Zorba claims Bennett is not a great coach
Roar Guru
By ScottWoodward.me, 20 Jan 2010 ScottWoodward.me is a Roar Guru
- Tagged:
- NRL, peter peters, Rugby League, Wayne benett
Wayne Bennett and Tonie Carroll (AAP Image/Action Photographics, Colin Whelan)
I enjoy my Sunday mornings lying in bed listening to Peter Peters talk about Rugby League on SKY radio (2KY). I am not sure if he is someone I would like to share a beer with, but I respect his opinion.
But when he declared that Wayne Bennett is not a great coach, I thought I was still dreaming.
Zorba made the point that whoever is the Brisbane coach, he is entitled to do very well and win premierships because he is a one town team. If that is the case, the current Broncos coach must be a nervous man as they have gone backwards since Bennett left, conceding over 42 missed tackles every game.
Bennett went to St George after losing Gasnier and Ryles and still managed to win the Minor Premiership, after just assisting the Kiwis to win the World Cup over Australia.
Did you take note, Zorba?
Australia were beaten by a weaker team that Bennett was instrumental in master minding.
Plenty of coaches have tried to win a Grand Final by buying the best players, but unless you can coach, it doesn’t work. Bennett won six Grand Finals (from six appearances) in 21 years with the Broncos, and often he did not have the best list.
Zorba should go back a replay the 2006 Grand Final when the Broncos defeated the Storm.
Bennett knew that he could not beat the Storm if the game was played on an even footing. He needed an edge, and put together a brilliant strategy that sent his opposing coach, his former apprentice Craig Bellamy, to hospital on a drip after the game.
Bennett deducted that the Storm could not win without their “rudder” Cam Smith and the champion Greg Inglis.
He was correct.
Loyal servant Toni Carroll was given the kamikaze role of tackling Cam Smith early in the game. When he did, the Storm skipper did not get up, and was in cuckoo land for the rest of the game.
Greg Inglis was also a non-factor as he was bottled up all game in a most unusual tactic using a combination of three players.
Bellamy, just like Ricky Stuart in the World Cup, was simply out-coached.
Not only is Wayne Bennett a great coach, he is a living legend, and if Zorba has a different view, then name someone with a better record.
Enjoy sports? Enjoy a bargain? All Sports Online has your favourite sporting brands at up to 70% off. Online only, premium quality sporting goods and merchandise at discounted prices. Get a deal now.
Do you have what it takes to become a sports writer? Write for the roar
Rugby League articles
- An open letter to Channel Nine (107)
- Gallop and some of his precious Sydney NRL clubs must go (101)
- The NRL is back baby! (65)
- The NRL’s scariest players (56)
- The NRL needs a vision (52)
- Federal Court has it wrong on sports broadcast copyright (48)
- Bulldogs setting benchmark for Sydney’s NRL clubs (46)
- New league chief coy on TV deal
- RL Commission was never in doubt, says Searle RL Commission was never in doubt: Searle
- Chalk predicts bright rugby league future
- Clubs must stop knifing Gallop, if commission is to succeed
- Rugby league’s new era: where to now? (23)
- New dawn for rugby league gets underway (11)
- Rugby league commission ushers in new era (3)
- Rugby league’s new era: where to now? (23)
- Federal Court has it wrong on sports broadcast copyright (49)
- An open letter to Channel Nine (108)
- The NRL’s scariest players (56)
- Is the All Stars match increasing the divide? (25)
- Channel Nine needs NRL-cricket ODI compromise (36)
- The NRL needs a vision (52)
- Explore:
- NRL, peter peters, Rugby League, Wayne benett
macavity said | January 20th 2010 @ 7:09am | Report comment
Zorba is a moron.
The only sports commentator on radio worth listening to is Jimmy Smith – I will stop listening to BSB when the painful, agenda driven and 100% negative little gibberer TK is back. And slats just turns everything into a cricket story. Boring!
And dont get me started on Ray Hadley… just awful.
ScottWoodward.me said | January 20th 2010 @ 2:39pm | Report comment
Hard man Mac
macavity said | January 20th 2010 @ 8:23pm | Report comment
It was harsh but fair.
Radio is by far the shallowest talent pool in sports journalism. Not creative enough for print, not charismatic enough for TV, they generally just make a living from bagging everything and everyone.
ScottWoodward.me said | January 20th 2010 @ 10:11pm | Report comment
With a few exceptions I also think our print media is disappointing and very biased towards who advertisers with them.
