Queensland fable Billy Slater has confirmed helium was offered the Maroons' caput coaching role, but claims his determination to crook down the accidental had thing to bash with immoderate frustrations with Queensland Rugby League.
Rumours of a rift betwixt Slater and QRL surfaced implicit the play aft chap Queensland great, Paul Vautin, suggested the erstwhile NRL fullback told QRL president Bruce Hatcher to "stick it up his a---" erstwhile offered the caput coaching role.
The comments made by Vautin travel astatine a pugnacious time, with Queensland staring down the tube of its archetypal Origin bid sweep since 2000.
While the relation was subsequently handed to erstwhile Cowboys manager Paul Green, Slater confirmed helium excessively was heavy recruited for the role.
"I'm a Queenslander, I've ever been consenting to assistance Queensland out," Slater told 2GB's Wide World of Sports' Radio.
"I was successful discussions with radical from the QRL implicit the Summer when Wayne Bennett said helium wasn't going to coach the squad aft past year.
"They did enactment it to me. There were radical who asked maine if I would beryllium funny successful coaching and to beryllium honest, I was taken aback.
"I ne'er truly sat down and considered it. My proposal to QRL was they needed to spell distant and enactment retired who precisely they thought was champion for the job.
"All america Queenslanders privation is the champion idiosyncratic to pb Queenslanders going forward. I didn't privation to beryllium a portion of the circus.
"When it started to go that, I called Bruce Hatcher and told him that I didn't privation to beryllium a portion of that."
Why Vaughan wouldn't beryllium astatine struggling club
Slater said helium hopes the Maroons instrumentality with Green contempt the coach's 2 losses this series, portion confirming the rumours of a rift was "disappointing" to hear.
"I deliberation Paul Green is simply a large candidate. He's had immoderate pugnacious things to woody with implicit the archetypal 2 games," helium said.
"He's our coach. We don't privation to beryllium throwing him retired aft 2 games.
"We request to instrumentality by him. The astir disappointing happening for maine astir each of this was however it was interpreted that were was a fraction betwixt myself and QRL."
For a regular dose of the champion of the breaking quality and exclusive contented from Wide World of Sports, subscribe to our newsletter by clicking here!
English (US) ·