Bennett, England poised with perfect World Cup pilgrimage

Where in the world is Wayne Bennett?

England coach for the past two years in a testing and dubious work environment given the mother country’s hesitation around a non-nationalistic coach, Bennett now seems to have fallen off the face of the planet just a couple of weeks out from the start of the 2017 Rugby League World Cup.

England coach: Wayne Bennett. 

Indeed, so have his side, apart from the late unveiling of their squad over the internet.

Virtually zero promotional gigs, barely any media attention on them and all the focus firmly dispensed to the Pacific nations.  

A coach’s dream. Flying under the radar, as they say.

And wouldn’t he be loving it.

The prolific 67-year-old man-manager has undoubtedly seen it all in his near five-decade association with rugby league and he has drawn on all of his lessons to give England the ultimate preparation for the historic tournament.

After taking over from popular coach, Steve McNamara, as an almost loathed choice by many English fans, Bennett embarked on perhaps the toughest coaching assignment of his career.

Immediately, he demanded the Rugby Football League shorten the Super League season this year, pencilled in both pre-season and mid-year training camps, and ensured the side were able to play an additional game by becoming involved in the Pacific Tests in Australia.

Such is Bennett’s influence in the game, he managed to convince Broncos’ suits to take part in the World Club Series back in February, providing him with crucial time in England to work on his plans for the national side.

After a disappointing campaign in the 2016 Four Nations tournament, where the Poms won only one match - against Scotland, the additional time assessing players and making arrangements with staff in England was well needed.

For all of England’s growth in the last decade amongst their national side through players shifting to the NRL and the increasing professional development of the Super League competition, the key things they have lacked is the ability to overcome their own mistakes at crucial parts of games and the experience to close-out matches.

They’ve always had the ability, the competitiveness and have never been short of emotional determination or pride.

It’s why Bennett is the perfect coach for them. 

He will keep it simple, keep them focussed and give them the confidence they need.

Bennett addressing England players during his first camp in 2016.

He is a simple coach, with simple ideals. One of them mainly being about effort.

It’s why the overlooking of George Burgess for the side, speaks volumes.

Arguably one of the top-three best forwards in the game when South Sydney won the NRL title in 2014, Burgess’ form has drizzled down to a shadow of his former self. Put simply, when he plays it looks like he just isn’t having a crack.

Bennett knows it and he won’t have it in his squad. His omission would have sent a clear-as-daylight message to the England squad – mediocracy won’t be accepted here.

Their 30-10 win over Samoa in the mid-year Pacific Test was by no means an inspiring win for England’s World Cup journey under Bennett, but it was a real improvement on where they have come from and could prove to be a crucial experience.

While all the emphasis of the tournament thus far has been on the defection of Jason Taumalolo and Andrew Fifita to Tonga - from their respective nations of New Zealand and Australia - any talk of England’s preparations have seldom appeared in the Australian-based media.

Remember this? We all know who the real man coaching was.

A quick assessment on social media after the England squad was announced showed murmurings of discontent about both the list of players and Bennett’s ability to successfully guide the side through to the end. While it is unclear whether that discussion amongst the fans translated into the English media, it showed the first signs of the team’s chances being written-off before the tournament has even begun.

Again, such discourse would leave Bennett salivating about how to get the best out of his side through the five-week competition.

How many times has the coach been written-off in the past, only to later prove his detractors, haters and naysayers, blind wrong?

Even this season at the Brisbane Broncos it was suggested the mastercoach had finally lost his touch to engage with the younger generation of player.

Does anybody play the media better than Wayne?

Yet, despite not having a consistent line-up for the majority of the year, Bennett managed to lead Brisbane to a preliminary final, going out just one game short of the grand finale, to what has been said to be one of the best sides in modern rugby league history.

Bennett initially had all the ruthless rugby league media breathing down his neck when he first took on the England job. Now, whether by default or design, he has virtually no-one looking at him or his side.

Perfectly-positioned, written-off before it’s even begun, flying under-the-radar and with no-hope given of tournament honours, Coach Bennett has played everything right into his team’s hands.

It might look like his promiscuous approach to the England job has been a learn-on-the-run and do-the-best-we-can style, but Bennett has played his cards better than ever.

That wry smile.

If there’s a team to look out for at the World Cup, it’s the missing-in-action England.

There’s something intriguing about their preparation.

And there’s the man with that all-too-familiar wry smile at the helm; the one that usually appears after he has proved all of his doubters wrong. 

Moylan move could dent Panthers revival

The surprising suggestion that Penrith skipper Matt Moylan could be on the way out of the Panthers organisation has the potential to leave the club’s revival with tainted and irreversible damage.

