‘I’ve got a clear conscience’: Wayne Bennett begins life at South Sydney

Wayne Bennett says he put on his South Sydney shirt, looked in the mirror and liked what he saw on his first day at Redfern.

Wayne Bennett all smiles with Sam Burgess at Redfern Oval for his first session as South Sydney Rabbitohs coach. Picture: Phil Hillyard

Wayne Bennett says he put on his South Sydney shirt, looked in the mirror, liked what he saw and decided to put on the rest of his Rabbitohs kit.

“Pleasure to be here,” he said after his first training session at Redfern.

Bennett’s move to Souths came after he received his wish of being sacked by Brisbane. He’s played the Broncos like a fiddle.

He did not dispute a suggestion that he was pursuing legal action against his old club. He was at his wry best at his press conference.

“Nothing that has happened in the last six months makes any sense,” he said. “I’m pleased to be here. I’ve got a clear conscience. There was a lot of stuff going on behind the scenes.”

Bennett takes charge of his first training session as Souths coach. Picture: AAP

Bennett joked that the highlight of his stint would be dealing with the Sydney media. Asked if Souths players had made him feel welcome, he nodded at co-captain Sam Burgess and said, “Sam gave me a cuddle”.

He said he had not yet found a place to live because he’d only just found the airport. He liked the idea of staying at club owner Russell Crowe’s place for a while. Bennett said there’d been few dealings with Crowe.

“But I got a nice message from him,” Bennett said before receiving a certificate that lists him as Rabbitohs member number 170108.