NRL: South Sydney Rabbitohs shared vision of new English recruit Lewis Dodd joining Bunnies training, with a classic Wayne Bennett welcome.
Super coach Wayne Bennett welcomed English recruit Lewis Dodd into the NRL with those four words, meeting the 23-year-old on his first day at the Rabbitohs’ Heffron Park base.But was that the first time Dodd, who had arrived in Australia in early December, met arguably the NRL’s greatest-ever mentor ?“I’d had a few of the lads that had him for England and stuff in the past have got their own stories of being coached by Wayne.
“Whenever I play, whenever that may be, I know exactly what I have to do and that put my mind at ease.” So when Dodd was nearing the end of his St Helens contract, which expired in 2024, he gave his manager permission to speak to NRL suitors.Dodd had already helped the Saints to three Super League titles, a League Leaders’ Shield, a Challenge Cup and a World Club Challenge, while years of good football still ahead.“It’s a bit of a weird one. I just remember saying to my manager, ‘See if there’s an opportunity’. It was getting to that time where I had to make a decision,” Dodd said.
While negotiating Dodd’s contract, Demetriou dropped Lachlan Ilias - the player touted as Adam Reynolds’ long-term successor - in favour of Dean Hawkins. “I was pretty scared, I’d heard of pretty much all the boys. You don’t know them and then you meet 30-odd lads on the same day,” Dodd said. The 2025 pre-season has been a period of correction for the Rabbitohs, and the feeling of disappointment lingering with the squad was “quite similar” to what Dodd felt back home.
“That’s the enjoyment, you get enjoyment going through tough times with the lads, but when you do go through those tough times you get some good times as well.”At only 21 years of age, he kicked a winning field goal in the World Club Challenge to down the Panthers fresh off their second straight premiership.“It was obviously one of the highlights of my career to date. I think as a halfback, every good halfback always ices those moments,” Dodd said.
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