Paul McGregor Extension

[R&WTILLIDIE]

This club is run by deadset morons

 

[Crush]

Surely there is one fan happy?

Bueller....Bueller...Bueller...

Maybe not, just opposition fans.

Full back on the bench, lololol

Didn't Sharks win a comp with Gerard Beale on the bench all year?

 

[SaintPauli]

De jar vu. Haven't we been through this before!
Premature decision. Not sure why the urgency to sign. It's not like there were clubs jumping for Mary's signature!

 

[rednwhites]

I will always support St. George but never this Board and this coaching set up.
What a waste...

And this is what supporting this club has become.
The frustration and anger in defeat.
The slight guilt, yet complete lack of trust in victory.

How many years of this can we honestly endure. We are on a 3 match winning streak which will mask the pain of this announcement for many. For me? I think this is it.

 

[Dorothy the Winowhore]

Your opinions of Mary are based on observations, or from jumping on the bandwagon because it seems like the cool happening thing to do these days. No fan will ever see Mary's abilities the same way the players do. They seem happy and want him as coach. Even Korbin Sims asking for a splint on his broken arm so he can go back out in the 2nd half to finish his job for Mary.....not for himself, for Mary. So many fans threatening to not renew their memberships whilst Mary is coach, but memberships are rising every year.

Bottom line for me......if the players are happy, I am happy!

 

[grouch]

Your opinions of Mary are based on observations, or from jumping on the bandwagon because it seems like the cool happening thing to do these days. No fan will ever see Mary's abilities the same way the players do. They seem happy and want him as coach. Even Korbin Sims asking for a splint on his broken arm so he can go back out in the 2nd half to finish his job for Mary.....not for himself, for Mary. So many fans threatening to not renew their memberships whilst Mary is coach, but memberships are rising every year.

Bottom line for me......if the players are happy, I am happy!

That's why the club captain is quitting with years left on his contract.

 

[getsmarty]

A big win at home against the wooden spoon favourites.

This fkn club. FMD.

Was done a while ago...

 

[Dennis Papaioannou]

Your opinions of Mary are based on observations, or from jumping on the bandwagon because it seems like the cool happening thing to do these days. No fan will ever see Mary's abilities the same way the players do. They seem happy and want him as coach. Even Korbin Sims asking for a splint on his broken arm so he can go back out in the 2nd half to finish his job for Mary.....not for himself, for Mary. So many fans threatening to not renew their memberships whilst Mary is coach, but memberships are rising every year.

Bottom line for me......if the players are happy, I am happy!

Are you sure about your assertations?
Memberships rising?
Players happy - even to the point of playing with a broken arm?
Contentious.

 

[grouch]

He should not have been re-signed. He should have been sacked after the collapse in 2017, but prior to that he should have been sacked after the 11th place finish in 2016, and prior to that he should have been sacked immediately after the DUI, but prior to that there is no fking way he should have been appointed fulltime head coach in 2014, but prior to that he should not have been elevated to interim head coach when Price was sacked in 2014, but prior to that he should not have been appointed to the NRL coaching staff in 2013.

 

[getsmarty]

Your opinions of Mary are based on observations, or from jumping on the bandwagon because it seems like the cool happening thing to do these days. No fan will ever see Mary's abilities the same way the players do. They seem happy and want him as coach. Even Korbin Sims asking for a splint on his broken arm so he can go back out in the 2nd half to finish his job for Mary.....not for himself, for Mary. So many fans threatening to not renew their memberships whilst Mary is coach, but memberships are rising every year.

Bottom line for me......if the players are happy, I am happy!

Happy with what ? What has he actually achieved since 2014 ....1 finals win...

If we set the bar any lower, we will soon be happy just to exist. We have a fantastic window of opportunity to win a Premiership in the next few years....would be more than happy if McGregor proves me wrong...

You say the players seem happy...there are a number who are being watched by other clubs........
If we lose one of them due to this coach not playing him, I will be spitting chips...

 

[Dorothy the Winowhore]

That's why the club captain is quitting with years left on his contract.

No it's not. He wants to spend time with his ageing grandparents and for them to see him play, while he can still play.

But I suppose blaming Mary for Gareth's decision suits your agenda, so you can run with that.

 

[grouch]

No it's not. He wants to spend time with his ageing grandparents and for them to see him play, while he can still play.

But I suppose blaming Mary for Gareth's decision suits your agenda, so you can run with that.

