Flanagan / Hunt - Explain that.

[TheRev]

Flanno wasnt joking when he said there was no other players to bring in.. thats the whole problem.. we did so well with injuries all year.. but this last month.. they keep mounting up behind the scenes.. to the point where basically every player left that you would possibly want on the field bar maybe Tamale.. is in the squad..

Marschke and Brown went down months ago.. thats why LKT has had to be played.. Kyles suspension + Hunt is playing on 1 leg.. you can see MatthewF is on 1 leg also, CTui is likely gone for the season, Suli maybe back for 1 game or maybe they wont bother risking him... Sele gone, and all of that... then Liddles missus goes into labour on game day, f**k me.. honestly I know we didnt deserve to win yesterday, but make no mistakes we probably would have won with Liddle.. hes a real point of difference... but it is what it is etc.

 

[matPORTS]

Regardless of other mitigating circumstances, yesterday exposed that we still have a lot of problems to fix if we are to be anything more than a below average football team going forward.

 

[since77]

Regardless of other mitigating circumstances, yesterday exposed that we still have a lot of problems to fix if we are to be anything more than a below average football team going forward.

I'll help.
Halfback.
Front rowers x 2
New captain - S'ua.
A centre and a winger.

And then move heaven and earth to find the best defensive coach in the NRL and throw an offer they can't refuse at them.

 

[matPORTS]

I'll help.
Halfback.
Front rowers x 2
New captain - S'ua.
A centre and a winger.

And then move heaven and earth to find the best defensive coach in the NRL and throw an offer they can't refuse at them.

Hunt to Dolphins
Sean O'Sullivan / Isiah Katoa + Jack Bostock coming the other way

Tyrone Wishart

RCG (and if we can't find another versatile middle/edge forward for 2025 give Dylan Egan a guaranteed spot in the pack and simplify his rookie season - tackle hard and run hard)

Su'a - agreed, 2025 captain

Not sure what else we might be able to do?
I look at Bostock and Wishart thinking that it's a 'path of least resistance'. As long as we can be ruthless about cutting the deals with their current clubs, they won't be hesitant about wanting to return home (especially Wishart if he ends up getting a ring this year).

 

[Saints supporter]

I think the Hunt era needs to end here. A great player for Qld in origin but he's just not working out as halfback for us. Three successive coaches have persevered with him with similar results. It's time for a change. Even when Jesse Marschke came in for a couple of games we looked more threatening. As for motivation.....even when we win he looks like Sad Sack in the presser...shows no joy or emotion....looks like it's an effort just for him to be there. Engineer a graceful exit and move on. I know that there are other deficiencies in the squad but for the cash he is collecting he should be producing Shaun Johnson like performances on a regular basis. Let's move on!

 

[Coffs dragon]

If I was Flanno, I wouldn’t turn up at training this week, just like the bloody players on game day.
I’d Tell Dean Young to take charge & do something useful like fix the effin defence!
Tell Deano to drop the one legged crab Captain all together & I’ll see you on game day.
Show the flogs how pissed off you are.

 

[JubileeJeffro]

Pretty sure Flanno won’t be sitting down with Ben and his missus for a feed to extend another year after the last couple of weeks displays.
Get the sense Ben himself is pretty much done and hopefully is even considering retirement back to QLD.

 

[Dragsters]

Flanagan's heated exchange with Ben Hunt | Fox Sports Videos

NRL: Coach Shane Flanagan was seen in a animated discussion with Ben Hunt after the Dragons fell from the top eight following a loss to the Eels.

www.foxsports.com.au

Wow I think this exchange and the way the players just capitulated in this game for the first 65 minutes will result in Flanno not extending Hunt. Flanno was hopeful of Hunt being the guy to help steer the team to good things this year, but alas he hasn't on top of the poor defensive coaching of Dean Young.

It's time for both Hunt and Young to go.

Goodbye...

 

[<StGeorgeDragons>]

Pretty sure Flanno won’t be sitting down with Ben and his missus for a feed to extend another year after the last couple of weeks displays.
Get the sense Ben himself is pretty much done and hopefully is even considering retirement back to QLD.

The coach has to wear that one.
Hunt knows his internal struggles and hides his frailties behind the huge cheques our club keep giving him. How many times has Flano doubled down on backing Ben to the hilt, all the while swathes of fans have been calling for his axing for seasons now.

