Tell us a little bit about, uh, this event and, uh, and why it's so important to you, mate.

Yeah, well, I, I, I was-- I had my head in the desk about 12 weeks ago and, and my brother-in-law, um, Karina's brother, Dr. Justin Coulson, called me and he said, uh, he said, "Foz, I've got an idea." And I said, "What's that, mate?" He said, uh, "Why don't we walk fifty kilometers with the ten-kilo weight vest on for the Top Blokes Foundation Lift The Load Challenge and raise-- see if we can raise a hundred thousand?" And, you know, I, uh, I agreed to it and then, uh, eight weeks on I started trying to prepare for this walk and I, I tell you what, I, I don't think my body's made for it.

After, after seventeen seasons in the NRL and, uh, over eighteen surgeries, I don't know how I'm gonna go.

But no, all in all, it, it is a great cause.

Like Top Blokes, they do, uh, a phenomenal job in, in rolling out these mentoring programs for young boys.

They start them a-as young as ten years old right through to twenty-four.

And, um, you know, these youth workers who, who, you know, work for Top Blokes, they deliver these programs and I've seen these programs work firsthand.

Like not only it's gonna be difficult with the fifty-kilometer, uh, trek that we've got in front of us, but tell us about why it's important to have the ten-kilogram weighted vest as well, mate.

Yeah

... to be completely honest with you.

You know, I, I felt as though we put ourselves in a really, um, strong position midway through the year, and we, we gained some wonderful momentum and, and we were playing good footy.

But, um, you know, we did lose a number of close games, um, that, you know, potentially could have swung our way.

And then, and then we didn't handle that dip in form well, uh, in my opinion.

You know, we lost six in a row.

Yes, it coincided with, with a number of key injuries and, um, and key guys going down, but, you know, I wanted us to, to manage that period better.

Tell us a little bit about, uh, this event and, uh, and why it's so important to you, mate.

Yeah.

-to be completely honest with you.

You know, I, I felt as though we put ourselves in a really, um, strong position midway through the year, and we, we gained some wonderful momentum and, and we were playing good footy.

But, um, you know, we did lose a number of close games, um, that, you know, potentially could have swung our way.

And then, and then we didn't handle that dip in form well, uh, in my opinion.

You know, we lost six in a row.

Yes, it coincided with, with a number of key injuries and, um, and key guys going down, but, you know, I wanted us to, to manage that period better.

Tell us a little bit about, uh, this event and, uh, and why it's so important to you, mate.

Like, not only it, it's gonna be difficult with the fifty-kilometer, uh, trek that we've got in front of us, but tell us about why it's important to have the ten-kil-kilogram weighted vest as well, mate.

Yeah, well, the, the, the vest is a representation of, of that, that weight that these young boys carry.

And, and we, you know, some, some of them suffer in silence and we don't see it.

You know, the, the pressure, the stress, um, you know, the loneliness, the uncertainty.

All, all those feelings that, that these young guys go through and, and they carry that extra load and we don't always see it.

So the, the initiative by Top Blokes with the ten-kilo vest is, is that's the, that's the extra weight that these young guys are carrying around.

And, you know, mental health, it's, it's so, you know, prevalent in our, our soc-society.

Where were you watching the game on the weekend, and have you had a chance to reach out to, to Chez yet?

What's the, uh-

uh-Going back from, from that sort of those conversations that weekend, your very first game, I think, was the first game the Phins, the Dolphins? Yeah, Dolphins up there.

You go up- Yes ... you go up to Kayo Stadium- Yeah ... to the Newcastle game last week in the Hunter.

Yeah.

What's the biggest lesson do you think that you've learnt in that period that's gonna set you up really well for a, a big game tonight against the Dragons? Yeah, I think just managing those periods when it's not going well for you.

Like it's, it's, it's easy to coach well when obviously, uh, you're winning games and the boys are happy.

But it's finding ways to keep the boys up when, you know, because y- it's not gonna go all your way the whole time, and we went through a really tough patch there.

