Wayne Bennett’s short stint at the Dolphins may massively help his successor Kristian Woolf break the Wayne Bennett curse when he takes over as the club’s head coach next season.
Since leaving his first coaching post at the Broncos at the end of 2008, the Wayne Bennett curse has existed within the rugby league world, with men replacing him as a club’s head coach more often than not struggling when succeeding Wayne.
With Bennett returning to South Sydney at the end of this season, current Dolphins assistant coach is looming as the next man fighting to beat the Bennett curse, with several factors seemingly playing in the 49-year-old’s favour.
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Speaking on Monday night’s NRL 360, The Daily Telegraph’s Michael Carayannis believes Bennett’s short stint at the Dolphins will help, not hinder, Woolf.
“The difference in following Wayne this time is that he’s only been there for two years,” he said.
“They haven’t had a huge amount of success there so the emotional connection that he would have had with the Dragons, the Broncos, South Sydney, and even at Newcastle…that emotional attachment he’s left at other clubs might not be as severe at the Dolphins.”
Prior to coaching the Dolphins, Bennett spent 20 years coaching cross-town rivals the Broncos, before spending three years at the Dragons, Knights, Broncos (second stint) and Rabbitohs.
After winning premierships during his first stint at Brisbane and with the Dragons, Bennett led the Broncos to the grand final in 2015 and turned South Sydney into perennial contenders during his reign.
Unlike his time at those clubs, Bennett has not enjoyed large success at the Dolphins, with the club finishing 13th in their debut season, while they’re on the cusp of not qualifying for finals for the second consecutive season, despite sitting fourth in Round 15.
“A lot of their senior players that Wayne brought to the club are ageing and won’t be there much longer,” NRL 360 host Braith Anasta noted.
At the end of this season, the Dolphins are losing Euan Aitken and Tevita Pangai Junior, while question marks remain about the immediate future of Jesse Bromwich, who could hang the boots up at season’s end.
Additionally, Felise Kaufusi, Kenny Bromwich, Kodi Nikorima, Anthony Milford and Mark Nicholls are all 30 or older.
Nicholls provided an insight into the playing roster’s thinking about the post-Wayne years when speaking to media ahead of this week’s Battle of Brisbane.
“From day dot Woolfy’s signed to be the head coach so for us if anyone’s playing bad than Woolfy’s coaching next year so you’re not going to have a spot in the team,” Nicholls said.
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Fox League’s James Hooper believes Woolf’s coaching experience, which has seen him enjoy success with St Helens and at international level with Tonga, places him in the best possible position to break the Bennett curse.
“The trap a lot of young coaches can fall into is they try and be too much like Wayne,” Hooper said.
“It’s important that Kristian Woolf is his own person.”
Gorden Tallis, who played 160 times for Bennett’s Broncos, agreed with Hooper; “You’ve got to be yourself.”
“Because Wayne can just walk past you, he might not say anything for three days, and other coaches think well is that the way you do it. But it works for Wayne.
“Wayne just has that aura and only Wayne can coach the way Wayne wants to coach.
“If you’re a new coach, don’t think you’re Wayne. Don’t try to follow him. You’ve got to be yourself.”
Hooper added his belief Woolf and the Dolphins will need to dip into the player market to strengthen their squad for next season, with Knights star Daniel Saifiti’s move to the club remaining uncertain following the prop’s comments this week.
“He still needs to make some astute signings to his roster,” Hooper said.
“He’s got to get into the market.”
“If he can get in the market and make a couple of key signatures then I think he can break the duck.”
Source Agencies
