Signings, Suggestions & Rumours Discussion
- Thread starter MacDougall
- Start date
@ said:
Good to see I'm not the only one who thought of Joey Leilua
Bennett, Maguire head to head at club and international level
Wayne Bennett and Michael Maguire are only weeks away from locking horns in a three-match Test series in England. A more intriguing game involving the pair looms on home soil.
Bennett is due to touch down in England imminently, having insisted to all and sundry that he will see out the final year of his deal in Brisbane, where he and many others believe the roster is primed to win a premiership.
At the same time — as revealed in The Australian last week — the Wests Tigers are circling and Bennett could figure in a plan that would allow Ivan Cleary to leave for Penrith, where many believe his heart and head already lie.
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Maguire is also on the Tigers’ radar and his future could ultimately hinge on Bennett’s decision, placing the pair in competition not only for international honours, but also potentially their club coaching futures.
The Tigers are doing their due diligence. They know Bennett would be the easiest sell with fans should they decide to release Cleary from the final years of his deal.
When the club brought Cleary back from the coaching wilderness a few years back — after he was sacked by Penrith because general manager of football Phil Gould thought he was tired — they were considered a basket-case.
Now it appears coaches are falling over themselves to take over the Tigers, including a seven-time premiership winner regarded as the greatest mentor in the game’s history.
Bennett would be a serious upgrade on Cleary, a coach with a sub-50 per cent winning ratio whose relationship with Tigers fans has been irreparably damaged by events of recent months.
The challenge is the timing. The Tigers may be forced to wait 12 months for Bennett, which would leave them in an invidious and puzzling position.
They could make Cleary serve another year of his deal and wait for Bennett to come at the end of next season, although that would effectively mean treading water under a coach who has his mind elsewhere and who has a strained relationship with officials and fans alike.
Or they could change paths and focus their energies on Maguire, whose coaching record doesn’t match Bennett’s but more than eclipses Cleary’s. Maguire won more than 60 per cent of games at Wigan and South Sydney, capturing grand finals at both clubs.
The Tigers are due to return to training in early November. The clock is ticking. The repercussions stretch across the length and breadth of the NRL. Maguire, having already turned down the opportunity to coach Manly, covets the Brisbane job but faces competition for the post as the Broncos ponder their options beyond next season.
Given the way the club has handled the decision to bring down the curtain on Bennett, it would be a major surprise if their pursuit of a replacement doesn’t follow a methodical process in which alternatives are forced to undergo a rigorous assessment.
Maguire is certain to figure in that process. So too Queensland State of Origin coach Kevin Walters, who has long eyed the Broncos job and had a glittering history with the club as a player.
South Sydney are locked in extension talks with Anthony Seibold, but he is on the Broncos radar, although the sense is that he may ultimately extend his time at the Rabbitohs. Chances are current Brisbane assistant Jason Demetriou will receive the courtesy of an interview as well.
The Broncos will have no shortage of options, the head coach role at Brisbane remaining one of the most prestigious in the NRL. The Tigers will have plenty of alternatives as well. They have come a long way in a short time, to the point where coaches with outstanding resumes want a piece of the action.
Cleary helped with that process, but he won’t be missed.
Brent Read
Senior Sports Writer
Wayne Bennett and Michael Maguire are only weeks away from locking horns in a three-match Test series in England. A more intriguing game involving the pair looms on home soil.
Bennett is due to touch down in England imminently, having insisted to all and sundry that he will see out the final year of his deal in Brisbane, where he and many others believe the roster is primed to win a premiership.
At the same time — as revealed in The Australian last week — the Wests Tigers are circling and Bennett could figure in a plan that would allow Ivan Cleary to leave for Penrith, where many believe his heart and head already lie.
Read Next
$2.2m for Jewish security
ELIAS VISONTAY
Maguire is also on the Tigers’ radar and his future could ultimately hinge on Bennett’s decision, placing the pair in competition not only for international honours, but also potentially their club coaching futures.
The Tigers are doing their due diligence. They know Bennett would be the easiest sell with fans should they decide to release Cleary from the final years of his deal.
When the club brought Cleary back from the coaching wilderness a few years back — after he was sacked by Penrith because general manager of football Phil Gould thought he was tired — they were considered a basket-case.
Now it appears coaches are falling over themselves to take over the Tigers, including a seven-time premiership winner regarded as the greatest mentor in the game’s history.