Available at participating locations through November 3rd.

What sort of challenges do they pre-present for you this afternoon, Foz?

Yeah.

A dangerous footy side this evening, aren't they? Because they, they wouldn't have been happy with their performance last week against Canterbury.

They were-- They missed the mark there and, um, you know, they'd been building before that.

The...

I, I see a, I see a, I see a really, um, I guess young, enthusiastic side when I think of the Dragons and watch them play.

They, they've, um, obviously, you know, blooding a lot of new talent, um, but they've, you know, they're...

No.

... at a, in the junior levels? Like, what gave you that confidence?

I just had a feeling, mate.

Like we, um, we spoke about it as a coaching unit and, um- I, I just-- I-- it just felt like the right option.

When Joey, we knew Joey had been ruled out, we sorta thought, "What, what options have we got?" And there was a couple of, of different options we could have gone with.

But my gut just said to me, "Clayton, this kid can play anywhere you put him." And he's just got this raw ability, um, and he, he backs himself, and that's what you want in your halves, right? You want, you want that attitude and that mentality to just go after the game a-and not be overawed by anything.

And, and Clayton's just got that in spades.

Like, you saw the job that he did at fullback when Turbo was out.

What sort of challenges do they pre-present for you this afternoon, Boz?

What gave you that confidence?

I just had a feeling, mate.

We spoke about it as a coaching unit and...

It just felt like the right option.

When we knew Joey had been ruled out, we sort of thought, what options have we got? And there was a couple of different options we could have gone with.

But my gut just said to me, Clayton, this kid can play anywhere you put him.

And he's just got this raw ability and he backs himself.

What sort of challenges did they present for you this afternoon, Foz?

Will that make the difference?

That's part of it, Brandy, for sure.

That's been an area in our game that's certainly dropped off.

When you look back at that eight to ten week block that we had, we were really, really clinical with the footy.

We were finishing our sets well.

We were dominating long periods of the game with possession.

And we've just gone away from that.

So who goes to the wing, Kieran?

Will that make the difference?

That's part of it, Brandy, for sure.

That's been an area in our game that's certainly dropped off.

When you look back at that eight to ten week block that we had, we were really, really clinical with the footy.

We were finishing our sets well.

We were dominating long periods of the game with possession.

And we've just gone away from that.

So who goes to the wing, Kieran?

Will that make the difference?

That's part of it, Brandy, for sure.

That's been an area in our game that's certainly dropped off.

When you look back at that eight to ten week block that we had, we were really, really clinical with the footy.

We were finishing our sets well.

We were dominating long periods of the game with possession.

And we've just gone away from that.

So who goes to the wing, Kieran?

Will that make the difference?

That's part of it, Brandy, for sure.

That's been an area in our game that's certainly dropped off.

When you look back at that eight to ten week block that we had, we were really, really clinical with the footy.

We were finishing our sets well.

We were dominating long periods of the game with possession.

And we've just gone away from that.

So who goes to the wing, Kieran?

Why did you reach out to a counsellor and a psych?

Why did I reach out? Yeah.

I just knew I was depressed.

Like I knew, I knew the decisions I was making were making me feel really, really down.

Yeah.

And I was unhappy inside.

Um, and yeah.

Yeah.

Yeah.

So, like, you- you did right, mate.

Look, I, I only finished playing last year, and, uh, in my head I had a really, uh, clear plan of, uh, the trajectory I wanted to go on in terms of my coaching journey, and, uh, certainly wasn't any, in any rush at all.

But, you know, circumstances change, and, uh, I went back to Manly as an assistant coach, worked as hard as I possibly could, and then all of a sudden was handed the keys as the interim coach.

And, um, you just buck- buckle yourself in and just get ready to go.

And, uh, I- I- I feel really fortunate, mate.

Like, I feel I- I'm really well-support...

How, how will you react then, you think?

Yeah.

