“I’ve always respected South Sydney and its 30,000 members, I’m really looking forward to being part of the Rabbitohs family, and I can assure the members that I will do my very best for the club.” Loading South Sydney general manager of football Shane Richardson said Benentt was "one of the best, if not the best" coach of all time". “His football record is second-to-none and his reputation as a leader is also of the highest order. Here he will have the opportunity to work with some of the best senior and up-and-coming talent in the game, which from our discussions over the past few weeks I know he is excited about," Richardson said. “He will also have the opportunity to work as a head coach with a strong coaching, football and administration staff around him that are all pushing in the one direction.

“Anthony [Seibold] has done a great job at our club over the past two years however his hesitance to extend his contract with us, an offer which has been on the table since June, led the club to explore other options. “We’re looking forward to Wayne becoming a Rabbitoh in 12 months’ time and we wish him the best of luck with the England team in their current Test series with the Kiwis." All that remains is for Seibold to officially put pen to paper before an official announcement is made. Both Seibold and Bennett are contracted to Souths and Brisbane respectively for 2019, but given they have committed elsewhere, an immediate swap is likely. Bennett had been in the mix to take over at the Tigers, who are expected to release Ivan Cleary to Penrith. The Panthers have signed Cleary from 2021-23, making his time at the joint-venture outfit untenable. Pending Cleary’s departure, the Tigers have struck an in-principle deal with Maguire, giving the premiership-winning mentor a return to the NRL.

Maguire and Bennett are currently in England, as the coaches of New Zealand and England respectively ahead of this Saturday’s Test match. Loading It continues a frenzy of coach swapping that began when Des Hasler returned to Manly on a three-year deal, despite Trent Barrett still remaining on the Sea Eagles’ books. The loss of Seibold, who won the Dally M Coach of the Year as a rookie, can't be viewed as anything but a blow for Souths but getting Bennett in exchange would be quite the fall-back option. Seibold is a Queenslander and has a long-standing relationship with Broncos chief executive Paul White and that would have played a significant role in his mooted return to the Sunshine State.