I think Roy Masters is the best.
skull said | January 21st 2010 @ 12:41pm | Report comment
Masters is probably the most biased in my opinion, still running his fibro’s agenda 30 years after
it went out of fashion.
markwakefield said | January 21st 2010 @ 12:49pm | Report comment
masters is your typical bourgeois communist…
macavity said | January 22nd 2010 @ 12:26pm | Report comment
Masters is the best journalist in Oz, any media.
markwakefield said | January 22nd 2010 @ 12:49pm | Report comment
if you’re a fan of the communist manifesto he surely is… and the worst thing about him is its all attitude and no practical or ethical committment…
perryhaddock said | January 20th 2010 @ 7:21am | Report comment
its true, brisbane were propped up by news limited for years and have no direct competition in the city… news limited saw to that by getting rid of the crushers… bennett always had the best players at his disposal and anytrhing less than he achieved would have been an underachievement… he could never have lead a team like the tigers had in their victory over north queensland to a premiership because he only goes where he knows he’s going to succeed… nz were always going to beat aust eventually… the game is dominated by polynesians as their somatotype is whats required to win games in the current era…
ScottWoodward.me said | January 20th 2010 @ 2:42pm | Report comment
Perry
If you think Tim Sheens is a better coach than Bennett then you have been feeding too many scrums. Having said that I hope he can win the title this year as I have had something on the Tiges at the big odds.
Fisher Price said | January 20th 2010 @ 4:14pm | Report comment
Bennett’s sides have generally been choc-a-bloc with State of Origin players. All Haddock was doing was pointing out that the Tigers 2005 side won the Premiership without such luxury. Sheens – of whom I have reservations – did pretty well at Canberra and Penrith prior to joining the joint merger. Moreover, the Tigers have been entertaining ever since he’s been there; i know I’d rather watch them than grinders like the Northern Eagles or News Ltd Storm.
ScottWoodward.me said | January 20th 2010 @ 7:14pm | Report comment
Lets put things into perspective…the 2005 GF was the weakest 2 teams I have ever seen play in the big 1, especially the forward packs, and the Tigers were X lucky.
The Raiders team that Sheens coached was one of the best teams of all time and he was grossly disappointing when a Cowboy.
So Fisher you think the Storm are grinders? Slater, Smith, Cronk, Ingliss etc, yeah right!
markwakefield said | January 21st 2010 @ 11:40am | Report comment
just because they have a couple of good attacking players doesn’t mean the news ltd storm aren’t grinders… both smith and cronk are complete grinders…but you keep lining your buddy rupert’s pockets… there is no reasoning with rugby league types… sure george peponis was a doctor, billy moore has a masters in human movement and michael buetner has a bachelor in physical education but youre more operating on the level of say a tricky trindall…
macavity said | January 22nd 2010 @ 12:28pm | Report comment
Agree on Smith and Cronk
(ps Buderus > Smith for all time)
But the rest of your post made no sense.
Scott Woodward said | January 22nd 2010 @ 2:10pm | Report comment
Mark
Cam Smith is regarded as the best player that Bellamay has coached by bellamy. I agree with him and he is certainly no grinder. He has a brilliant kicking game and a wonderful vision who generally gets the mpove right when his team needs it most.
You probably should look mup the word grinder.
dannyshepherd said | January 22nd 2010 @ 5:17pm | Report comment
scott,
i looked it up but all that was there was a picture of cameron smith…
Fisher Price said | January 23rd 2010 @ 9:56am | Report comment
The Tigers were lucky? Whatever.
News Ltd usually have 14 grinders in their 17.
Mr Mac said | January 20th 2010 @ 8:27am | Report comment
Scott
Just to be a bit pedantic & semantic …
There is a big difference between a coach and a strategist/tactician.
Coaching is about the skills etc – tactic are different.
These facts ar so often confused because in may cases the one person is does both tasks
Bennett may great at both but there is a difference
ScottWoodward.me said | January 20th 2010 @ 2:46pm | Report comment
Mac
No argument and you are pedantic. A great coach is strong in both ares and Bennett is certainly that.
Col the Bear said | January 20th 2010 @ 9:54am | Report comment
haven’t listened to the guy for years.. does anyone in the NRL actually take Mr Ps ideas seriously anyway..come on your got to be kidding..
ScottWoodward.me said | January 20th 2010 @ 2:48pm | Report comment
Col
OK he is very biased towards Manly and that is ok and a given, but there is no doubt that he has an excellent footy brain and makes many incisive comments. Have to call it the way I see it.
Mushi said | January 20th 2010 @ 9:57am | Report comment
I think the credit for the Bronco’s upset of Melbourne should be with the officials, one of only three or four games in my life where I felt the outcome of a match was repeatedly altered by poor decisions.
Zorba was right to an extent on the Broncos. Under a salary cap system they should be a dominant team and despite numerous questionable decisions on talent they simply go back to the largest junior base and dredge up the next QLD origin rep or offer a contract to the homesick brisbane boy. Melbourne have been very successful by simply taking the dregs from Queensland which is still a broader feeder group that is on offer for any Sydney club.
That said I think Bennet has shown in both Canberra and now St George that he is a club builder, he does a very good job of implementing a system and getting value out of players. As a single game tactician I think he’s closer back to the pack but he gives himself a huge advantage by being a better club builder.
