrestle

Griffin was Bellamy coached and it shows.

Bennett has been an absolute disaster for the knights and the sooner I see the back of Bennett the better

 

[insert.pause]

Irrespective the relative merits of how many players we had out, it was noticable the little things the Broncs were doing better than the knights such as the forwards taking the ball on the ad line whereas our forwards were receiving it 1 or 2 metres back. The difference in the wrestle

Griffin was Bellamy coached and it shows.

Bennett has been an absolute disaster for the knights and the sooner I see the back of Bennett the better

As a Broncos fan I can tell you that is not true, the Broncos play with little to no structure in attack and are far from the meticulously drilled side you expect from Bellamy or even Maguire. The Broncos beat you because we completed our sets and you didn't.


By the by, it's curious that over the last few weeks when you won it's been thanks to Stone, but the moment you lose, Bennett must have been coaching them that week.

 

[Frederick]

As a Broncos fan I can tell you that is not true, the Broncos play with little to no structure in attack and are far from the meticulously drilled side you expect from Bellamy or even Maguire. The Broncos beat you because we completed our sets and you didn't.


By the by, it's curious that over the last few weeks when you won it's been thanks to Stone, but the moment you lose, Bennett must have been coaching them that week.

Where has anyone said that?