Wayne Bennett backs Anthony Milford to reignite NRL career with Dolphins

The Dolphins kick-off their first pre-season on Monday, all eyes are on Wayne Bennett...and the super coach has an old ace up his sleeve.

Wayne Bennett is back, and looking forward to combining with Anthony Milford again.

Wayne Bennett is back in business and has declared his old Broncos $1 million man Anthony Milford is ready to help him spearhead a bold new NRL era with the Dolphins.

After 12 months on the sidelines, Bennett will return to the coaching furnace on Monday when the Dolphins launch their inaugural NRL campaign.

The NRL’s first expansion club since the Gold Coast Titans in 2007 will hit the training paddock at Redcliffe as they begin preparations for their 2023 launch.

After leading South Sydney to the 2021 NRL grand final, Bennett did not actively coach in 2022 for the first time in a glittering 45-year career that’s yielded seven premierships.

But the 72-year-old super coach declared he is not finished as he prepares to guide the Dolphins into the NRL pressure cooker.

Wayne Bennett (right) and playmaker Anthony Milford will reunite at the Dolphins after their grand-final stint at the Broncos.

“I’m officially back. I’ve had 12 months to practice,” Bennett said.

“Working with the players and working together as a group, that switches me on.

“In this game, everyone is replaceable. Someone else can always take your place in life.

“No-one is indispensable and I’m the same, but I’m not finished yet.”

Bennett is attempting to keep a low profile and lid on the Dolphins in the formative stages of their debut NRL season.

He will stay out of the early weeks of pre-season training, which will be led by performance chief Jeremy Hickmans.

The Dolphins will not have one player with NRL experience on the field for the first fitness session at Moreton Daily Stadium, with a host of development players and trialists to partake.

The likes of Jamayne Isaako, Jarrod Wallace, Brenko Lee and Herman Ese’ese will report for training on November 17 before another group in December.

The Dolphins won’t get their full squad together until January due to leave entitlements after the World Cup, which they have nine players participating in, including Milford.

The pressure is on Bennett to make the Dolphins competitive in their debut NRL season.

While Milford has lost his sizzling touch in recent years, leading to his axing at Brisbane, he inspired the Broncos’ surge to the 2015 grand final under the tutelage of Bennett.

Now the pair are joining forces again.

Bennett may not get his hands on star signing Milford until the New Year, but he is confident Brisbane’s former marquee man can resurrect his NRL career at the Dolphins.

“I haven’t coached Anthony for four years now, so it’s been a while,” he said.

“In that period of time, he has had some pretty bad moments on and off the football field.

“I know what he can do. His challenge now is to come back in a stable environment where he will get all the coaching he needs and after that, it’s up to Anthony.

“We will see what’s different with Anthony. But I believe he’s not past it.

“Anthony is only 28, he has another five years in the NRL. I know the player that he was, I’ve seen him go through the bad times, and now he has an opportunity to come and show us what we all know he can do. That’s all I can ask of him.

“It’s on him to be the player that he can be. No-one is going to stop him.”

12am November 1st 2022. A new history starts now. #PhinsUppic.twitter.com/Gt123UwY1Y

— The Dolphins (@dolphinsnrl) October 31, 2022

After being granted the NRL’s 17th licence in October last year, the Dolphins have been working feverishly to create a club.

They now have 44 full-time staff, 26 top 30 players, four on their development list and 11 train-and-trialists pushing for an NRL deal.

The team will have a new locker room facility by Christmas and CEO Terry Reader said the club was coming to shape following a frantic year.

“We officially became an NRL team on November 1,” he said.

“It’s been real since the moment we got the call. We only had a 12-month runway until this day arrived and it’s gone pretty quickly. A lot of things that had to be put in place had to be done in six months.

“People will see players in training kit for the first time on Monday which will be another exciting day for the club. It rams home how real it is.

“The next big thing will be when the draw comes out later this month and they can lock in the big games at Suncorp and Redcliffe.

“When you see the draw and Dolphins versus Broncos in the Battle of Brisbane – excitement will really ramp up.

“Even though we’ve got 75 years of history, we become a new club in the NRL and everyone is really excited.”