It ain’t weak to speak: Wayne Bennett

By NSW Koori Knockout

Wayne Bennett's words of wisdom guided Greg Inglis back on track after early post-playing struggles

When Greg Inglis hung up his boots, he thought it would be a matter of simply kicking back and enjoying retirement.
The three-time premiership winner didn’t really know what to expect from his life after football, and it took a couple of years before he truly understood the meaning of a few wise words from seven-time premiership winning coach Wayne Bennett.
“I didn’t know what I wanted to do. I thought I could just retire and move back home, live near the beach [or] live on a property,” Inglis said.“But Wayne Bennett said this to me, ‘When you retire, you’re a long way from retired’, and I didn’t understand that until I started going down that slippery slope.”
Just this week, former Socceroos captain Lucas Neill spoke about how quickly life can change for the worse after the curtain comes down on your playing career. Just two years after retiring from international football, the 45-year-old, who earned A$76,000 ($NZ82,000) a week at the peak of his career, was bankrupt.
Inglis, meanwhile, battled with alcoholism and depression before he was diagnosed with bipolar II in 2019. He later told the Sydney Morning Herald that “the best thing I ever did was going in and getting a diagnosis”.
In 2020, a year after calling time on his playing career, Inglis found a new purpose. He established the Goanna Academy, a program designed to help end the stigma surrounding mental health and encourage kids to speak up.
At a clinic on Monday at Whalan in Sydney’s west, Inglis, along with Rabbitohs star Cody Walker and NRLW winger of the year Jakiya Whitfeld, passed the footy around and spoke about the importance of mental health.
“Catch it [mental health struggles] early, and then don’t wait till it’s too late,” Inglis said. “Actually go out, seek help, and let them [friends] know that it’s OK not to be OK.”
“[Mental health] wasn’t spoken about [when I was young]. It never was spoken about, where now it’s open. I’m just glad I’m doing my part.”
Walker was more than happy to help his former Rabbitohs teammate.
“I played alongside Greg for a number of years, I debuted and he was fullback at the time,” Walker said.
“It’s been well-documented how he had his struggles and found a way to deal with those mental health issues he was faced with, and I was just asked to come on board. Come out and see various communities across NSW.”
Monday’s program was run in partnership with Kimberwalli, the Aboriginal Centre for Excellence. It also served as a careers expo aimed to guide students who are at a crossroads when deciding what to do after school.
Bringing together 18 schools from three local government areas, more than 280 students attended the program, which is aimed at years nine and ten.
Walker understands the importance of ongoing education even while enjoying a successful football career.
“Footy was pretty much all I really wanted to do,” he said. “It probably wasn’t until I made first grade that [I realised] that education part of it [life] doesn’t stop. I’ve just recently completed a diploma of youth work, I’m doing a little bit of study to do my coaches certificate.
“I think kids look for that end of year 12, and they think there’s no more study, but I’m 33 years of age, and I’m still studying. So I don’t think that education part will ever leave you. It’s always good to keep educating yourself.”