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Des Hasler is doing something that he never does; talk about Des Hasler.
It’s a subject that has been off limits for the best part of the five decades that he has dedicated to rugby league, but an exception has been made. On Saturday, he will become a member of an exclusive group of coaches who have overseen 500 games, joining Wayne Bennett (956 matches coached), Tim Sheens (693), Brian Smith (601), Craig Bellamy (594) and Ricky Stuart (534).
It is fitting that the milestone will be achieved in Auckland, away from the spotlight, allowing him to fly just the way he likes it, under the radar. His current employer, the Gold Coast Titans, marked the occasion on Tuesday, and Hasler indulged this masthead before jumping on a plane the next day for the assignment against the Warriors.
“I don’t think about it being 500 games, 250 games or 700 games or whatever it is,” Hasler says.
“It’s funny, when you stop and think about it, it’s the people you remember.
“I don’t think about the 500, the football and all the trappings, the highlights and heartbreaks that go with it, they kind of fade into the background.
Des Hasler is about to reach a significant milestone.Credit: Getty Images
“It would be like in your game as a journo, all the clickbait fades away. Nobody remembers all the bullshit, but you know what they remember? They remember the person. For me, the most significant part of it all is the people.
“I’m very fortunate with rugby league, I started in 1980, it’s been 47 years, it’s been wonderful. It’s about the people.
“With the other coaches who have surpassed 500 games or even young coaches on their journey, you learn the value of connections you make with people, the genuine ability to relate.
“Twenty years down the track, 500 games down the track, people from the time I started coaching in 1997 at a club level, when they come back and still are in your life, or your crossing over and come back and regale about past times, that’s when you realise wow, the impact you have on peoples’ lives.”
In recent times, there have been more heartbreaks that highlights. Hasler has taken over a Titans franchise that remains a stranger to success, one operating with a roster of five fullbacks and two millionaire forwards in Tino Fa’asuamaleaui and David Fifita, who have mustered just 45 games between them since the coach’s arrival.
There is a year to run on Hasler’s contract but, given the club currently sits in last spot, it’s unclear how many games he will be able to add to his 500th. Until the club makes a definitive call, it’s unclear if these words act as celebration or eulogy.
Hasler won’t buy into the speculation about his future, saying only: “I’m still enjoying it, I enjoy coaching.
“If you enjoy coaching, you keep doing it.”
Des Hasler and those famous golden locks.Credit: Kate Geraghty
He does, however, understand his role in the great soap opera that is the NRL.
“When I started, a football journo reported on the game,” Hasler offers. “It’s more like Days of Our Lives and Home and Away these days. It’s all about the melodrama.”
Hasler has provided his fair share. From the ruins of the Super League war and the Northern Eagles debacle, he rebuilt Manly into a powerhouse to be despised by rivals. Under his watch, the Sea Eagles won two premierships, a number that would be greater still if the salary cap rorts of the Melbourne Storm were uncovered prior to the 2007 decider.
The 64-year-old also came close at Canterbury, falling at the final hurdle against South Sydney in 2014. All the while, Hasler did it his own inimitable way; the bouffant, the kooky sports science, the epic sprays like the one he produced after last weekend’s loss to the Tigers.
‘[The players] need to know that you’re vulnerable. That you have that real care factor.’
Des Hasler“You look at Wayne Bennett, who is different to Ricky Stuart, who is different to Craig Bellamy, who is different to Warren Ryan or Tim Sheens,” Hasler offers.
“You look at all the coaches who have longevity, each one is entirely different.
“If you sat down with all those men in the same room, they would look back and say ‘this is the direction I’m going to go, this is the path and how I got there.’
“There’s no clear map, if I can say that. There’s no outline, no handbook. Not when you’re dealing with people. Not when you are dealing with so much.”
From post-game spray to hugs for Hasler
Days after footage emerged of Des Hasler giving his team an epic spray following their loss to the Tigers, the Titans coach was on the verge of tears after his team presented him with a framed timeline of his coaching career ahead of his 500th game on Saturday.
Hasler was caught on camera in the locker rooms at Leichhardt Oval giving his team a rinsing after they lost in the finals 17 seconds of their match, courtesy of an Adam Doueihi field goal after they led 20-16 in the 77th minute.
In the post-match press conference, Hasler said his team played dumb football.
“It’s really disappointing that in the second half we fumble, we bumble, we miss tackles, we throw balls over the sideline, we get carried over the sideline and we complete nine from 15 sets,” Hasler said. “I’m really disappointed in that performance. It was really dumb.”
But the incident seemed to be in the past, with Hasler thanking and embracing his team following the presentation and ahead of their match against the Warriors on Saturday.
“If I could just quickly respond,” Hasler said of the gift. “First off, you’ve ambushed me, I wasn’t expecting that, so thank you very much. The gesture that you being here, is a great moment for me.”
- Billie Eder, with AAP
What separates the great coaches is their ability to connect with their players. For all of his quirks, there is nothing the former school teacher won’t do for one of his charges. It’s why Kieran Foran has followed Hasler from club to club. Why Manase Fainu, sitting in a prison cell long after his NRL career imploded, continues to get phone calls from Hasler. Why the Titans, despite their lack of on-field success, haven’t turned on their coach.
“All coaches, if you ask them, the players are human,” Hasler says.
“They are real people, they experience every emotion that you do, that coaches and everyone does.
“It’s knowing that you’re being really genuine with them, there’s always that honesty factor. But also these days particularly they need to know that you’re vulnerable. That you have that real care factor.”
Hasler enjoyed a playing career that was documented by the great Thomas Keneally. It’s unclear how many chapters remain untold in his story with the clipboard.
“How lucky am I? How lucky is that?” Hasler says of being Keneally’s subject.
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“And that’s all part of it. You think it’s all planned, but your life is unplanned, you never know what’s around the corner.
“That’s a big part of rugby league. You always need to be two steps ahead. There you go. I’ll finish with that.”
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