Player comments - need a rebuild

[Saints Forever]

It’s clear we need a rebuild

Forwards

Frizell is leaving
Graham wishes he didn’t exercise his option
Vaughan will leave as soon as he can
Lawrie is barely worthy of a bench spot
Host will go given the lack of game time
Korbin Sims has the mental scare of injury
JDB is done after such a long layoff

Backs

Norman should be shown the door
Lafai is finished
Aitken is ordinary
Pereira tried hard but is not good enough
Rava is ordinary compared to most Fijian wingers
Williame is ordinary
Dufty is too inconsistent
Lomax lacks the speed needed at centre

Seems we have plenty of money to spend and zero ability to attract quality players without paying massive overs

We need a coach capable of attracting and developing talent

thankfully I know that tomorrow the sun will rise again

 

[Dragon David]

It’s clear we need a rebuild

Forwards

Frizell is leaving
Graham wishes he didn’t exercise his option
Vaughan will leave as soon as he can
Lawrie is barely worthy of a bench spot
Host will go given the lack of game time
Korbin Sims has the mental scare of injury
JDB is done after such a long layoff

Backs

Norman should be shown the door
Lafai is finished
Aitken is ordinary
Pereira tried hard but is not good enough
Rava is ordinary compared to most Fijian wingers
Williame is ordinary
Dufty is too inconsistent
Lomax lacks the speed needed at centre

Seems we have plenty of money to spend and zero ability to attract quality players without paying massive overs

We need a coach capable of attracting and developing talent

thankfully I know that tomorrow the sun will rise again

Wow! When all the players are listed like you have done Saints Forever, it shows that we do have a lot of ordinary players. It means that Millward's recruitment has been generally poor overall and McGregor has a case against Millward for arranging the signing of those players.

 

[BLM01]

NRL player replacements for 2021 should be like for like or better.

Forwards to leave the Club
De Belin 550k
Frizell 600k
Graham 400k
K Sims 300k
$1.85m

Backs to leave the Club
Aiken 350k
Lafai 450k
Ravalawa 250k
Dufty 350k
Norman 800k
$2.2m

Likely 17 for 2021
1. Fullback; New Signing 900k, Ramsey
2. Left wing: Ramsey, Sailor, Pereira
3. Right centre; Lomax, Feagai
4. Williame, Feagai
5. Saab, Feagai
6. Sullivan, Sailor, Hunt
7. Clune, Sailor, Hunt
8. New prop 700k, Kerr
9. Hunt, McInnes
10. Vaughan, Lawrie, Blacker
11. T Sims, Host
12. New backrower 900k - maybe D Fifita, Ford
13. McInnes, Merrin

So, aproximately $4m to spend on 3 new marquee players (aprox. 2.6m) plus upgrades to promoted players; Ramsey, Max Peagai, Matt Peagai, Saab, Clune, Sullivan, Sailor and Blacker (aprox. $1.4m).

Now there you go Millward, all the work is done for you. Just go and earn your keep and make it happen!

So where did you get those salaries from? and why did you not factor in all the other cap allowances positive and negative in your calculations
What about long serving player allowances?
What about car and 3rd party allowances?
And what about 2022 and 2023 cap how is that travelling as you need to work few years in advance
Not as easy as you make it out to be
Basil Millward says.."possm go back to the drawing board and come back to me when you know what you are doing"
BTW..Fifita will command at least 1 mill and $1.4 mill wont be enough to upgrade 8 up and comers excluding Clune..especially if they perform

 

[getsmarty]

• Opinion
  'Their only ambition is to be there': Dragons savaged by ex-premier
  
  
  
  Andrew Webster
  Chief Sports Writer
  Send via Email

Former NSW Premier and Member for Hurstville Morris Iemma, however, captured the mood perfectly when he picked up the phone.

“It’s a club whose only ambition is to just be there,” Iemma told me. “Meanwhile, other clubs are competing for premierships. It’s a simple betrayal of what the Dragons should stand for. We’ve become a symbol of mediocrity.”

