Wayne Bennett has given his word that he will not raid the Dolphins playing stocks when he leaves for South Sydney at the end of the year. Bennett confirmed over the weekend that he’ll be back coaching the Rabbitohs next season, with a three-year deal set to be finalised with Souths CEO Blake Solly on Monday.
The 74-year-old Dolphins mentor coached the Bunnies from 2019 to 2021 when the side made two preliminary finals and the 2021 grand final. And he will leave the Dolphins at the end of the season, handing over the reins to assistant coach Kristian Woolf.
When leaving one NRL club for another, Bennett has previously taken players with him. The Dolphins have a host of young and promising players who are shining in the NRL and lower tiers but Bennett insists he won’t be taking anyone that doesn’t want to leave.
“I won’t be taking any of their kids that they want to keep,” he said. “That’s not going to happen. I didn’t build this club to try and destroy it. If there is a guy that they are not offering a contract to or he is looking to go somewhere else and I think he can play a bit, then that will be a different thing, but I want all these players to stay.”
