Wayne Bennett news

[Red]

Wayne Bennett reveals reasons for Dolphins vs Cowboys no-show​

Wayne Bennett has defended his decision not to attend the Dolphins’ first major NRL trial​

Wayne Bennett has defended his decision not to attend the Dolphins’ first major NRL trial, insisting the new franchise is always his “priority”.
The super coach came under fire for his Sunday ‘no show’ from sections of the rugby league community after Bennett chose to stay at home and watch the Dolphins-Cowboys pre-season hitout on Fox Sports.

It was the Dolphins’ historic first appearance against an NRL team after taking on the Central Queensland Capras the week previous, with Bennett’s chief assistant Kristian Woolf handed the reins for the Cowboys clash. But when contacted by News Corp, Bennett was mystified by the controversy, outlining several reasons why he was absent for the Dolphins-Cowboys clash in Cairns.

In his 35-year NRL coaching career, Bennett has traditionally passed the baton to his assistants for opening trials before taking charge for the final hitout of the pre-season, which he will do this Sunday against the Titans. In this instance, Bennett said he had a Monday morning training session scheduled with several NRL top liners who did not play against the Cowboys, including skipper Jesse Bromwich and Felise Kaufusi.

 

[Red]

‘Don’t care who you are’, Legend takes aim at Bennett over Dolphins absence​

Rugby league legend Gorden Tallis has slammed Wayne Bennett’s failure to attend the Dolphins’ debut appearance in an NRL competition on Sunday. The super coach has been tasked with building the club’s first NRL roster ahead of the 2023 season and has secured a number of experienced players.

The Dolphins drew with the Cowboys in their first pre-season challenge clash, but Bennett was nowhere to be seen and also missed the club’s trial a week earlier against the Central Queensland Capras. Tallis, who played over 150 games under Bennett at the Broncos, labelled his absence “strange” but Dolphins officials believe the 73-year-old had a legitimate reason for not attending.

“Why isn’t the coach in (the club’s) first year going?” Tallis said on the Footy Talk League podcast. “I was in Gladstone with him last weekend... I was quite impressed with what the Dolphins are doing. “Wayne was up there. He had a really young squad, all the young kids and [he] didn’t even go to that game either. “Two weeks in a row (he didn’’t go).”

Bennett handed the reigns over to assistant coaches Kristian Woolf and Nathan Fien against the Cowboys and Tallis likened the move to having a substitute teacher in school. “I don’t care who you are. Let’s break it down to school when your teacher is not there and you get a relief teacher, do you work as hard?” Tallis said.

“Maybe there’s a bit of a ploy and when his real team runs out, or when the top boys run out (that’s when he will be there). “He’s been around for a long, long time so he knows what he’s doing.”

Bennett responded to the criticism by stating “my priority is to the Dolphins”. “We had some issues with flights (getting home early from Cairns) and I wanted to make sure I was here at Redcliffe to be coaching the rest of the NRL players who didn’t play against the Cowboys,” he said. “There’s no issue at my end.”

Dolphins chief executive said Bennett’s absence came down to a training session on Monday and said it the plan was always to give the assistants a chance to take over in the trials. “Wayne has been doing this for decades but I also think some people might have forgotten that 12 of our senior players that did not play were on the field with Wayne for training at 7am (on Monday morning) back at Redcliffe,” Reader said.

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Tallis really holds a grudge. 10 years after Bennett has passed, Tallis will still be bagging him.

 

[Axel]

‘Don’t care who you are’, Legend takes aim at Bennett due to Dolphins absence​

Rugby league legend Gorden Tallis has slammed Wayne Bennett’s failure to attend the Dolphins’ debut appearance in an NRL competition on Sunday. The super coach has been tasked with building the club’s first NRL roster ahead of the 2023 season and has secured a number of experienced players.

The Dolphins drew with the Cowboys in their first pre-season challenge clash, but Bennett was nowhere to be seen and also missed the club’s trial a week earlier against the Central Queensland Capras. Tallis, who played over 150 games under Bennett at the Broncos, labelled his absence “strange” but Dolphins officials believe the 73-year-old had a legitimate reason for not attending.

