Damien Cook reveals Bennett's quirky trait

Brydens Lawyers NSW Blues hooker Damien Cook is thriving under Wayne Bennett at Redfern but it's a quirky trait from the new South Sydney coach that has really caught his attention. "Wayne's a pretty funny old bloke, quick-witted," Cook told. "Doesn't shake hands really, you only get one hand shake a week. "I always try and sneak another one in there but he always remembers whose hand he shakes."
Big Sports Breakfast hosts Terry Kennedy and Laurie Daley laughed in agreeance with Cook. Kennedy has experienced the same rejection himself in the past while Daley revealed his strategy was to leave his hand out until Bennett shook it. "I can play with my forwards a little more through the middle," Cook said. "He (Bennett) wants me to keep my style of play and wants to add a few things, take pressure off the halves, control in the middle a bit more and controlling the game."

Quote of the year

"I was happy to be sacked. I’ll just leave it at that, I was happy." Wayne Bennett after finally being let go by Brisbane to join South Sydney. Newcastle coach Nathan Brown on Bennett, a comment which he later regretted: "The reality is when Wayne came to town, if he thought with his big head rather than his little head, I wouldn’t have had to rebuild the joint." We’ve contacted your family members because they have been targeted as well. Don’t leave the hotel. We’ve picked up hundreds and hundreds of messages and they are death threats." Referee Matt Cecchin tells Herald colleague Andrew Webster about the phone call he got from police  after the controversial World Cup semi-final between Tonga and England.

Wayne Bennett reportedly hits Broncos with stunning $400,000 demand

Wayne Bennett is reportedly seeking $400,000 in compensation from his former employers. According to The Courier Mail, Bennett has sent legal documents to the Brisbane Broncos asking for compensation after his sacking earlier this month. Broncos CEO Paul White has reportedly confirmed the letter was sent on December 14 from Bennett’s lawyers.
But in a bizarre twist, Bennett will actually be suing his new employer South Sydney if he goes ahead with court proceedings. It has been revealed that the Rabbitohs have agreed to pay 50 per cent of any payout the Broncos provide to Bennett. The mastercoach walked straight into an $800,000 deal with the Rabbitohs after he was sacked by his former club. The new development comes after Bennett previously said he wouldn’t sue the Broncos and his move to Souths ‘wasn’t about money’.

Bennett recruits Broncos outcast to join Bunnies

A week after being dumped by Brisbane, ex-Broncos assistant Jason Demetriou has reunited with Wayne Bennett as part of South Sydney's new-look support staff for 2019. Demetriou has signed a three-year deal to again be Bennett's right-hand man, joining Willie Peters who has been promoted from development coach to Rabbitohs assistant.
The NRL club's former strength and conditioning boss Jarrod Wade is now South Sydney's head of performance under Bennett. Demetriou's NRL career appeared in limbo when he was dumped last week by Brisbane the day former Rabbitohs mentor Anthony Seibold took over the Broncos reins. Groomed by Bennett to replace the master coach at Red Hill, Demetriou was one of the high-profile victims of a month-long coach swap saga that embroiled South Sydney and Brisbane.

Bennett pulls off first Souths win as Cook re-signs

Wayne Bennett has already pulled off a win for South Sydney, with NSW hooker Damien Cook agreeing to stay at the Rabbitohs until the end of the 2023 NRL season. Already under contract for 2019, Cook, 27, has re-signed for another four seasons in a deal reportedly worth $4.5 million. Former Brisbane mentor Bennett said re-signing Cook was a priority when he arrived to start his three-year Rabbitohs stint on Tuesday.

And Bennett didn't waste time getting his man, with the Rabbitohs securing Cook on a lucrative long-term deal that is believed to include an upgraded 2019 contract. "I'm very excited to be extending my contract with the Rabbitohs and I'm happy to have my future sorted," Cook said in a statement. "Souths has been my home for the past three years and I didn't think it would be possible to be able to secure things for the next five years, but I'm so happy that that will be the case. "I've loved every moment of my time here, even the tough times, and I think we're building to something nicely."

Bennett's blunt call: 'Inglis is not my first choice'

Hold the phone, Greg Inglis isn't a lock for the South Sydney fullback role next NRL season. So says new coach Wayne Bennett, who denies promising the Rabbitohs' superstar skipper the No.1 jumper in 2019 ahead of young gun Alex Johnston. Bennett insists not only is he confident that Johnston will honour the final year of his contract amid rumours he wants a shot at a fullback elsewhere, but that Johnston is also in the running for the custodian role.

"No, (Inglis) is not my first choice as fullback," Bennett said after overseeing his first Rabbitohs training session on Tuesday after his dramatic weekend sacking from Brisbane. "We'll talk to 'GI' about where he wants to play and where he thinks the team will benefit the most from his position. "He's been one of the great players in our game. When it's all added up - history and Immortals and everything else - he's going to be right up there amongst them all. "So I don't like telling those guys where they have to play. I want them, when they've given so much, to be happy where they're playing.

Broncos coach Wayne Bennett in Brisbane on Sunday as it was revealed he had been sacked by the club

The Brisbane Broncos reportedly sacked Wayne Bennett for a breach of his contract after it was revealed the master coach had been in contact with Souths players and was even organising a pre-season camp.The move is believed to have cost Bennett the million-dollar payout he was holding out for.Bennett was sensationally sacked over voicemail on Sunday with Broncos CEO Paul White unable to make contact with the 68-year-old to inform him of the club’s decision.Although it was widely speculated that sacking the coach would involve making a rich payout, The Courier Mail is reporting Bennett will be paid around $300,000 for
image rights, but will see none of his football department contract money.It’s believed he will not take legal action against his former club.“I know News Corp didn’t want to pay him out because he’s such a legendary figure in Queensland and they obviously didn’t want to pay him out $1 million either,” Phil Rothfield told Macquarie Sports Radio’s Mark Riddell and Mark Levy at Breakfast.“That’s why it didn’t come to a head earlier. They just didn’t want to sack him. But once they saw Anthony Seibold’s email and they saw that he’d been ringing the players, cancelling. Anthony Seibold’s pre-season camp. It’s basically a sackable offence.”It ended a month-long stand-off, with Bennett now set to head to South Sydney to replace Seibold.

