Anthony Seibold admits he ‘failed’ at Broncos but raring to start new life as Manly coach
Anthony Seibold admits he “failed” in his last stint as an NRL head coach, but is keen to get to work at Manly and prove people wrong.
Manly finally confirmed the appointment of Seibold as the club’s new head coach on a three-year deal, starting immediately.
The club also confirmed the signings of Shane Flanagan and Jim Dymock as assistant coaches, in a media release issued on Tuesday.
“It’s time to come home,” Seibold told 9News in an exclusive interview in England.
“I feel very humbled (to coach Manly).”
Seibold worked at Manly as an assistant in 2016 before moving to South Sydney.
He was the head coach of the Rabbitohs in 2018 and named coach of the year, then jumped to Brisbane in a highly controversial move that forced Wayne Bennett to be ousted by the Broncos.
Seibold’s tenure at the Broncos was disastrous and he parted ways with the club less than halfway through a five-year contract.
“I believe I’m a good coach, I’ve shown that through the majority of my career,” Seibold said.
“But I’ve also failed. And I think I’ve learned a lot from the failures.
“I’ve made some decisions I potentially wouldn’t make again, but we’re all human.
“One of my biggest strengths I think is making relationships with players, and I didn’t get that right (at Brisbane) for some reason.
“I always thought I would get another opportunity, I didn’t know where it would be.”
Seibold’s exit from Brisbane was messy to say the least.
He was the victim of vile social media trolling, and employed law enforcement to track down the culprits.
Nevertheless, he had no qualms with returning to one of the most pressurised and unforgiving jobs in sport.
“The easy thing after getting knocked down on the canvas would be to give coaching away,” he said.
“But I go (to Manly) with great optimism, and I wouldn’t go there if I didn’t think I could bring something to the playing group.”
He has since been working with England’s rugby team under Eddie Jones.
“Anthony has an incredible knowledge of the game and what is required at the highest level,” Manly boss Tony Mestrov said.
