Paul McGregor and Phil Gould open up on impending Dragons’ season review
Dragons
Paul McGregor asked Phil Gould to conduct a review of the Dragons' poor season.Source: FOX SPORTS
St George Illawarra coach Paul McGregor says it wasn’t only his idea to hold an external review of the Dragons’ horror season, with club powerbrokers also keen on the concept.
Rugby league supremo Phil Gould has been called in to sort through the mess which, despite their 24-16 win over Gold Coast on Saturday, resulted in the Dragons’ finishing 15th on the ladder — their lowest ranking as a joint venture.
Dragons press conference
The review will encompass the Dragons’ football department with pressure on assistant coaches Ben Hornby and Dean Young to keep their jobs.
McGregor was also reportedly facing the axe, but Gould has stated the review has nothing to do with the head coach’s future and that was also backed up by his manager David Riolo.
‘‘I’ve talked to [Dragons chief executive] Brian Johnston and he says that nothing has changed from their point of view since Mary signed his contract,’’ Riolo told the
Sun Herald.
‘‘Obviously there is more heat on a coach when you finish 15th.’’
McGregor took over at the Dragons following the sacking of Steve Price in 2014 and currently has a win rate of 47 per cent.
He said Gould isn’t the only person he’s turned to as a sounding board throughout his 137- game NRL coaching career.
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“I’ve got people who I look to for advice — mentors — and there’s three of them,” McGregor said after his side’s win over the Titans.
“I just feel that we needed a full review and we needed an external review. That wasn’t only my thought, it was the club’s thought.
“When teams don’t finish in the top eight and you finish in the bottom eight, your review’s a lot deeper. Last year we had a review but it was done internally.
“We all thought this one needs to be done externally, and look thoroughly through it, and that’s what will happen.
“Whether it’s Gus or anyone, it needs to be someone. When you look at someone like Gus, he’s just a very educated person who’s got a bigger amount of knowledge than most in the game.”
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Speaking on
Macquarie Sports Radio on Saturday, Gould opened up some of the discussion he’s had with both McGregor and Johnston.
“Over the last couple of weeks, Paul McGregor, we’ve had a couple of conversations and he indicated that after their last game against the Titans, there would be an end of year review,” Gould said.
“Every club goes through a season review, it’s not unusual and it is part of your forward planning for the next 12 months … as the CEO Brian Johnston indicated, the review takes on more significance when you’ve had a disappointing year.
“Usually an internal review. Two or three years ago they had quite an extensive external review from an independent body and came up with a number of recommendations. I’ve read that report and it’s quite extensive and it’s quite academic as well. I would sort of disagree that not a lot has been implemented since that time. They’re doing a lot of things that were in the report, whether or not it’s been formalised or recorded for reporting purposes I don’t know but those things will come out of this review.
“It was mainly Paul McGregor saying that we just want an independent set of eyes and ears over the situation. They had a specific role I might play. I went and had a meeting with Brian Johnston this week about whether or not they needed this review, and whether or not I was the right man to conduct it as well.”
Gould said the Dragons players would have a couple of days off following Saturday night’s game before they return for exit interviews and physical testing where they’re told what to expect in the pre-season.
Gould will be taking the opportunity to talk to the Dragons’ staff and several of the senior players about the season with a view to helping the club ahead of 2020.
“I won’t be discussing with anyone about what I find in the review. That will be for whoever I have to report to at the Dragons,” Gould said.
“I may just end up reporting to Paul, I may just talk to Brian Johnston or both. There’s been no indication that I have to present to the board.
“This is not a paid exercise, this is simply a favour to a bloke I used to coach in Origin in Paul McGregor.
“There’s no worse place to be in an NRL club when you are struggling when you can’t see the forest from the trees and you feel like the world is closing in on you. I know what the Dragons are going through”.
Gould said people were focusing too much on the negatives and that he wanted to help the club build on the positives.
McGregor signed a new two-year deal earlier this season and Gould didn’t believe the coach’s days were numbered.
“The review has got nothing to do with Paul’s future as it has been described to me,” Gould said.
“There has certainly been no indication in any conversation I’ve had with anyone at the Dragons that Paul McGregor’s position is in doubt or in jeopardy.
“I think the whole review is about future planning and making sure the club can do everything they can to provide the right resources around Paul, his coaching staff and his players, to help them achieve their best.”
So what’s there to be excited about for 2020?
“Just to learn from didn’t work this year and grow and as a group of men understand that we’ve got to be accountable for the season we had,” McGregor said.
“In life you get obstacles in your way and you’ve got to make sure that you work through them. This year’s just been one after the other.
“We look forward to guys having a break. We’ve got some very good players in this team. We just need to make sure when we attack it, we come back as rookies and start all over again.
“I’m the harshest critic of myself. I don’t need anyone else throwing it at me. I need to look at ways I need to fix.”
https://www.foxsports.com.au/nrl/nr...w/news-story/a0eaf3377266da9f9a933fdd5811d340
