Warriors boss rubbishes Kearney report
It’s just ridiculous . . . people just make stuff up. Jim Doyle
Warriors managing director Jim Doyle has rubbished reports in Australia that Stephen Kearney has been approached to take over as the club’s coach.
The suggestion that coach Andrew McFadden will be axed before the new season starts and replaced by Kearney follows stories last month that former coach Ivan Cleary had been approached about returning to the Warriors.
But Doyle insists there is absolutely no truth to stories that they’re looking to dump McFadden and says he’ll be their coach at the start of the 2016 season.
While Doyle has consistently denied any suggestion that they want to move McFadden on, it’s not a good look to have the job security of the club’s coach constantly questioned.
However, Doyle doesn’t feel it is destabilising the players’ dence in McFadden.
‘‘I don’t know if they take much notice of it,’’ Doyle said.
‘‘But it’s distracting and it takes up time to have to say for the
confi- 10th time we’re not changing our coach.
‘‘It’s just ridiculous, it’s part of the game, people just make stuff up.’’
The latest rumour was sparked on the Australian TV show NRL 360 when their Queensland correspondent, Ben Dobbin, said Kearney had been tapped on the shoulder by the Warriors.
Dobbin said Kearney had denied the rumours but said he still wanted another chance at a head coaching role in the NRL.
Kearney is an assistant to Wayne Bennett at the Brisbane Broncos.
He was a former assistant with the Melbourne Storm before an unsuccessful stint as head coach of the Parramatta Eels that netted just 10 wins in 41 matches.
Kearney’s coaching stock has risen with his success in the international arena with the Kiwis.
McFadden, 37, has a contract through till the end of 2017 after landing the job fulltime last year when he replaced Matt Elliott.
McFadden had been one of Elliott’s assistants and stepped up to a head role for the first time with the New Zealand franchise.
The Warriors have failed to make the playoffs in both seasons under McFadden, who has won 19 games in 53 matches in charge.
The lost their last eight matches this year to finish 14th, tumbling from fourth on the ladder once star Shaun Johnson was injured.