Broncos' retiring skipper Corey Parker knows six-time premiership-winning coach Wayne Bennett better than most after playing 16 seasons at the Broncos.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Here is an exclusive extract from Corey Parker's autobiography Iron Man, to be released by Pan McMillan on September 27.
"The older I got, the more I got to understand Wayne and the more we started to butt heads. I went from having a 'yes sir/no sir' relationship to starting to question some of his decisions. If I was in and out of the team, well I'd ask him why and I don't think Wayne minded that I wasn't afraid to have some of those tough conversations. It was important for me to get that stuff off my chest and I wanted to know where he was at and what he was thinking. Sometimes I felt so passionately about the club, or would talk to him about something I felt very strongly about, to the point where tears would well up in my eyes.
"Wayne and I have had a heap of conversations like that over the years, but I think the respect we have for each other has never ever changed. I actually believe that he and I are very similar in terms of personality, because I'm strong- minded and if I feel something's right I'll voice my opinion and he'll listen. And if he feels he's right well he'll have his say and I'll listen. I don't think that's a bad thing and over a period of time we've certainly had some interesting discussions as player and coach.
"Wayne definitely has an aura about him and I strongly believe that his ability to get the best out of individuals is second to none. Wayne knows what works for me might not work for someone else whereas some coaches I've played under have just thrown the blanket over everyone, which can be the wrong approach.
"To do what Wayne has done over the last 30 years, and have the ability to change and keep up with the times, is special. One of the best things I've seen Wayne do and do regularly is understand how businesses run and know that it's important to have very good people around you, on the field and off it.
"Is he the most technical coach I've ever been coached by? No, but the game of rugby league is simple and he understands that better than most people.
"He understands the old adage 'the bigger the game, the simpler you play' and all those sorts of things. There are some things Wayne is negotiable on in a game and there are other things he's not. The things he isn't negotiable on are that the values and standards he knows, if done right every time, will lead you to the right result. He's also very big on discipline and taking accountability for your own actions. He never wants to see anyone passing the blame on to someone else, because that's the easiest thing to do in a team sport and it's harder to point the finger at yourself first.
"Wayne isn't a coach to lose his cool like some of the others in the NRL, but he is capable of saying things to players that would make you cringe. I've heard him say to blokes, 'You stuff up one more time and that's the last time you'll be playing for the Broncos,' which is something you never want to hear as a player. One thing I've learned about him is that, even though he might bag you in front of the team and make you feel very small, he'll come and speak to you later on to see how you're going and make sure you understand it was nothing personal.
"He'll also never ever bag any of his players publicly if they've had a shocker, because he knows the ramifications of what that can do to a team. Instead he'll probably give them a hug in the sheds and let them know everything's OK.
"Do all players like him? No. But do all players respond to him? I'd have to say yes, because he understands how to get them to play for him. You only have to look at the success New Zealand had when they won the 2008 World Cup and Wayne had been employed as an adviser to head coach Stephen Kearney. Wayne isn't a Kiwi, but I've got no doubt he helped the New Zealand players realise what they could achieve if they played for each other.
"As for myself, I've always responded well to direct criticism and I think Wayne understood that about me. I always wanted to do my best and if I didn't and he'd given me a roast in front of the team, well he wouldn't come up and console me later like he might do to someone else because he knew I'd be seething inside and would want to go out there and rectify things myself. If I was dropped – as I was a few times in the early years – then I'd go back to reserve grade and try and win the man of the match to get straight back into first grade and prove he'd made the wrong decision. I understand now that sometimes when you're a young kid it actually helps your game to drop down and play in the state league, but that's hard to hear and then digest at the time, because you have your pride and all you want to do is keep playing in the NRL.
