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Why Bailey stayed put
March 13, 2004
A few days ago, Cronulla centre Phil Bailey ran into an old friend at his local shops: Chris Anderson.
When the summer began, Anderson had been Bailey's coach at Cronulla and with the Kangaroos. The former Manly lower-grade back-rower had progressed from the fringes of first grade to State of Origin and national honours under his tutelage.
By last week, after an off-season almost as eventful for Bailey as his 2003 campaign, Anderson was just a bloke at the shops.
"Opes [Anderson] just lives in the next street to me so I run into him every now and then," Bailey said yesterday as he prepared for tonight's match against Wests Tigers at Telstra Stadium.
Anderson's sacking upon his return from the Kangaroos' 3-0 Ashes series victory plunged Bailey's future at the club into confusion - he had a clause in his contract allowing him to leave if Anderson was not on board.
Three months later, Anderson was also relieved of his national post and replaced by Brisbane's Wayne Bennett.
"It was certainly a summer of upheavals at the club," Bailey said. "The only blessing was that it happened during the summer and it didn't attract as much attention.
"We weren't playing footy so we didn't deal with it that much.
"It was something between Barry [Pierce, chairman] and the board and we just got on with things. I was happy to stay."
Bailey said he had formed a close relationship with new Cronulla boss Stuart Raper, too, enthusing: "Stuey is so passionate, I think he's got blue, black and white blood.
"I know he would never do anything to hurt the Sharks."
While Bailey had made a name for himself as a representative centre, the arrival of the Bulldogs' Nigel Vagana in the shire offered him the chance to move back to his favoured position in the second row - but like most things in Bailey's life over the past 12 months, that didn't go according to plan either.
"Stuey came and told me that Nigel had had a shoulder operation and he needed me to move into the centres for the first two or three rounds," Bailey said.
"He said I could move back into the forwards after that - it's good for my versatility but the truth is I'm really just a back-rower who can fill in a bit in the centres."
But while Bailey believes that his career as a club three-quarter is almost over, Raper says his return to the back row "isn't automatic".
"It's a matter of seeing how everyone goes against the Tigers," the son of league immortal John Raper said this week.
"I'm hoping Ryan McGoldrick will really develop as a centre this year and then I've got Paul Franze to come in as well, so with Nigel we've got plenty of depth there.
"But if you look in the back row there's a lot of pressure on those blokes as well."
One of the biggest questions posed by Raper's arrival at Cronulla is how their style of play will change visibly without the trademark, flat-attack style of Anderson.
Bailey says the changes won't be what most observers expect.
"I think what you won't see that you did see last year is blokes dropping balls they shouldn't drop in first grade and missing tackles they shouldn't miss," he said.
"Last year we had so many inexperienced players being called up, there were blokes straight out of park football.
"This year, I think you'll see that Matt Hilder has really developed as a ball player and Peach [David Peachey] will step up to the mark, so there won't be as much pressure on Noddy [Brett Kimmorley] to create everything."
And whether it is as a centre or a back-rower, Bailey could do well to hope for fewer ups and downs after a roller-coaster 2003 that ended in a Yorkshire hospital with a fractured eye socket suffered in the last second of the first Test against Great Britain.
"It wasn't much fun at the time but looking back on it it's great to have a little place etched in history," he said.
"And now I get a start at the Kangaroo reunions."
March 13, 2004
A few days ago, Cronulla centre Phil Bailey ran into an old friend at his local shops: Chris Anderson.
When the summer began, Anderson had been Bailey's coach at Cronulla and with the Kangaroos. The former Manly lower-grade back-rower had progressed from the fringes of first grade to State of Origin and national honours under his tutelage.
By last week, after an off-season almost as eventful for Bailey as his 2003 campaign, Anderson was just a bloke at the shops.
"Opes [Anderson] just lives in the next street to me so I run into him every now and then," Bailey said yesterday as he prepared for tonight's match against Wests Tigers at Telstra Stadium.
Anderson's sacking upon his return from the Kangaroos' 3-0 Ashes series victory plunged Bailey's future at the club into confusion - he had a clause in his contract allowing him to leave if Anderson was not on board.
Three months later, Anderson was also relieved of his national post and replaced by Brisbane's Wayne Bennett.
"It was certainly a summer of upheavals at the club," Bailey said. "The only blessing was that it happened during the summer and it didn't attract as much attention.
"We weren't playing footy so we didn't deal with it that much.
"It was something between Barry [Pierce, chairman] and the board and we just got on with things. I was happy to stay."
Bailey said he had formed a close relationship with new Cronulla boss Stuart Raper, too, enthusing: "Stuey is so passionate, I think he's got blue, black and white blood.
"I know he would never do anything to hurt the Sharks."
While Bailey had made a name for himself as a representative centre, the arrival of the Bulldogs' Nigel Vagana in the shire offered him the chance to move back to his favoured position in the second row - but like most things in Bailey's life over the past 12 months, that didn't go according to plan either.
"Stuey came and told me that Nigel had had a shoulder operation and he needed me to move into the centres for the first two or three rounds," Bailey said.
"He said I could move back into the forwards after that - it's good for my versatility but the truth is I'm really just a back-rower who can fill in a bit in the centres."
But while Bailey believes that his career as a club three-quarter is almost over, Raper says his return to the back row "isn't automatic".
"It's a matter of seeing how everyone goes against the Tigers," the son of league immortal John Raper said this week.
"I'm hoping Ryan McGoldrick will really develop as a centre this year and then I've got Paul Franze to come in as well, so with Nigel we've got plenty of depth there.
"But if you look in the back row there's a lot of pressure on those blokes as well."
One of the biggest questions posed by Raper's arrival at Cronulla is how their style of play will change visibly without the trademark, flat-attack style of Anderson.
Bailey says the changes won't be what most observers expect.
"I think what you won't see that you did see last year is blokes dropping balls they shouldn't drop in first grade and missing tackles they shouldn't miss," he said.
"Last year we had so many inexperienced players being called up, there were blokes straight out of park football.
"This year, I think you'll see that Matt Hilder has really developed as a ball player and Peach [David Peachey] will step up to the mark, so there won't be as much pressure on Noddy [Brett Kimmorley] to create everything."
And whether it is as a centre or a back-rower, Bailey could do well to hope for fewer ups and downs after a roller-coaster 2003 that ended in a Yorkshire hospital with a fractured eye socket suffered in the last second of the first Test against Great Britain.
"It wasn't much fun at the time but looking back on it it's great to have a little place etched in history," he said.
"And now I get a start at the Kangaroo reunions."
