No 'Bennett get-out clauses' at Broncos
Monday, February 4, 2008 - 4:45 PM
No Brisbane player, including captain Darren Lockyer, has a special "Bennett clause" written into their NRL contract, according to Broncos chief executive Bruno Cullen.
"There's not one player at this club who has such a clause in their contract," stressed Cullen in reply to weekend reports of a player exodus if coach Wayne Bennett was to walk.
"We're not concerned about any player exodus."
The latest rumour mill has linked Bennett to a straight swap with Canberra's Neil Henry.
Lockyer said he wasn't certain the clause was part of his current contract but he had remembered his manager George Mimis telling him it was included.
"You'd have to ask George," said Lockyer when contacted by AAP.
"It's not something I've worried about really because Wayne is still coach."
Cullen also lampooned continued talk of a strained relationship with Bennett who in the past few months has been linked with the Cowboys, Warriors, St George Illawarra, the Bulldogs and now the Raiders.
"It seems every few weeks there's a story about Wayne going or staying and us fighting," said Cullen.
"We're fine.
"We say hello to each other in the office and ask about each other's families and talk about things."
Bennett has fallen out of favour with the Broncos board over several incidents in the past few years - the catalyst being his clandestine talks with the Sydney Roosters in 2006 about taking over as head coach.
His failure to make an acceptance speech at the club's awards night late last year when presented with life membership struck a raw nerve with many board members.
Bennett had been on stage half the night farewelling a number of the club's stalwarts including Petero Civoniceva, Brad Thorn, Shaun Berrigan, Brent Tait and Dane Carlaw.
When called back up and presented with his life membership by Cullen, he walked off without saying a word, leaving guests stunned.
He later explained he felt he'd said enough and did not want to take the focus off his departing players.
Since then it's been revealed Bennett has been receiving money from wealthy benefactor Ken Talbot, a member of the influential Thoroughbreds group which provides support for Broncos players.
The money was to go into a trust for Bennett's children.
The Broncos have a board meeting on Tuesday to go over their financial year records (up until December 31) and prepare for their upcoming annual general meeting at which they will report to their shareholders.
Cullen said Bennett's presence at the board meeting was optional, just as it was in December when there was speculation he would inform the board of his future plans.