It wasn’t that long ago I was backing Hunt. I honestly felt like he was doing the work of two players as those around him had nothing to offer. The last two seasons it dawned on me that he cannot clinch a game to save his life. He cannot do the very thing a half and a captain is chosen for. A rubbish player? No. He has many good qualities but he is far from the leader we need to get out of the mire.

I know Shane’s running him out there in 2025 so in many ways we know how it all ends.

 

[dungay dragon]

The coach has to wear that one.
Hunt knows his internal struggles and hides his frailties behind the huge cheques our club keep giving him. How many times has Flano doubled down on backing Ben to the hilt, all the while swathes of fans have been calling for his axing for seasons now.

It wasn’t that long ago I was backing Hunt. I honestly felt like he was doing the work of two players as those around him had nothing to offer. The last two seasons it dawned on me that he cannot clinch a game to save his life. He cannot do the very thing a half and a captain is chosen for. A rubbish player? No. He has many good qualities but he is far from the leader we need to get out of the mire.

I know Shane’s running him out there in 2025 so in many ways we know how it all ends.

Thinking thats what Flanno was telling him ....

 

[Dragon David]

Regardless of other mitigating circumstances, yesterday exposed that we still have a lot of problems to fix if we are to be anything more than a below average football team going forward.

Exactly right!! We don't have a sufficient number of players in our system of 30 and the others coming through need more development. We do need to cull many from the squad. Having them play good then bad from one week to the next is useless. We need a team of players that we can rely on to produce better results and string together wins that will become infectious.

The players we have had in the main this year playing week in and out just were not good enough to put together a good string of wins to break that cycle of w,l,w,l,w,l... .
This is what next years aim has to be. w,w,w,w,w,l,w,l,l,w,w,w... would be nice for a change.

 

[Chook99]

The Tackle: Shane Flanagan’s blow up at Ben Hunt could mean more uncertainty over captain’s future at the Dragons​

Cameras captured the fiery moment Shane Flanagan dressed down Ben Hunt after the Dragons’ shocking loss to Parramatta. But has the tirade between the coach and skipper also put Hunt’s Dragons future on life support?

2 min read
September 1, 2024 - 12:00PM
News Sport Network
https://archive.md/nIAWs#share-tools

NRL: Coach Shane Flanagan was seen in a animated discussion with Ben Hunt after the Dragons fell from the top eight following a loss to the Eels.
St George Illawarra’s finals hopes are on life support but is Ben Hunt’s future at the club now under the same duress?
Cameras captured the moment Shane Flanagan unleashed a tirade at the skipper after the Dragons’ shocking 44-40 loss to Parramatta with a finals berth on the line.
Flanagan was seen dressing down a despondent Hunt in the sheds at full-time in scenes that will only add uncertainty about Hunt’s future at the Red V.
Hunt was very vocal in agitating for a release from his deal to move to Queensland before Flanagan arrived at the Dragons.
The seasoned coach managed to smooth things over and the club even began talks to extend Hunt beyond 2025.
But Hunt, who has one year left on his deal, has made no secret of wanting out and the fiery dressing room bake could be a tipping point in the delicate relationship the 34-year old has with the club.
Shane Flanagan has an animated exchange with Ben Hunt in the sheds. Video: Fox League
Flanagan had every right to be filthy at Hunt, and the Dragons, for the display the side dished up against the Eels.
The scoreboard tells a false narrative.
The Dragons were only beaten by four points but were down 44-12 with 10 minutes to go. The Dragons were woeful for 70 minutes and out-enthused in every aspect of the game by a side battling for a wooden spoon.
Flanagan needed every bit of Hunt’s experience on Saturday.
The coach has every right to feel let down.
Hunt is leading the NRL for try assists but has been rocks and diamonds all season long. Flanagan will be wondering if that inconsistency is worth forking out over $1 million a season.
The halfback was in command against the Storm in round 22 but struggled to take control in must win games against Canterbury, Cronulla and now the Eels.

Ben Hunt and the Dragons were humbled by the Eels. Picture: Matt King/Getty Images
There’s no doubt Hunt has missed his foil in Kyle Flanagan, who is sidelined after copping a four-week ban for biting.
Flanagan has been open about needing to bolster his roster, and the halves should get some attention.
The coach rates rookie Lyhkan King-Togia but beyond that halves stocks are bare.
If it is time for Flanagan to look beyond Hunt the coach should look at luring Dragons local junior Tyran Wishart back to the Red V.
The Melbourne utility will become a free agent from November 1 and has excelled when deputising for Cameron Munster at five-eighth.
His toughness, skill and competitive nature are exactly the traits Flanagan is looking for in his rebuild.