ScottWoodward.me said | January 20th 2010 @ 2:56pm | Report comment
Mushi
You have contradicted yourself.
The Storm have won 3 Premierships in the last decade so the Brisbane monopoly does not stand up. Every recruitment manager has exactly the same opportunity as Brisbane when it comes to finding and recruiting as Peter O’Sullivan has proven.
It is interesting that no one yet has named a better coach than Bennett. Bellamy has improved since he lost that GF to Bennett and I rate him equal now and will probably go past him one day.
Mushi said | January 20th 2010 @ 4:39pm | Report comment
No Scott I have not contradicted myself I didn’t called it a monopoly – you’ve just made that up.
I actually used Melbourne’s success as an example of the depth of the talent pool in that even by playing second fiddle to the broncos they’ve managed to secure the core of a quality side.
This emphasises, rather than contradicts, how broad the talent pool they have access to is that when another club contents itself with second it can still get access to a broad base of talent.
The broncos, by any objective measure have been the most successful team in the competition since they joined.
Also it is beyond laughable to suggest that every recruitment manager has the same opportunity, an opportunity yes but the same opportunity? That is utterly ridiculous.
How do you stay in Brisbane with your family and play for the junior roosters, how does Penrith ensure as many kids grow up wanting to play for the panthers as they do the broncos , how do you have and maintain the same extensive network of contacts in a different city to the one you reside in, how do you get the same bang for the buck when you are relocating players, how do you compete with the workshops at schools etc.
Brisbane get a longer look, earlier opportunity and because of both geographic convenience and loyalties get the old ceretis paribus tie breaker.
BennO said | January 20th 2010 @ 10:31pm | Report comment
I think you’re forgetting something there Mushi and that’s that all clubs bring kids down to Sydney from the bush while teenagers and get em started down there. And remember sonny bill came across from NZ to the dogs as a 15 year old. The other clubs definitely have a chance at recruiting young fellas from Brisbane. The loyalty to the broncos is one thing, but aside from that the other clubs have a damn good chance I think. I don’t think we’ll see the kind of loyalty anymore anyway, now that Bennet has gone. He was a reason so many players wanted to play at the broncos.
You also say they just “dredge up the next origin rep”??? You don’t think Bennet had anything to do with turning any of them into origin reps? It all happens by magic I guess.
And then finally, you refer to Inglis, Slater, Smith, Johnson and Folau as dregs. Funny.
Your posts must be a wind up.
Bay35Pablo said | January 20th 2010 @ 4:03pm | Report comment
Sounds like Zorba is on some serious medication. How could he come up with a clanger like that?
You can see the difference in the Dragons in just one season. What does Zorba ascribe that to? They all got out of bed on the right side last year for once?
And as a Tigers fan, I’m pretty happy with Sheens. OK we haven’t made the finals since 2005, but if we had the Broncos depth we’d have won them all!! I still remember the rabble we had before Sheens, and he’ll have to have them playing a lot worse before I call for him to go. We’ve missed the finals by fingernails several times, and that has tended to come down to the players not the coaching.
2010 – Chinese Year of the Tiger!!!!!
ScottWoodward.me said | January 20th 2010 @ 4:47pm | Report comment
Pablo,
I rate Sheens, but sometimes he is a worry.
The Tigers were never going anywhere whilever he played Benjy at 7 and I cant believe that it took him so long to work that out.
I hope Moltzen plays there this year.
MyGeneration said | January 20th 2010 @ 4:24pm | Report comment
I lean to the argument Bennett is a great club builder and coach of people, not necessarily a brilliant tactician. In that 2006 Grand Final, the Storm shot themselves in the foot by going away from their methodical game plan (they went wide on early tackles a lot more than usual), plus all the close decisions went against them, but the Broncos were good enough, and well prepared enough, to take advantage. I always thought (without having any way of knowing) that Bellamy was spooked coming up against his mentor, and panicked a bit with his game plan, whereas Brisbane went out there just to make as few mistakes as possible, which was the right tactics for them because man-for-man they were up against a better team (and they didn’t have a halfback!). Tactics wise, Bennett is the master of less is more, but you can’t really argue with his record.
As for Zorba, he knows how to get people’s attention.
ScottWoodward.me said | January 20th 2010 @ 4:50pm | Report comment
yep.
Bellamy was spooked at actually flew the guys back to Melb after the GF breaky which meant they had 3 plane trips in a week.
You are right not having a 7 which underlines the greatness of Lockyer.
Hansie said | January 20th 2010 @ 4:54pm | Report comment
Bennett has usually had better cattle than his opposition coaches, and his teams have contained far more rep players than most of the oppositions teams. The Broncos should feature heavily in the finals in most years. In addition, his teams have tended to die in the later rounds and finals in recent years. His teams tend to be July premiers these days. I think he will be remembered as a great survivor rather than a great coach.