Signs pointed to Wayne Bennett departing on Red Hill’s chaotic day
Just when you thought Chautauqua was an unbackable favourite in his bid to be the world’s most stubborn old bronco, Wayne Bennett stepped his game up, writes Robert Craddock.
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Retired champion Chautauqua, the racehorse that wouldn’t leave the gates, is now officially the second most stubborn grey bronco in Australia.
Wayne Bennett has got him covered.
Just when they thought he was gone, Bennett shocked everyone by pulling out of a proposed swap with Souths coach Anthony Seibold for next season.
How close was Bennett to going to Souths?
Close enough that his replacement Seibold was on standby for a 4pm press conference to announce his arrival at Red Hill.
Close enough that senior Broncos players were phoned and told to be ready to answer questions about Seibold’s signing.
Close enough that Seibold shook hands with his players and said he was off.
Close enough that Souths have reportedly signed a young forward from another club who Bennett approved and Seibold only found out about it after the deal was done.
But just when the state thought its greatest bushfires were under control in walked Bennett to the Broncos offices at Red Hill on Friday morning.
What changed the lie of the land is still a matter of dispute.
The prime suggestion was that Bennett wanted to be sacked and given a full payout of his million dollar deal and when that was refused on Friday he decided to stay.
But it was also known he was angry the deal seemed to get ahead of itself.
When he heard a press conference was scheduled for 4pm on Friday Bennett was an unhappy as a divorcee being told by their ex-lover to pack up and move out in a hurry because the new lover was waiting in the driveway.
What a circus. How can it come to this?
The Broncos have seen many dramatic days at their Red Hill headquarters but never one as confusing as this.
Club staff have had enough of the drama.
At 10am on Friday when I arrived at Red Hill they were open in their relief he was moving on — or so they thought.
Bennett told reporters earlier he would hold a morning press conference.
Club signage was shifted in so he could stand in front of it but there was no sense it was a club occasion — it was a rogue coach having his say and no-one was sure what that would be.
Rumours swirled everywhere.
No-one knew what was happening.
In Sydney, Souths officials were waiting by the phone and so was Seibold who now faces a gruelling season coaching players who he would have walked out on in a heartbeat. Good luck with that one.
Broncos great Chris Johns turned up at training and the speculation was he would have plenty to say about club bosses if Bennett was sacked.
But he wasn’t so Johns went home.
Bennett held his press conference but there was no sighting of club chief executive Paul White or the club’s publicity-shy chairman Karl Morris.
In his deliberate, matter of a fact sort of way, Bennett tried to shrug off the drama, explaining that nothing had changed from his position that he was staying.
In truth it had changed but then it changed back again. He was going but now he is staying.
But it never happened. Is this the end of the story?
Probably and that is the unfortunate part about it.
The relationship between Bennett and the Broncos has fractured beyond repair.
The sooner he moves on the better it will be for both of them.
If he stays next year, as appears likely, there will be weekly dramas and differences of opinion and humiliation for all parties.
If you think today’s event was a bushfire — you’ve seen nothing yet.
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