“Why isn’t the coach in (the club’s) first year going?” Tallis said on the Footy Talk League podcast. “I was in Gladstone with him last weekend... I was quite impressed with what the Dolphins are doing. “Wayne was up there. He had a really young squad, all the young kids and [he] didn’t even go to that game either. “Two weeks in a row (he didn’’t go).”

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Tallis really holds a grudge. 10 years after Bennett has passed, Tallis will still be bagging him.

And Bennett doesn't? Bennett will still be bagging various people 10 years after he has passed.

 

[Red]

And Bennett doesn't? Bennett will still be bagging various people 10 years after he has passed.

In a subtle way. Tallis is too dumb for subtlety.

 

[Red]

‘It does the boys good’: Bennett unleashes training spray on eve of Dolphins season​

Dolphins coach Wayne Bennett has delivered a spray at training on the eve of their final hit-out before the club’s NRL debut next month. The Dolphins drew 22-22 with the Cowboys in their Pre-season Challenge opener last weekend and this Sunday they’ll face the Titans in their final trial match.

Bennett unleashed on the entire playing group on Thursday morning, with fullback Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow one of several senior players singled out. “It does the boys good, getting a spray, it’s just a matter of how you handle it,” Tabuai-Fidow said after training. “It’s not a bad thing (getting) a spray, he obviously wants to make you better and it drives you as well.”

Tabuai-Tabuai-Fidow signed with the Dolphins on a two-year deal after getting benched by the Cowboys last season. The fullback is determined to make the No. 1 jersey his own at Redcliffe. “It’s just about knowing my role within the team,” he said. “Coming from the Cowboys I came off the bench and played centre, fullback, wing. So just being down here knowing I’m the No. 1 fullback and it’s a role I want to keep for the whole season.

“It makes my job easier when I’m focused on one position. and where I need to get better.” The Dolphins missed out on a host of big-name recruits in their 16-month preparation for the NRL and several pundits have tipped them to claim the wooden spoon. But seven-time premiership winning coach Bennett has shot back at his critics and reminded them all summer that the proof will be in the pudding. The Dolphins face the Roosters in their season opener on March 5.

 

[Equaliser]

Wayne Bennett reacts to criticism of Dolphins’ recruitment​

Bennett has hit back at criticism of the Dolphins recruiting, saying it’s too early to judge​

BENNETT HITS BACK IN QLD’S UNCIVIL WAR​

Wayne Bennett has hit back at Dolphins detractors in the wake of a savage attack from former Gold Coast Titans football manager Scott Sattler over the expansion franchise’s recruitment drive. All eyes will be on the Dolphins at Suncorp Stadium on Sunday week when they begin their foundation NRL campaign against the Roosters.

The Dolphins were outclassed 40-16 by the Titans in a one-sided trial match at Redcliffe last Sunday which raised alarm bells. If the performance was a sign of things to come, it could be a long year for the NRL’s 17th franchise following a tough recruitment process after being handed the licence with less than 18 months to prepare.

Sattler helped assemble the Titans’ foundation roster, signing the likes of Preston Campbell, Scott Prince, Luke Bailey and Anthony Laffranchi for their 2007 launch. And the ex-Queensland Origin forward hasn’t been impressed by the Dolphins’ approach.

“I’ve got to say, the Dolphins’ recruitment has been some of the poorest recruitment I’ve seen in rugby league,” Sattler told SEN. “Really, really bad recruitment, I mean, they’ve got great experienced forwards that are going to keep them in the battle defensively but where their points are going to come from, I don’t know. “There wouldn’t be many players from the Redcliffe Dolphins that you’d look at to try and take from them to bring to your club.

 

[Equaliser]

“There were some real marquee players on the market that they could have tried to entice. “They didn’t take a recruitment mindset going into getting the 17th licence, they just spoke about how much money they had. “But your first couple of years have got to be really important about future signings and bringing those marquee players to your club, so how you’re seen from the outside from the first day is really important.”

