Wayne Bennett has been out of coaching for a year as he gears up to coach the Dolphins in their inaugural season in the NRL and has spent much of 2022 recruiting for the Queensland based side.
Much has been made of their failed attempts to attract a marquee signing, missing out on the likes of Kalyn Ponga and Ben Hunt. One signing that did appear to have some legs was that of Melbourne Storm stand off Cameron Munster.
That was until yesterday when it was announce Munster had signed a four year extension to effectively end his career as a Storm player and put to bed the rumours he could be swapping Melbourne for the Dolphins.
We've signed Munster. 2027.
📝 https://t.co/VSLojXUzQO pic.twitter.com/zv6YmBYZpv
— Melbourne Storm (@storm) October 6, 2022
Speaking to Triple M radio, Bennett talked about players going missing from talks, calling it “pretty ordinary.”
“It is pretty ordinary stuff mate, it is pretty ordinary stuff, that’s the part, I understand managers and all that, and there is a need for them,” Bennett said. “But what I can’t get and what I don’t relate to is the fact that the players, in all the tough conversations that have got to be had, are missing.
“They don’t ring you up and tell you they are not coming, they don’t have to make that phone call, that is a tough phone call, it’s a phone call none of us want to make but you want to be a man, you have got to behave like one.
“Don’t have your manager ring up and tell them you aren’t coming.”
Clearly Bennett isn’t happy with the way Munster and his team managed the end of the negotiations between the two parties and believes it should be the player to make the call to end talks and not their manager.
The Dolphins this week did announce they have signed electric full back Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow from the Cowboys who will give them genuine pace and guile in their back line.
However, Their wait for a marquee signing continues but Bennett is in no rush to bring in the right player and is willing to wait for the right fit.
“I’ll play with one less next year to make sure we get the right player for 2024, I am not going to go out and spend that money now on someone we don’t think can deliver what we need.”