Broncos coach Kevin Walters says Craig Bellamy would bring a hard edge to Brisbane
While Craig Bellamy has tried to distance himself from the speculation, a Broncos official has revealed the club’s plan to bring the super coach to Brisbane.
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Brisbane hierarchy have confirmed they are chasing Craig Bellamy as new Broncos mentor Kevin Walters declares the Storm super coach would deliver a Red Hill reality check.
Bellamy has tried to distance himself from Broncos speculation, insisting he has not signed with Brisbane and has put all talks on hold until the end of Melbourne’s finals campaign.
But Broncos bosses remain confident of securing Bellamy, with board member Darren Lockyer revealing the board’s plan for Walters to have a senior sounding board in his maiden year as an NRL head coach in 2021.
The Broncos are ready to table a five-year contract for Bellamy. They have also discussed granting Bellamy a further option of up to five years, in his favour, in a bid to give Walters the support of a premiership-winning advisor.
Lockyer said Brisbane’s interest in Bellamy, who worked as an assistant to Wayne Bennett at Red Hill from 1998-2002, is a key plank in the Broncos’ planned fightback under Walters.
“Craig has been the best NRL coach of the past decade – I think any club would love to have his services,” Lockyer said.
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“‘Kevvie’ has to select the people he wants around him.
“He understands even though he has been coaching for 20 years, having experienced people around him will assist him with the pressures of being a head coach in the NRL.”
The Sunday Mail can reveal the machinations of Brisbane’s pursuit of Bellamy.
The plan was first discussed internally two months ago when then coach Anthony Seibold was confronting a form crisis with a Brisbane side that had slumped to second-last spot.
Brisbane bosses were concerned at the depth of Seibold’s support staff. They knew Bellamy was contracted to Melbourne until the end of next year. But they believed luring him to Red Hill from 2022 onwards could potentially help Seibold, who had a five-year contract with the club.
But when Seibold fell on his sword a month later, Brisbane ramped-up their Storm poaching raid.
A third-party associate personally contacted Bellamy to pitch Brisbane’s vision.
Broncos CEO Paul White then took up the negotiations, having a number of discussions with Bellamy, who had struck a good rapport with White after Brisbane’s failed bid to sign him as head coach to replace Wayne Bennett in 2018.
Bellamy was transparent with the Storm, informing club bosses he had been approached once again by the Broncos. This time, Brisbane wanted him as a coaching director, driving club culture and presiding over recruitment and retention.
Under Brisbane’s plan, Walters could begin rebuilding the wooden spooners next year, before Bellamy arrived 12 months later to amplify Brisbane’s bounce back as a title force.
This blueprint sat well with Walters, who had a 30-year friendship with Bellamy, dating back to their playing days at Canberra.
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Walters says he has had no direct contact with Bellamy over the composition of Brisbane’s coaching unit.
But he remains hopeful Bellamy will buy into Brisbane’s 10-year vision, saying the Storm coach would give Broncos players a taste of the hard edge required to win titles.
“I have worked with Craig and I have played footy with him in the late 1980s,” said Walters, who was an assistant to Bellamy at the Storm from 2011-13.
“He was an assistant coach at the Broncos when I was captain of the club.
“Craig is a very strong character and that‘s the type of person the Broncos need in their organisation.
“What makes Craig a great coach is his resilience and attention to detail. But the one thing I‘ve learned from Craig is his work ethic and attention to detail.
“That‘s what we need to be successful.”
The Storm are not giving up hope of retaining Bellamy.
Aware Bellamy may move to Queensland for family reasons in 2022, chairman Matt Tripp is prepared to tailor a consultancy-style role that allows the 62-year-old to contribute to the Storm from the Sunshine State.
Former Broncos coach Bennett hired Bellamy in 1998 and has no doubt the Storm mentor and Walters could work side-by-side without any power struggles.
“I don’t see Craig being over the top of Kevvie,” Bennett said.
“I just believe they would get the job done as coaches without the egos. Kevin spent three years working with Craig at the Storm so I don’t see it being an issue.
“They are great friends. Bellamy came to the Broncos years ago because of Kevin.
“Steve Nance was leaving us and we needed somebody and I didn’t know where to turn or who to turn to. I had coached Craig in Canberra but I didn’t know him that well, but Kevin spent three years with him and said get Craig, he will be a great assistant.
“I trusted Kevin to know he wouldn’t want to put a dud around us and he was proven right. Craig was a wonderful assistant for me. He and Kevin would be a great team at the Broncos.”
Originally published as Broncos coach Kevin Walters says Craig Bellamy would bring a hard edge to Brisbane