My pick..........Matthew Elliott. Great tactically & understands the intricacies of the game. His coaching record is not as bad as people think! His record as coach of the Warriors was pretty ordinary but what coach did have success with the Warriors? Bring in Menzies as forwards coach / Napper as backs / Donny Singe as Head of Fitness / Conditioning!
Coaching career
Injury cut Elliotts playing career short and he became an assistant to
Brian Smith at the Dragons.
[4]
Bradford
Elliott followed Smith to the
Bradford Bulls in 1996, before taking over as head coach. Elliott won the
Super League title in his first season. In 1997 and 1999 he was named the Super League coach of the Year. He coached the
Bradford Bulls to the
1999 Super League Grand Final which was lost to
St Helens R.F.C..
Canberra
After serving as assistant to
Canberra Raiders coach
Mal Meninga during the
2001 NRL season, Elliott was made coach for the
2002 premiership. During his tenure at the Raiders, Canberra won 59 and drew one of their 125 games, including four finals appearances in five seasons.
Elliott's most successful coaching season was
2003, when the Raiders won 16 of 24 games but were eliminated from the finals without winning a game.
Penrith
On 19 February 2006, it was announced that Elliott would coach the
Penrith Panthers from 2007 onwards, having signed a three-year deal. Elliott succeeded
John Lang in this position.
In September 2008, Elliott was criticized for Penrith's consistent poor showings and it was speculated that he would be prematurely sacked before he saw through his three-year contract with the club. Elliott however defied the pressure and criticism and managed to convince the board into letting him remain in charge for the 2009 season.
After a promising start to the 2009 season, Elliott's contract was extended to the end of the 2011 season.
[5] In the 2010 season, the Panthers finished second in the ladder, but they did not win a match in the finals series. Their 645 was the most points scored in the regular season, the second highest being 559.
On 25 April 2011, Elliott was informed by the Penrith board that his services would not be required beyond 2011. He vowed to continue at the helm for the rest of the season at the time, then on 20 June announced his resignation with immediate effect.
He is the current coach of the
United States national side.
[4][6] Following the
2011 NRL season Elliott coached the
United States national rugby league team to a 40-4 victory over
Jamaica to qualify for the
2013 Rugby League World Cup, their first ever.
[7]
Sydney Roosters
In 2012 Elliott served as
Sydney Roosters assistant coach, again working under
Brian Smith.
New Zealand Warriors
On 12 October 2012 Elliott was appointed head coach of the
New Zealand Warriors for two seasons, replacing
Brian McClennan who was sacked during the
2012 New Zealand Warriors season. He resigned as the USA coach before the
2013 Rugby League World Cup, to concentrate on the Warriors' off season. On 7 April 2014, he was sacked from the Warriors.
[8]