 

[Dragon David]

Hunt to Dolphins
Sean O'Sullivan / Isiah Katoa + Jack Bostock coming the other way

Tyrone Wishart

RCG (and if we can't find another versatile middle/edge forward for 2025 give Dylan Egan a guaranteed spot in the pack and simplify his rookie season - tackle hard and run hard)

Su'a - agreed, 2025 captain

Not sure what else we might be able to do?
I look at Bostock and Wishart thinking that it's a 'path of least resistance'. As long as we can be ruthless about cutting the deals with their current clubs, they won't be hesitant about wanting to return home (especially Wishart if he ends up getting a ring this year).

It would be great to get Tyran and Jack back to the Dragons but I think both will be highly unlikely to return. They are both held in high regard by the clubs they are at. We can offer big money but how big will big be that will not affect our salary cap.

Most of us would like certain players to be in our top 30 and most also would like certain players cut from our top 30. Who will take the ones we don't want and what can we do to get the ones that we do want by paying overs but not too much over?

Most of our players are just plain average at best and when a few have off days which we have had a lot of this year, the losses are horrendous.

We have got to be as tough as teak and do a Bulldogs purge. Retain a good core of players - in our case we have only a handful including when we get Holmes, Cook and maybe RCG and say Su'a, Suli, JDB, Liddle, and a couple more including several young guns from the lower grades and then get rid of the rest and sign up several others that are better than the ones we want booted out.

The hard stuff has got to start some time and now is better than tomorrow so to speak.

 

[blue bags]

I certainly do. He doesnt miss tackles, make stupid decisions, drop the ball or not try. I feel sorry for him having to coach this rabble. However i feel his backing Hunt has got to end. Hes had awful games for a few weeks now and deserves to be dropped. The excuses from him every week make me want to vomit. He has to go cause without a new half were going nowhere next year

Hunt in scrum. Hooker. Train him to be dummy half. Rotating from bench. Needs innovation
Idea's

 

[blue bags]

I cannot see Ben Hunt being chased by any other club now. His value has plummeted and other coaches can now see that he isn't worth 2 bob.

Gus Gould Bulldogs tried to sign Ben

 

[blacksafake]

Gus Gould Bulldogs tried to sign Ben

It’s a pity they didn’t

 

[Dragon David]

I think the Hunt era needs to end here. A great player for Qld in origin but he's just not working out as halfback for us. Three successive coaches have persevered with him with similar results. It's time for a change. Even when Jesse Marschke came in for a couple of games we looked more threatening. As for motivation.....even when we win he looks like Sad Sack in the presser...shows no joy or emotion....looks like it's an effort just for him to be there. Engineer a graceful exit and move on. I know that there are other deficiencies in the squad but for the cash he is collecting he should be producing Shaun Johnson like performances on a regular basis. Let's move on!

I love your reference of Hunt having the look of Sad Sack

 

[justadragon]

Flanno wasnt joking when he said there was no other players to bring in.. thats the whole problem.. we did so well with injuries all year.. but this last month.. they keep mounting up behind the scenes.. to the point where basically every player left that you would possibly want on the field bar maybe Tamale.. is in the squad..

Marschke and Brown went down months ago.. thats why LKT has had to be played.. Kyles suspension + Hunt is playing on 1 leg.. you can see MatthewF is on 1 leg also, CTui is likely gone for the season, Suli maybe back for 1 game or maybe they wont bother risking him... Sele gone, and all of that... then Liddles missus goes into labour on game day, f**k me.. honestly I know we didnt deserve to win yesterday, but make no mistakes we probably would have won with Liddle.. hes a real point of difference... but it is what it is etc.

Can take everyone out of KOE for the last game Rev

 

[TheRev]

Can take everyone out of KOE for the last game Rev

Yah their season is over, but rly only Egan, Tamale or Tonga (back from a HIA this week) are the only 3 you would possibly consider for a promotion.. Cup has also been stripped of their talent with all those injuries.

 

[Lovemedragons]

View attachment 93319

We let this guy, Saab, Lomax, Gerlach, Robson, Cook, Host all go, but we got to keep Rein, Amone,Feagai (s) and Sloan