‘First bit of hope in years’: Dragons get carried away as NRL flipped on its head

Dragons fans may want to get a picture of the ladder right now after a stunning performance started the Shane Flanagan era perfectly.

Dragons fan will want to take this in. Photo: Getty Images

St George Illawarra have passed their first test in 2024 with flying colours, dominating the Titans in a 28-4 on the Gold Coast.

Entering the season fractionally behind the Wests Tigers in betting markets for the least wins in 2024, the Dragons looked anything but the team that finished 16th with just five wins in a horror 2023 season.

And while it may be round one, round one may still have one game to play and there’s still 26 more rounds to go in the premiership season — right now, the Dragons are sitting on top.

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It was the perfect start to Shane Flanagan’s tenure as coach of the Red V, grinding out a tight first half lead before running away with it in the second half with four unanswered tries.

The Dragons were active in the player market over the off-season but didn’t land any big fish, having been knocked back by the likes of Addin Fonua-Blake and Tom Dearden.

Speaking last month, Flanagan told fans to be patient as the club was focusing on 2025.

“We’ve made some changes in ’24 and we’re still looking for some players maybe in ’24, but our real focus will be for 25-26,” Flanagan said at the time.

Incredibly, it was the Dragons’ second win in the last 19 games in Queensland dating back to 2021.

After last year, this image would warm Dragons’ hearts. Photo by Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images

It was also the Dragons’ first away win in 18 months — since defeating the Tigers at Commbank Stadium in round 24, 2022.

Speaking after running away against the Titans, Flanagan drew a line in the sand as the side try to move out of what has been a lean decade.

“We won one game out of our last 18 — that was the old Dragons,” Flanagan began. “But the new Dragons are one-from-one and we’ve got to come up here again next week in a really tough game against the Dolphins. We look forward to the next challenge.”

Captain Ben Hunt added that it was “always pleasing to get wins on the road, it’s always harder when you go into an enemy’s territory”.

While the team are taking it week to week, it’s hard for fans not to get carried away with the result, particularly after missing finals the last five seasons and having make the playoffs just twice since winning the title in 2011.

2GB’s Continuous Call Team executive producer Andrew Lucas commented: “Great result for Shane Flanagan and the @NRL_Dragons in his first #NRL game as coach of the Red V. Positive signs ahead, well done mate.”

Happy days for St George Illawarra. Photo by Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images

Tyrell Sloane scored a hat-trick for the Dragons. Photo by Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images

Another fan wrote: “First genuine bit of hope in years. God it’s nice to finally have a decent coach at the club. Nothing beats this winning feeling. Top of the table. Let’s goooo.”

Another commented: “I really hope the Dragons keep this up for the rest of the year because that opening game was stellar. The #RedV needs to work on their errors after tonight but bloody hell that defence was (fire). A well deserved win and great and hopeful start for the 2024 season!”

Another posted: “Yeah the Dragons!! Only Rd 1 but they’re looking like a team who could push for the finals if they keep playing with the same energy and intensity.”

A fourth said: “Maybe this young Flanagan can coach! #Redv #NRLTitansDragons On top of the comp, ma!”

Flanagan praised the side’s “gritty” approach in the first half but that they defensively kept turning up, highlighting a time in the match when the Titans had 45 play-the-balls in the Dragons’ 30 compared to 12 the other way.

“The biggest challenge for this group is to make sure they start believing what sort of side they are,” Flanagan said.

“I thought that was a good step today, that we kept turning them away, they didn’t run over our try line, they had to kick in behind us to score a try. That means a lot to me, the way we defend.

“When you have a look at any side that wins the competition or play semi-finals, they’re in the top three or four defensively — that’s where I want to see us.”