Manly chairman Scott Penn believes the club is poised to bring back the siege mentality that was a hallmark of Des Haslers first coaching stint at the club, declaring: “Id much prefer for people to be hating us because were winning than feeling sorry for us.”
The Sea Eagles will announce Haslers return on a three-year deal this week in the hope he can quickly turn around a side that finished the season only above wooden spooners Parramatta. Trent Barrett, who handed in his 12-month notice in July, is expected to stay put if he wants to earn the remainder of his contract money.
Hasler spent two decades at Manly as a first-grade player and then a coach. During that period, the Silvertails fostered an "us against them" mentality amid hate from rival clubs and fans. The "insular peninsula" enjoyed unprecedented success during that period, a feeling that was best summed up by a sign often displayed at Brookvale Oval that read: “Guess what? Manly hates you too!!!”
Winning combination: Des Hasler and Daly Cherry-Evans will soon be reunited at Manly.Credit:NRL Photos
The Sea Eagles have been more pitied than despised during Barretts tenure. The club has been rocked by a series of off-field scandals and finished 15th during a disastrous 2018 season. Barrett was one of the few outsiders given the job of leading Manly, a role that is normally reserved for those with an affinity with the region.
While Penn didnt want to comment on Barretts replacement until a contract had been finalised, Manlys majority owner said it was time to return to the clubs famous siege mentality.
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“We want to get back to that,” Penn said. “People love to hate us and thats OK, but we need to give them a reason to hate us.
“Id much prefer for people to be hating us because were winning than feeling sorry for us. We look forward to getting back there.
“Our culture is strong and were incredibly proud. What we have to do is bring that pride back.
“Not that we havent been proud – were super proud – but we have got to take pride across the entire organisation and deliver results on and off the field.
“Weve got a strong plan and weve just got to execute it.”
Long way back: Manly owner Scott Penn says the Sea Eagles can become a force again after a disastrous 2018.Credit:NRL Photos
Haslers last game in charge of Manly was the 2011 grand final victory. It was, however, an acrimonious exit after he signed with Canterbury, resulting in the Sea Eagles terminating his contract. Hasler has subsequently mended relations with the Penn family and even his staunchest critics – including former leagues chairman Bob Reilly and former co-owner Max Delmege – believe he is now the best option to restore the club to former glories.
Hasler had almost unfettered control over retention and recruitment during his coaching stints at Manly and Canterbury, earning criticism for a raft of back-ended deals that skewed their salary caps. While Hasler will still have ultimate responsibility for the football department in his Brookvale return, there will be an expectation for him to work more collaboratively with his colleagues, particularly given the club was recently found to have cheated the salary cap.
“[The new coach] will be in control of the football department, but every club also has corporate governance requirements around recruitment and retention under the NRL rules,” Penn said. “That has all changed to a degree. We have recruitment and retention committees now and all clubs are run under the same principles.”
Manly went perilously close to landing the first wooden spoon in the club's 71-year history last season, but Penn believes a dramatic turnaround is achievable.
“We have been working night and day to turn this around,” he said. “We know where we need to be and we wont stop until we get there.
“Were going to make sure that we have the best possible candidate to take us back to where we need to be.
“Weve always been confident in our squad. We certainly had some moments of bad luck in terms of injuries at key times.
“We had runs where other teams scored a significant amount of points in a short window; we lost seven or eight games by six points or less. If you suddenly turn half of those around, youre in the mix.
“Albeit we didnt have the season we wanted, on paper were not actually that far away. Were confident we can get back to where we want to be fairly quickly.”
Adrian Proszenko is the Chief Rugby League Reporter for the Sydney Morning Herald.