"We would have loved to send Wayne out a winner that 2008 season, and things were looking good after we won our qualifying final against the Sydney Roosters. They were physical early on and raced to a 14–2 lead before we clawed our way back into it to win 24–16. Our first try was special – it passed through 13 sets of hands with a series of flicks, cut-outs, and overhead passes before winger Denan Kemp showed some fancy footwork to score. The Roosters were unhappy and prop David Shillington whinged after the match that Mick Ennis and I were 'dirty little grubs' who were using cheap shots like elbows to the heads or holding players' faces down. I can't remember what he was talking about, but it was a qualifying final and our season was on the line!
"The following week we played our fierce rivals Melbourne in a semi-final that had plenty of drama in the lead-up. Sam Thaiday, Karmichael Hunt and Darius Boyd had been accused of an alleged sexual assault stemming from a night out the week earlier. It had nothing to do with me, nothing ever came of it anyway, and I was happy the club stood by the blokes so they could play. Then Locky was in the spotlight for tackling a hotel manager when he'd been on the drink. Wayne stuck up for everyone and accused the media of muckraking. He even made a joke about Locky needing the tackling practice.
"The game kicked off and there was no shortage of ill feeling between the two sides, with Sammy taking offence at a wrestling tackle from Cam and Jeremy Smith.
"The wrestle is the scourge of rugby league but it was already at the Broncos when I made my debut in 2001. We used to have to go for wrestling sessions at the PCYC and they were full-on. Sometimes blood would be spilled and there would be wayward head-butts going on and everything like that. Players like Shane Webcke would see them as a real opportunity to try and assert some force and, as a young kid, I never wanted to take a backward step. Now every club has wrestling sessions and we do two or three at the Broncos every week and I hate them. I know Wayne isn't a fan of the wrestle, but he also understands that it's part of the game.
"I've been the victim myself of an ordinary wrestling hold when we were playing the Storm another time. I don't know who it was, but I was lying on the ground after being tackled and someone put their shin over the back of my calf to keep me there. I blew up and sprayed whoever it was, because when you're in a compromising position and that happens it doesn't feel good. I should point out that I'm no angel and I've been guilty myself of using a hold to try and lock the ball up because footy is all about slowing the ruck down. Still, it's really frustrating when it happens to you.
"Thankfully the decision to reduce the interchange has made a difference and I don't think it's as bad as it was. But I also think we can be our own worst enemies as a game sometimes. You can pull off a good tackle around the legs, they try and get up for a quick play-the-ball and you get penalised for holding on. So that actually encourages players to try and lock the ball up with a hold so someone else can come in and tackle them around the legs.
After Sammy's blow-up, there was more drama after Mick Ennis stayed down after a late hit from Jeff Lima which saw the Storm prop sent to the sin-bin. We looked well in control at 14–6, but they closed the gap with 12 men on the field when Billy Slater soared above Locky to snatch a Cooper Cronk bomb out of the air to score. With three minutes to go, we looked like we were home when Benny Hannant crashed over the line, and even Wayne leapt to his feet and cheered in the coaches' box, but replays showed Billy had got his foot underneath the ball. The Storm finished us off 16–14 after Ashton Sims lost the ball and a quick rush of hands saw GI score for them with only 46 seconds left on the clock.
"It was a tough way for us to finish the season, because we'd given everything we could to go out on a high. We weren't just losing Wayne that year, as there were several players moving on too. Tunza was retiring, Darius was following Wayne to St George Illawarra, Mick Ennis and Benny Hannant were heading to the Bulldogs, Denan Kemp and Joel Moon were moving to the Warriors, and Greg Eastwood was heading to England to play for Leeds.
Our presentation ball that year had a really sombre feeling about it, because Wayne had been there since 1988. He had built the club to what it was. I think the mood might have been worse if he'd been retiring, but the fact he was heading off to another NRL club was met with mixed emotions.
"Wayne's assistant, Ivan Henjak, had been announced as the new Broncos coach and I was optimistic about the change. Wayne had been a mentor to me since I made my debut in 2001 and I felt at age 26 it was time for me to stand on my own two feet. I appreciated the values and standards he had taught me and I wanted to uphold those without his guidance anymore. It was time for me to come out on my own and take the next step in my career."
