Wayne Bennett declares he will remain coach of the Newcastle Knights amid speculation linking him with the Cowboys

EXCLUSIVE: Newcastle's heartbreaking finals weekend has ended on a high with Wayne Bennett confirming he will stay at the club.

Wayne Bennett watches on at Knights training.

EXCLUSIVE: Newcastle's heartbreaking finals weekend has ended on a high with supercoach Wayne Bennett confirming he will stay at the club.

Just 24 hours after his team and club legend Danny Buderus were knocked out of the finals, Bennett told The Daily Telegraph on Sunday night he was not going anywhere.

And the seven-time premiership winning coach declared his commitment to the Knights, with or without struggling owner Nathan Tinkler.

“You people in the media started all this speculation,” Bennett said.

“I haven’t said anything because I don’t comment on rumours in newspapers.

Wayne Bennett watches on at Knights training.

“I’ve never said I was going anywhere. We’ve finished the season good but the job’s not done yet. I’m staying.”

COWBOYS FUEL BENNETT RUMOURS

Tinkler’s well-publicised financial problems led to speculation the Knights could no longer afford Bennett’s annual salary of more than $1 million.

He told reporters last week: “I can’t give you an iron-clad guarantee of anything in this game. What I can say is right now I am the coach here. If that changes at any stage, then I will let you know.”

Bennett on Sunday night insisted Tinkler’s financial position would have no bearing on his future at the club.

“That’s never been an issue with me,” he said, “I’ve always been paid on time.”

Even at his press conference after Saturday night’s loss to the Roosters, Bennett would not discuss his immediate future.

The 63-year-old is two years into a four-year contract with the Knights. Overall the deal is worth up to $5 million with bonuses.

The former Broncos and St George Illawarra coach had been linked to the North Queensland Cowboys in recent weeks because of their delay in naming a replacement for dumped coach Neil Henry.

Speculation increased over the weekend when Cowboys chief executive Peter Jourdain said the appointment would not be made until after the Grand Final because the new coach might be involved.

Bennett’s public commitment to the Knights is a massive boost for the club, not that the Knights were overly concerned he would be leaving.

“It’s all pure, utter rubbish and absolute bulls…” said Hunter Sports Group boss Troy Palmer in The Sunday Telegraph.

Bennett remains confident he can deliver a premiership in Newcastle and become the first coach to win titles at three different clubs.

“We’re building towards where we want to be,” he said.