Bennett would be a serious upgrade on Cleary, a coach with a sub-50 per cent winning ratio whose relationship with Tigers fans has been irreparably damaged by events of recent months.
The challenge is the timing. The Tigers may be forced to wait 12 months for Bennett, which would leave them in an invidious and puzzling position.
They could make Cleary serve another year of his deal and wait for Bennett to come at the end of next season, although that would effectively mean treading water under a coach who has his mind elsewhere and who has a strained relationship with officials and fans alike.
Or they could change paths and focus their energies on Maguire, whose coaching record doesn’t match Bennett’s but more than eclipses Cleary’s. Maguire won more than 60 per cent of games at Wigan and South Sydney, capturing grand finals at both clubs.
The Tigers are due to return to training in early November. The clock is ticking. The repercussions stretch across the length and breadth of the NRL. Maguire, having already turned down the opportunity to coach Manly, covets the Brisbane job but faces competition for the post as the Broncos ponder their options beyond next season.
Given the way the club has handled the decision to bring down the curtain on Bennett, it would be a major surprise if their pursuit of a replacement doesn’t follow a methodical process in which alternatives are forced to undergo a rigorous assessment.
Maguire is certain to figure in that process. So too Queensland State of Origin coach Kevin Walters, who has long eyed the Broncos job and had a glittering history with the club as a player.
South Sydney are locked in extension talks with Anthony Seibold, but he is on the Broncos radar, although the sense is that he may ultimately extend his time at the Rabbitohs. Chances are current Brisbane assistant Jason Demetriou will receive the courtesy of an interview as well.
The Broncos will have no shortage of options, the head coach role at Brisbane remaining one of the most prestigious in the NRL. The Tigers will have plenty of alternatives as well. They have come a long way in a short time, to the point where coaches with outstanding resumes want a piece of the action.
Cleary helped with that process, but he won’t be missed.
Brent Read
Senior Sports Writer
innsaneink
Well-known member
@ said:
Just quoting so I can find this again
Any Raiders playing under Bennett for England?
avocadoontoast
Well-known member
@ said:
Hodgson and Whitehead?
@ said:
Edit - avo on toast beat me to it.
Fade_To_Black
New member
@ said:
I can see this thread turning into a game of "Guess Who" over the coming days….......
"Does he wear glasses?"
No. Flick flick flick flick
"Does he have red hair?"
No. Flick flick flick
"Does he wear a hat?"
No. Flick flick
Fade_To_Black
New member
@ said:
With our club's recruitment track record I'm thinking Dave Taylor and Blake Ayshford…....big Dave would be 180 Kgs and have 6 chins these days, just the type of game changer we're after.
Hopefully we are pleasantly surprised with the quality of our 2 rumoured signings but not holding my breath.
swag_tiger
Well-known member
@ said:
I do like a good game of guess who.
Tiger_Steve
New member
@ said:
I’m liking Brent Read more and more. Really paints a bright picture of the Tigers
N
newtiger
Guest
@ said:
Could be his mother, LOL
avocadoontoast
Well-known member
@ said:
Me too - not the first time he's stuck the boot into Ivan either.
balmain boy
Well-known member
@ said:
Queen even admitted that the source was a mate who has a mate who's an agent. Like most of the crap rumours on here. No credibility.
Bennett is in England so there'd be no chance he'd sign anything until he gets back in a few weeks.
@ said:
Who knows???
The devils advocate to this train of thought is that you'd think Bennett would know what he's doing before he embarks on this International series either way…Yes staying at Broncos openly....or No...going to another club (but we'll keep that hush hush till I get back)
Who knows???
beachtiger
Well-known member
What are thoughts on Ken Sio, sounds like he isn't happy with treatment from the Knights, I like him as a player and think he would be a great centre signing.
https://www.foxsports.com.au/nrl/nrl-premiership/teams/knights/winger-ken-sio-is-set-to-walk-out-on-the-knights-after-pathetic-contract-offer/news-story/c47c3d23b477e6ca4174859f484564a9
https://www.foxsports.com.au/nrl/nrl-premiership/teams/knights/winger-ken-sio-is-set-to-walk-out-on-the-knights-after-pathetic-contract-offer/news-story/c47c3d23b477e6ca4174859f484564a9
Tiger_Steve
New member
@ said:
Cmon Balmain Boy! Join the dots! Bennett is in England and we are getting tips from the queen and the Pom. What more do you want?!
swag_tiger
Well-known member
@ said:
:astonished: THE QUEEN IS A POM.
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