South Sydney Rabbitohs coach Jason Demetriou walked out of his weekly media opportunity after just 27 seconds ahead of Saturday evening's crunch clash with the Cronulla Sharks.
It might be a weekly battle for coaches to get through media conferences after the final training session, but Demetriou chose to run almost immediately after being asked about his future.
The under-siege coach is reportedly coaching for his future this weekend. After overseeing South Sydney's dramatic plummet from the top of the table after Round 11 in 2023 to missing the finals, the men from Redfern have kicked off the new campaign with just a single win from their first five games.
That win was an unconvincing victory against the Canterbury Bulldogs, with the Rabbitohs conceding at least 30 points in all of their other games.
It has led to reports that Demetriou, who has been criticised very publically by former players and staff over the last six months, could be let go if South Sydney drop their game to the Cronulla Sharks this weekend.
Despite that, Demetriou was in no mood to talk about his future, crediting the energy of his playing group this week before saying he was only coaching for a good performance this weekend.
Full transcript
Question: "How are you travelling given all the external talk?"
Answer: "We've had a great week of training, energy through the week has been outstanding."Question: "How have you been able to block it off?"
Answer: "Mate, it's the new blokes coming in, Jye Gray, Ty [Tyrone] Munro, Davvy Moale are back. I'm excited by the energy level they've brought in."Question:ย "In terms of you personally though?"
Answer:ย "i'm really looking forward to the performance. can't wait, energy through the roof. looking forward to it."
Question: "Do you believe you're coaching for your job on saturday night?"
Answer: "I believe I'm coaching for a great performance this week, that's what we'll get."
Demetriou, in an effort to find answers, made the controversial decision to axe Damien Cook and bring Peter Mamouzelos into the side, while Latrell Mitchell will also miss out through suspension.
Young gun Jye Gray takes over the number one jumper, however, the coach has made no further changes to his side as they prepare to clash with the Sharks, who will be fresh off the bye as they head to Homebush on Saturday evening.
It has been speculated South Sydney's board already have a list of coaches to take over from Demetriou, with Mal Meninga at the top of that list, although whether the former Queensland coach and great has any interest remains to be seen.
Kick-off is set for 7:35pm (AEDT) on Saturday evening.
