High-flyer happy under the radar

HEIGHTS. Daniel Anderson can't stand them. Lead the Eels coach to within a metre of the balcony's edge and he'll tremble like an autumn leaf. If the early-season cynics had been aware of Anderson's fear, they would have devised a wisecrack link between his phobia and Parramatta's ladder position.And had Anderson heard the barbs, he would probably have shrugged and shuffled on with his tracksuit bottoms scraping the floor. Although only 42, Anderson is remarkably world-weary."I know people are going to have their opinions and that's fine," he said. "But what I can't understand is when it's illogical. When it seems to come from nowhere."Anderson spoke those words not for this story, but a month ago while contemplating Parramatta's round 19 loss to Gold Coast that looked to have ended their season. They haven't lost since and are the NRL's hottest ticket, but Anderson won't speak again.Not about himself, anyhow.Like the majority of NRL coaches, he's an intensely private figure and is loath to suck credit away from his players.But like it or not, Anderson is also a fascinating character who has achieved some remarkable milestones without developing that warm public glow that surrounds fellow winners like Wayne Bennett and Tim Sheens.After making it three consecutive Challenge Cups at St Helens last year, the club chairman Eamon McManus publicly declared Anderson the "greatest coach" in the proud club's 100-year history.But when Anderson signed a three-year deal with Parramatta a few weeks later, there was no shortage of murmurs about whether he was the right choice.The doubters pointed to his ugly falling-out with the Warriors in 2004, when Anderson was sensationally sacked mid-season after leading the club to its first Grand Final just two years earlier. Rumours abounded about his supposedly brittle relationship with the Polynesian contingent, who disliked Anderson's invective and expletive-laden fire-ups.Parramatta, however, felt their highly talented but under-performing players needed a shake-up after two years under the more sedate watch of Michael Hagan.And as much as he might deny it, Anderson is passionate and uncompromising. During the Titans' loss in July, he banged the table sohard that his assistant's laptop momentarily froze. After the game, Fox Sports cameras caught Anderson in animated exchanges with several Eels players.But his hard love appears to be working. Over the summer, Anderson ran Parramatta six days a week to bring their skill and fitness levels up to his desired standard.Insiders say Anderson, who cut his teeth as a coach in the Eels lower grades, felt he had a lot of work to do upon returning to Parramatta Stadium last November.A stickler for the fundamentals, he went back to the start. Players preformed the most elementary drills, simple passing and kicking. There were no revelationary bonding sessions. No inspirational quotes plastered on the gym wall. No gimmicks. No crap.His manager Jim Banaghan conceded Anderson is not rugby league's most colourful character. "But he has a knack of getting the job done no matter what," Banaghan added."I remember one time we were stuck in Perpignan with St Helens and they'd cancelled all the flights. It looked as if the whole team would be stuck there for two days, but Daniel hopped on the laptop and within two hours had booked a bus to Barcelona and flights to get the whole team home that day."Understandably, he expects the same in return. Slackness is no longer tolerated at Parramatta, a team that was plagued by off-field indiscretions 12 months ago. Instead of forgiving latecomers to training, they are now fined lunch or $40. More serious transgressors -- like Fuifui Moimoi, who missed two weeks training in January after being held up in Tonga -- have been slugged five-figure sums."There was a bit of grumbling, but not as much as you'd expect," another source said."Deep down the players knew they needed to do the work and that Daniel was the best thing for them."Like his first mentor Brian Smith, Anderson relies more on analytical brilliance than pure bonhomie to succeed. Both men are former teachers, with Anderson mixing coaching with high-level maths classes at famed league nursery St Gregory's Campbelltown in the early 1990s.Anderson still meets the stereotype of a teacher. He is widely described as being socially conservative, preferring two beers with friends and nights at home with his four children. And like every accomplished teacher, he also understands the value of continual learning.According to younger brother and former Eels gear steward Jared "Gur" Anderson, the eldest of five boys, who were all schooled at Parramatta Marist, is a compulsive reader."I'd have my head in the form guide and Daniel would most likely be reading a book," Gur said.Asked to sum up his brother, Gur replied: "He's a leader. That came with being the oldest of five boys."Daniel takes things upon himself naturally, like in a school knockout one year he kicked a sideline conversion to win the final and barely reacted. We were all amazed, but to Daniel, he just did what was expected of him."As his team continues to climb the ladder one rung at a time, their coach had better get over his phobia -- and fast -- because there is no telling how high these Eels might fly.Source - The Daily telegraph

"Funny how a lot of BA fan boys on here are now jumping of the bus but blaming everybody else. A lot on here have known and been saying for years that the coach was not the only one responsible for this situation. "

"I agree higher ups need rearranging. But tell me Coryn, would we have a better chance winning a comp with BA or Bennett?
Coaching is not the no.1 issue, but is a big issue."

Replies

ParraMagic August 14, 2009 at 8:45pm

Since i am only 15 (yep i am) i have never been so comfortable with a parra coach than Ando, Hes doing a great job, and the changes hes made at the club for the better already has been outstanding! I think he will be with us like Bennet was for the Broncos.

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