Billy Slater’s role in turning St Kilda around, James Maloney could exit Penrith
SAINT, SINNER, SHOOSH: Billy Slater making a huge impression as an assistant coach in the AFL. PLUS, why Penrith star could be on the way out.
He’s only at training one day a week but Billy Slater is making a huge impression as an assistant coach at St Kilda in the AFL. PLUS, why Jimmy Maloney’s not happy at Penrith.
SAINT
THE Roosters, Dragons and SCG on Anzac Day. Such a contrast to Bankwest Stadium with the old members’ stand, the history, the emotion and the wonderful respect for all those who served our nation.
SINNER
IT appears Peter Wallace is struggling to cope with retirement because he can’t stay off the field at Penrith games. The trainer has been fined twice this year — $2000 and $4000 — for being on the field when he shouldn’t have been. There is no truth in the rumour they are now calling him “Alfie”.
SHOOSH
WHICH NRL club is nervous about a disgruntled former employee and his knowledge of questionable salary cap payments from previous years? This is potentially a dynamite story.
SPOTTED
BANKWEST Stadium hero Mitch Moses at the Hunters Hill Hotel (not drinking) watching the Roosters-Dragons Anzac Day blockbuster on the big screen.
SPOTTED II
NSWRL chief executive Dave Trodden, former Blues coach Laurie Daley, Queensland legend Darryl Brohman, player agent Steve ‘Chimes’ Gillis and your columnist enjoying lunch at the magnificent Chinese restaurant, the Century, at The Star on Wednesday.
SPOTTED III
FORMER Penrith Panthers and Brisbane Broncos coach Anthony Griffin and NRL chief executive Todd Greenberg having a chat over breakfast in Surry Hills on Thursday.
SPOTTED IV
JOHN Brown, the former federal sports and tourism minister who funded the building of Parramatta Stadium in the 1980s, at the opening of Bankwest Stadium on Monday.
SPOTTED V
JODIE Cross, head of commercial for the NSW State of Origin Blues, in Royal North Shore Hospital. Get better soon, Jodes. Freddy and all the guys need you.
SPOTTED VI
AFTER another tough loss to the Raiders last weekend, Broncos players were still good enough to think of the fans. Matt Gillett and Jack Bird gave their boots away. Anthony Milford, Kodi Nikorima, David Fifita and Alex Glenn stayed back for 45 minutes to sign autographs. Nice stuff.
SAINT BILLY’S AFL MIRACLE
BILLY Slater is making a huge impression as an assistant coach at St Kilda in the AFL.
Last year, the club finished 16th on the ladder yet hardly changed their roster. The addition of the former Storm champion was one of the few changes.
The Saints are now running equal first and are the most improved side in the competition.
Slater has a versatile role in which he coaches on defence and talks to the players about sporting values and culture. He spends one day a week at their Moorabbin training headquarters.
St Kilda coach Alan Richardson said Slater was having a significant influence on the whole group, particularly the leaders.
“He’s worked really closely with our leaders on the standards they are setting and how they flow through to the rest of the group,” Richardson said.
“At times, they are minor or simple things that they can implement, but having someone of his experience to bounce ideas off has been huge for them.
“Billy is big on defence and he is very good at using stories, and lessons, he has learned along the way to help educate our guys.
“The bonus has been having someone who can also work our players on their tackling and just on the standards they need to set at training.”
Interestingly, St Kilda also used Melbourne Storm’s wrestling coach John Donohue over the off-season to prepare for their 2019 campaign.
Players described a beach fitness session under Donohue in January as the most brutal they’ve done.
PANTHERS MAY OFFLOAD JIMMY
STATE of Origin star James Maloney is likely to quit Penrith at the end of the season.
The veteran five-eighth has another year to run on his contract but there are opportunities for him to sign a lucrative three-year deal to finish his career in England on a multimillion-dollar contract.