Why not. You seem happy to infer that Korbin is the first injured player in history to insist on staying on the field, purely due to his adoring worship of our deadshit loser of a coach

 

[Mickthedragon]

Your opinions of Mary are based on observations, or from jumping on the bandwagon because it seems like the cool happening thing to do these days. No fan will ever see Mary's abilities the same way the players do. They seem happy and want him as coach. Even Korbin Sims asking for a splint on his broken arm so he can go back out in the 2nd half to finish his job for Mary.....not for himself, for Mary. So many fans threatening to not renew their memberships whilst Mary is coach, but memberships are rising every year.

Bottom line for me......if the players are happy, I am happy!

You don't know what you're talking about. My family and myself were full paying members for years with good seats but not anymore. Last year, i did get a 3 game flexi membership but not this year. I don't make much of a difference but im damn sure there are plenty of others out there in the same position and we should be pushing 25-28K members by this stage, but instead we have around 20K. Most of this is due to him being in charge. Still don't believe me, check the game day comments on social media every week to see for yourself.

 

[Dorothy the Winowhore]

Happy with what ? What has he actually achieved since 2014 ....1 finals win...

If we set the bar any lower, we will soon be happy just to exist. We have a fantastic window of opportunity to win a Premiership in the next few years....would be more than happy if McGregor proves me wrong...

You say the players seem happy...What about Lomax/Kerr/Field/ etc....

If we lose lomax due to this coach not playing him, I will be spitting chips....( and I am talking about playing him at right centre...not wing/forwards etc )

So you think our players are not happy? As for losing players because they feel they should be playing 1st grade, that happens at all clubs and would still happen if we had Bennett or Bellamy coaching. You can't play 30 guys in 1st grade each week. We get over losing players, we find another potential superstar. Kurt Mann, is he setting the world alight at Knights? Jack Bird spits the dummy because he couldn't get a gig in 1st grade with us, just another average player. Beau Henry, Evander Cummings.....You been following their glittering careers have you? Jai Field may make it one day, but more likely with another club. Same with Reece Robson. They are not better players than who we have in our top 13 now. As for Zac Lomax, yes, love him as a player but even he is not irreplaceable if he chooses somewhere else thinking he has a better opportunity. And he looks happy to me at the moment.

Tell me who of our top 17, current squad, do you think is not a happy player right now?

 

[grouch]

Rumour has it that the St George Illawarra Dragons are poised to extend the contract of Paul McGregor, which will make him the longest-serving coach in the history of St George, Illawarra and St.George Illawarra.

Roy Masters (St George) 162 games
Nathan Brown (St George Illawarra) 151 games
Ken Kearney (St George) 141 games
David Waite (Stg and Stgi) 129 games
Harry Bath (St George) 118 games
Brian Smith (St George) 118 games
Paul McGregor (St George Illawarra) 114 games*
Graham Murray (Illawarra) 91 games

McGregor is the only coach listed to have NOT reach at least a preliminary final, while 4 of the coaches have made grand finals, with 2 winning them. Of the coaches listed above, McGregor has the lowest winning percentage, with just 50.9%.


One might ask: why would St George Illawarra extend his contract? Let’s go through the likely answers to that question Dragons HQ will come up with, as well as proof they are rubbish.


He’s achieved great results so far and is an elite coach.

When Steve Price was sacked after round 10 of 2014, the Dragons sat in equal 11th (13th due to for & against) two competition points outside the top 8. His assistant, Paul McGregor elevated into the top job and steered the team to 7 wins and 7 losses, including a 10-40 thrashing in the final round, to finish in outright 11th place, four points outside the top 8.
Since then he has had 4 full NRL seasons as head coach, with 2 top 8 finishes and 1 finals win, and as mentioned, a winning percentage of just 50.9%.

Recent coaches with 4+ years experience with only one or less finals wins are: Jason Taylor, Neil Henry, John Cartwright, Anthony Griffin, Stephen Kearney and Brad Arthur. That is not elite company. On the flipside, Craig Bellamy and Trent Robinson both won 5 finals matches in their first 4 years of coaching, and Paul Green won 8. The last coach to win a premiership having won 1 or less finals games in their first 4 years of coaching was Chris Anderson in 1995 – however he was dealing with a 5 team finals series (and he made a grand final in year 5, and won the comp in year 6).


McGregor has put together a strong squad of players.

He's certainly working with a much stronger squad than his predecessor. However, he deserves no credit for that, as the recruitment duties were quite publicly stripped from him in late 2016 and handed to Ian Millward.


The players are loyal to McGregor.

Aside from Gareth Widdop, the club captain no less, leaving the club mid-contract under McGregor’s tenure, he has also seen big name players Josh Dugan and Trent Merrin (among others) leave the club in his time.


Rival clubs may poach him.

