WITH Wayne Bennett?s Brisbane homecoming now assured there will be ramifications across the NRL. Here?s five burning questions the move raises.
WHAT HAPPENED TO DRAGONS DONE DEAL?
This time last week the mail coming out of the Dragons was that Wayne Bennett was just about across the line for a return to the club he took to a drought-breaking premiership in 2010. His relationship with CEO Peter Doust was still strong and the goodwill from sponsors and supporters would have assured a smooth transition for the Supercoach. Crucially, the Dragons coaching position for 2015 is also vacant, which is normally a pre-requisite when it comes to negotiating with Bennett, who says he doesn?t like to have blood on his hands when a coach loses his job. None of that has changed in the last seven days, so what happened? Joining the dots it looks like Bennett?s preference was always a return home to Brisbane and the Dragons were always a fallback option.
HAVE THE KNIGHTS PUT THE CUE IN THE RACK?
It?s been an incredibly difficult season for Newcastle and Sunday?s performance in an emotion-charged Rise For Alex game has to be a massive concern for what?s to come for the rest of the season. The Knights came into Sunday?s match on the back of three wins in a row, but the departure of Bennett has been accompanied by whispers that the Supercoach had already lost corners of the Knights dressing room regardless.
They saved one of their worst performances of the season for Rise For Alex round, so can the players motivate themselves for a strong finish to the season when they don?t know who they?ll be playing for next year? It seems the odds are stacked against them.
WILL BRONCOS LIVE TO REGRET IT?
Wayne Bennett no longer enjoys the tide of public support he once had in Brisbane and the way he seems to have engineered his return will only split the city even further. Given the Broncos are still in the hunt for a top four finish this season, is change really needed? And if it is, is a return to the past the best way to take the club forward? Perhaps the answer to that can be found at the Knights and the Dragons where both clubs have been left in an ordinary state by Bennett?s sudden departures. Even if Bennett manages to find improvement in the Broncos will it be short term gain for long term pain? One thing?s for sure, a Bennett-coached club is no longer the panacea it once was.
WHAT NOW FOR DRAGONS AND KNIGHTS?
The Dragons have put plenty of eggs into the Bennett basket, failing to even start talks with caretaker coach Paul McGregor, even though their season has made a sharp turn northwards under one of the club?s favourite sons. So where to now? Do they consider their pursuit of an experienced coach to continue the education of Mary as an assistant or does Doust now go to McGregor cap in hand and broker a deal long enough for the team to be rebuilt?
As for the Knights, CEO Matt Gidley suddenly has a massive task in front of him to get a coach to the club well-credentialed enough to stop the Knights falling into a huge hole, especially with a mass walk out of players looming. It?s debatable whether Rick Stone or Garth Brennan have the gravitas to attract or retain good players, but is there anyone on the market who could? With the NRL looking to sell the Knights, there?s arguably more at stake now in terms of getting the right man than there ever has been before.
WHAT HAPPENS TO BRONCOS FALLEN?
With Anthony Griffin looking for a new job, CEO Paul White will also have a big decision to make, with the possibility raised that White would follow his best mate out the door. It had been widely expected that if Griffin was forced out without due process being followed, as is now the reality, that White would put his friendship with Griffin above his job.
However that message has been confused by a report suggesting White has gone out of his way to assuage Broncos board members by telling them he?d be comfortable working with Wayne Bennett, who he has a relationship with going back to their time in the Queensland police force together. That will be cold comfort for Griffin who now faces the prospect of his NRL coaching career finishing unless he can find his way to a rival club, most likely as an assistant coach.
http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sp...-reportedly-done/story-fni3gv5x-1226995867994
OK who's next on the list? Tim Sheens come on down.
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