Former South Sydney Rabbitohs coach Jason Demetriou will head up the rugby league program at the prestigious Westfields Sports High School in 2025.
Demetriou has been out of a job in rugby league since he was axed by the Rabbitohs in the middle of the 2024 campaign following a string of horror results.
South Sydney, who played in the 2021 grand final under Demetriou but lost to the Penrith Panthers, made the finals in 2022, before 2023 saw the Maroubra-based club lurch from one disaster to the next on their way out of the finals.
2024 was shaping up to be more of the same before Demetriou was finally axed. The club eventually announced Wayne Bennett would be returning for a second stint from the start of 2025.
Demetriou will head back to school rugby league in 2025, with the sports high school announcing his appointment to the head of their coaching staff on social media.
"We are excited to announce that Jason Demetriou is heading the coaching staff at Westfields Sports High School Rugby League program," the school announced on social media.
"With his wealth of experience and proven track record in the NRL, Jason brings invaluable expertise to our players, helping to shape the next generation of rugby league talent.
"Jason's leadership and dedication to developing players will be a tremendous asset as we continue to build on the legacy of excellence at Westfields Sports.
"We look forward to seeing the positive impact he will have on our program and student-athletes."
Demetriou, who coached 60 games for South Sydney, has also coached Papua New Guinea through the 2024 Pacific Championships.
Alongside his commitment to Westfields, he will also spend time in Australia's closest neighbouring country throughout 2025 to help upskill local coaches as the nation prepares for a likely announcement in the coming weeks that they will become NRL Team 18.
Demetriou has been unwilling to commit to a pursuit of the top job in the expansion outfit at this stage, although he admitted during the week to AAP that he was excited by the development opportunities for the sport in the nation.
"(PNG) is the biggest talent pool that the game can expand to without a doubt," Demetriou said.
"It's going to have a huge impact on the Digicel Cup over there, which, for me, is a fantastic competition and can grow and arguably be as strong as NSW or Queensland Cup.
"I truly believe that within two or three years, that competition will be as strong as both of those competitions, and you'll have 12 teams feeding into one NRL side."
