New South Sydney Rabbitohs assistant coach Sam Burgess has revealed the lure of rejoining his old club was simply too hard to pass up after snubbing Wayne Bennett and the Dolphins.
Bennett has faced multiple challenges on both the on-field and off-field fronts as he has built a squad and coaching staff in Redcliffe for the Dolphins' inaugural season in 2023.
They are challenges Bennett is all too familiar with, having set the Brisbane Broncos up from the ground up when they first joined what was then the New South Wales Rugby League competition.
While Bennett has been open and honest about the Dolphins' expectations and timelines for success ahead of their first season, the super coach landed an excellent blow by signing Kristian Woolf, widely regarded as one of the best in the game to have never had a chance to coach in the NRL.
It was tipped for a long period of time that Bennett would also be able to draw on the experience of Burgess for the 2023 campaign, with the former South Sydney star weighing up offers from the Dolphins and Rabbitohs.
He ultimately selected to head back to Redfern, and told Fox Sports that it was simply the lure of being back at his old club.
“I speak to Wayne a lot still, still great mates with him, so he's good (with my decision),” Burgess said.
“It would have been a great opportunity but just the chance to be back at Souths, closer to my kids, back at the club I played for and the one that means the most to me so it was too hard to pass up.”
Bennett has instead since signed Nathan Fien, another player he coached, albeit during his time at the St George Illawarra Dragons where a drought-breaking premiership was won in 2010.
Fien and Woolf will build an excellent coaching staff for Bennett, who has plenty of experienced players in the likes of Jesse Bromwich, Kenneath Bromwich, Mark Nicholls, Felise Kaufusi and Anthony Milford to call on in his squad for 2023.
Burgess has previously stated he wants to be an NRL coach in the future, but suggested that he is in no rush.
“The majority of the work since I got back has been with the younger players, fringe players," Burgess said.
“This week has probably been the best week back with experience back, we get to do a bit more quality work, so it's been really good.
“I'm enjoying where I'm at now, I'm enjoying what I'm bringing here and helping out with the staff here.
“There's a lot of work in it so there's no rush. I'd like to be a head coach one day but only when the time is right and the right place.”