Maloney was obviously not happy about being dumped as Penrith captain by Ivan Cleary. He previously had a tight relationship with Anthony Griffin, who rated him as smart a player as the great Darren Lockyer.
Maloney, who turns 33 in June, has in recent weeks been noticeably down on form and his general mood. His poor combination with the coach’s son Nathan in the halves has been the talk of the game.
“He’s not happy losing,” is the explanation from his long-time agent Wayne Beavis.
TAMOU CREATED SPLIT
THERE were many things Gus Gould and Penrith Panthers coach Ivan Cleary couldn’t agree on.
Front-rower James Tamou was shopped around to rival clubs last year while Gould was in charge. When Cleary arrived, he had a totally different view and eventually chose Tamou as captain.
It was the first sign that Cleary was running the show, not Gus. Two weeks later, Gould asked for a redundancy.
Cleary’s decision to appoint Tamou as captain over James Maloney was a shock. As much as he is a great person and clubman, Tamou has averaged only 45 minutes a game in recent years. He’s also not a renowned talker.
NRL’S ‘PEACE’ TALKS
COMMISSION chairman Peter Beattie and NRL CEO Todd Greenberg have met to thrash out their differences following our item last week about tension between the pair.
They communicated via text message last Sunday morning then met at NRL headquarters on Tuesday to talk through the issues that have created the strain between the commission and senior NRL management.
It is a situation we will be monitoring closely.
STADIUM DOUBLE
NRL ground manager Peter Denny would have to be the game’s longest-serving current employee.
Last Monday, he was in charge of operations at the opening of the magnificent Bankwest Stadium.
He was also there back in 1986 when the Eels hosted the Dragons for the first game at the original Parramatta Stadium.
It’s an important role that involves timekeeping, interchange, referees, the sin bin, the match-day broadcasters and everything else.
KNIGHTS STILL DIRTY
YOU can guarantee one thing about Anthony Griffin’s coaching future … he will not be offered the job to replace Nathan Brown at the struggling Newcastle Knights.
Griffin and his agent Wayne Beavis were deep in discussions with the Knights in 2015 and close to reaching an agreement when they pulled out and went to Penrith instead.
Knights officials are still dirty about the manner in which they terminated talks once Phil Gould approached them for the Panthers job.
TODAY LONG GONE FOR TALENTED TIM
TIM Gilbert’s departure from Channel 9 after 23 years has worked out beautifully for one of TV’s nice guys.
The talented presenter is working on a number of programs on Sky and Fox Sports News.
His Racing Dreams show, which has tracked the stories of the autumn racing carnival, received its biggest audience last Saturday and was the No.1 show for the day on the channel. He also hosts The Tele’s Monday Bunker which is now aired on Fox Sports News and WIN TV on Mondays at 12.30.
Meanwhile, his old gig, The Today Show, is breaking all the wrong kind of records, rating just above a test pattern, if there is still such a thing. Looks like he got off the last life raft on TV’s Titanic.
FITTLER TAKES TO BEACH WITH HAYNE
NSW Blues Origin coach Freddie Fittler caught up with fallen star Jarryd Hayne on Wednesday.
They did a fitness session together on the northern beaches with trainer Hayden Knowles.
“Obviously he’s got a lot on his mind and a lot on his plate,” Fittler said. “The smartest thing he’s doing at the moment is a bit of exercise.
“We had a run on the beach and then some breakfast. It was nice to catch up with Jarryd.”
The 31-year-old former Parramatta Eels and Gold Coast Titans superstar has pleaded not guilty to sexual assault charges from the Hunter Valley last year.
His case resumes on May 15. Hayne cannot be registered with an NRL club until the matter is finalised.
SEE YOU ON THE CORNER
CATCH you at 7pm after The Matty Johns Show for Controversy Corner on Fox Sports 502 this evening with host Graeme Hughes, Tigers legend Steve “Blocker” Roach and the best league ref there ever was — Billy Harrigan — to discuss another amazing round of NRL.
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