Make no mistake, Matt Moylan is the pin-up boy of the Penrith Panthers. 

He’s talented, has football nous and is a local prodigy. He plays a key position on the field, and is marketable, sleek and has the model looks off it.

PRODIGAL: Matt Moylan. 

If you rewind to Gus Gould’s arrival back at the Nepean in 2011, you’ll remember the gutting and broomstick he put through the club’s roster. You’ll remember the overhaul of the business, the bold statements about being the country’s most recognisable sports brand, and the now infamous five-year plan.

While you might question many of Gus’ claims and hang the plans out to dry, it is undeniable that the influence of Gould has almost single-handedly turned a floundering franchise into an NRL powerhouse.

Just this week, the club put out a statement detailing how every one of their sides had made the finals for only the fourth time in the club’s 50-plus year history. And in a first, they have achieved for a second consecutive year.  

Gould’s revolution was kick-started in 2012 when he brought in Ivan Cleary and began the turnaround.

Almost parallel to the new era was the emergence of Baulkham Hills-born Matt Moylan. 

A local junior who was first off what would turn into a conveyer-belt of NRL players produced from the local Penrith district.

Bryce Cartwright and Matt Moylan have been the leading figures in Penrith's impressive junior-to-NRL transmission rate. 

At fullback, Moylan played in arguably the most prodigious position on the field outside of the traditional owner of rugby league sides, the halfback.  

His playing talents quickly shone through; he began to find his feet in the media appearing on The Footy Show as a regular; and his quick-wit, humour and good looks would have had marketing guru’s rubbing their hands together.

He fitted in perfectly to the commercial and operational redesign of the Panthers at-large. So much so, in 2016 he was handed the club’s captaincy.

It was a valiant decision, and with a squad so young it had the potential to work.

Without drawing a comparison too wild, Moylan has a tinge of former Liverpool footballer Steven Gerrard about him. And so does his situation.

Local junior, poster boy, all the talent in the world, the ability to influence others through his own actions.

POSTER BOY: Moylan appears to have it all. 

But what he hasn’t fully captured yet is the persistence of effort, a resilience. 

In the age of modern-day footballers, it’s probably no surprise. But will this be the career-defining learning curve for Moylan, or the signal of the end of his time at Penrith?

In 2015, Gus Gould made an eerily similar and surprising decision to sack then Panthers coach Ivan Cleary and bring in Anthony Griffin.  

At the time it was odd and didn’t really make sense.

While the merits of that decision are a debate for another article, Moylan was still able to continue his rise under new coach Griffin.

He made the New South Wales side, Australian squad and was instrumental in the club’s run into the finals last season.

All while wearing the captain’s metaphorical armband. So it’s hard to work out wear it’s all gone wrong.

MIXED FORM: Penrith's form this year has been indifferent, but they've made the finals. 

Indeed, maybe both parties have reasons for wanting a change.

It Moylan is unhappy and dismayed with his current predicament, maybe a move would be best the best thing for him. A shift away from the prodigal son paradigm.

Maybe the Panthers have realised they don’t have the full deck of cards required to achieve their goal of winning another premiership and see the departure of Moylan as a way of securing what or who they need.

Like the loss of Cleary, perhaps to get where you want to go, you don’t always arrive with those who you thought you would.

But there would be a real sense of disenchantment if Matt Moylan wasn’t involved in completing Penrith’s revival.

He’s been at the front of it, at the back of it, and in the thick of it.

Chronologically, in a positional sense, and in terms of the operation respectively. 

The Monthly Probe: May

The May edition of The Monthly Probe podcast.

Hosted by Max McKinney & Matt Writer. 

NRL 2017: Rabbitohs, Dragons, Roosters, Tigers.

Can the boys from the Eastern Suburbs find their 2013 form again?

South Sydney – Prediction 4^th

A really poor year for the Rabbits in 2016, and they’ll be looking to make amends. They have a refreshed feel to them this year with Robbie Farah coming in, and with the Burgess brothers now all settled down with wives and kids, they should keep focussed on footy and out of the social pages.

A lot of eyes will be on how Farah fits into the system, but I think it will be more intriguing to see how the rest of the squad already there recovers from last season. Inglis and Reynolds both need to step-up, not to mention the Burgess’ brothers. All are premiership-winning players and need to hit the reset button on their enthusiasm because they’re the ones who drive the culture of the club.

Predicting Michael Maguire to take his side back to the upper-etches of the NRL ladder and into September. For me, they’ll make the top four.

St. George-Illawarra Dragons – Prediction 16^th

A club in complete disarray. What more can be said? They’ve been on the slide since Wayne Bennett left years ago, and they’re direction and recruitment has to be questioned. Club legend Paul ‘Mary’ McGregor has been left to clean up the poor decisions of others and made to look like a fool.

