That's all on Cleary, he is the head coach. Whether Barrett thinks or thinks not that Burton should be in the first grade side, at the end of the day it's Cleary's choice. And having the coaches son and Luai both ahead of him it makes it hard to fit him into first grade hence why it would be in his interest to come to the Bulldogs for a guaranteed first grade spot.
Spot on, the head coach makes the team list. Assistant coaches are who the players go to and talk about things they are struggling with in their game, that's because the Assistant coach doesn't pick the team, so the players are more honest and open with them.
Will be interesting to see how Barrett goes transitioning from assistant to head for the second time in his career. He is obviously a great assistant, loves being a mentor to the players. The head coach can't afford to do that so much, because they are the ones who have to tell players that they've decided to drop them.