Wayne Bennett will arrive at the Rabbitohs on Tuesday

Wayne Bennett said he always knew how the coach swap saga between Brisbane and South Sydney would play out.Bennett arrived in Sydney on Monday afternoon ahead of his first training session and press conference as Rabbitohs coach on Tuesday.The seven-time premiership-winning coach was sacked by the Broncos via voicemail on Sunday after an enduring, drawn out swap involving himself and Anthony Seibold.Before flying out of Brisbane, Bennett was asked by Channel 9 whether he was unhappy with how the situation
played out.“No, I’m not sad,” he said.“I knew what the ending would be.”Whether he’d be unfairly portrayed throughout the whole situation, Bennett said he’d leave that “for another day”.“Right now, I’m on my way to Sydney, I’m going to a new club and I’m pretty excited about all that,” he added.While the Rabbitohs did laps of Redfern Oval on Monday without a head coach, Seibold was officially unveiled as the Broncos’ new mentor for the next five seasons.Seibold said he had drawn a “line in the sand” over the coach swap saga and is determined to make 2019 a success for the Broncos.

Seibold hopes to win over Broncos greats

New Brisbane coach Anthony Seibold won't seek to smoke the peace pipe with Broncos greats who protested his appointment, saying he hoped to win them over with results.Chris Johns and Glenn Lazarus led a chorus of disapproval from former Brisbane players over ex-South Sydney mentor Seibold replacing Wayne Bennett, saying the job should have gone to Broncos favourite son Kevin Walters.Johns even questioned Seibold's coaching credentials, saying the Rabbitohs "choked" in 2018 despite losing the NRL preliminary final to the eventual premiers Sydney Roosters.Seibold admitted he was not aware of the criticism but hoped to make Broncos greats proud with his 2019 results."I can't control the other
commentary outside this group," said Seibold, who has signed a five-year Broncos deal."What I do know is that there is a great legacy left behind by the old boys at the Broncos."What excited me is that there is an opportunity by this group to create their own history."I haven't really listened to the commentary. Of course I want the old boys to be proud of this club and our performance but my priority is the staff and players, they are the ones who control the result."Seibold finally took over the Broncos reins on Monday after a month-long coach swap saga ended when South Sydney-bound Bennett was sensationally sacked via phone message on the weekend.Seibold - a former Brisbane reserve grade player - said he would follow the example set by greats such as Johns and Lazarus in his maiden Broncos campaign in 2019.

Wayne Bennett says he'll be at the Broncos in 2019

Brisbane coach Wayne Bennett admitted he felt for South Sydney but typically made no apologies after dropping the bombshell that he would refuse to step down from the Broncos. But the wily Bennett had other ideas, calling a snap press conference of his own at Red Hill after Friday's meeting. Bennett admitted he had no idea about the mooted Seibold press conference and almost offered an apology to the Rabbitohs for digging his heels in - almost.

"I am disappointed for them but at the same time they understand my position and I will be there in 2020 for them," Bennett said. "I have been terribly consistent with it (staying at Brisbane) and nothing has changed today. "I will honour my 2019 contract which was always my plan." The only way South Sydney can now get their man in 2019 is if Brisbane sack Bennett - a fate the 68-year-old did not rule out. If Bennett is shown the door, it is believed the call will come from Broncos owners News Corp, and not the Brisbane club's hierarchy.

Bennett breaks silence on early Broncos exit reports

All eyes are on South Sydney for one last possible move in the NRL coaching merry-go-round after Wayne Bennett was given assurances he would remain at Brisbane in 2019. Already signed to join South Sydney in a swap with Anthony Seibold for 2020, Bennett met with Broncos chairman Karl Morris on Saturday morning to discuss his more immediate future. The outcome of that meeting is that Bennett will not be pushed out of the last year of his contract, allowing him to see out his 26th and final year at the Broncos.

It also means Seibold won't be able to join Brisbane next season, leaving him to spend another year at Redfern unless pressure mounts against him. Bennett had long maintained he wanted to remain at the Broncos next year, while any forced early exit would likely have come at the cost of $1 million to Brisbane. "I asked him what was happening in 2019 and he said: 'Nothing has changed Wayne. I gave you a commitment you would be here in 2019 and that is the way it is going to remain'," Bennett told NRL.com of his meeting with Morris. "There were a lot of rumours and innuendo flying around but the bottom line is that he has put that to rest and we can all move forward."

Wayne Bennett uses decoy cars to dodge media in Broncos circus

Wayne Bennett has used decoy cars to make a daring exit as the Broncos’ first day of pre-season training descended into farce.Bennett will reportedly meet with Broncos’ chairman Karl Morris this weekend in a bid to finally end the saga surrounding his coaching swap with South Sydney mentor Andrew Seibold.Bennett returned to Red Hill on Thursday to oversee
players’ first official day back at training, but he is expected to be confirmed as the coach of South Sydney as early as next week.Bennett last month signed a two-year-deal at the Rabbitohs, beginning in 2020.Seibold also signed a monster four-year deal with the Broncos, beginning in 2020.According to reports, Bennett’s demand to be paid out the final year of his Broncos contract is the only thing holding up confirmation of an immediate swap ahead of the 2019 season.