Day one of Ben Hornby’s salvage operation at Souths

2 weeks ago 10

Ben Hornby arrived astatine a acold and bedewed Heffron Park astatine 7.14 americium connected Wednesday knowing helium has the task of turning astir South Sydney’s shambolic season.

With a speedy “I’m looking guardant to the match”, Hornby entered the aforesaid Rabbitohs’ office wherever lone 12 hours earlier the committee had decided to terminate Jason Demetriou’s tenure arsenic caput coach.

By 10.30 am, Hornby, who has been an adjunct manager astatine Souths for 5 years, was successful complaint of his archetypal grooming session.

Walking onto the tract alongside newly appointed adjunct manager David Furner, Hornby was spinning a Steeden successful his hands arsenic helium watched the captain’s run. His adjacent 36 hours, which see a showdown against three-time premiers Penrith, are nary casual feat for an interim manager conscionable 2 days into the job.

A triumph volition beryllium a singular achievement, a archetypal measurement successful salvaging South Sydney’s season. A nonaccomplishment volition beryllium seen arsenic a continuation of the club’s tumultuous commencement to 2024.

Club seasoned Thomas Burgess was 1 of the archetypal players to look from the sheds, arsenic fans and a waiting media battalion got a reprieve from the sheeting rain. As the players filtered onto the ground, the suspended Latrell Mitchell sat to the broadside successful shorts and a T-shirt portion his replacement Jye Gray ran drills with the remainder of the team.

Ben Hornby arrives astatine Heffron Park for his archetypal time arsenic interim caput coach.

On Tuesday, Hornby volition person to determine which of those 2 players helium puts astatine fullback. On that day, he’ll prime his archetypal South Sydney team, with the St George Illawarra nine helium played for with favoritism to beryllium the opponent.

Hornby wasn’t large during his archetypal league successful charge. There was a clap here, and a connection of encouragement there, arsenic the squad ran done immoderate drills.

He stepped successful astatine marker erstwhile oregon twice, kicked a fewer abbreviated goal-line drop-outs, and helped Isaiah Tass with signifier nether the precocious ball, but spent astir of the 45-minute league watching.

Two hours earlier training, South Sydney main enforcement Blake Solly, who arrived astatine Heffron Park astatine 6.41 am, was pragmatic astir what the nine expects implicit the remainder of the season.

South Sydney main enforcement was 1 of the archetypal to get astatine Heffron parkland connected Wednesday morning.

“I deliberation there’s 2 oregon 3 truly wide expectations for Ben,” helium said. “We privation to spot betterment successful presumption of results and performances connected the field, we privation to springiness Ben and the coaching unit the clip to make immoderate of our younger players who we’re starting to spot travel done – Jye Gray is simply a cleanable illustration of that – guys similar Jye, Tyrone [Munro] erstwhile helium comes backmost from injury, Peter [Mamouzelos] tin play a batch much NRL shot this year.

“And again I deliberation we privation Ben and the coaching unit and the players to clasp themselves and transportation themselves successful a mode that represents our nine successful the champion imaginable mode and gives our assemblage and our instrumentality basal the pridefulness that they deserve.”

Solly was assured Hornby could salvage thing from 2024.

“We surely deliberation we tin marque thing of the season. Whether that results successful a top-eight berth, I’m not sure, but I cognize the quality of this team, I cognize what they’re like, and they’ll beryllium up for the challenge,” Solly said.

“If we tin get our players backmost connected the tract sooner alternatively than later, I deliberation astir teams volition beryllium acrophobic astir playing us, and if we tin get to the apical eight, that would beryllium wonderful. But, really, it’s astir betterment implicit the adjacent fewer weeks and putting performances connected the tract that our fans and our assemblage tin beryllium arrogant of.”

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