Outgoing St Helens boss Kristian Woolf admits the chance to work with legendary coach Wayne Bennett was a big reason for quitting the champions and has backed Paul Wellens to succeed him at Saints.
Woolf has guided his side to Grand Final glory in each of his two seasons in the job, also winning last year’s Betfred Challenge Cup as Saints dominated the domestic landscape.
He will leave after Saints bid to win the title again this month, citing family priorities for the decision to head back to Australia and work alongside Bennett at new NRL franchise The Dolphins.
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The popular head coach says he has evolved massively during his time in the British game, and told The Sportsman that he will be spreading the Super League gospel on his return to Australia.
“The most positive thing about the competition over here is the history and the rivalry that comes with that history,” says Woolf.
“It’s outstanding. When we play Wigan they are two crowds of real passion that go at each other for 80 minutes. English crowds have a way of involving themselves in the game. That makes the game over here, and for me coming from Australia it makes it exciting and fun to be a part of, a really memorable experience.
“We have a great product here, at times we downplay it and find the negatives. We have outstanding players and we should celebrate that more. People always point at the NRL and I get that. But if you go through our team, then every one of our English players in our starting 13 would be real success stories in the NRL. That gives you an idea of our strength, the same with Wigan.”
Woolf insists he has only recently come to a deal to join The Dolphins, where he will spend two years alongside Bennett before taking over from the man widely considered as the greatest head coach of all time.
“It was the right time to go home for personal reasons. We made the decision a little while ago and then obviously we had to go about making sure I had a job to go to. I’m going to the Dolphins to work alongside Wayne Bennett until he finishes and then take over from him. It’s a long term deal and a great opportunity.
“In three years at St Helens I think I’ve improved immensely as a coach and this playing group has helped me to become a better coach - they have taught me what winners look like. They’ve also taught me how to enjoy footy. You always learn off your elite players.
“But working with Wayne excites me. Being able to work alongside the most successful coach in our game, shadow him and learn, is a big part of the lure for me. It is something I have a real excitement about as it will help me become a better coach.”
Woolf is desperate to leave St Helens with another title before he leads Tonga at the World Cup and eventually heads back Down Under. He says that only when he is on that plane will he start to shift his focus to his new job.
But who next for Saints?
The void left by Woolf will be substantial and the club will already be scouring Australia for a potential replacement. Assistant coach Paul Wellens will be in the frame, as a club legend with a burgeoning coaching pedigree. But might this opportunity have come too soon for the former Great Britain full-back?
Woolf doesn’t think so.
“He has been one of, if not the best assistant that I have ever been able to work with so I would 100 per cent back Paul Wellens,” he says.
“The club will make a decision but Paul is a terrific person. Very honest and trustworthy, traits you need in a coach. As a coach he is very knowledgeable, has had great experience, he was already a good coach and I’d like to think I’ve helped him.
“He thinks about the game a little bit different, with his own ideas and philosophies.
“I would endorse him 100 per cent but it’s not my decision.”
Saints have already secured the League Leaders’ Shield despite losing their last two games, and will finish the regular season at home to relegated Toulouse before heading into a playoff series they hope will yield an unprecedented fourth title in a row.
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