‘We’re building a dynasty’: Manly boss wants Foran at the helm for next 20 years

Manly owner and chairman Scott Penn is backing Kieran Foran to deliver the club a premiership as early as this year – and wants him to be head coach for the next 20 years.

Penn was quick to point out that Foran was a 2011 premiership winner at the club and that the eight titles won by the Sea Eagles had all come “with Manly men as coaches”.

Penn, who parted ways with Anthony Seibold after three straight defeats in the hope of salvaging this season, could not have been happier on Tuesday after Foran officially signed with the club until the end of 2029.

“We’re excited to have Kieran in the fold long term, he definitely wants to win premierships – Kieran is determined to win one this year,” Penn told this masthead.

“When Kieran was appointed caretaker-coach, he told us he would keep things simple, he would go back to the basics and give the players belief, and [said], ‘We want to win the comp this year’. There’s no reason we can’t win it this year. That’s all you can ask for from a coach.

“We want Kieran at the helm for a very long term. We see this as a dynasty we’re building, and there’s no reason Kieran can’t be at the helm the next 20 years.

“I’ve been doing this for 20 years. I want to do it another 20 years, and I’d be delighted if Kieran and [CEO] Jason King are with me the whole time. They’re quality people who really care.

“What Kieran brings to the table after 318 games as a player is he’s a steward of the game, he’s never taken a backward step, he never had a bad game, and overcame some pretty big injuries. You have a quality person who understands what it takes to be an NRL player, and understands what it takes to win.

“Look at what Kieran has achieved. We’ve won seven from nine. We were there competing with Penrith, and while we probably didn’t play as well as we could have against Cronulla last Friday night, we could have won that as well. We could be sitting here nine from nine, which is a phenomenal turnaround.”

Witnessing how Foran communicated with the playing group in the sheds at Cronulla last weekend merely confirmed to Penn that he was the right man for the job. Penn will now fly home to New York after Thursday’s clash with South Sydney secure in the knowledge is locked away.

Foran’s appointment will help Manly on the recruitment front, most notably when it comes to Tom Trbojevic, who is off contract at the end of next year. Trbojevic is currently sidelined with a hamstring injury, but due to return in round 16 against the Bulldogs.

“We’ve been in discussions for some time with Tom, and Tom is here with us as long as he wan