Benji Marshall’s coaching style has come under fire to start the 2024 season, but veteran rugby league reporter James Hooper has revealed just how honed in the Tigers coach really is.
The Daily Telegraph’s Dean Ritchie penned a column in early March, questioning whether the rookie coach will put in the hours needed to succeed in the cutthroat world of rugby league.
Marshall has previously made it clear he’s not a “24/7 coach” and hit back at the claims in a fiery press conference, saying “I don’t get it … the bottom line is, it’s not true.”
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“What’s a 24-7 coach? I come into work early before the players, work as hard as we can until we get what we need done, then we go home,” he said.
“Because I prioritise my family between 5-8pm every night to find a work-life balance, that doesn’t mean I don’t care about my job or care about working hard.”
Now Hooper has gone in to bat for Marshall after the Tigers delivered an impressive performance to upset the Sharks in Round 3.
He revealed that Marshall, like many other coaches, have methods of honing in their focus ahead of an NRL game, rebuking suggestions he isn’t putting in the effort to succeed.
“On Super Saturday, Cooper (Cronk) had a little dig at Benji whether he played golf or not that morning, so I’ve spoken with Benji today,” Hooper said on NRL360 on Wednesday night.
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“He did play golf that morning at Concord, and he played damn well. Speaking to Benji today it was a great insight.
“He said ‘it helps me switch off, I play it early in the morning and it helps me hone my focus’.
“He said ‘as I’m actually walking around the course, I’m visualising the message I want to give to the players, my final delivering when we’re about to run out and play’.”
Hooper went on to reveal other coaches across the NRL have their own strategies to get themselves mentally prepared to be a leader.
“I looked at some of the other coaches in the game, Craig Fitzgibbon for example on game day will go and do jiu-jitsu for 90 minutes,” Hooper said.
“He does that then he feels like he’s earnt to go and speak to the players about what they need to do physically in terms of the contest.
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“I know Wayne Bennett has worked on his farm for many, many years up in Warwick. He will bale hay, he will sell cattle, whatever he is up to.
“I commend Benji for this, he’s doing things his own way.”
However, NRL360 co-host Paul Kent questioned if Marshall was working as much as other coaches across the game.
But once again, Hooper refused to believe Marshall’s approach isn’t going to be successful, pointing to their impressive Cronulla rout.
“I haven’t seen anyone say he’s not putting in the hours, we’ve all said we reserve the right to see if he’s going to be successful,” Kent said.
“He’s certainly not putting in the hours that some coaches are.”
“I hope he keeps sticking to his routine, if the Tigers are going to play the way that they played on Saturday night, it was a quality victory,” Hooper replied.
“He shot four over and he smashed the Cronulla Sharks, keep going, I love it,” NRL360 host Braith Anasta added.
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