I would like to kill a few other myths that currently exist.
1. Steve Price is signed as our coach until the end of 2014!
That's right people. That means Laurie Daley, Tim Sheens, Tony Smith, Daniel Anderson, or (insert name) will not be taking over next year. Price was re-signed several months ago. We are the St George Illawarra Dragons, not the Australian Labor Party. Get used to it and we should be backing the coach to the bitter end!
2. Josh Dugan is our Full Back!
Now and into the foreseeable future. Even when Gerard Beale returns from injury. He will not (nor should not) be a stop-gap measure in the halves.
3. Chase Stanley and Nathan Fien are our halves combination!
Likely for the rest of this season at least. These guys had a good game together vs. Knights. They need a few more games together. Siejka may be an option at pivot later should this fall over or in the event of injuries.
Quinlan and Drinkwater are not ready for first grade footy in the halves. I believe the Cutters current performances speak volumes here. With Widdop coming and potentially one of either Rangi Chase or Sam Williams, the best these two guys can do is focus on improving themselves this year so they can battle it out in the pre-season for a spot in the top 25 next year.
I know a lot of us are desperately seeking changes in the halves as the way of getting us back up the table in the remaining games this season, but these guys need to earn their spot. They aren't yet doing enough. Price is making the right calls here.
4. The players need to take some accountability for the current performances!
The coach is not solely to blame here. There have been some consistent performers in the team, which I will now list in three groups:
STARS:
Merrin
Dugan
Morris
Nightingale
POTENTIAL STARS:
Frizell
de Belin
King
SPECIAL MENTIONS:
Fien - tries his guts out every week but is certainly on tired legs. Should definitely be given a amicable send off at the end of the year.
Stockwell - for a young bloke he has certainly pulled his weight up front in light of Weyman injuries and Hunt inconsistencies. Look for this guy to develop into a great forward in the coming years.
Ah Mau - has done very well in the games he's played & was particularly impressive against the Cowboys in a losing side.
The rest really need to step up. Probably being too harsh in some quarters i.e. Creagh, for example, is playing well but seems to not be dealing too well with the added responsibilities of the captaincy. However, he will learn and grow further from this years experience.
While I'm trying to desperately move away from the coach bashing, yes, we do have some dead wood in the side (most of which has been detailed in plenty of other threads). The real tester for Price going into 2014 will be the tough decisions he will no doubt need to make in terms of cutting the dead wood. Failing here will no doubt be the difference as to whether he survives beyond next year or not.
