Brian Smith hasn't forgotten how to be a good teacher, says Phil Clarke

Sky Sports' Phil Clarke says new Wakefield coach Brian Smith hasn't forgotten how to be a good teacher despite being out the game for some time...

'The Rugby League Dick', that’s what the Wildcats hope they’ve got arriving in Yorkshire this week. Sunderland were saved from relegation this season when they decided to bring in the former Netherlands manager Dick Advocaat.

He joined the club in March having been out of work following what seemed a lifetime of coaching and managed to help his team survive by the time the season finished.

Wakefield have gone for a similar approach in appointing Brian Smith. He’s also in his 60s and has a coaching CV to match his footballing equivalent, but I think the task facing him is even harder than the one to keep the Black Cats in the Premier League.

Five years ago Brian Smith was voted as the best coach in the NRL when he led the Roosters to the Grand Final. Sadly, they lost, which was the fourth time that he’d suffered such disappointment. But that doesn’t make him a bad coach, far from it.

In the past he has been known for his innovation, but I doubt that he’ll ever have worked with fewer resources that he will have at Wakefield.

Some coaches are lucky to be in the right place at the right time and get to a Grand Final because they have the best team. However, it’s impossible for this to happen four times and there’s little doubt in my mind that Brian Smith was good at what he did. Can he still do it?

You don’t forget how to be a good teacher and I’ve no doubt that he’s remembered what you need to do to improve a rugby team. In some ways it is an exciting challenge for him.

His goal at Wakefield isn’t to win a Grand Final, it’s to finish third or fourth in an eight-team competition that takes place in August and September. But, is he the right man for a short term fix?

Impact

Brian Smith’s impact on rugby league has been significant. It was clear to me that he put in place the building blocks for the success enjoyed by the Bradford Bulls in the late 90s and early noughties. Before that he’d helped Hull to be a top team when he took over at the Boulevard and it’s well documented by Trent Robinson – now arguably the best rugby league coach in the world – that he had a massive influence on shaping his philosophy to coaching.

After a disappointing end to his coaching career in Australia, this is a great chance for him to start a ‘comeback’. He wouldn’t be human if he didn’t have some self-doubt and wonder if the dressing room he is about to walk into will listen to him.

In the past he has been known for his innovation, but I doubt that he’ll ever have worked with fewer resources that he will have at Wakefield. There are only two possible scenarios – it ends up as a disaster or it turns into a dream.

I would imagine that there will be one or two players leaving Wakefield in the next few days, and one or two arriving in the next few weeks. Just like they needed to hear a fresh voice when the coach spoke, they also need some fresh legs when the team play.

It has made following Wakefield far more interesting, and as somebody with respect for what he has achieved in the past, I’d be pleased if he could get them back in Super League for 2016.

Marquee Rule

As the news breaks about the relaxation of the salary cap it’s still too early to say what impact the marquee player rule will have on the competition. Sport should be about star players and in theory this could give us a few more of them.

If we get more people paying to watch the games then it will be a good decision, but we also need to see it having a positive effect on the teams that have not won the Grand Final in the last decade. It can’t just be about the best getting better.

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This year has seen some great games and I’ve enjoyed the competition so far, but we still have Leeds, St Helens and Wigan at the top of the table. It is 10 years since the trophy didn’t go to one of those three teams and the game needs another winner.

One man can’t really make a team but I hope he can make a difference to the teams that need to learn the way to Old Trafford.