Paul McGregor’s biggest challenge will be ensuring Ben Hunt’s Origin demons don’t hurt Dragons

WITH a few lingering Origin mental scars likely to cloud Ben Hunt’s football going forward, how will this affect the ladder-leading Dragons in their quest for a first NRL premiership since 2010?

QUEENSLAND halfback Ben Hunt has been at the centre of all blame for the end of the Maroons’ Origin dynasty.

So with a few lingering mental scars likely to cloud Hunt’s football going forward, how will this affect the ladder-leading Dragons in their quest for a first NRL premiership since 2010?

Speaking on Monday Bunker, Daily Telegraph reporter Paul Crawley said that coach Paul McGregor has a tough job ahead to turn Hunt into a title-winning playmaker.

Ben Hunt’s performance in Origin II has been widely criticised so how do the Dragons help their star recover? Picture: Getty

ORIGIN III: Slater vows to give next gen a taste of success

WISE WORDS: Gus Gould’s inspirational Origin speech

“I wonder if it will be a problem for St George Illawarra going forward,” Crawley said.

“Go back to the 2015 grand final. How long did it take Ben to recover from that?

“Does he now need to win a premiership with Saints to put the demons to rest?

“I guess it’s going to be a challenge for Paul McGregor because, as Trent Robinson had previously with Mitchell Pearce, to get him through the personal hurt.

“There’s just no way you can steer away from the fallout of losing an Origin series.”

Ben Hunt has had a solid debut year with the Dragons. Picture: Phil Hillyard

Colleague Fatima Kdouh added to the concern, referring to Hunt’s growing résumé as a choker on the big stage as a potential downfall to the Red V’s season.

“There are some players who are big game players and there are some that aren’t,” Kdouh said.

“For Ben Hunt, he gets that fog and instead of icing the game he comes up with a brain explosion.

“I don’t know if you can coach that out of a player?”