Dragons star Josh Kerr opens up on his ‘feud’ with coach Anthony Griffin
At his end-of-season review Josh Kerr told Anthony Griffin he wasn’t happy with how he was being coached - then Hook returned serve.
Josh Kerr walked into a meeting with St George Illawarra coach Anthony Griffin at the end of last season intent on dropping some truth bombs.
Kerr told Griffin in no uncertain terms that he didn’t think he was being coached. Griffin gave as good as he got and by the time the meeting had come to a close, the pair had cleared the air.
A clean slate was born. You get the feeling before that meeting, Kerr would have been happy to see the back of Griffin and the Dragons.
Now, he has sympathy for the Dragons coach and what he is going through as he fights to keep his job beyond the end of the season.
As he speaks to News Corp in the lead-up to Tuesday’s Anzac Day game against the Sydney Roosters at Aliianz Stadium, Kerr has revealed his concern for Griffin and his overwhelming desire to sign a new deal at the Dragons.
“At the moment we are talking about re-signing, which is crazy because last year I was in a position where I don’t think they wanted me,” Kerr said.
“It is good to know I have worked my way back into that mix of wanting to be re-signed. There are a few other clubs who have jumped in as well, which is good.
“Last year was in a pretty dark head space and didn’t know what I was going to do. At the moment I would love to stay, but we will see how much they want to keep me.”
THE COACH
Kerr acknowledges that he and Griffin haven’t always seen eye-to-eye. Last season, as Kerr languished in lower grades, he felt like he wasn’t wanted.
Something had to give. That moment arrived in the off-season when Kerr sat down with Griffin to debrief his year.
General manager of football Ben Haran was there as well, given a sideline view of coach and player hammering out their differences.
“I was off him because I didn’t know where I was going,” Kerr said.
“I felt like I wasn’t getting coached right. I sat down man-to-man and said, ‘I disagree with you on all these things’.
“He gave me his spiel. He just said, ’These are some of the areas you need to work on, this is why I didn’t play you’.
“I said, ‘Look, I disagree’. I pulled him up on a few things. He had his view on it, I had mine, just like grown men do.
“Somehow I am here. I guess he had blokes ahead of me he wanted in there, but I feel proud of myself for working my way back into it and not looking for someone else to blame.”
Griffin is now the one fighting for this future at the Dragons. The club has already started surveying their options as they prepare to make a decision on Griffin’s future.
“I feel shocking for him,” Kerr said.
“At the moment his job is on the line, his old man passed away a few months ago, he is going through a bit at the moment and he is rocking up every day like nothing has changed.
“I take my hat off to him because he changed a lot in the pre-season to come back as the coach we all wanted. I reckon he has done well because it is hard if you have an ego, you don’t really want to change.
“I personally like him a lot more now. I didn’t really hate him at all - I was just off the situation. I like him, I reckon he has done a lot to change, I really respect everything he is going through and how he has handled himself though this course of what is going on.”
MOOKS MAGIC
Kerr acknowledged there have been dark days over the past 12 months. It seems a lifetime ago that he was part of the extended Queensland squad during the 2020 series under Wayne Bennett.
Kerr is happy to admit that being so close to Origin messed with his head. He felt like he had to live up to that billing and it weighed him down.
With his future on the line, Kerr changed management companies and joined Joe Wehbe’s stable. He also started working with former Warriors and Parramatta coach Steve Kearney.
“He calls me up every week,” Kerr said.
“He is a proper legend. He will ask what you think you are good at. I will say running game. He will say focus on that and each week he will add on something else.
“It is cool to have Steve Kearney and these people helping you.”
Thanks to the sage advice of Kearney, Wehbe and his business partner Peter Nolan, Kerr has found a way out of the wilderness.
He has now strung together six consecutive first grade games and believes he is back to his best after addressing his lifestyle off the field.
“I just feel like I got ahead of myself with my football and thought I was going to go on and do bigger and better things,” he said.
“I got picked in that Origin squad a few years ago - the “worst team ever”.
“You have to remember a lot of our players were injured so they were scraping the bottom of the barrel a bit.
“When I got picked for that I thought this is my opportunity. I went back to footy and was over-thinking. I was thinking I had to be this big representable player.
“I just had to keep my game simple. This year I just wanted to do the simple shit really well. Gees, rugby league is a simple game.
“I spent a whole lot of last season pointing the finger at someone else other than myself, saying you are the problem here.
“The only thing I could control was when I went home, I could sook or I could work on myself. A lot of friends and family made me work hard, make things simple.”
THE FUTURE
Kerr has only ever wanted to be a rugby league player. When he was growing up in Redcliffe, he had two dreams - one was to the play in the NRL and the other was to hear famed commentator Ray Warren call his name.
“I love rugby league and watch every single game,” Kerr said.
“When I was growing up - I grew up in Redcliffe …. I remember thinking I would love to play NRL. I had two goals - one was to play NRL and the other was for me and my dad to hear Ray Warren say my name.
“Then I remember debuting against South Sydney on a Thursday night. I played shit but I kept rewinding this piece with my dad where Ray Warren said “and Kerr, and Kerr”.
“It was a spin out. That was a pretty cool feeling. So all I knew was rugby league. It was at the point where it could all be gone.
“I just felt like I let so many people back home down, I was feeling ashamed of myself. Just lost, I guess, At that point I thought I am just going to control what I can control.
“I went back and worked hard on fitness and defence.”
He is starting to reap the rewards.
Clubs have come knocking and Kerr will have a decision to make in coming weeks as he weighs up whether to stay at the Dragons or head for greener pastures.
“My preference has always been to stay,“ Kerr said.
“Like I say, I have entrenched myself in Wollongong. If they offer me anything it will be a reflection of where they see me in the future. I will base my decision on that.
“I kind of want to get it resolved. Last year I was in that dark spot not knowing where to go. Now the opportunity to have job security for another two or three years.
“You never know - I could do my leg at training. It is s scary thought. It is just good to know you are wanted again.
“Like I said, I would love to get It resolved. At the moment, open dialect with the Dragons. We just have to see what they come back with.”
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