As their maiden NRL season reaches a critical juncture, Dolphins coach Wayne Bennett says he doesn’t want to go on a mid-season signing spree to strengthen his undermanned roster.
The Dolphins (7-7) copped the biggest hiding of their short NRL existence on Friday when they were hammered 58-18 by Anthony Seibold’s Manly, with seven first-grade regulars sidelined.
Hooker Jeremy Marshall-King and centre Brenko Lee both failed to finish the loss to the Sea Eagles.
The Redcliffe-based side have won plaudits for their grit and resilience in the early part of their debut campaign season, but things are beginning to look a little more challenging after consecutive big losses.
Finals is a realistic achievement for the ‘Phins but Bennett was adamant he wouldn’t be signing players just to make that happen.
“I’m not going to bring players, I’m not that type of coach,” Bennett said.
“We’ve got a squad in there playing in the state league and we’ll get to the end of the season, and if we have to make some tough decisions then, then we’ll make them.
“But right now I’m not going to bring people in and upset the ones I’ve already got here who played so well and have done so much for us.
“We’ll live with what we’ve got and get to the end of the season.”
Bennett said he was happy with what he had seen from his side at the midpoint of the season, even if the Manly loss was painful.
The Dolphins are on a bye next week before a run home that works in their favour, with the club only forced to play outside Queensland three more times this season.
“I don’t think there’s a team in the comp that doesn’t have a bad day or game,” he said.
“We had ours tonight and I just hope it’s our last one and we’ll do everything we can to make sure it is our last one.
“The reality of the competition we’re in is you’re going to be up for a bit then you can find the scoreboard going against you and everything going against you.
“We just need to regroup right now and a week off will help us do that.”
Reckon you can pick the winning team? Build your own dream team with Draftstars daily fantasy and compete on any match. For great odds on the NRL head on over to PlayUp. Imagine what you could be buying instead. Set a deposit limit.
There is only one way for Cronulla to shake off their reputation for being flat-track bullies. They are off to an impressive start in…
This can't have been a lot of fun for Brad and Gutho!
"You're five metres from your line - you can't be looking at the referee!"
Maika Sivo scored a hat-trick in his return to first-grade footy but a brain fade in the second half saw the Eels winger sent…
Gus Gould went from analysing Daly Cherry-Evans' fantastic pass to roasting Johnathan Thurston in a heartbeat, leaving his Nine colleagues in hysterics.
Nathan Brown has a new nickname. His Manly teammates were full of praise after igniting his side off the bench.
