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Penrith Panthers coach Ivan Cleary has warned assistant Cameron Ciraldo not to take the wrong job at the wrong time as it could result in a “quite short career”.
Ciraldo is held in high regard in coaching circles and his name is often mentioned when a coaching position becomes vacant.
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With the Canterbury Bulldogs, Wests Tigers and New Zealand Warriors all looking for a new head coach, Ciraldo’s shares are at an all-time high as he looks set to make the step from assistant to head coach.
Of those three, the Tigers appear the most likely to snag Ciraldo’s signature to run the joint venture going forward, but no deal has been reached as of yet.
Speaking of SEN Breakfast, the DailyTelegraph David Riccio highlighted the conversation Cleary had with his understudy with an emphasis on the fact that one wrong move could scupper his future coaching aspirations.
“Ivan Cleary described how important it is for Cameron not to jump into the wrong job early on,” Riccio said.
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“Cameron is in the perfect position at Penrith as he can stay at Penrith and move for another 12, 18 months or two seasons if he wants to.
“But if you don’t pick the right job, it could be a pretty short career. That was pretty insightful of Ivan.
“He has concerns about the Tigers and the Bulldogs, which is obvious given they’re 15th and 16th, and their history in terms of coaching turnover.
“Ivan really encouraged Cameron to take Craig Fitzgibbon’s model and just take his time.
“Getting rid of those jobs this time doesn’t mean you’ll never coach again or in the future. Kudos to Ivan Cleary.”
Panther legend Greg Alexander added that Ciraldo was in no rush to leave the foot of the mountains just yet, stressing the 37-year-old would be “patient” and know when the time was right.
“Cameron will be waiting for the right job,” Alexander said.
“Depending on the terms and the deal, he might think the Tigers are the right job.
“He’s been patient (and) he wants to be a top-notch coach.”