Broncos say Bennett’s not going anywhere in 2019
BRONCOS player of the year Anthony Milford says he and his teammates trust in Wayne Bennett to serve out his last year as Brisbane coach.
Milford cut through continued scrutiny over whether Bennett will take part in a series of NRL club coaching moves.
Bennett yesterday declined to untangle different interpre- tations over his comments at the Broncos presentation dinner on whether he would head up Brisbane’s 2019 bid for the title.
“Interpretation is up to you,’’ Bennett texted when asked if his comments were intended to mean he would coach the Broncos in the last year of his contact.
Bennett did use the word “we’’ when referring to the 2019 Broncos when addressing the function audience. So did out- of- contract winger Corey Oates.
“Whatever happens in the media, I know Wayne will be here. He has a whole lot of trust with the boys,’’ said Milford, who overhauled runnerup Matt Lodge in the voting for the club’s Paul Morgan Medal for best player.
“We will definitely be playing for him and backing him.
“We’ll be doing everything we can to play for him, whether he stays on longer or not.
“We have a very good coach and if we can keep the youth together, we can definitely do something special next year.’’
The way football clubs work, Saturday’s presentation night was an opportunity for Bennett and the club to break from one campaign and address issues about the next season.
Asked if there was now any clarity over Bennett’s plans to coach Brisbane, Wests Tigers or another club, Bennett’s manager George Mimis said there was “nothing that Wayne has not already said’’.
There was no intimation from Bennett’s actions after the dinner that the year- end function had been an occasion for him to say farewells.
Broncos staffers say there has been no indication from Bennett that he will be leaving.