He hasn’t won an NRL game in charge yet, his squad selections have raised eyebrows and his team is firmly rooted at the bottom of the NRL ladder, but Wests Tigers half Jackson Hastings insists the club needs to keep interim coach Brett Kimmorley at Concord.
Kimmorley will hand over the head coaching reins to Tim Sheens at the end of the season as the five-year coaching plan begins, but Hastings told AAP he hopes the club don’t forget about the interim coach, who was Pathways and Coaching manager prior to the dismissal of Michael Maguire.
Though results haven’t been forthcoming at NRL level, Hastings has cited the less obvious cultural change that has led to lower-grade success as the reason Kimmorley needs to be retained.
“As a first-grade squad we’re not going great, but what ‘Noddy’ (Kimmorley) has been able to do from the pathways to the women’s side, he’s making the club a better place.”
“Noddy has been a massive part of the success the club has had this year.”
“He deserves a lot of credit. We just need every single person here to buy in and the club will move forward.”
Junior programs at the club have thrived since Kimmorley was installed in the Pathways position.
Western Suburbs won the under-17 Harold Matthews Cup this year, while Balmain reached the final of the under-19s SG-Ball competition.
Most recently, a Wests Tigers team featuring Jess Sergis, Kezie Apps and Emily Curtain won their first Harvey Norman Women’s Premiership with a thrilling 21-20 golden point win over Cronulla last weekend. Kimmorley began the year coaching the team.