NRL 2021: Broncos bosses waiting for super coach Craig Bellamy to make next move
The Broncos say the ball is in Craig Bellamy’s court if the Storm super coach is serious about a move to Red Hill.
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Brisbane have vowed not to be used as a bargaining chip by Craig Bellamy, with the Broncos insisting the ball is in the Storm coach’s court if he is seeking a big-money defection from Melbourne.
Broncos chairman Karl Morris has revealed Brisbane have not heard from Bellamy for “months”, fuelling the belief the legendary Storm coach will pledge his future to Melbourne as he prepares to launch the premiers’ title defence.
As revealed by News Corp, the Broncos held talks with Bellamy last August, initially discussing a five-year deal, before raising the stakes with a lifetime 10-year offer in a bid to finally prise the super coach from the Storm.
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Bellamy has since been approached by the Sharks, giving him a multitude of career options as he weighs up his future beyond his current contract, which expires at season’s end.
Bellamy is in talks with a trusted adviser and was expected to make a definitive call before the start of the 2021 premiership next week, but the 62-year-old wants more time to make a considered decision.
Brisbane believe having Bellamy on board as a coaching director to mentor Kevin Walters can drive cultural change at the embattled Broncos, but insist they will not pressure the Storm mentor.
Bellamy has rejected the Broncos on three previous occasions, in the process securing lucrative deals with Melbourne, and Brisbane hierarchy are reluctant to get into another bidding war if his heart is with the Storm.
“We’ve heard nothing from Craig for months,” Morris said.
“Craig, I’m told, is still deciding if he wants to coach on.
“At the end of the day, there is interest from us but we’re not going to keep chasing.
“We’ll give Craig all the time he needs. If he wants to come to the Broncos, he will let us know ... it’s now up to him to make contact with us.”
While Cronulla are keen to snare Bellamy, it is understood it is a two-horse race between Melbourne and the Broncos, with the champion premiership coach reluctant to move to the hustle-and-bustle of life in Sydney.
With 430-game Storm skipper Cameron Smith having left the club in November, his departure could convince Bellamy to embark on a new chapter in Queensland with the Broncos.
Melbourne five-eighth Cameron Munster said he would have no ill-feeling towards Bellamy if he defected to Red Hill.
“It would be nice for him to stay,” he said.
“It’s the same as ‘Smitty’, it’s crazy to think he’d be at another club, but never say never.
“We never thought Cooper (Cronk, former Storm halfback) would end up at another club and he went to the Roosters. It was the right decision for himself.
“If ‘Bellyache’ goes to another club for his family, then we won’t hold any grudges or hard feelings. He’s done so much for this club and game. He’ll go down as one of the greats.”
BRONCOS HIT BACK IN UGLY STORM ROW
By Peter Badel and Travis Meyn
Brisbane chairman Karl Morris has blasted claims his club will use new CEO Dave Donaghy to steal the Storm’s secrets as court documents reveal Melbourne’s explosive plan to erode the Broncos’ power base in Queensland.
The legal bunfight between Donaghy and the Storm has exposed Melbourne’s investment in their former boss, who has pocketed almost $2 million in wages since joining the NRL premiers as CEO in 2015.
But there are other reasons for the Storm moving to block Donaghy from starting as Broncos CEO until August 1, chiefly a bold strategic plan for Melbourne to challenge Brisbane in the Queensland market.
The Storm are so determined to strengthen their footprint in the Sunshine State court documents in the Donaghy saga reveal the premiers are in talks with the Queensland government to “improve Melbourne’s exposure”.
Melbourne‘s lawyers argued on Monday that Donaghy’s existing knowledge of those negotiations — and other high-level corporate deals — would help the Broncos “disrupt” the Storm’s venture into Queensland.
Storm chairman Matt Tripp is also concerned Donaghy’s intimate understanding of Craig Bellamy’s contract would aid the Broncos in their current poaching bid for the Melbourne super coach.
But Morris hit back at the Storm, pointing out Melbourne built their cultural bedrock on their foundation CEO Chris Johns, a Broncos legend, and Bellamy, who cut his teeth in coaching as a five-year assistant to Wayne Bennett at Brisbane.
“I am watching the Dave Donaghy-Storm situation with bemused interest,” Morris said.
“From memory Craig Bellamy started out here at the Broncos before Melbourne poached him and Chris Johns is a Broncos legend.
“It (stealing Melbourne’s Intellectual Property) is nonsense.
“I have never asked Dave Donaghy one thing about Melbourne Storm’s IP.
“Isn’t the IP really held by Craig Bellamy, rather than the CEO? Whatever success Melbourne have had has a lot to do with their coach, their playing squad and their head of recruitment.
“We are in a totally different market to Melbourne.”
Donaghy has given a legal undertaking to Tripp that he will not disclose Melbourne’s secrets at any time.
Documents filed in the Victorian Supreme Court show Melbourne have paid Donaghy a total of $1.88 million in wages, bonuses and superannuation since his appointment as Storm boss in July 2015.
Donaghy’s package has risen from $245,796 in the 2015-16 financial year to $457,000 last year as the Storm surged to their NRL premiership defeat of the Panthers.
Wages aside, the Storm fear Donaghy could use his Melbourne intelligence to thwart their push into a south-east Queensland market dominated by the Broncos for the past 33 years.
The Storm have ties with feeder-club Sunshine Coast and claim they have other strategic objectives that could be seized upon by the Broncos.
“He (Donaghy) also knows the details of initiatives that Melbourne Storm is working on with the Queensland state government to improve Melbourne Storm‘s exposure in Queensland,” the Storm’s affidavit said.
“lmportantly, those future directions and investments include how Melbourne Storm intends to capture opportunities in Queensland involving fans, sponsors, government funding and ancillary business opportunities in direct competition with the Broncos.
“The strategies Melbourne Storm intends to implement are specific, and are vulnerable to disruption by the Broncos if they were to learn about the specific details.”
While relations between the Broncos and Melbourne are at rock bottom, Morris lashed any suggestion he would collude with Donaghy to bring down the Storm.
“Dave has made it very clear since October last year that he wanted to leave (Melbourne) and what we have seen is Dave being extremely respectful to his legacy at the Storm,” Morris said.
“The CEO has a very different role, it’s more of a commercial role than a football-operations role. I am quite surprised it has gone down this legal path.”