Elliott named new Warriors NRL coach
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Former Penrith and Canberra coach Matt Elliott has been unveiled as the new Warriors NRL mentor, signing a two-year deal on Friday.
Elliott arrives at the club under immediate pressure to overturn a disappointing 2012 campaign, in which they went from grand finalists the year prior to missing the top eight entirely.
Elliott, who becomes the eighth head coach at the New Zealand club, brings an experienced head having coached for 14 seasons in the NRL and English Super League.
“We’re thrilled to secure a coach of Matthew’s calibre,” Warriors chief executive Wayne Scurrah said in a statement.
“He’s had wide experience and success with a number of clubs, initially making his mark winning titles with Bradford in the English Super League and also taking Canberra and Penrith to the NRL finals a total of five times.”
Elliott takes the job from interim coach Tony Iro, who replaced sacked coach Brian McClennan late into the season.
The Warriors reportedly chased Melbourne mentor Craig Bellamy, as well as other NRL coaches, before settling on Elliott.
“While we have spoken to a number of contenders, Matthew consistently impressed us every time we met him with his total vision of how our football program should be structured and run,” Scurrah said.
“Through his long association with the game as a player and especially as a coach, he appreciates as much as anyone just what’s required to achieve the standards we are striving for.
“This is a tremendous opportunity for Matthew as head coach to shape our football department to enable us to become a consistent threat in the NRL.
“Our ultimate goal will always be to win premierships and, in Matthew, we have secured a coach not only capable of achieving this but also with the skills and vision to build a stronger total football club.”
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October 12th 2012 @ 8:34am
krisl said | October 12th 2012 @ 8:34am | Report comment
hope he will do well……
October 12th 2012 @ 8:45am
steve b said | October 12th 2012 @ 8:45am | Report comment
Top bloke , i reckon he will get the results their looking for ,good to see him back in the NRL …
October 12th 2012 @ 9:03am
PGNEWC said | October 12th 2012 @ 9:03am | Report comment
Does anybody see the irony in that Penrith and NZ have ultimately swapped coaches with Cleary and Elliott . The last time this was done was Hogan and Smith for Parra and Newcastle — it did not go too well then — I hope this swap has better luck
October 12th 2012 @ 9:53am
Chris said | October 12th 2012 @ 9:53am | Report comment
Why they would go after a proven failure at NRL level is beyond me.
Add to that, a genuinely unpleasant person to boot.
October 12th 2012 @ 10:06am
steve b said | October 12th 2012 @ 10:06am | Report comment
you have no idea what your on about !!
October 12th 2012 @ 10:30am
Chris said | October 12th 2012 @ 10:30am | Report comment
Which part, that he is a failure at NRL level? Given his win-loss ratio that is undeniable.
Or that he is an unpleasant person? I know several people, who are very rarely critical, that can’t stand the man. Anyone who worked with him at Canberra hates his guts.
October 12th 2012 @ 1:26pm
steve b said | October 12th 2012 @ 1:26pm | Report comment
I Know plenty that would disagree , unpleasant person never saw that side ,as for coaching ability i think he did the best he could with the cattle he had , so i guess we will have to just wait and see !!
October 12th 2012 @ 1:28pm
Chris said | October 12th 2012 @ 1:28pm | Report comment
If he needed better cattle he should have purchased them or developed them. He had the same salary cap at his disposal as every other coach and failed.
Not having the cattle is only an excuse (and even then a weak one) for your first season, not after many seasons with the one side.
We don’t have to wait and see, we have seen him coach many seasons and lose a massive number of games.
October 12th 2012 @ 1:45pm
steve b said | October 12th 2012 @ 1:45pm | Report comment
It’s in the past , you can only guess the future !!
October 12th 2012 @ 10:12am
Sylvester said | October 12th 2012 @ 10:12am | Report comment
Elliot has done the best he could with average Penrith and Canberra teams. It’ll be interesting to see what he can do with a more talented roster at the Warriors.
October 12th 2012 @ 10:31am
Chris said | October 12th 2012 @ 10:31am | Report comment
Exactly, he did the best he could… and failed. This isn’t boy scouts. There is no encouragement award for effort.
He was a long term coach at both sides, working with the same salary cap as everyone else. If Penrith and Canberra were average he has only himself to blame.
October 12th 2012 @ 10:50am
nEd said | October 12th 2012 @ 10:50am | Report comment
He did nothing for Canberra so I am surprised he got another gig as a coach.
October 12th 2012 @ 10:57am
GCTiger said | October 12th 2012 @ 10:57am | Report comment
Terrible decision. Not exactly planning for the future. As much as I hate Gus Gould, even he said he sacked him because the team had no idea what the plan was. God knows what he is going to do in NZ when he doesn’t know anything about the local culture.
At least it wasn’t Brian Smith.
October 12th 2012 @ 11:06am
Chris said | October 12th 2012 @ 11:06am | Report comment
Whats the record for most clubs coached without a winning record at any?
October 12th 2012 @ 11:46am
Go warriors said | October 12th 2012 @ 11:46am | Report comment
Is anyone aware Elliot is also the coach of the USA Tommahawks. One day there might be a few Americans in the Warriors side or the Vulcans or even the u20s.
He will be a very busy man next coaching the Warriors and then the USA in the world cup.
October 12th 2012 @ 6:00pm
Dave said | October 12th 2012 @ 6:00pm | Report comment
As a USA fan I hope he does, it would be good for the game and especially good for the Tomahawks.
Looking forward to the sweet taste of victory in the World Cup next year (before everyone gets all jittery and feels the need to tell me the USA has no chance, etc just calm down…. I understand reality, just refuse to give up before the first kick / carry).
October 13th 2012 @ 8:32am
Zippa said | October 13th 2012 @ 8:32am | Report comment
Dave I would love to see the USA Tomahawks do well in the WC next year. I think the way the draw is planned they will be competitive. I think they play Scotland, Wales and the Cook Islands. They realisticaly have a chance at winning some of those games and that will be a massive boost for the sport in the USA.
There is so much potential for RL in the USA and hopefully the Tommahawks can bring some recognition to the sport next year.
October 12th 2012 @ 1:55pm
Damn Straight said | October 12th 2012 @ 1:55pm | Report comment
Maybe the board need to swallow their pride, pick up the phone and beg Daniel Anderson to come back(not that he would). With a career coaching record of 61% wins, surely he would have to be a better choice than Matthew Elliot, who is uninspiring and lacklustre at best
.
October 12th 2012 @ 2:09pm
steve b said | October 12th 2012 @ 2:09pm | Report comment
How would you know , that he is uninspiring and lacklustre ,won with Bradford and got the raider’s and panthers to the play offs ,keep it real he will do a top job and is exactly what the Warriors need someone who is not your mate to light a fire under their arses ,because the talent is their they just need pushing and Elliot will do that !!