Parramatta bosses have defended their handling of Brad Arthur’s sacking, insisting it was the right thing to keep him in the dark while they were negotiating with a “genuinely interested” Wayne Bennett.
Arthur’s contract was terminated on Monday following a second half capitulation against the Storm in Magic Round which meant the Eels slumped to 14th on the NRL ladder.
It’s since come to light the Eels made a decision to move on from Arthur on May 1 and had secretly flown to Queensland in a bid to lure Bennett from next season.
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Bennett subsequently signed a three-year deal with South Sydney which was confirmed on Tuesday.
Parramatta chairman Sean McElduff told media on Tuesday the club was “always behind the eight ball” in luring the outgoing Dolphins coach away from the Rabbitohs.
“We had numerous conversations with him. We made a trip to Queensland to see him, we spent three hours with him” he told reporters on Tuesday.
“We wanted Wayne Bennett, it’s as simple as that. He was genuinely interested.”
McElduff was then grilled on whether they were comfortable having kept Arthur in the dark, confirming the first the coach heard about his sacking was when it was made official on Monday afternoon.
“BA was under significant pressure,” he said.
“We didn’t feel there was any merit to adding to that pressure.
“I thought the approach that we took was the best one for our club.”
Eels CEO Jim Sarantinos also moved to quell any speculation that Arthur’s exit might trigger an exodus of players from the club, confirming no players had clauses in their contracts linked to the coach.
That includes incoming recruit Zac Lomax who will join the Eels from the Dragons next season.
Sarantinos said they would reach out to Lomax following Arthur’s departure, revealing a request for a coaching clause in his contract had been denied,
“We’ll be having a conversation with Zac today,” said Sarantinos.
“Our focus, obviously, over the last little while, has been having a conversation with the players that are in the building.
“But, absolutely, we will be having a conversation with Zac.
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“I think we’ve said on the record previously that that clause was requested, but it wasn’t agreed to.
“None of our players have any clauses of that nature in their contract and that’s not how we operate.”
The Eels are now building a list of targets with the club making it clear they want a coach who has experienced success.
“What we will be looking for is what we think is the best coach for our club,” Sarantinos said.
“We still think we have a really strong roster. As I said, we want someone who has been involved with a winning program and been around a high performance culture.
“We have started putting together a list of candidates. There are obviously a number of people out there who have the capabilities to be a head coach.
“That is a process we will work through over the coming weeks.”
Source Agencies
