Going by what I've read on these forums, the following St. George-Illawarra players are useless, over-rated, nuffy hacks:
- Ben Creagh
- Darius Boyd
- Ben Hornby
- Jamie Soward
- Matt Cooper
- Beau Scott
- Michael Weyman
- Dean Young
- Jason Nightingale
In fact, about the only Dragons player who is any good, as far as I can tell, is Brett Morris. Just goes to show how good a coach Bennett is: leading a winger and a team of nuffies to a minor premiership, and making a good start toward another one.
Seriously, whenever Bennett decides to give the coaching gig away, he MUST be appointed NRL chief. With his ability to polish turds into gold, the AFL will be a niche sport in Victoria within 3 years of Bennett taking over.
By the way, please feel free to add to the list. I'm sure I've forgotten a few.
They are all top players, don't get me wrong. I think the issue is that a fair few of these players are overrated in terms of Origin and rep selection. But again, a fair bit of criticism is unwarranted.
- Ben Creagh
Very good player, strong ball runner, but has been quiet so far by his usual standards this season, and seems to struggle for impact at Origin level.
- Darius Boyd
Great ballplaying fullback, but lacks the linebreaking ability of a Stewart or Slater of Hayne. I still think he is a top player though, just doesn't get as much room on the fringes as when he used to play on the wing.
- Ben Hornby
He does his job. Not a rep standard player anymore by any means, but he performs his task every week, and gives the vital control needed to steer Dragons around the park.
- Jamie Soward
Similar to Ben Creagh, he is a great player who was in seriously hot form last year, but this year he hasn't been too good. Living off his past reputation a bit, but can still break a game wide open.
- Matt Cooper
Still and will always be a very good club player, but the consensus of fans seem to believe that his representative days are now behind him. Josh Morris, Michael Jennings, etc are better options for moving forward.
- Beau Scott
Another player who does his job for the club - tackle hard, provide good support, and protect his halves. Not a rep player by any means though, especially in the centres where his attack is limited, and I think that is where the criticism is coming.
- Michael Weyman
Much like Creagh and Soward, his season this year hasn't reached the levels he was hitting last year. Maybe his fitness is a bit down, but his workrate has dropped a tad and his mobility looks less.
- Dean Young
Like Hornby, not a rep player, but a good solid leadership role model in the pack who does his job for the team every week, great player.
- Jason Nightingale
People only say overrated because he played for NZ. In reality, NZ at full strength would have Perrett and Vatuvei on the wings, and the lack of form of more dynamic wingers like Locke and Inu gave Nightingale the opportunity. But his isn't overrated by any means.
In summary, I don't think the 'hatred' towards the Dragons players is warranted. Yes, some of their selections in representative teams might be unwarranted based on their current form, and they might be being picked based on yesteryears reputation, BUT Hornby, Nightingale, Young are solid club players, nothing wrong with them.
