NRL 2023: Heads starting to roll as Tigers, Dragons finally try to take a stand
As St George Illawarra lurches from one issue to the next, Brent Read names the man who can help fix the Dragons for good. Find out why they need him and the changes in store.
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The winds of change are blowing through St George Illawarra. Not a moment too soon either. Finally, the Dragons are learning the value of accountability.
The axing of Zac Lomax should be just the start. A decision on the coach is around the corner and whispers abound that the club is stepping up its search for a general manager of football.
That search should begin and end with one man – the mastermind behind the ending of South Sydney’s 43-year premiership drought, Shane Richardson.
Richardson knows how to build contenders and win premierships. Those close to him suggest he misses the cut and thrust of rugby league and would welcome the chance to oversee another tilt at the title.
Few are better credentialed. Richardson has done it at Penrith and he did it at South Sydney.
He is a shrewd operator and the Dragons would be silly to ignore his credentials as they look to beef-up their football department with someone capable of lifting the club out of their current quagmire.
His resume speaks for itself. He was a key figure in putting together South Sydney’s 2014 premiership side, masterminded the Rabbitohs’ Wayne Bennett heist and helped plot the succession plan that has resulted in the club maintaining their success under Jason Demetriou.
His connections in England helped bring the Burgess boys to Australia. Before Penrith were the giants they are today, Richardson and his old mate John Lang were the brains behind taking the Panthers from the bottom to the top in 2003.
Sound familiar? It’s the path the Dragons are attempting to take as they find a way out of their existing malaise. St George Illawarra are desperately in need of what Richardson has to offer as they head to Suncorp Stadium on Sunday afternoon to face the Wests Tigers, which has massive wooden spoon ramifications.
The loser may finish Magic Round at the bottom of the ladder. The game’s two joint ventures were meant to be powerhouses. Instead, they are powder-puffs and something needs to change.
At least the process has begun. Dragons coach Anthony Griffin dropped the hammer this week on Lomax, a player who has flattered to deceive for years now.
Lomax’s talent has never been in question, but he is the poster boy for a club synonymous with mediocrity. The axe should have fallen last year but Lomax survived. Not this time.
Griffin made the tough call and the absence of backlash suggests even Dragons supporters concede this day was long overdue.
Lomax will be back, but he needs to earn it. He needs to get the rubbish out of his game. Free jerseys have been handed out for too long in Wollongong. The Dragons have become soft touches on the field and masters of the soft option off it.
Witness the way they have dragged their heels on Griffin’s future, seemingly reluctant to make a call when even the coach’s most ardent supporter can see the writing on the wall.
The Dragons have lost their past four games by a total of 11 points, but heroic losses get you nowhere in the NRL.
The sooner they make the call, the better for everyone, not least Griffin. A boardroom split by the St George and WIN factions is no excuse. Yes, tough calls are made even tougher but egos need to be buried if the joint venture is to move forward.
Richardson would get the club moving in the right direction. He won’t settle for mediocrity. He will challenge people and only those with a stomach for the fight will survive.
Contrast that with the Tigers, where the boardroom appears unified but the issues run deep into the football club. The decision to bring in Scott Fulton as head of recruitment may prove a masterstroke, but the process was embarrassing given coach Tim Sheens and his staff were kept in the dark.
No-one could blame Sheens if he walked away, if not now then at the end of the season. He is 72 and surely time would be far better spent playing golf or on the beach. Anywhere other than a club that doesn’t respect or trust him enough to keep him in the loop when appointing someone to a senior position to work at his side.
What must Benji Marshall be thinking as he watches the drama unfold? He is due to take over in 2025 but there is a push on to fast-track the process by 12 months, meaning Marshall could take over as early as next year.
If he wants it, of course. He may be second guessing his career choice now that the board has gone rogue and appointed senior staff members to the football department without any input from the coaching staff.
That said, Fulton may yet be a canny appointment. He can identify a footballer, as evidenced by the talent he signed to Manly. He has mined western Sydney and discovered some rare gems.
The Tigers are relying on him doing the same for them, but there is work to do to get the everyone on the same page. The Tigers have treaded water for too long.
Something had to be done, but it may come at the cost of the coach who was meant to be a bridge between the present and their golden past.
Again, at least changes are being made. Accountability is on its way for two clubs that should be perennially in the final frame.
Their fans can take solace in that. It may be a minor consolation, but at least it is something.
GOULD’S CALL SETS PRECEDENT FOR DOGS
The Bulldogs have the bye in three weeks. Any hopes of a holiday would appear over. Canterbury head of football Phil Gould made that patently clear this week when he took aim at some Newcastle players over their decision to head to Bali during the bye week, having been given the green light in the pre-season by coach Adam O’Brien to take a break when this day arrived.
Only a small group went to Bali mind you. Some headed to Fiji. At least one flew back to New Zealand to see family.
Others headed down the coast. Some up. As they enjoyed some down time, Gould wondered aloud why they weren’t taking the time off to work on their game.
No doubt he feels the same about his Bulldogs, who are only just clear of Newcastle on the NRL ladder heading into Magic Round.
It places Bulldogs coach Cameron Ciraldo in a difficult position. His players have 14 days between games after their round 13 game against the Titans.
They resume a fortnight later in round 15 against Parramatta. It should have been a chance for Ciraldo to give them a break at the midpoint of the season. Send them away and let them recharge the batteries.
Not any more. If Gould has his way, those players are in for a busy couple of weeks.
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