NRL 2023: Jack de Belin named Dragons captain for clash with Dolphins

The decision to appoint St George Illawarra forward Jack de Belin as captain for the club’s clash this weekend has caused a stir – but the man in the middle of the storm remains unperturbed.

Jack de Belin in action for the Dragons. Picture: NRL Photos

Jack de Belin says he learnt a long time ago to block out external noise as he prepares to captain St George Illawarra for the first time.

De Belin was taken aback when interim coach Ryan Carr asked if wanted to lead the side against the Dolphins on Thursday. The absence of regular skipper Ben Hunt plus injuries to Blake Lawrie and Jaydn Su’A catapulted de Belin into a captaincy role.

The decision caused a stir after de Belin missed the 2019 and 2020 seasons after being the first player subject to the NRL’s no fault stand-down policy. He was charged with sexually assault a women and faced two trials.

He was found not guilty of one charge but the jury was unable to reach a verdict in relation to five other counts. The DPP then withdrew the charges.

De Belin said he was unperturbed by the external noise surrounding his appointment.

“I don’t give it a second thought,” de Belin said. “If I allowed outside noises and people to influence my emotions I wouldn’t be talking to you. I learnt a long time to block out the noise. Everyone is entitled to their opinion.”

De Belin is part of the Dragons leadership group alongside Hunt, Lawrie and Su’A. Lawrie (broken hand) and Su’A (hamstring) will miss the clash against the Dolphins while the other members of the leadership group are Zac Lomax and Jack Bird. Lomax has just returned to the top side after being dropped to NSW Cup while Bird needs to overcome a knee complaint to play.

De Belin, at 32 and with 197 top grade games to his name, is the Dragons’ most experienced player without Hunt.

“I’ve always considered myself a natural leader,” de Belin said. “I don’t necessarily need a tag to lead. It’s nice to be able to do it. It honestly hadn’t crossed my mind. I forgot (Hunt) was in Origin camp and he wasn’t going to be captain.

“Carry asked if I would like to do it and I said I was honoured. Nothing changes at all. I have to keep playing best footy I can. I’ll be team first and hopefully we can get a win.

“It’s never been one of those things I’ve thought about or hoped it would happen.

“If it happened, it happened. I’ve seen myself as a leader. If it happened awesome but it doesn’t change anything for me.”

Jack de Belin will captain the Dragons in their clash with the Dolphins. Picture: NRL Photos

De Belin cannot remember captaining at any level before. He was close to leading the side out in 2021 just weeks after his return when former coach Anthony Griffin wanted to name him co-captain in Hunt’s absence. That was quickly hosed down with Tariq Sims given the job.

The now retired Andrew McCullough captained the Dragons last year when Hunt was in Origin.

“Nothing has changed for me (since 2021),” de Belin said. “Whether the club wanted to give me the captaincy or not, I was happy to do it.

“We are missing Dozer (Hunt) and he is a massive part of the team … it’s a next man’s up mentality.”

Dragons head of football Ben Haran said de Belin was a natural fit for the role.

“Jack is our most experienced player who has been in really good form and carried himself exceptionally well off the field this season,” Haran said. “We are missing our captain in Ben Hunt and we felt Jack is someone who commands a lot of respect from his teammates.

“He is part of our leadership group and is a great competitor.”

Meanwhile, de Belin is still holding out hope for an Origin return. De Belin was close to earning an Origin recall for the first time since 2018 after Blues staff sounded out the Dragons to check on his fitness level. The eventually opted against selecting de Belin but it proved he was on their radar.

“I’m happy to be in the conversation,” de Belin said. “It would’ve been lovely to sneak into the squad. I never got my hopes or expectations up. As long as I’m playing good footy and doing what is required for the Dragons.”