Contacted by Sport Confidential, Bennett said he was not hitting the panic button. “I’ve been around long enough to know it’s only the trial season,” Bennett said. “We didn’t take much out of it but the bottom line is it was only a trial and we’re a new club. “We’ve played a couple of games ... let’s see where we are after 10 rounds of the season.”

The Dolphins had a crack at representative stars Cameron Munster, Kalyn Ponga, Tino Fa’asuamaleaui and Brandon Smith but were unable to land a marquee signing. Bennett recently admitted it had been a hard slog putting together the club’s foundation squad.

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Signing one of those 4 would have been good, especially Munster but it was also important not to pay massive overs. Singing one of them on massive overs would have provided short term gain for long term pain. IMO

 

[Jetty]

Bennett embraces villain role with Broncos-Dolphins rivalry set to explode​

At times abrasive, cunning, but always entertaining, Wayne Bennett is perfect to stand at the epicentre of rugby league’s newest rivalry.​

Wayne Bennett believes it can become Australia’s version of world sport’s greatest rivalries. Broncos versus Dolphins. It doesn’t yet have the same spice, aura and crackle as Manchester United versus Man City, Spain’s El Clasico between Real Madrid and Barcelona or Carlton going hammer and tongs with Collingwood in the AFL.

But in time, Bennett hopes the River City Rumble will become the NRL’s premier grudge match, surpassing any chapter the Roosters and Souths can conjure in the Book of Feuds. Like all explosive narratives, a villain is needed. Enter Bennett. The greatest coach in NRL history, at times abrasive, mostly cunning, always entertaining, is tailor-made to stand at the epicentre of rugby league’s newest rivalry.

• For the first time in 25 years, the Brisbane Broncos – the richest club in the league boasting a $53 million empire – will not enjoy a monopoly in the River City.
• Bennett has not forgotten the Red Hill civil war that led to his sensational sacking as Broncos coach in 2018. Now Bennett is back on Queensland soil taking on a Broncos club he made great and never expected to leave.
• “I hope it is like that, I want it to be that way,” Bennett says of the prospect of a Broncos-Dolphins NRL feud.
• Right now, Bennett has no interest in talking titles. He wants two basic non-negotiables for the Dolphins: credibility and their own identity.
• “It will be a process. But if you get the process right, you are a lot closer to success.”

 

[Equaliser]

Bennett embraces the villain role with Broncos-Dolphins rivalry set to explode​

At times abrasive, cunning, but always entertaining, Wayne Bennett is perfect to stand at the epicentre of rugby league’s newest rivalry.​

Wayne Bennett believes it can become Australia’s version of world sport’s greatest rivalries. Broncos versus Dolphins. It doesn’t yet have the same spice, aura and crackle as Manchester United versus Man City, Spain’s El Clasico between Real Madrid and Barcelona or Carlton going hammer and tongs with Collingwood in the AFL.

But in time, Bennett hopes the River City Rumble will become the NRL’s premier grudge match, surpassing any chapter the Roosters and Souths can conjure in the Book of Feuds. Like all explosive narratives, a villain is needed. Enter Bennett. The greatest coach in NRL history, at times abrasive, mostly cunning, always entertaining, is tailor-made to stand at the epicentre of rugby league’s newest rivalry.

• For the first time in 25 years, the Brisbane Broncos – the richest club in the league boasting a $53 million empire – will not enjoy a monopoly in the River City.
• Bennett has not forgotten the Red Hill civil war that led to his sensational sacking as Broncos coach in 2018. Now Bennett is back on Queensland soil taking on a Broncos club he made great and never expected to leave.
• “I hope it is like that, I want it to be that way,” Bennett says of the prospect of a Broncos-Dolphins NRL feud.
• Right now, Bennett has no interest in talking titles. He wants two basic non-negotiables for the Dolphins: credibility and their own identity.
• “It will be a process. But if you get the process right, you are a lot closer to success.”

They are hardly innocent bystanders in this. They were first to release players only on condition they didn't sign with us.

