The Knights legend has been warned over a potential switch, with many great players failing before him.
NRL great Mat Rogers has cautioned Matty Johns about the possibility of coaching the Newcastle Knights after Johns claimed this week he was approached by an unnamed club. Johns, a Knights premiership winner, revealed he was approached – through a third-party – by an NRL club over a possible head coaching role.
Naturally, there were suggestions the Knights had approached their former player over a role despite Adam O’Brien recently signing a contract extension through to 2027. Despite his deal, the Knights coach is facing pressure with the club failing to improve in 2025 having only just scraped into the top eight.
Despite doubt remaining over O’Brien’s long-term position, Johns did not confirm who had approached him. Johns currently works in broadcasting with Fox Sports and SEN Radio. The charismatic TV host admitted it would have to take a big-money deal for him to walk away from his current commitments.
Any NRL coach will tell you the job is a full-time commitment, with plenty of travel and time away from home. Discussing the situation on SEN Radio on Monday night, former Test cricketer Stephen O’Keefe said: “Matty is extremely intelligent…he has got great intellect and acumen when it comes to rugby league.
“Does that transverse into being a good rugby league coach, I don’t know. His tenure is running out at Foxtel, is this a great business play? It would be fascinating to see how he would go as coach.”
Rogers played with Johns in the NRL and said he had nothing but respect for his intelligence when it comes to rugby league and reading the game. However, he did warn Johns of the transition having suggested not all who have excelled as a player have done the same as a coach.
“In terms of footy, his footy IQ is enormous. Whether or not that transfers…” Rogers added. “When you look across the board, there are not many superstar footballers that become great coaches. I think it is because they see things differently to the average player. And the coaches can’t communicate what they are thinking to the player…because they are seeing things differently. There are anomalies to that rule, the Ricky Stuart’s…as a general rule you don’t see it that often.”
Mat Rogers warns Matthew Johns over Knights role
While Rogers was interested in seeing Johns take up a coaching role, he did not believe taking the role in Newcastle was ideal because of the extra pressure and expectation it would bring. Rogers pointed to the likes of Jason Ryles, who rejected an offer to coach former club St George Illawarra to join Parramatta instead.
“I don’t know how it would turn out. I personally don’t think Newcastle would be the place for him to do it either,” Rogers said. “I just think that can be fraught with danger.
Speaking to Phil Rothfield, Johns claimed he would consider a head-coaching role if the price was right. “It’s a long shot but, absolutely I’d like to do it,” Johns told The Daily Telegraph. “There’s nothing that could give you more satisfaction than seeing players and teams improve.
“I’ve done a lot of individual stuff over the years. I’ve worked with Cooper Cronk, Toby Sexton, Cameron Munster, Adam Reynolds and Cody Walker. I love it. But there’s the bullshit stuff outside of coaching, dealing with sponsors, dealing with people like you and me in the media, all that stuff … and then all the hard work.”
Johns’ move into coaching right now does appear a long-shot with the former Knights and Sharks star on a very tidy contract with Foxtel. Johns is arguably the face of Fox Sports’ coverage of the NRL having worked in television for 20 years. Though few doubt his rugby league acumen having represented both NSW and Australia.
