Only a winning start can save McGregor and the Dragons
Neil Breen
January 4, 2020 — 12.00pm
Strap in Dragons fans, 2020 is your year – for better or worse.
No matter where you search in this new year for NRL storylines, St George Illawarra is at the top of the pile.
Yes, there will be drama we don’t know about, there will be refereeing turmoil, the Roosters attempting three in a row, the Maroons trying to rebuild and stop a potential Blues dynasty, a new chairman ...
Hundreds of stories and storylines.
But this year it’s all on the line for the Dragons.
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Dragons coach Paul McGregor will be under pressure early this season.CREDIT:ROBERT PEET
And it will begin in Wollongong Local Court on February 3 when star forward Jack de Belin stands trial on serious sexual assault charges. He has pleaded not guilty and the trial is expected to last two weeks.
Last year the de Belin scandal derailed the Dragons’ season. The club and players stood by their man, believing he would be able to play despite such serious charges hanging over his head.
The NRL introduced the "no-fault" stand-down rule, but de Belin challenged the rule in the Federal Court. Such was the club’s confidence that he would win the case, they fully expected him to join them in Mudgee for the round 10 clash against the Knights.
When he lost, the players wanted to boycott the match. In the end they played and were belted 45-12. After that they spiralled out of control, avoiding the spoon only because the Titans were even worse.
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The club just couldn’t see the obvious.
It believed de Belin, like every member of society, was innocent until proven guilty. But the NRL was never going to allow him to play – until the matter was heard in court. Hence the stand-down rule, which allowed the presumption of innocence to exist despite a workplace suspension.
To that end, the Dragons, and the players, were poorly advised and the wounds self-inflicted.
Jack de Belin leaves Wollongong Local Court in July.CREDIT:AAP
There will be no such de Belin excuses this year. The case will be over, either way, before the start of the season, the court having done the club a massive favour by bringing the matter forward a few weeks.
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Try getting that favour done for you if you’re Joe Blow.
The case somewhat shielded coach Paul McGregor last season. It gave him and club honchos an out.
On the field things didn't pan out. Ben Hunt didn't do what they needed week to week. Corey Norman likewise. McGregor had no idea what to do with Matt Dufty – and still doesn’t.
Trent Merrin returns and the only other big signing is Issac Luke to provide cover at hooker.
Surely the pack will fire? Merrin and Luke are internationals and join Australia, England and Origin stars Tyson Frizell, Tariq Sims, Paul Vaughan and James Graham.
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To have such talent on the books and finish second-last is appalling.
McGregor and the club’s hierarchy have become lightning rods for the Dragons' long-suffering fans.
It was a dismal season for the Dragons on and off the field.CREDIT:GETTY
Chief executive Peter “Oust” Doust left at the end of 2018 after an 18-year reign. An expensive "international" search for a new boss unearthed the club’s very own chairman, Brian Johnston. But Johnston lasted a solitary season, and the search is on again. He’ll stay until the de Belin court case is heard.
There was confusion when one of Johnston’s first acts was to grant McGregor a two-year extension to his coaching contract. This happened after round five when there wasn’t a lot to show for his efforts since taking the job in 2014 after Steve Price was sacked – and there wasn’t a line-up of clubs trying to pinch him.
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McGregor's record now stands at 139 matches for 66 wins and 73 losses. Being a terrific, honest bloke has earned him relief from the ravenous rugby league media pack. He’s a popular and respected member of the league fraternity.
He and the club have also benefited from the tyranny of distance. This may seem ridiculous, but being based in Wollongong means much less media turn up at the club. It can take more than half a day round trip to slog it out through the south of Sydney and back for press conferences. If they were based full-time at Kogarah, it would have been an almost daily onslaught during the past year or two.
But now, in 2020, all the brownie points have been used up, and the excuses well and truly gone.
If the club starts poorly, expect a pile on by Easter Sunday. That will be round five and the Dragons will be at home facing the Warriors after having played the Tigers, Panthers, Raiders and Eels.
McGregor needs to be three-and-two on Easter Monday.
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Quote - To have so much talent and finish second last, is appalling.
