NRL 2021: Knights coach Adam O’Brien close to signing contract extension

Adam O’Brien is on the verge of signing a new contract extension, which is bad news for Melbourne as they contemplate life after Craig Bellamy.

Adam O'Brien is on the verge of signing a new deal with Newcastle.

If Adam O’Brien was a target, the Melbourne Storm need to readjust their aim.

The Newcastle coach is on the verge of signing a new contract extension with the Knights — ending all talk of him returning to where he spent 12 years as an assistant coach at the Melbourne Storm.

The decision by O’Brien is a no-brainer. Which is bizarre to say, given that the former Storm assistant would’ve been a legitimate option to take over from Melbourne coach Craig Bellamy.

Where the Storm goes now is a serious story that will unfold. But Melbourne won’t be in for O’Brien, who spent more than a decade at the Storm.

Aside from his short 12-month experience as an assistant coach to Trent Robinson at the Roosters, O’Brien isn’t interested in moving boxes.

He operates under an ethos of those who are loyal to him are delivered loyalty in return.

Loyalty in this case means ignoring a possible approach from one of the most successful clubs in Australian sport to hitch himself to the Newcastle wagon.

Does it get any more loyal than that?

Adam O'Brien is on the verge of signing a new deal with Newcastle.

You only need to take a quick glance at what O’Brien is trying to build in the steel city to understand why and how deeply he’s invested in the club.

O’Brien has only been at the Knights for one season, but the decisions he’s been making, the people he’s appointing around him, have been forensically targeted to stay beside him for a whole lot longer.

Most of them are there because of their own loyalty to O’Brien.

Former Rabbitohs and Broncos coach Anthony Seibold, who worked alongside O‘Brien at the Storm, has joined the Knights.

Seibold, analytical and extremely detailed in his approach, has had a major impact in assisting O‘Brien both in preparation and review of each and every training session.

Anthony Seibold has joined Adam O’Brien at the Knights. Picture: Jono Searle/Getty Images

Eric Smith, who worked with Storm feeder club Sunshine Coast Falcons and Willie Peters, are O’Brien’s senior assistants.

Both have moved to Newcastle to work for O’Brien.

Former Wallabies skills and kicking coach Mick Byrne has been employed to work with the club’s kickers, notably Kalyn Ponga.

Despite being unable to completely swing through his kicking action due to off-season shoulder surgery, Ponga’s goal kicking has improved dramatically under the watchful eye of Byrne.

With a tweak of his technique, Ponga is striking the football between the posts at training with an 80 per cent conversion rate.

Kalyn Ponga’s goal kicking has improved dramatically.

Strength coach Andy Barnett has worked with NFL clubs and at four Olympic Games and was poached from AFL club the Western Bulldogs after six years.

Fans need to check the extra muscle on the Saifiti boys Jacob and Daniel over the next few weeks to realise the impact of Barnett.

O’Brien has also employed recruitment manager Clint Zammit after seven seasons at the Cowboys.

Zammit is the man responsible for recruiting Knights fullback Kalyn Ponga to the Cowboys as a teen and discovered New Zealand powerhouse Jason Taumalolo at the age of 13.

Zammit works in conjunction with Alex McKinnon in recruitment and the pair have wasted no time in securing Englishman Bailey Hodgson and Jake Clifford from the Cowboys.

In the junior development phase former NSW Origin forwards Andrew Ryan has been working with the next crop of backrowers, while Mark O’Meley focuses on the middle forwards and former Knight Scott Dureau schools and prepares the halves for NRL.

O’Brien is setting the club up with a focus on winning premiership after premiership.

It’s the same attitude those at the Storm have. It’s just that O’Brien wants to do it at Newcastle.

Originally published as NRL 2021: Knights coach Adam O’Brien close to signing contract extension