 

[Jetty]

They are hardly innocent bystanders in this. They were first to release players only on condition they didn't sign with us.

Doesn't matter who started it. Only matters that in the short to medium term, we win it. Such a rivalry was always inevitable.

 

[Red]

(the article is behind a paywall but..... The main points in my view. I know it's hardly about the Dolphins at all but this is the Wayne Bennett thread so I think it's ok.

Fire that fuels Bennett’s feud with the Brisbane Broncos​

• Just as the Broncos were focusing on the new season, Bennett gutted them again, signing two young men the Broncos were desperate to keep, Thomas Flegler and Herbie Farnworth.
  
  
• Left no doubt that whatever hope the two clubs had of existing in harmony
  
  
• Former Broncos chief executive Paul White did a study of major coaches around the world and their ages and capabilities and he realised Bennett was old.
  
  
• Bennett was offered an ambassador role, and then some head of football job that looked grand in title but was light on detail.
  
  
• He saw himself being moved on in part to help the ambitions of other men.
  
  
• Sometime after, Bennett was home when Mick Ennis flew to Brisbane to interview him.
  
  
• Bennett had had a small medical procedure so was sitting uncomfortably and was in no real mood for the interview.
  
  
• He was told the Broncos had again approached Bellamy which was news to him.
  
  
• Given Bennett’s contribution to the (Broncos) club, he felt insulted.
  
  
• He might look like grandad nowadays, but the competitive streak burns bright.
  
  
• When he swapped jobs with Anthony Seibold – Bennett going to Souths and Seibold to Brisbane – the new Broncos coach quickly found himself in a small PR war.
  
  
• Now, as Dolphins coach, the game becomes real when they play their first game Sunday against the Sydney Roosters at Suncorp, with the Broncos just three more weeks away.
  
  
• Revenge is not an emotion normally associated with Bennet but it lives.

 

[Jetty]

(the article is behind a paywall but..... The main points in my view. I know it's hardly about the Dolphins at all but this is the Wayne Bennett thread so I think it's ok.

Fire that fuels Bennett’s feud with the Brisbane Broncos​

• Just as the Broncos were focusing on the new season, Bennett gutted them again, signing two young men the Broncos were desperate to keep, Thomas Flegler and Herbie Farnworth.
  
  
• Left no doubt that whatever hope the two clubs had of existing in harmony
  
  
• Former Broncos chief executive Paul White did a study of major coaches around the world and their ages and capabilities and he realised Bennett was old.
  
  
• Bennett was offered an ambassador role, and then some head of football job that looked grand in title but was light on detail.
  
  
• He saw himself being moved on in part to help the ambitions of other men.
  
  
• Sometime after, Bennett was home when Mick Ennis flew to Brisbane to interview him.
  
  
• Bennett had had a small medical procedure so was sitting uncomfortably and was in no real mood for the interview.
  
  
• He was told the Broncos had again approached Bellamy which was news to him.
  
  
• Given Bennett’s contribution to the (Broncos) club, he felt insulted.
  
  
• He might look like grandad nowadays, but the competitive streak burns bright.
  
  
• When he swapped jobs with Anthony Seibold – Bennett going to Souths and Seibold to Brisbane – the new Broncos coach quickly found himself in a small PR war.
  
  
• Now, as Dolphins coach, the game becomes real when they play their first game Sunday against the Sydney Roosters at Suncorp, with the Broncos just three more weeks away.
  
  
• Revenge is not an emotion normally associated with Bennet but it lives.

If he can unsettle the Donkey's, we don't mind that but first and foremost he's building a team for Redcliff, not getting revenge on real or imaged wrongs the Donkey's did to him.

 

[Jetty]

How Wayne ambushed NRL​

BENNETT’S DOLPHINS UPSET ROOSTERS IN EPIC BOILOVER ​

The Dolphins shook up the competition with an upset 28-18 victory over many expert’s title favourites the Roosters to announce themselves on the NRL stage in style. Braith Anasta believes the Dolphins would have surprised a lot of people with their first up performance and they could do a lot better than many predicted in 2023.