Uh, like, you- you're dead right, mate.

Look, I, I only finished playing last year, and uh, in my head I had a really, uh, clear plan of, uh, the trajectory I wanted to go on in terms of my coaching journey, and uh, certainly wasn't any, in any rush at all.

But, you know, circumstances change, and uh, I went back to Manly as an assistant coach, worked as hard as I possibly could, and then all of a sudden was handed the keys as the interim coach.

And um, you just buck- buckle yourself in and just get ready to go.

And uh, I, I, I feel really fortunate, mate.

Like, I feel I, I'm really well-supported.

H- how will you react then, you think?

He's awesome.

Yeah, mate, my assistant coaches have been awesome.

From the day I stepped in as interim, I said to them, look, guys, I'm going to really need you here.

And they had already been doing an outstanding job, but they've even stepped it up even further.

So the two main assistants with me there, obviously, Jimmy Dimmick, who basically takes care of all our attacking staff.

sets and our whole attacking program.

He is such a good coach.

What I find amazing with you is, what, eight, nine months ago you were playing the game and who have you sort of modeled your coaching on or who's influenced you given you've played under some great coaches given what you're doing now is can you get shed some light on that for us

awesome.

Yeah, mate, my assistant coaches have been awesome.

From the day I stepped in as interim, I said to them, look, guys, I'm going to really need you here.

And they had already been doing an outstanding job, but they've even stepped it up even further.

So the two main assistants with me there are obviously Jimmy Dimmick, who basically takes care of all our attacking staff.

um sets and our whole attacking program he is he is such a good um coach you know the way he thinks about the game but his delivery the way he gets the boys to buy into to what he wants them to do out on the field from an attacking um sense is yeah like like not much i've ever seen before he's he's a brilliant guy to work with and then i've got another guy there john clark who's our middles forwards coach and he does a great job with our rough defence all our middles making sure they're all up to speed and they know what they need to do when they go out and to be honest our forward pack has been a real highlight of how we've played over the past eight weeks and I give a lot of credit to what those two guys have done over the past 10 weeks alongside me because they've completely nailed their roles.

That's

What I find amazing with you is, what, eight, nine months ago you were playing the game and Who have you sort of modelled your coaching on or who's influenced you, given you've played under some great coaches, given what you're doing now? Can you shed some light on that for us?

And I just remember sitting there that afternoon and I was wondering, I didn't want to ask you what was going through your mind, but can you now tell us what was going through your mind then?

yeah well look i obviously yeah like at the end of the day um you know the club had made the decision to to move anthony on it wasn't until i sort of left fox that evening that i started to have some i guess more in-depth conversations about um you know stepping into that role and um yeah look i initially um you know i was i was pretty I guess, um, surprised that, you know, they, the club wanted me to step into that role.

Um, given the fact that I had only just retired, um, six months prior, but, um, you know, between Jason King and Scott Penn, they, they firmly felt like, um, you know, I was the right man to, to step into that interim role and that, you know, from the very start, they said, look, we'll, we'll support you and give you everything you need to, to give you the best opportunity to, to, you know, make a fist of this and success, succeed in it.

And, Like I said at the start, I'm grateful that they've backed me.

It's a unique situation, but at the end of the day, as I've said a number of times, there hasn't been a challenge in my life that I haven't backed myself in or thought that I couldn't succeed in.

This one's no different.

I love rugby league.

Kieran, when you walked into Manly in this capacity as a coach at the start of the year, and you know what success looks like, did it feel right or it clearly wasn't? What was it that looked wrong or felt wrong from your point of view?

And I just remember sitting there that afternoon and I was wondering, I didn't want to ask you what was going through your mind, but can you now tell us what was going through your mind then?

Yeah, well, look, obviously, yeah, like at the end of the day, you know, the club had made the decision to move Anthony on.

It wasn't until I sort of left Fox that evening that I started to have some, I guess, more in-depth conversations about, you know, stepping into that role.