Outside of Dugan and Frizell they have no real high-quality players and the use of Dugan at right centre is mind-boggling considering he was once mentioned as the ‘next Billy Slater’ while emerging at Canberra. He must play fullback and he needs to return to his running-game strength that made him a star in the lime green.

McGregor moved on Benji Marshall last season which was a bold but needed decision, and was planning on using NSW Cup winning halfback Drew Hutchinson only for him to do an ACL in the preseason. Would be using this year to blood a heap of youngsters like Newcastle did last season and look towards a big 2018. 

Sydney Roosters – Prediction 2^nd

The Roosters will be the most-improved side in 2017, mark my words. After 12 months of horror, Mitchell Pearce will have a burning desire to help the Chooks back towards success. He is the player with the biggest point to prove in the NRL this year, and will reach his best form since they won the comp in 2013.

Connor Watson has already placed a heap of pressure on Luke Keary to steal the five-eighth position, but will likely be used in a utility role off the bench. Their core bunch of players are very experienced and have played together for a number of years, so I’m expecting big things from the Tri-Colours this season.

Look out for Latrell Mitchell, Blake Ferguson and Shaun Kenny-Dowell to cross the white line more often than a school-crossing supervisor.

Wests Tigers – Prediction 13^th

A make or break year for the Tigers this season, and with their swagger of stars off-contract at the end of the year, it could be a make or break on the upcoming future of the club. The trio of Moses, Brooks and Tedesco have played enough NRL games now to handle the pressure and gone will be the young and learning tag.

Jason Taylor will be under tremendous pressure from the fans if they get off to a poor start, and if that’s the case it could make the re-signing of their big names a distraction and hamper their season.

Don’t have the cattle up front to be able to knock over the best clubs on a regular basis, and will struggle to match it with the bigger sides. Could surprise though and with a bit of momentum I wouldn’t be shocked if they went on a run.

The curious case of the New Zealand Warriors

Historically, the New Zealand Warriors seasons of success have been followed by prolonged periods of disappointing underachievement. In recent years, they have lit the competition alight one week and not turned up the next.

Their inability to bring consistency to their performances has meant they’ve missed the finals for the last five-straight years, despite being considered one of the league’s best sides at the start of every year.

So, as another season rolls around, what will the Warriors bring to the table in 2017?

The Warriors contemplating another year of missed opportunity in 2016.

Long-considered the NRL’s ‘Dark Horse’, and with the addition of a new coach, star-playmaker and international spine, will this finally be the year everything comes together?

Perhaps tagging them with a ‘dark horse’ title is misguided, because everyone knows how good they ‘can’ be. Maybe a ‘white-elephant’ suits better, considering they have the talent but produce next to nothing, right?

While injuries may have hampered their seasons in 2015 and 2016, the fact the club went with un-tried NRL coach Andrew McFadden following the departure of Matthew Elliot was baffling.

With a team capable of achieving considerable damage on the back of 2014 Golden Boot winner Shaun Johnson, who in his mid-20s was arguably at career-peak form, the warriors surely could have done with a more experienced head in charge.

Remember this a team who pundits constantly suggest need more discipline, both on the field and around the club.

Hindsight, however, is a valuable thing, and for all their recent woes, they may have finally found the right man for the job in Stephen Kearney.

A former Warriors player himself, Kearney has spent almost 30 years involved in professional rugby league.

He returns to Auckland with a World Cup and Four Nations trophy to his name; assistant-coaching experience under Craig Bellamy and Wayne Bennett; and crucially, time as an NRL head coach.

Doubters will point to his failed two-year stint at Parramatta where he achieved only at 24% win-rate, but the fact he went straight to the Broncos to continue his coaching career shows his determination to succeed.

After spending four years at the Broncos, Kearney would have had ample time to reflect on what went wrong at the Eels and he has now quite-rightly got another well-deserved chance.

Can Kearney unlock the Warriors potential? 

The appointment of the proud Kiwi may also assist a squad who have previously been touted as needing a coach who understands their culture. It was reported that former coach Matthew Elliot went out of his way to achieve that, but to little avail.

One of Kearney’s toughest but most vital tasks will be to name a captain, with Ryan Hoffman, Simon Mannering, Isaac Luke and Shaun Johnson all in contention.

While Hoffman took over from Mannering in 2016, perhaps handing the role to halfback Johnson will allow his talents, energy and determination to filter through the side.

Johnson should hopefully have the benefit of a stable, experienced and equal-in-talent halves partner in Kieran Foran, who will take a large chunk of playmaking pressure off him.