Iemma has been a devout fan of the Red V for more than 50 years. As a boy, he stood on the hill at the SCG for the 1975 grand final and watched his beloved Saints get flogged 38-0 at the hands of Eastern Suburbs.

What isn’t commonly known is how Iemma also fronted a group interested in buying Illawarra’s 50 per cent stake in the club in mid-2018 after Bruce Gordon's WIN Corporation had walked away from negotiations in April that year.

McGregor will remain in charge for the match against Cronulla on Sunday.Credit:Getty

Iemma was chairman of the Southern Expansion bid for an A-League licence. Apart from featuring an all-star cast that included former Socceroos Craig Foster and Craig Johnston, the bid was backed by Chinese property giant JiaYuan Group to the tune of a whopping $17.5 million. In cash. Sitting in a bank account. Ready to roll.

When Football Federation Australia rejected the bid, the group turned its sights on other sporting franchises. Iemma was given authority to approach then-Dragons chief executive Peter Doust, who was looking for a private investor to buy Illawarra’s share of the joint venture.

Iemma declined to comment any further on what happened next, let alone divulge the size of the bid, citing commercial confidence. But we’re pretty sure we’ve seen this movie before.

As revealed in this column last year, Sydney Kings owner Paul Smith and his company Total Sports and Entertainment had offered no less than $12 million to buy out the Steelers’ share.

Smith was led to believe his offer was close to being accepted. It’s understood Southern Expansion felt the same way. Suddenly, though, the Gordons were back in the room and a deal was quickly done.

Nobody knows what the Gordon family stumped up and, given the typical veil of secrecy at the Dragons, nobody will ever say.

The figure rumoured at the time was $10m, but sources close to negotiations reckon it was far less. This column was this week told that WIN Corp wrote off some of the joint venture’s debt to the NRL but question how much cash, if any, was stumped up.

McGregor given stay of execution by Dragons owner Gordon
It’s been said that WIN patriarch Bruce Gordon, 91, doesn’t share the same enthusiasm for the club as son Andrew, 49, who was appointed chairman.

Yet here the 91-year-old media mogul was on Tuesday morning, calling into an emergency board meeting via Zoom, in the wake of the Dragons’ 22-2 loss to the Bulldogs.

When the Gordons met with former NRL boss Todd Greenberg in 2018, they talked about their desire to invest, to build, to turn the Dragons into the mega-club one of the most recognisable brands in Australian sport should be.

That was music to the ears of long-suffering fans. How does a club with such a proud history, with such a strong brand, splutter along as it has for 20 years, save for that glorious sliver of time when Wayne Bennett delivered a premiership?

As Smith has said before, the Dragons should be the New York Yankees of Australian sport. Instead, since the club's restructure, it has slid further into ordinariness.

It has shed staff, cut costs and found itself in a situation so dire it can't sack coach Paul McGregor because it doesn’t have the money to sack Paul McGregor.

Actually, let’s correct our own misreporting here: the club has the money, it just doesn’t want to spend it.

A cursory glance of St George Leagues Club’s annual reports for the past three years tells the story. In 2017, it contributed $2.5m to the joint venture. In 2018, that was cut to $1.7m. In 2019, it dropped to $500,000. But it has $19m in cash reserves, which is up from $15m the year before.

WIN Corporation is privately owned but, according to the Australian Financial Review’s annual Rich List, Bruce Gordon has an estimated worth of $702m.

Just how much the Dragons would have to pay McGregor to get him out of the building is up for debate, although $1m appears to be the accepted figure of his settlement.

Either way, it would be a significant payout because he’s only four matches into a fresh two-year deal after the board inexplicably re-signed him after five matches last year.

The Dragons hit rock bottom against the Bulldogs on Monday.Credit:Getty

So, instead of moving on the coach, despite the horror start to the season, despite winning just two of their last 17 matches - both of which were against the Titans - with young players wanting out of the club, with the joint in crisis, the Dragons did a very Dragons-like thing ...

They did nothing.

