Wayne Bennett has rounded out his Dolphins coaching panel on the cusp of pre-season training by signing former NRL tough nut Nathan Fien as an assistant.
Coach Bennett will be assisted by Fien and Tonga World Cup mentor Kristian Woolf in the Dolphins’ inaugural season in the NRL.
Fien was a member of the Queensland State of Origin squad that beat New South Wales in the 2001 series under the guidance of Bennett.
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Nine years later, Bennett was coach and Fien a bench player as the Dragons defeated the Roosters in the 2010 NRL grand final.
Fien has coached in the Illawarra region over the last six years.
“Nathan is a young coach with a big future and has first-hand experience with Wayne’s style of coaching,” said Dolphins chief executive Terry Reader.
“It is also advantageous that he is a Queenslander and understands the long history of the Dolphins and what it means for the club to ascend to the NRL.
“We now have Nathan and Kristian in place to assist our head coach, and a world-class performance and football management team in position to support them.
“We are looking forward to the beginning of pre-season training in just a few weeks and are excited that our debut in the NRL is moving closer every day.”
Fien played 276 NRL games with the Cowboys, Warriors and Dragons between 2000 and 2013, splitting his time between hooker, five-eighth and halfback.
He also made 22 Test appearances for New Zealand after qualifying under residential rules while playing for the Warriors.
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