The only concern about B Smith...

[Guest]

is when he said he made a business decision to come to us.

Gee I hope this doesnt have a transit lounge flavour about it. I want a coach who really wnats to be here and will become passionate about our club. I didnt see much of that....all he could say was how he loved Newcastle and only left basically because of the $$.

Time will tell i guess

[supermario]

is when he said he made a business decision to come to us.

Gee I hope this doesnt have a transit lounge flavour about it. I want a coach who really wnats to be here and will become passionate about our club. I didnt see much of that....all he could say was how he loved Newcastle and only left basically because of the $$.

Time will tell i guess

Dolphin, he has just signed with the roosters, he does not start work for the club until october and we are already asking for passion for the club by him?????

When he says business desicion, he could also be saying that a move to the roosters will offer more opportunities to win a premiership, for a coach, that is a great business desicion.

[Vasco]

Rugby league is a business.

[BUDDY]

is when he said he made a business decision to come to us.

Gee I hope this doesnt have a transit lounge flavour about it. I want a coach who really wnats to be here and will become passionate about our club. I didnt see much of that....all he could say was how he loved Newcastle and only left basically because of the $$.

Time will tell i guess

I am sure Smith will put his heart and soul into the club. It is a coach's job and in a way, if we succeed then his future looks brighter as well no matter where he goes. I am sure there are a few coaches out there that have a personal connection to a club ie. Freddie with us, Moore with the dogs, Dessy, Furner. But of the rest, once their tenure is up, they will look for what is best for them and give it their all. There are only 16 NRL coaching spots available, so if you fcuk up then it opens up a spot for someone else. I wouldn't be worried at all about that.

[Guest]

After 26 years in the NRL, Brian Smith decided it was finally time to look after No.1.

That was how the veteran NRL coach on Monday explained his decision to walk out on the final year of his contract with Newcastle to take up a lucrative deal with the Sydney Roosters starting in 2010.

Smith said there was no malice in his move, he was simply opting for the financial security of a four-year deal with the Roosters over a year-to-year proposition with the Knights which was dependent on the club's final position of the ladder.

With 522 games under his belt spread out over stints with Illawarra, St George, Parramatta and the Knights - plus two different coaching roles in English Super League - Smith said the opportunity to finally look after himself was too good to pass up.

"When (former Parramatta chief executive) Denis Fitzgerald tapped me on the shoulder a few years ago, it was a business decision," Smith said.

"Surely I'm allowed to make one myself somewhere along the line.

"I've been kicked in the shins I suppose along the way a few times and this time around, while it's hard emotionally, it wasn't a difficult decision to make from a business point of view."

While his exit from the Eels after ten years at the club was anything but harmonious, Smith said he would leave the Knights on good terms.

The reality of the situation was the two parties no longer needed each other as they once did.

Smith rebuilt the Knights following the departure of club legends Andrew Johns and Danny Buderus, with the resurrection enhancing Smith's reputation as the best makeover specialist since Carson Kressley.

But for a man who has never tasted premiership success, surely Smith was tempted to finish what he had started, with a title seemingly within reach for the Knights either this year or next.

"I don't think that's how it works," Smith said of the possibility he was throwing away a premiership win.

"At the end of every season you start again.

"We're just taking one piece out of the jigsaw."

Smith admitted his departure would come with some regret, having become close to the players during a stint in which he was almost run out of town following his 2007 clean-out.

While news of his departure shocked many, including the Newcastle players, Smith said he had been preparing for this moment for some time.

"Earlier in the year Burro (Knights chief executive Steve Burraston) and I sat down and spoke about whether the club was going to extend my contract - when it came back as a one-year offer, within reason, I think we all knew what that meant - I wasn't going to be here long-term.

"We all understand this is a business - sometimes it's tough and it's awkward, but it's a business deal."

Smith confirmed he and the players had made a commitment to focus on the remainder of this season, while Knights management have begun the long search for a replacement.

Assistant coach Rick Stone is the early favourite, his caused helped no end by a ringing endorsement from favourite son Andrew Johns.

