Paul McGregor won’t change things up for the Dragons as Trent Merrin chase cools
Dragons coach Paul McGregor will not move Gareth Widdop back to the halves this week as the club’s pursuit of Trent Merrin cools.
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Paul McGregor is expected to stick to his guns and keep Gareth Widdop at fullback for this week’s clash against Brisbane, adamant those criticising the make-up of the Dragons’ spine are missing the point on what is the real problem.
The Dragons have also shut down speculation that Trent Merrin could be on his way back from England to help alleviate the current forwards crisis.
The Dragons just don’t have the money to spend on Merrin, who is believed to be on about AU$500,000 at Leeds but looking to return to the NRL.
The club is also in no rush to enter the marketplace, holding off to see what happens with Jack de Belin’s court hearing on April 16, with the Origin star contesting the NRL’s decision to stand him down.
The Dragons already have 29 spots on their roster taken up for this year and most of their big gun forwards are signed for next year.
And in respect to the debate about whether Widdop or Corey Norman should be playing five-eighth, the outside noise is not expected deter McGregor from doing what he feels is best for the team.
While Johnathan Thurston is among many who believe Widdop should be wearing the No.6 jumper, what also cannot be understated is that the Dragons are currently playing without de Belin as well as fellow NSW forward Tyson Frizell and Korbin Sims.
Sims will be back this week to take on his former club after serving a suspension he carried over from the Broncos.
There is no question as hard as the young Dragons’ forwards are trying, experience had a huge bearing on the second half against the Rabbitohs.
To put it in perspective, it would be like the Rabbitohs playing with Sam and Tom
Burgess as well as Cam Murray.
It’s also worth remembering that while McGregor has been under the pump for sticking with Widdop at fullback, there was plenty of praise at the way the playmakers combined during an impressive first half against the Rabbitohs.
While Widdop has said publicly he believes his best position is five-eighth, Norman has also stated he wants to play five-eighth, which does create a problem for the coach.
Norman is at the club because Widdop requested an early release from his contract so he can return home to England at the end of the year.
The other issue with moving Widdop back to five-eighth and bringing in Matt Dufty at fullback would be where it leaves Ben Hunt and Cameron McInnes going forward.
With Widdop leaving, the last thing the Dragons need to do is question Hunt’s role at halfback, while McInnes is among the most popular players in the team.
McInnes is a genuine Origin-quality hooker, not a part-time lock forward.
But Hunt and McInnes would most likely be the players forced to shift if McGregor does revert to playing Widdop at five-eighth.