And, yeah, look, I initially, you know, I was pretty nervous.

I guess, surprised that, you know, the club wanted me to step into that role, given the fact that I'd only just retired six months prior.

But, you know, between Jason King and Scott Penn, they firmly felt like, you know, I was the right man to step into that interim role.

And, you know, from the very start, they said, look, we'll support you and give you everything you need to give you the best opportunity to, you know, make a fist of this and succeed in it.

Kieran, when you walked into Manly in this capacity as a coach at the start of the year, and you know what success looks like, did it feel right or it clearly wasn't? What was it that looked wrong or felt wrong from your point of view?

And I just remember sitting there that afternoon and I was wondering, I didn't want to ask you what was going through your mind, but can you now tell us what was going through your mind then?

Yeah, well, look, obviously, yeah, like at the end of the day, you know, the club had made the decision to move Anthony on.

It wasn't until I sort of left Fox that evening that I started to have some, I guess, more in-depth conversations about, you know, stepping into that role.

And, yeah, look, I initially, you know, I was I was pretty.

I guess, um, surprised that, you know, they, the club wanted me to step into that role.

Um, given the fact that I had only just retired, um, six months prior, but, um, you know, between Jason King and Scott Penn, they, they firmly felt like, um, you know, I was the right man to, to step into that interim role and that, you know, from the very start, they said, look, we'll, we'll support you and give you everything you need to, to give you the best opportunity to, to, you know, make a fist of this and success, succeed in it.

And, Like I said at the start, I'm grateful that they've backed me.

Kieran, when you walked into Manly in this capacity as a coach at the start of the year, and you know what success looks like, did it feel right or it clearly wasn't? What was it that looked wrong or felt wrong from your point of view?

Can you believe it?

Yeah, it's, [laughs] it's quite incredible, Braith, to d- to think that I only finished my career up on the Gold Coast, uh, literally months ago, and then, uh, got given an opportunity to come back to the Manly club that I've spent many years at, um, you know, playing rugby league at, and, and forging so many great memories, uh, with a number of players.

And to, to get the opportunity to come back to the club and coach a number of players that, uh, I, I obviously played alongside, but also a new crop of players coming through was, was something that I was really excited about.

And then, uh, to be, you know, stepping into the role as interim coach, uh, just, just all happened so quickly.

But, um, like I've done with everything in my life, I've, I've jumped headfirst into it.

I've backed myself and, uh, just worked extremely hard.

How has that impacted your life so far, and do you plan on being like, you know, a career coach?

Yeah, Paul, for sure.

How much have players changed in that time, Fos?

Yeah.

Yeah.

Well, that, to me, that was something that really stood out towards the end of, of, of Desi's time at the Titans was, um, you are coaching such a different generation now.

And, and Des, um, to his credit, he's, you know, always believed in his ways and, um, his approach to his players.

And as I said, he cares deeply, but, um, that ability to con- connect is, is hugely important now with, with the young guys that you're coaching now.

They, they want that connection.

Yeah

big question.

Well, I had a joke with my son the other day.

I said, son, if Dad plays really well, he might go around one more year, and he was jumping with joy.

He might hold me to that.

But, no, look, I am done.

In terms of the NRL, I mean...

I just feel the timing's right now in terms of where I'm at with my career.

Foles, how have you prepared physically, mentally to match the intensity of the international test level, especially after the NRL season, whilst juggling family, whilst juggling being a pundit on TV? Has it been hard or have you just been plotting away?

Yeah.

Well, I had a joke with my son the other day.

I said, son, if dad plays really well, he might go around one more year.

And he was jumping with joy.

He might hold me to that.

But no, look, I am done.

In terms of the NRL, I mean, I just feel the timing's right now in terms of where I'm at with my career.

Oz, how have you prepared physically, mentally, to match the intensity of the international test level, especially after the NRL season, whilst juggling family, whilst juggling being a pundit on TV? Has it been hard or have you just been plotting away?