NRL bad boy John Hopoate has joined the Manly coaching staff ahead of the 2016 season.
Just weeks after the Sea Eagles controversially farewelled club great Geoff Toovey as head coach, the NRL club has called up one of rugby league's most notorious players to its junior coaching staff.
Hopoate, the NRL's most suspended player ever, will join new Manly mentor Trent Barrett's staff in a development role as SG Ball (Under-18s) coach for next year.
"Hopoate will be our SG Ball coach in 2016," a Manly official confirmed to AAP on Monday.
The decision to appoint Hopoate to a coaching role on the northern beaches is sure to raise eyebrows across the rugby league world given his chequered history.