“Wayne Bennett’s Dolphins in there first ever game have won, not many gave them a chance,” Anasta said. “Against all odds an incredible performance from the new club and they have delivered on the biggest stage against one of the premiership heavyweights. What a victory.”

Corey Parker lauded the impact of the Dolphins’ senior players in confirming what the club’s DNA will be built on from their very first performance. “Great scenes,” Parker said. “You see some pure elation from the team, who over the summer would have worked so hard. “A lot of people wrote them off. I was one of them. I thought the Roosters would turn up and just be too classy and get the job done.

 

[Axel]

Bennett delivers in first press conference after Dolphins shock victory​

Wayne Bennett delivered in his first post-game press conference as Dolphins head coach, taking shots at reporters as well as tempering expectations around his side in trademark style. In front of over 30,000 fans at Suncorp Stadium, the newest club caused a major upset, defeating premiership favourites Sydney Roosters 28-18 in their first game in the competition.

Bennett was criticised for his recruitment after multiple big names knocked back offers from the Dolphins, but the experienced forwards complimented some of the talented young guns against one of the league's most feared outfits. Speaking to the media after the game, Bennett recognised the significance of the victory and compared it to the Brisbane Broncos in their inaugural game over 30 years ago.

"I was pretty proud of everything they did...it was a tough game of footy and they competed from go to woe," he said. “It was a special for a lot of reasons today…the chance they took about being in the NRL and having 30,000 plus people here today. “I think the Broncos had 15,000 the day we played our first game all those years ago…30,000 plus here today and it was a great atmosphere.

“No one gave us a chance here much today – it’s terribly significant. One of the most difficult things is to get that first win because it just settles everything down. A loss here today would have put us under a hell of a lot more pressure. "It’s just a great occasion and there are so many winners today – but the biggest winner today is the game."

Experienced trio Felise Kaufusi & the Bromwich brothers were both integral in the Dolphins' victory, while teenage debutant Isaiya Katoa proved exactly why Bennett has invested in him immediately. But in trademark Bennett style, he wasn't too keen to give wraps to the 19-year-old playmaker after the performance, instead focusing on the leaders in the side.

“I didn’t think he was special, he just did his job. He’s got a lot more upside yet," Bennett said. “That’s what I bought Kenny and his brother and Felise for, because I knew what they brought and you all saw that out there today. "That’s what we will build the foundations on – we can’t build the foundations on young men that don’t have a lot of football behind them, it just doesn’t work that way. "They are our foundations and they proved that today."

Kaufusi took out the Arthur Beetson Medal for player of the match, with some brutal first-half hits changing the complexion of the contest and allowing the Dolphins to take the lead. Bennett was in a jovial mood following the game, but didn't miss the opportunity to take aim at a reporter who questioned why he wasn't at a recent pre-season fixture in Cairns.

“Are you still looking for me? I went to Cairns and you were looking for me," he said. "I’m not sure I want to answer your question, you haven’t had the decency to ring me about it. "You wanted to make me a headline over it, you didn’t bother to ask me where I was…you can’t just give it and not take it."

After winning their first game, there were always going to be question marks over the Dolphins and their team song. But there were no issues and no hiccups from the playing group in the sheds, with Bennett revealing the squad had been practicing belting it out prior to the NRL campaign kicking off.

“We went away on a pre-season camp for three or four days and I said to them we haven’t got a team song, I need you to work on it," Bennett said. "A couple of hours later, the senior players led by these guys – Kaufusi, him and his brother – had a great song and we’ve sang it 10 or 12 times now in different things we’ve done. "It’s a tremendous theme song – it’s a real credit to them."

The Dolphins will now take on the Canberra Raiders next weekend in a bid to start their inaugural season with a 2-0 record.

 

[Equaliser]

Interesting article here. Long but interesting.

No false dawn for Dolphins​

Wayne Bennett has been likened to Clint Eastwood and his Dirty Harry character many times due to his remarkable physical resemblance and similar squinty-eyed glare which he’s turned on reporters for decades rather than punks who may or may not feel lucky.

