David Furner has broken his silence after the South Sydney Rabbitohs confirmed he will be joining their coaching staff and return to the club.
Currently sitting on the bottom of the NRL ladder with a record of 1-5, the Rabbitohs have shaken up their coaching staff as coach Jason Demetriou faces the axe.
Heading into the bye this week, it couldn't have come at a better time for the club, which has lost several star players to injuries or suspension and has struggled with inconsistencies in its 2024 campaign.
The Rabbitohs have confirmed that David Furner will join the coaching staff and will look after the team's defence with "current assistant coaches Ben Hornby, Joe O'Callaghan and John Sutton continuing in their roles as assistant, development and pathways coaches supporting the head coach".
Furner, who was recently with the Wests Tigers as an assistant coach, has broken his silence on re-joining the Bunnies.
โThere is a bit to do,โ Furner said viaย News Corpย after rumours emerged linking him to a return to the Rabbitohs.
โFor me it is an easy move - I know a lot of the staff, I know the hierarchy. I'll be working with the forwards around their defence and things like that.
โI am keen to help out. It is good to be back in the game.โ
A formerย Canberra Raiders forward between 1992 and 2000, Furner has a stellar coaching resume that includes working with some of the best coaches, past and present.
This includes working as an assistant coach under Neil Henry, Paul Green, Michael Maguire, Anthony Seibold, Adam O'Brien, Trent Barrett, and Tim Sheens.
โI'm really happy to have David joining our crew. He will add a lot to our coaching staff and, most importantly, our players,โ coach Demetriou said in a statement.
โWe're looking for ways to improve our performances and we think that having an experienced coach like him coming in to concentrate on the team's defence will be a positive.
โWe've worked together previously and had great success at the Cowboys, and he knows what our Club is all about having worked here before.
โI'm looking forward to having him here alongside myself, Benny (Hornby), Joe (O'Callaghan) and โSutto' (John Sutton) as we prepare for our next game against Melbourne and the rest of the season.โ
Speaking to the publication, he revealed that Demetriou first reached out to him pre-Christmas, but negotiations halted. The Rabbitohs coach would then contact him with his job on the line in recent weeks.
The two have previously worked alongside one another at the North Queensland Cowboys.
โI knew him back then,โ added the former Raiders player.
โThat is where it has probably started from. I am not associated with anyone at the moment and he wanted that senior coach around him.โ
Furner would also coach in the NRL for five seasons between 2009 and 2013, where he recorded a 43 per cent winning percentage, and even had a stint as head coach with the Leeds Rhinos in the English Super League in 2019.