This may be somewhat a subjective point, but, it seems incredibly unlikely another club will attempt to steal him from the Dragons. The bulk of NRL clubs are committed to their coaches for beyond next year, with the remainder (at a glance Bulldogs, Newcastle, Warriors and Gold Coast) employing coaches of similar career stature to McGregor currently. They’d be replacing like with like.

In addition to that, McGregor has never been employed anywhere else in the NRL. He has no experience of organisations outside of Illawarra or St George Illawarra. Played his entire career with the one NRL club, and has spent his entire off-field career with the one NRL club – beginning with a training and conditional role under Nathan Brown, before returning as an assistant under Steve Price (he went back to a local Wollongong club in the Bennett years). Every single coach currently employed in the NRL has some form of experience at a different NRL club, be it playing or in an assistant role. It is almost an unwritten prerequisite of being a coach. Now, there is a notable exception to this rule in Geoff Toovey, who did guide Manly to a grand final. However, it’s also worth noting that aside from a gig with the relegated Bradford Bulls in England, he has not been engaged by any other clubs since.


Recruitment stability. Incoming players want to know the coaching situation is stable.

This is a difficult one to categorically disprove, as it is a myth that is widely believed in across the league, and the reason why many coaches are sacked (or advised they will not be renewed) at the very latest halfway through their final season.

However there are two pieces of evidence that provide a sufficient counter to this myth.

1. There are many examples that show players recruited by a sacked coach have no problem staying at their new club under a different coach. Dane Gagai signed by Michael Maguire in June 2017, Maguire sacked in September 2017. Jai Arrow was signed by Neil Henry but didn’t play a single game under him, yet became a rep player under Garth Brennan. Api Koroisau was signed by Geoff Toovey and never played under him. Tautau Moga was signed by Neil Henry at Nth Qld, he spent 3 seasons in Townsville coached by Paul Green. The list could keep going. I present these merely as evidence that a coach change has, in reality, minimal effect on new recruits. If a coach change has minimal effect, then a coach under a cloud would be the same.

2. The Dragons recruitment situation for 2019 appears settled. Only fringe or young players are coming off contract, and no big names. Gareth Widdop has already been ostensibly replaced by Corey Norman, so one would assume the main recruit would likely be a fullback. There are no fullbacks on what you’d refer to as marquee (Widdop-style) money coming off contract in 2019 (the closest would be perhaps Gutherson from Parramatta and he’s a stretch), so you’d likely have that money available for an up and coming, potentially untried fullback . In that case, it’s safe to assume the player is moving clubs for a combination of the first grade opportunity, and the first grade pay packet. Head coach status would be well down the list.


In summary, there is no good reason to extend McGregor’s contract right now, if ever.

 

[Dorothy the Winowhore]

Why not. You seem happy to infer that Korbin is the first injured player in history to insist on staying on the field, purely due to his adoring worship of our deadshit loser of a coach

Not inferring anything at all.....They were his exact words, moron. You show me where Gareth stated he is cutting his contract short because of the coach?

 

[possm]

Goes to show that the boys Club is stronger than ever ,and Mary has a life membership .Doust got out knowing nothing would change, so he didnt have to be accountable again......

Doust not only got his gold watch and handsome retirement package, he also got to continue on as CEO of the Leagues Club. A once very prestigious and exclusive leagues club which used to be the envy of other rugby league clubs.

Oh how we have fallen from grace under the governance of Peter Doust.

 

[Blood Shot Eyes]

Your opinions of Mary are based on observations, or from jumping on the bandwagon because it seems like the cool happening thing to do these days. No fan will ever see Mary's abilities the same way the players do. They seem happy and want him as coach. Even Korbin Sims asking for a splint on his broken arm so he can go back out in the 2nd half to finish his job for Mary.....not for himself, for Mary. So many fans threatening to not renew their memberships whilst Mary is coach, but memberships are rising every year.

Bottom line for me......if the players are happy, I am happy!

Bottom line for me......your in the minority ....we'll leave it at that

 

[Dorothy the Winowhore]

You don't know what you're talking about. My family and myself were full paying members for years with good seats but not anymore. Last year, i did get a 3 game flexi membership but not this year. I don't make much of a difference but im damn sure there are plenty of others out there in the same position and we should be pushing 25-28K members by this stage, but instead we have around 20K. Most of this is due to him being in charge. Still don't believe me, check the game day comments on social media every week to see for yourself.

Membership is still higher at this point in time this season than it was at the same time last year. Good for you if you decide to not pay full membership....your prerogative. Just saying, obviously a lot more people aren't having a sook like you.

 

[grouch]

We had the most memberships in the NRL in 2011, and the Chief Operating Officer went on the record in 2013 announcing a target of 40,000 memberships within 5 years. The numbers are stagnant. Just like the club itself.

But hey, the players seem happy.