New Parramatta coach Daniel Anderson declared he would not only clean up the Eels poor discipline but give them an attitude adjustment for the 2009 NRL season.
Anderson signed a three-year contract with Parramatta on Monday, replacing Michael Hagan who quit just last month.
Hagan claimed the players’ attitudes had been part of the reason for the club’s 2008 demise and Anderson said he would look to instil a tough and honest mantra next season – both on and off the field.
The former St Helens and New Zealand Warriors coach doesn’t plan on making any changes to the Eels roster and is confident he has the personnel, including coaching staff, to make the club successful again.
“I don’t see any need for changes to player or staff,” said Anderson.
“The players here have enough quality to achieve success.
“I don’t see any reason why we cannot be successful.
“I think if the boys in blue and gold are honest with themselves and have got a tough attitude about them then I think they’re going to win plenty of games.
“That itself will make you climb the ladder.
“I don’t think there’s a massive challenge, the competition is so tight in the NRL that you don’t need significant improvement, you just need a little bit of improvement and a little bit of confidence.
“It is a goal we should aim for straight away, to be honest and have a tough attitude about the way we play.”
It is a dream job for Anderson, 41, after he quit St Helens following three successful years including a Super League premiership to return home with family to Parramatta where he was born and raised.
Anderson was an assistant to coach Brian Smith at Parramatta in 2000 after leading the reserve grade team to the 1999 premiership.
He coached the Warriors to their first and only NRL grand final in 2002 and the New Zealand Test team between 2003 and 2005.
Anderson’s relationship with Polynesian players reportedly deteriorated during his final years at the Warriors and, with a large Pacific presence in the Eels squad, there had been questions over whether he was the best man for the job.
Anderson didn’t shy away from his record and said he’d learnt from his previous coaching experience.
“I have worked with the Kiwi national team and did not have any issues there,” he said.
“Not every coach has a perfect record.
“I think I have a good relationship with all style of players and all creeds of players.”
Eels chief executive Denis Fitzgerald confirmed that captain Nathan Cayless had specifically called him to refute a newspaper report suggesting he’d wanted Kiwi coach Stephen Kearney given the club job and not Anderson.
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