Walters has cachet to revitalise Titans
ORIGIN forward Jarrod Wallace says Kevin Walters would win immediate respect if he was to be named Titans coach given he would have to hand over the reins of the Maroons to take the Gold Coast job.
Walters is considered the front runner for the Titans role left vacant after Neil Henry’s axing but cannot take on the job while he remains Queensland coach.
Wallace was a vocal backer of Henry but believes Walters could bring the culture needed to help the Titans rebuild after a tumultuous season.
“(Walters) has obviously worked his butt off to get to be Queensland coach, so I know that’d be a massive decision,” Wallace said.
“I think if he was to make the decision to come here, the boys have got to be respectful of it because he’s worked his a*** off to get to (coach) Queensland.
“For him to turn up down here shows how much he wants it.
“He’s been at two clubs (Melbourne and Brisbane) where they’ve been so successful, so I think the culture that he’d bring here would be outstanding and it’d be just what the club needs.”
Walters has served a long apprenticeship under some of the best coaches in the game and wants, eventually, to be an NRL head coach.
But he is also leading the Maroons through change as Queensland’s greatest stars near the end of their careers.
As a Queensland player, Wallace wins either way.
But he conceded Walters would be a perfect fit for the Titans.
“He’s been assistant coach under two of the best, if not the best, coaches in the world in (Craig) Bellamy and Wayne (Bennett) and now he’s gone on and taken his own role in Queensland and put his own footprint on that.
“I think he’s definitely got the respect of whoever plays under him now and if he does come down here I think he’d be a great fit.”
Among the biggest beneficiaries would be young halves Ash Taylor and Kane Elgey, who would benefit from working closely with the six-time premiership winner.
“He did a great job with Benny (Hunt) and Milf (Anthony Milford) and you can see where they are now,” Wallace said of the Broncos pair, who both made their Origin debut this season.
“If he came, especially with Elgey and Ash together, it’d be outstanding.”
Wallace admitted he was disappointed at having to front the media and defend Henry on Monday when a decision had already been made on the coach’s future at the club.
“I think they could have definitely handled it in a way that it protected us as a player and probably not made us look as silly as it did,” he said.
“But obviously they just wanted to do what they thought was best.
“I always back Neil and I know a lot of the boys back Neil, so I’ll never change what I’ve always said – I was always behind him being the coach and I’m disappointed for him.
“I know he’s shattered and I know his family would all be shattered.
“But I know that he just wanted us to move forward now and try and get a couple of good wins going into the off-season and deal with the adjustments from there.”
I THINK HE’S DEFINITELY GOT THE RESPECT OF WHOEVER PLAYS UNDER HIM NOW AND IF HE DOES COME DOWN HERE I THINK HE’D BE A GREAT FIT ...