In the pre-season, he became Marsellus Wallace, the all-seeing, all-powerful crime lord from Pulp Fiction.

When contemplating if he needed to go to Cairns last month to watch a team featuring only a few top-liners, he sent the wolf instead. Kristian Woolf, that is. Not Winston Wolfe.

No false dawn for Dolphins, now even harder work begins as Bennett builds character at fledgling franchise

The Dolphins shocked the NRL world in Round 1, the challenge now is to show it was no fluke.

www.theroar.com.au

 

[Chris]

Kevvie can step out of Wayne’s ‘shadow’ tonight​

Cooper Cronk has one fear for Kevin Walters on Friday night. But it seems, at least based on Walters’ comments throughout the week, that there’s no need to worry. After all, he did learn from the best — the master of manipulation.Walters knew full well what was coming after Brisbane’s 40-18 win over the Dragons last Saturday, how inevitably the post-game press conference would turn to the topic of his old mentor.

So, when the first question was raised about Friday’s ‘Battle of Brisbane’, Walters refused to give it much thought.

Kevvie can step out of Wayne’s ‘shadow’ tonight... but his biggest ‘weakness’ could stand in the way

Kevvie can step out of Wayne’s shadow... but his biggest ‘weakness’ stands in the way

www.foxsports.com.au

He's a little too "broad" to fit in Benny's shadow.

 

[Chris]

Several people in the media are saying this season is shaping up as Wayne's greatest ever coaching achievement. Taken a team of mostly rejects other clubs didn't want. Now the finals look almost like a certainty. Just a question of what position in the finals.

I tend to agree. Before the season started I was hoping to avoid the spoon and doing so would have meant a pass for the season.

 

[DolphinLungren]

Several people in the media are saying this season is shaping up as Wayne's greatest ever coaching achievement. Taken a team of mostly rejects other clubs didn't want. Now the finals look almost like a certainty. Just a question of what position in the finals.

I tend to agree. Before the season started I was hoping to avoid the spoon and doing so would have meant a pass for the season.

Buzz was going on about this on NRL 360 but the others on the panel disagreed. It's crazy how good they've gone. I was the same as you and was ready for a lot of disappointments.

Although Wayne did have some rep players to work with, they were all either getting old and past their prime (Bromwhich brothers, Kafusi, Wallace), or really green and only played a game or two (Hammer, Gilbert) or bottom of the barrel career-ending form (Milf, Nikorima, Iaako).

What Bennett has done actively putting the team together within a very short space and without any initial marquee players I feel is incredible actually. Ofcourse he's had help, but he was also front of putting the coaching staff together, then building culture, player roles, gameplans etc. mostly at his discretion.

The guy is a gun!

 

[Paul]

Several people in the media are saying this season is shaping up as Wayne's greatest ever coaching achievement. Taken a team of mostly rejects other clubs didn't want. Now the finals look almost like a certainty. Just a question of what position in the finals.

I tend to agree. Before the season started I was hoping to avoid the spoon and doing so would have meant a pass for the season.

Buzz was going on about this on NRL 360 but the others on the panel disagreed. It's crazy how good they've gone. I was the same as you and was ready for a lot of disappointments.

Although Wayne did have some rep players to work with, they were all either getting old and past their prime (Bromwhich brothers, Kafusi, Wallace), or really green and only played a game or two (Hammer, Gilbert) or bottom of the barrel career-ending form (Milf, Nikorima, Iaako).

What Bennett has done actively putting the team together within a very short space and without any initial marquee players I feel is incredible actually. Ofcourse he's had help, but he was also front of putting the coaching staff together, then building culture, player roles, gameplans etc. mostly at his discretion.

The guy is a gun!

I'm with you two. I never expected the spoon became I was very confident Benny magic would prevent that. But also never expert to be going near as well as they are.

 

[Red]

I'm with you two. I never expected the spoon became I was very confident Benny magic would prevent that. But also never expert to be going near as well as they are.

Also done it with a fair amount of adversity in regard to over done suspensions and injuries to key players.