For all his troubles off-the-field, Foran can produce a steadiness, grit, and competitive desire the Warriors so desperately need.

In essence, his consistency and stamina could be the perfect partner for the flashy and thrilling style of play from Johnson.

But many questions remain, for example:

·      How will Issac Luke perform under Kearney?

·      Will Roger Tuivasa-Sheck regain his best after an ACL reconstruction?

·      Will Stalwarts Hoffman and Mannering have the punch as hole-running second rowers?

·      Is there enough quality on the fringes to produce points?

·      Do the Warriors even have the genuine hunger to go all the way?

In what looks to be one of the more open competitions in recent years, where the Warriors end up at the end of NRL Season 2017 is anyone’s guess.

While many questions remain to be answered, they will surely be one of the teams to watch as they enter the next era at a club who has traditionally underachieved.

Mt. Smart Stadium must become a place teams dread visiting in 2017.

If they can get their fans on-board and make Mt. Smart Stadium a living-hell for their opposition to visit, they will have every chance to make their best statement in years.

But it’s the Warriors, you just never know what you’ll get.

Big Bash can thank Brad Hogg for its success

The explosive success of Cricket Australia’s domestic Tewnty20 competition – the Big Bash League – can be attributed to a broad selection of reasons, but would its success have been driven so high without the evergreen veteran Brad Hogg?

Hogg during BBL06 with the Melbourne Renegades.

In its sixth season for the summer of 2016/17, the BBL has grown year-on-year regularly outstripping popularity – amongst the youthful cricketing audience at-least – from the traditional test and one-day forms of the game.

Building on the Indian Premier League revolution of the mid-2000s, the BBL brought the buzz, bang and colour of the new party-themed version of the game to the grounds and screens around Australia.

Having the benefit of being able to start a truly national competition from scratch, the organisers built where the people were, with the two most-populated states being handed a derby with two city sides each.

Crucially, they boosted these sides with a number of ex-legends who had retired or where near the end of their careers from both overseas and Australia. Names like Warne, Gilchrist and Hayden adorned the opening years’ line-ups, pulling in both existing and new fans to the competition.

Amongst this era was the then 39-year-old West Australian, George Bradley Hogg, who had finished a creditable first-class and international career in early 2008.

Hogg signed on for the Perth Scorchers for BBL01 and after a poor start to their season, they led a charge all the way to the final, finishing the regular season in first place.

The bouncing and buzzing Hogg showed he had lost nothing in retirement, eventually finishing as the best spinner of the tournament with 12 wickets at an average of 13.5.

In fact, like a fine bottle of red, it appeared as though Hogg had become better with age, earning a recall to the Australian Twenty20 squad.

Hogg destroyed his competition whilst playing for the Perth Scorchers. 

For the opening three seasons in the west, Hogg was the ironically youthful member of their team, providing spark, energy and decisiveness when they needed it.

When the Scorchers finally claimed the title in their third-straight final, Hogg was named the man of the match and earnt a place in Australian side for the 2014 ICC World Twenty20.

What stood Hogg apart was his style of play and approach to the game. It won him legions of fans right across the country, and right across the ages. Dads and grandads were pleased to see an old-timer still had it, and younger fans enjoyed his theatrics.

Hogg’s on and off-field charisma has charmed the cricketing public, with his cheeky attitude keeping families entertained.

But it is his form in the competition that should warrant most respect, across four seasons at the Scorchers he took 55 wickets in 42 appearances.

After five seasons in the west in which he claimed two consecutive titles, Hogg decided to head to Melbourne and play BBL06 with the Melbourne Renegades.

Citing a desire to continue playing in full capacity and the opportunity to play on the East Coast in front of the biggest crowds, Hogg dismissed Scorchers’ coach Justin Langer’s suggestion he should ‘retire on a high’ and took on a fresh challenge at the Renegades at the ripe age of 45.

He certainly didn’t disappoint, playing eight games and taking as many wickets. While the Renegades didn’t make the playoffs, Hogg’s economy rate of 7.22 and his ability to take key wickets at critical moments in the match, solidified his place as one of the best in the League.

While the BBL has come along in leaps and bounds with the emergence of some new talents, it is hard to imagine its first six-years without Brad Hogg. When he finally leaves the game – quite possibly at the retirement age of 67 – it will be a sad day for cricket.

One of Australian sport's best characters. 

But the thing about Hogg is, he gets it. He understands he’s there to entertain, to keep people interested, to keep them smiling, to keep it what it’s all about – having fun.

One things for sure, he’s going to leave an enduring legacy for being one of the goofiest veteran sportsmen Australia has ever seen.

Long live the Hogg.