Wayne Bennett has denied a link to the Wests Tigers, but is still open for jobs

BRISBANE coach Wayne Bennett has denied links to the Wests Tigers, saying he only heard of the rumour when speaking to his sister on Wednesday.

TheSydney Morning Herald is reporting Bennett has reaffirmed his commitment to the Broncos, where he is contracted until the end of the 2019 season.

On Wednesday, The Australian reported Bennett had been shopped to the Tigers for next season as a replacement for Ivan Cleary if the club lose their head coach to Penrith.

Bennett has previously said he would not leave Brisbane unless he was moved on and repeated that he would like to continue coaching in 2020 if he was given the chance to.

“I’ve said it numerous times and I’ll repeat it — I intend to continue coaching after 2019 if I can get a job somewhere,” Bennett told the Sydney Morning Herald.

“Nothing is off the list. We’ll see what happens. The first time I heard about the Wests Tigers [link] was this morning when my sister told me about it.”

Although Cleary is contracted to the Wests Tigers for the next two years and the club has repeatedly said they will not release him, speculation continues to grow surrounding a move back to Penrith.

Cleary has previously expressed a desire to coach his son Nathan, who has just signed a long-term deal to remain with the Panthers.

However, it’s believed the Panthers are willing to stick with interim coach Cameron Ciraldo for the 2019 season if the Wests Tigers coach is not released early.