MELTDOWN Wayne Bennett - Moves to Souths

[Huge]

The main reason our defence suffered was Benny hated the wrestle and swore blind it would be the death of Rugby league. Sure we did our fair share of wrestling but Benny just could not bring himself to condone it and so as the other teams modernised we were overtaken as he refused to fully incorporate it into our defensive structures.

Well, whatever the reason for our poor defence it was up to WB to fix and sadly he didn't. I think you're right and to an extent I agree with WB about the wrestle but no matter, if you can't change something you must work out how to deal with it.

 

[Cult]

Well, whatever the reason for our poor defence it was up to WB to fix and sadly he didn't. I think you're right and to an extent I agree with WB about the wrestle but no matter, if you can't change something you must work out how to deal with it.

Defense was fine against good teams. The emphasis needs to be on the players like McGuire whose usual efforts weren't seen in 2018. He was often seen walking when he normally wouldn't have been. Bennett was starting over with a bunch of 18 year olds so he had to re-teach them how to defend. With everything else going on it might have been more difficult to teach them within the one season and as it quickly turned into a rebuild season his priority wasn't necessarily to get the players to win games but to learn how to win them.

 

[Huge]

Defense was fine against good teams. The emphasis needs to be on the players like McGuire whose usual efforts weren't seen in 2018. He was often seen walking when he normally wouldn't have been. Bennett was starting over with a bunch of 18 year olds so he had to re-teach them how to defend. With everything else going on it might have been more difficult to teach them within the one season and as it quickly turned into a rebuild season his priority wasn't necessarily to get the players to win games but to learn how to win them.

Yes, as I say whatever the reasons were it was WBs responsibility to get his team up to standard and it seems as though he was unable to. It may have been his refusal to allow more wrestling or a young team or a combination of both but it was a problem. If AS doesn't solve it then I won't be alone on here screaming for change.

 

[winslow_wong]

Who?

Wait until our first loss and we’ll see them emerge.

 

[Strop]

Is it myth or fact that WB has only ever had a handshake agreement on his employment deals? I’m sure I recall this being something he spoke or wrote about. Perhaps this changed upon his return, but it would make for interesting discussions in an employment dispute, would it not?

 

[Kimlo]

Is it myth or fact that WB has only ever had a handshake agreement on his employment deals? I’m sure I recall this being something he spoke or wrote about. Perhaps this changed upon his return, but it would make for interesting discussions in an employment dispute, would it not?

I believe that was the case up until he first left us in 2008, after that he's always been contracted.

 

[ningnangnong]

Wayne Bennett can suck my peen.

 

[Huge]

Wayne Bennett can suck my peen.

Nings on the piss.

 

[lynx000]

I've always had a great respect for WB yet haven't always agreed with his decisions. Having stated that I also generally conceded he was more likely to know better than I. However I have shifted on an issue after considering a lot of the claims of other posters. Primarily the cold hard facts and stats have made me rethink WBs influence on how we played in 2018 and 2017.

What stands out is our poor defence and why it wasn't sorted. Finally I agree that WB was responsible for that and now I can see that it was time for WB to step back or take on a new challenge. He should have been able to have his team create a brick wall defence but he apparently just couldn't make it happen. I hope AS can make that change whilst retaining our ability to score heavily.

I'm not going to hate on WB for that failing and I believe I know the true reason why WB was so stubborn towards the end. I am really excited by the change and yes, I now think the board was right to move WB on but believe only half the reasons were valid. I hope all three parties are successful, WB, AS and the Bronco's.

Fair post mate, well done. The other thing that concerned me was I perceived there to have been an attitude issue that had been developing for some time which also was not knocked on the head by the coaching staff (not just WB, but the entire coaching team). But that is only my perception looking in from the outside.