Weekend Read: Why you’d be wrong to write off the St George Illawarra Dragons

The once mighty Dragons are a spent force, a rabble rotten from the board down – that may be a popular line many are spinning but Brent Read argues why the Red V can rise again.

PENRITH, AUSTRALIA – MAY 12: Roosters assistant coach Jason Ryles looks on during the warm-up before the round 11 NRL match between Penrith Panthers and Sydney Roosters at BlueBet Stadium on May 12, 2023 in Penrith, Australia. (Photo by Mark Kolbe/Getty Images)

Mayhem in Wollongong this week. Heads were sighted rolling down Crown Street. The whisper around WIN Stadium was that Ben Hunt and Zac Lomax couldn’t wait to find the exit. Anywhere but the Dragons.

St George Illawarra, we were told, were in disarray. A basket case in the eyes of some. Coach Anthony Griffin was sacked after a six-game losing streak that left the once mighty Dragons mired in 16th spot, above only the lowly Wests Tigers.

Oh the humanity. Amid the carnage, the search began for a saviour began and it quickly landed on one man – Sydney Roosters assistant and former Dragons enforcer Jason Ryles.

Why, some were asking, would Ryles want a piece of this. Just be patient Jason, was the advice. You’re worked too hard to waste your talents in Wollongong. Surely something better will come along if you hold fire and back yourself.

Jason Ryles. Artwork: Boo Bailey

Here’s the thing though. Maybe it won’t. Perhaps the Dragons aren’t as bad as they appear. Clearly Ryles can see a sliver of hope amid the wreckage, beyond the promise of a long-term deal and a lucrative pay packet.

FACTIONAL FIXES

The fish rots at the top is the old saying, and fingers were pointed at the Dragons board, apparently at war and divided down St George and WIN lines.

Yet a board that was split found a way to unite to dismiss Griffin. The same board came together to determine that Ryles was their preferred option to replace Griffin and are fast moving towards striking a deal with one of their former stars when many thought he would run a mile.

Ryles has done his due diligence. He has taken a look under the bonnet and while he harbours concerns, he can also see some blue sky amid the grey clouds.

The Dragons have a side built to a large extent around local juniors and the production line shows no signs of slowing down.

They have a balance sheet that is in the black, thanks to a $10 million turnaround over the last four years. Under the terms of the joint-venture agreement, it is understood profits are not accessed by the owners, but ploughed back into the club.

It means Ryles will have money to spend on beefing up his football department and support staff. At the end of next year, the club will have access to a $40 million Centre of Excellence.

The best part of all – the site is only a couple of kilometres from Ryles’ home in Wollongong. Importantly, they are willing to give him time to turn the club around. They want their next coach to be at the club for a decade.

Patience will be required but Ryles will be given it. Maybe not a five-year deal, but close enough.

DISGRUNTLED ROSTER

Time, though, isn’t on his side when it comes to Hunt, who is at a crossroads as he contemplates events of recent weeks. No one could blame the Queensland star and Dragons skipper for walking away.

As the club sleepwalked through its coaching decision over the opening two months of the season, Hunt was the talking head who was forced to confront the media on a weekly basis. He did it manfully, but it has taken a toll.

He made no secret of his support for Griffin and it has been noticeable during the week that he has wanted time to digest recent events before speaking publicly. The suggestion is that Canterbury are closely watching events unfold, head of football Phil Gould having had a lash at Hunt late last year.

Ben Hunt has been carrying the Dragons all year.

This column recently documented the meeting between the pair at a Brighton cafe as Hunt was weighing up whether to stay at the Dragons or seek greener pastures.

Gould and Hunt met for close to an hour where money and terms were never discussed. Instead, they talked about football and Gould offered an open invitation – if Hunt was interested in joining the Bulldogs, the door was always ajar.

Hunt ultimately signed a new deal at the Dragons but the latest ructions and the axing of Griffin have put clubs back on alert. They can sniff an opening, although it is understood Hunt has privately told senior figures that he is committed to the Dragons.

Ryles will want a firm commitment, no doubt, if and when he arrives. If Hunt isn’t happy, Ryles and the club should let him leave.

He has given them great service and he is their best player, but no-one is indispensable and his salary could be invested elsewhere.

Some clarity is needed and Dragons officials want it as much as anyone. They may have dawdled when it came to Griffin but they are moving fast on his replacement.

So fast, it would be no surprise if a deal was struck with Ryles over the weekend. He is genuinely interested in the Dragons and the feeling is reciprocated. It isn’t all doom and gloom at St George Illawarra.

A deal is likely imminent. The sooner the better for all concerned.

Regardless of what happens with the Dragons’ coaching job, this will be Ryles’ last season at the Roosters.

It is understood the club’s hierarchy have made it clear to Ryles and his representatives that he will be free to leave at season’s end as the Bondi Junction club look to replace him with an assistant who has more of a connection to the club.

Former captains Boyd Cordner, Brett Morris and Jake Friend are already in the Roosters system honing their trades as coaches and they would seem likely to step up and fill the void created by Ryles’ departure.

David Fifita has been superb for the Titans so far this season. Picture: Getty Images

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Big David Fifita has played five games for Queensland but never really taken State of Origin by storm. Perhaps that day has now arrived.

Fifita has been outstanding for the Gold Coast this season and it feels like the penny has finally dropped for the prodigiously gifted 23-year-old.

Teammate Kieran Foran has been among those to lavish praise on Fifita, hailing his hard work in the off-season. It’s the little things that have caught Foran’s eye. The effort areas that coaches and teammates love.

Fifita’s form warrants a recall when Billy Slater sits down to finalise his side over the weekend, if not in the starting side than certainly as an impact player off the bench.

He has had his share of criticism over the years, much of it related to the size of his pay cheque. Those critics have gone silent this year.

It’s hard to argue Fifita hasn’t earned his money in 2023. He may earn a Maroons jersey to go with it.

Originally published as Weekend Read: Why you’d be wrong to write off the St George Illawarra Dragons