Manly have unveiled two-time premiership player Anthony Watmough as the club's new Sydney Shield coach.
The Sea Eagles were recently inducted into the competition, which sits as the fourth tier league and will feed into the Ron Massey Cup.
Ahead of their maiden season in the Sydney Shield, which will commence in March, Manly have appointed Watmough to the senior coaching position.
The former Sea Eagles and Eels second-rower had returned to his former club in a minor assisting role, but has since accepted the position to help steer Manly's talent pathways into the future.
"I didn't even think about becoming a coach for a second, to be honest with you. I came in to help run the water," Watmough said in an interview with the club.
"Just spending three days a week with this group of players and seeing them grow as people and footy players, it sort of started to take on its own momentum.
"With the bond there with the boys, there was an opportunity for me to take on the coaching job, so I accepted."
Watmough is set to allow his assistants to also help lead from the sidelines, with the 40-year-old open to seeing how his first coaching stint will unfold in the Sydney Shield.
Joining the likes of Geoff Toovey, Matt Orford, Brett Stewart, and Jamie Buhrer in working within Manly's pathways program, Watmough said it's an exciting time that will come with its challenges.
“There was, believe it or not, a lot of mental tiredness and stimulation just from thinking if I could do coaching, and what type of coach I would be," Watmough said.
"But I kept thinking if I put good people around me and each person has a role and they control that role, it makes my job a lot easier to just make sure that the boys are okay and that everything flows.
"Let the attack coach do his job and the let the defensive coach do his job. If I see anything that I think is not going in the way of the direction of the team, then we will sit down and discuss the best way moving forward to make sure our combined goal is being fulfilled.
"... Being the first year, it will take time to build and we have to look at it that way. There is genuine excitement around this team. It also means Manly will field 10 teams across all grades in 2024."
Watmough played 278 games for Manly over a decade with the club, where he held roles in their 2008 and 2011 premiership sides.