Barrett poised for crunch talks over Eels future

Trent Barrett has left the door open for a possible reunion with Jason Ryles next year, admitting "conversations" with the Eels will kick off in the coming weeks. After being overlooked for the full-time head coaching role, Barrett is now in a tricky situation and faces an uncertain future at the club. Parramatta announced the appointment of Ryles on a four-year deal earlier in the week, with Barrett narrowly missing out on landing the position. The attention has now turned to whether or not Barrett will stay at the Eels as an assistant coach under Ryles and bring their long-standing relationship to the club, which started during their playing days at St George Illawarra 25 years ago. "It's exciting for Jason - he's worked really hard and it's a good opportunity," Barrett told media on Thursday. "I'm happy for Rylesy, obviously I was disappointed, but that's the game we're in and I've been in it a long time. "There's conversations that we've had and the club were really good about it. They've been very open and honest with me through the whole process. "I've always felt very welcome here and it's a great club. This year has been really difficult, but obviously those conversations we can have with the club over the next few weeks. It has been a busy week and my main focus has to be on preparing the side. "He's a very good friend of mine, so there wasn't too much football talk there. He's busy at the moment and he is gonna be busy now getting ready." Barrett has previously held top jobs at Manly and Canterbury, but failed to deliver at either club. He worked as an assistant at Penrith before landing in the blue and gold under Brad Arthur.

The barrett moment that sums him up

Trent Barrett's time in rugby league is probably up after messy exits from both Manly and the Bulldogs and he has been the subject of much ridicule over both.Some blokes just aren't cut out for coaching but let me share a story that shows what Trent Barrett, the man, is like.Some 20 years ago, when Barrett was captaining the Dragons, and one of the NRL's glamour boys, there was a curtain raiser before a game at Kogarah.It was a massive mismatch - a Dragons under 20 team thrashed a team from the Central Coast by more than 100 points.I happened to be on the sideline as the teams left the field and several of the poor kids from up the Coast were in tears - and the Kogarah crowd were far from kind with their jibes.Barrett happened to be on the sideline doing a TV interview as the players left the field and saw the distressed state of some of the kids from Central Coast.I'll never forget how he quietly walked up to them, told them to keep their chins up, and said that he had copped some big beltings in his time as a young player - and that they could bounce back from it just as he did.The gloomy expressions on the faces of these kids immediately changed and it shows that while Barrett may not have been the best coach league has seen, he has certainly been one of the best blokes.

Barrett's Heart to nurture Dogs

Trent Barrett is doing it tough in his first season as a head coach of the Bulldogs, with his team sitting on the bottom of the ladder and licking their wounds from a 52-18 mauling from premiers Melbourne. But when I think of the predicament Barrett is in, my mind goes back 20 or so years to a touching moment I witnessed when he was one of the game's glamour boys with the Dragons. I just happened to be stalking the sidelines at Kogarah moments after the Dragons under 20s handed a Central Coast side a dreadful 70-plus point mauling in the curtain raiser to the NRL clash. The crowd were taunting the young team from up the coast and Barrett, who also happened to be down among the players, noticed several players in tears. The former Test five-eighth wandered quietly over to the young team and told them to hold their heads up, they did their best, that football was a game of highs and lows and they would bounce back. His words were like a magic spell, instantly lifting the spirits of the previously down-and-out Coast team. It was a lovely gesture that was greatly appreciated by the downcast players - and makes me think that the Bulldogs are in good hands… and that things will eventually turn their way.