SAM BURGESS has revealed that his former South Sydney Rabbitohs mentor Wayne Bennett has been in touch, offering “bits of gold” of advice.
The two struck up a close relationship at the Rabbitohs, with Burgess helping Bennett and Souths lift the 2014 NRL Grand Final trophy, and both men have kept in touch.
While ex-England coach Bennett, 76, has won seven out of ten Grand Finals down under, 37-year-old Burgess is set to lead Warrington Wolves into his first on Saturday evening.
The Wolves will go up against Wakefield Trinity at Old Trafford after overcoming Leeds Rhinos last Friday in a 14-12 thriller.
“He (Bennett) gave me a call and it was late at night on Sunday, I was just about to go to bed and I thought it was best to take the call,” Burgess said.
“We had a good 15 minutes on the phone earlier in the week. I spoke to him the week before after Souths had bowed out (of this year’s finals), and he seemed a bit more like himself.
“It was good to catch up again because he’s a great man with great experience. Having people around you that you can lean on is important.
“With Wayne, he keeps it really simple and there were a couple of bits of gold in there.
“He knows what he’s doing, he’s very intelligent and he’s a great friend. I might get one more chat with him later in the week.”