Dragons coach delay costs St George Illawarra a State of Origin signing
St George Illawarra are putting their 2021 plans at risk by delaying the naming of their new coach, and it’s already cost them the signing of a big-name Origin star. SEE WHO IT IS.
Opinion
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St George Illawarra will know who their coach is for the next three seasons by this time next week.
They may not bother to tell the rest of us, but they’ll know it.
The plan to give interim coach Dean Young the last six games to prove his worth was only ever a plan to keep the media at bay.
Strategically, it makes no sense to wait any longer.
If the Dragons hierarchy don’t know who Young is, what he’s about, his character, his coaching beliefs and capabilities after 17 years as a player and coach at the club, well, it’s not him who needs to be placed under the spotlight.
Of course, the Dragons know Young.
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They know what he stands for. They don’t need six weeks. Anything else is just spin.
What few know is, Melbourne Storm forward Christian Welch has told more than a few of his mates how it was Young who recently pitched to him the Dragons’ dream via Skype.
Young impressed, except for one minor issue, he couldn’t tell the tough-as-nails forward who the coach was going to be.
Welch has decided to stay at the Storm, which reads like a body blow to the interim coach. But, aside from choosing between a club with no coach or Craig Bellamy, why would any player leave Melbourne if the offer to stay — which Welch eventually received — turned out to be a decent one?
Lately, the Dragons have been picking the brains of good judges across the game about Penrith prop James Tamou.
He could be next-up on the Zoom chat with Young.
Despite having both hands tied behind their back, things are already happening for 2021 at Saints. Not in six weeks. Now.
One of the motivating factors behind former coach Paul McGregor’s decision three weeks ago to phone club CEO Ryan Webb, on what would prove to be the beginning of the end of his reign, was so he that could seek answers for his confused coaching and high performance staff, who have no idea if they will be at the club next season.
Most of them have families and nothing says culture crisis more than staff members without a clue if they should be planning to pack up, or stay put.
From inside the retrofit St George Leagues club on Rocky Point Road, the Dragons’ football board has been picking and prodding at McGregor’s replacement ever since his departure.
Or so we‘re led to believe.
The truth is, they have been analysing and red-lining names on their target list, which these pages have seen, since last May.
It’s why as quickly as the next name emerges, it’s tossed into the air like newspaper confetti across the hill on Jubilee Oval.
Craig Fitzgibbon: not interested. Jason Ryles: off to England. Shane Flanagan: not available. Paul Green: chasing the Broncos. Geoff Toovey: not for us. Wayne Bennett: needs to pick up the phone to owner Bruce Gordon if he’s keen, not the other way around.
Anthony Griffin remains in the fight, with ‘Hook“ meeting with the people that matter at Saints early last week.
Another meeting — not necessarily with Griffin — is scheduled for this week, which is another reason why the Dragons will have come to their their decision much earlier than that six-week timeframe.
Griffin brings change to a Dragons Army going Troppo in their belief their new coach must have no ties to the club.
He brings experience and also a promise to keep Young as his assistant, mentoring him towards a post-2024 NRL job.
But, if the Dragons are serious about Griffin, they should’ve already signed him.
Not in six weeks. Now.
The Red-V are wasting precious days waiting any longer. Most NRL clubs are already planning for 2022 — yet the failing Dragons are happy to suggest to their fans they can take as long as they need.
Meanwhile, Welch just knocked them back. Who’s next?
If the Dragons wait until this demanding season is over, it will be mid-November before Griffin is allowed to stand in front of the players for the first time.
And that doesn’t include any of those Dragons players who end up playing State of Origin.
Post Origin III on November 18, it will be Christmas by the time any of the representative players are due back to training after they take their game-wide six-to-eight weeks of annual leave.
Any new coach at the Dragons is likely to have just a three-month preseason, instead of getting to work now.
Meanwhile, Young is trying to turn a wheel that he can only pretend he’s in charge of.
And he’s doing a serious job of it — one of the few Dragons at the club who knows what winning looks like, having helped steer the club to the 2010 premiership and featuring in seven finals series in his 10 years at Saints.
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Be it on radio, TV or after Friday night‘s loss to the Gold Coast, Young tackles every question in the same fashion he did as a player: straight to the point, even if it hurts.
“I value players who compete. I value players who are disciplined and I value players that are consistent. There is no grey in that. It‘s black and white,’’ Young said in his first press conference after being appointed interim coach.
“You either compete hard or you don‘t. You’re either disciplined or you’re not. And you’re consistent or you’re not. It’s pretty easy to see.’’
If you‘re still unsure about Young’s demand to resurrect the Red-V, go back and watch the 36-year-old’s press conference after losing 14-10 to the Titans in a disappointing finish.
“I‘m asking them (players) to play for the full 80-minutes, I’m asking to stay disciplined, I think everyone can see that we’re competing pretty hard the last three weeks,’’ Young said.
“Our discipline is pretty good, we only gave away four penalties and we completed at 92 per cent.
“But we‘re not getting the job done.
“It pisses me off — because I know they‘re trying, but you don’t get two points for trying.
“In the end, the Red-V deserves everything.”
Originally published as Dragons coach delay costs St George Illawarra a State of Origin signing