But several coaches with NRL experience also appear keen on the job, with former Bulldogs mentor Steve Folkes throwing his hat in the ring.

Smith did his best to talk up the position.

"Whoever gets the coaching gig in Newcastle in 2010 going forward has got an ideal situation to come in and occupy in my opinion," Smith said.

[Guest]

Cant blame smith with the decision from a $$$ point of view for himself

[Guest]

Many years ago my manager decided to play mind games with me by asking me why I wanted a pay rise and whether I enjoyed the work. My response was that if we weren't getting paid we'd both be down at the beach. I got the pay rise :-)

I have no problems with Smith chasing a 4 years contract vs a 2 (1+1) year contract. Especially at his age money talks bs walks.

[Guest]

Very astute on BS part to secure a 4 year deal. It makes for a nice severance package for a guy in his 50's. I hope he achieves success at our club. But our track record with patience for coaches is not all that impressive

2006 Stuart
2007 Anderson
2009 Fittler
2011 ???

[Pass the Ball]

I am happy Stuart got the boot

I am happy Anderson got the boot

and i am happy Fittler got the boot...

If the team is playing as bad as when these guys suffered their fate, I will be happy for Smith to get the boot too...

[Guest]

is when he said he made a business decision to come to us.

Gee I hope this doesnt have a transit lounge flavour about it. I want a coach who really wnats to be here and will become passionate about our club. I didnt see much of that....all he could say was how he loved Newcastle and only left basically because of the $$.

Time will tell i guess

So what if it is a business decision. For it to become a successful business decision, he will need to show passion for the club. So he will show passion if he wants to succeed. Otherwise, he will need to look elsewhere

[Guest]

Very astute on BS part to secure a 4 year deal. It makes for a nice severance package for a guy in his 50's. I hope he achieves success at our club. But our track record with patience for coaches is not all that impressive

2006 Stuart
2007 Anderson
2009 Fittler
2011 ???

Stuart had a fall out with many people

Anderson was pulled from retirement and was way out of his depths

Fittler took over Anderson because we had noone to coach us

So all in all, we fired someone with an attitude, a retiree and a rookie with no experience. I would be more concerned about making the incorrect recruitment decisions to begin with, more so than the separation as a result

[stsae]

is when he said he made a business decision to come to us.

Gee I hope this doesnt have a transit lounge flavour about it. I want a coach who really wnats to be here and will become passionate about our club. I didnt see much of that....all he could say was how he loved Newcastle and only left basically because of the $$.

Time will tell i guess

It is a business mate.

When have we seen Smiff not show passion for what he does???

I saw Smiff say we are a foundation club and he loves the whole history side of the game, he said it was one of the attractive things about coming.

Also Smiff denied $$ were a motivating factor, the Poocastle CEO confirmed that. What he wanted was a longer contract. That tells me he is in for the long term, not looking for short term $$. IMO thats positive from our view as maybe we will start to build more than looking for the quick fix each season.

[novice chook]

Rugby league is a business, so business decisions need to be made.

Players make their decisions based on what's best for themselves, why shouldn't coaches.

I'd rather Brian Smith came to us for business reasons, rather than emotive ones. It will make the hard decisions he needs to make simpler for everyone involved.

Make no mistake - Brian Smith hasn't been signed to win us a premiership - if that happens it'll be a huge bonus. He has been signed to rebuild the Club and its brand, bring some toughness, pride and commitment back to the joint and get rid of those who don't want to conform to the rebuilding process.

Bring it on I reckon.


NC

[Guest]

is when he said he made a business decision to come to us.

Gee I hope this doesnt have a transit lounge flavour about it. I want a coach who really wnats to be here and will become passionate about our club. I didnt see much of that....all he could say was how he loved Newcastle and only left basically because of the $$.

Time will tell i guess

He signed with the wooden spooners for four years. It may be a business decision but it sounds like he'll plan to turn the club around.

At least that's what I'm hoping.

[Guest]

i wonder who he'll get rid of like kirk renolydson bak at the knighst