Danny Weidler has revealed that he messaged axed Parramatta Eels coach Brad Arthur just hours before he was shown the door, explaining how the leader was completely “blindsided” on Monday.
It comes after Arthur was axed effective immediately on Monday afternoon.
Parramatta was secretly talking to Dolphins coach Wayne Bennett over the last four weeks in an effort to flip him from signing with the Rabbitohs. The club’s approach to the master coach was reportedly rejected.
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Weidler has broken down what happened behind closed doors when Arthur was given the boot on Monday.
“It was a 3pm meeting called by the Parramatta officials… he was there by 4pm, he was out by 4.10pm,” he said on Nine’s 100% Footy.
“In that 10 minutes he would have asked why, but he really (already knew) why.
“There’s been three particularly bad losses this year.”
Weidler explained that Arthur was completely ”blindsided” by his sacking, after he texted the coach just hours before he lost his job.
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“I texted him at 9.09am this morning to check how he was going, because it was obviously a tough loss,” he began.
“He said ‘I’m all good mate. I’ve been here before, we will dig our way out like we have done in this past’.”
Weidler also described how Arthur didn’t want to be selfish and risk playing Mitchell Moses (fractured foot), which he says proves he will be a great coach elsewhere if the chance arises.
“That says a lot about Brad Arthur, his career on the line, he’s thinking about not wanting to be selfish by risking playing Mitchell Moses,” he said.
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“To me, that says that Brad Arthur would be a good coach for another club, because he’s not a selfish bloke, he’s a hard worker and he has had some success at Parramatta.”
The Eels have appointed Trent Barrett as interim coach until the end of the 2024 season.