Warriors v Redcliffe Dolphins: Wayne Bennett continues to confound expectations in NRL

Coach Wayne Bennett is guiding the Dolphins through the first season. Photo / Getty Images

When Wayne Bennett first visited New Zealand in a rugby league capacity, Keith Holyoake was Prime Minister and decimal currency had only been in place for four years.

It was 1971, and Bennett – a rangy wing or fullback - was part of an Australian touring team that played the Kiwis, a New Zealand XIII and Auckland.

That episode, more than anything, sums up his remarkable longevity in a sport that he has dedicated his entire life to.

”I was telling the boys the other day about playing at Carlaw Park in the mud,” laughed Bennett. “That was different.”

Now at the Redcliffe Dolphins, Bennett recently took charge of his 900th NRL match, in a career that stretches back to 1987. And his coaching journey started even before that, in the Brisbane Premiership in the late 1970s.

He was already at the top of his game in the 1980s – coaching Queensland in the State of Origin and taking the Canberra Raiders to the 1987 Winfield Cup grand final – and is still revered today. While almost all of his contemporaries have long retired (aside from Tim Sheens), Bennett has remained relevant, still able to connect with athletes and teams in a special way.

His work at Redcliffe has added another chapter to the legacy, as the expansion team have confounded the odds with a string of memorable wins and sit sixth on the ladder. It’s been remarkable, especially as they were supposedly bereft of marquee signings and were tipped to struggle by the Sydney media.

”They wrote me off 40 years ago,” smiled Bennett. “And I’m still here. They don’t learn.”

Being unfancied underdogs probably helped, with Bennett able to invoke an “us against them” mentality from the start.

”Wayne is very experienced at that, getting the group together, playing with our backs to the wall, no one gives us a chance,” said former Kiwi and Dolphins assistant coach Nathan Fien. “He sort of thrives on that.”

Whatever the recipe, it’s working. The Dolphins have earned a 7-5 record, including impressive victories over the Roosters and the Sharks, and cemented their credentials.

”We are a team, we’re in the competition and we have all that behind us,” said Bennett. “It was important that we did what we did because it took a lot of pressure off us and allowed us to become that footy team, without a lot of unnecessary pressure.”

Along with the Dolphins, the Warriors are probably the other side that have confounded expectations, given their dire 2022, which makes for an intriguing match on Saturday (5pm).

“It looks like they have turned some things around so credit to them,” said Bennett. “I was a coach here at one stage [Kiwis, 2008] and I love the country and its people and I’m just pleased to see them playing like they are, that’s what the game needs. It’s great for the game and great for New Zealand.”

For his part, Warriors coach Andrew Webster was equally complimentary about the Dolphins, especially with the way they have managed to gel so quickly, with players assembled from around the NRL.

He didn’t want to get caught up in the hype around coaching against Bennett - “we’re not out there” - but called it an honour.

”I’ve got so much respect for him and everything he’s done for the game and the way he’s done it,” said Webster. “And what he has done this year has been unbelievable. So yeah, you pinch yourself a little bit.”

After dropping four of their past five matches, the Warriors will be desperate for a positive result, but it won’t be straightforward.

”They don’t beat themselves,” said Webster of the Dolphins. “We are going to have to compete for 80 minutes because they are not going to go away at all.”