South Sydney have announced the re-signing of head coach Jason Demetriou for a further two years until at least the end of 2026 as part of its new coaching structure for the upcoming season.
Since taking the reins as the club's first-grade coach in 2022, Demetriou has coached in 51 games for the Rabbitohs – leading led the club to a preliminary final appearance in his first year as well as a grand final in 2021, following on from two preliminary finals as an assistant coach in 2020 and 2021.
“It is an absolute honour to coach this club and I feel very privileged to be extending my time at South Sydney,” Demetriou said. “I'm really looking forward to the challenges ahead of us in 2024. I'm really excited by the staff group we’ve put together for new season as well as the strength of the squad we have available."
“Jason is a coach NRL players want to play for, as well as a head coach aspiring coaches want to learn from and be led by," Rabbitohs Chairman, Nicholas Pappas AM said.
“We are confident that he will bring more success to the Rabbitohs in coming years.”
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Following an end-of-season review into the 2023 season, the Rabbitohs have confirmed a number of changes to its coaching structure with assistant coach Ben Hornby also signing a two-year extension until at least the end of 2025.
The club's NSW Cup coach and Head of Elite Pathways and Development, Joe O'Callaghan, will transition into an assistant coach role while former premiership-winner John Sutton will assist O'Callaghan as a full-time development coach.
Head of Performance Andrew Croll remains in his role but will no longer assist the Queensland State of Origin team as he had done in previous years while Sam Burgess (head coach, Warrington), John Morris (assistant coach, Wests Tigers) and Eddie Farah (personal reasons) have officially departed the club.
"We have identified the areas in which we can improve to return the club to its goal of being a top four team every year... [speaking] extensively to players, coaches, staff and our Board on what we needed to improve in 2024," CEO Blake Solly said.
“We were not looking for excuses, we were looking at solutions, and we’ll continue to implement changes prior to players returning for training in November."