“We are committed to Paul as coach of the St George Illawarra Dragons and look forward to seeing him right the wrongs of the opening month of the current campaign,” Andrew Gordon said in a lukewarm statement on Tuesday.

Rather, McGregor is being afforded the opportunity to right the board’s wrongs in re-signing him.

What frustrates the Dragons faithful isn’t so much the losses as not having a say in the club’s direction. Unlike most other clubs, members do not have voting rights because the joint venture is a private entity.

The cliché is that it remains a “boys’ club” and it’s hard to disagree. It's never been more evident than in recent years.

The WIN Corp deal was facilitated by then-chairman Brian Johnston, who, as part of the deal, replaced Doust as chief executive. After all those years of looking at "Oust Doust" signs on the hill, the one who ousted Doust was Doust.

Then, earlier this year, Johnston resigned just 18 months into the role. Who replaced him on the board? Doust, of course. You couldn't make this stuff up.

Now, fans genuinely fear for the future of their club. The old rumour about the Dragons merging with fierce rivals Cronulla often gains traction in times like this, and it’s certainly been getting a run this week.

You would hope such a move was never on the table but, unless there is a fundamental change in the way St George Illawarra operates, those drums will start beating louder.


https://www.smh.com.au/sport/nrl/th...ns-savaged-by-ex-premier-20200611-p551me.html

Well done Mr Webster.

 

[Warabrook saint]

• Opinion
  'Their only ambition is to be there': Dragons savaged by ex-premier
  
  
  
  Andrew Webster
  Chief Sports Writer
  Send via Email

Former NSW Premier and Member for Hurstville Morris Iemma, however, captured the mood perfectly when he picked up the phone.

“It’s a club whose only ambition is to just be there,” Iemma told me. “Meanwhile, other clubs are competing for premierships. It’s a simple betrayal of what the Dragons should stand for. We’ve become a symbol of mediocrity.”

Iemma has been a devout fan of the Red V for more than 50 years. As a boy, he stood on the hill at the SCG for the 1975 grand final and watched his beloved Saints get flogged 38-0 at the hands of Eastern Suburbs.

What isn’t commonly known is how Iemma also fronted a group interested in buying Illawarra’s 50 per cent stake in the club in mid-2018 after Bruce Gordon's WIN Corporation had walked away from negotiations in April that year.

McGregor will remain in charge for the match against Cronulla on Sunday.Credit:Getty

Iemma was chairman of the Southern Expansion bid for an A-League licence. Apart from featuring an all-star cast that included former Socceroos Craig Foster and Craig Johnston, the bid was backed by Chinese property giant JiaYuan Group to the tune of a whopping $17.5 million. In cash. Sitting in a bank account. Ready to roll.

When Football Federation Australia rejected the bid, the group turned its sights on other sporting franchises. Iemma was given authority to approach then-Dragons chief executive Peter Doust, who was looking for a private investor to buy Illawarra’s share of the joint venture.

Iemma declined to comment any further on what happened next, let alone divulge the size of the bid, citing commercial confidence. But we’re pretty sure we’ve seen this movie before.

As revealed in this column last year, Sydney Kings owner Paul Smith and his company Total Sports and Entertainment had offered no less than $12 million to buy out the Steelers’ share.

Smith was led to believe his offer was close to being accepted. It’s understood Southern Expansion felt the same way. Suddenly, though, the Gordons were back in the room and a deal was quickly done.

Nobody knows what the Gordon family stumped up and, given the typical veil of secrecy at the Dragons, nobody will ever say.

The figure rumoured at the time was $10m, but sources close to negotiations reckon it was far less. This column was this week told that WIN Corp wrote off some of the joint venture’s debt to the NRL but question how much cash, if any, was stumped up.

McGregor given stay of execution by Dragons owner Gordon
It’s been said that WIN patriarch Bruce Gordon, 91, doesn’t share the same enthusiasm for the club as son Andrew, 49, who was appointed chairman.

Yet here the 91-year-old media mogul was on Tuesday morning, calling into an emergency board meeting via Zoom, in the wake of the Dragons’ 22-2 loss to the Bulldogs.

When the Gordons met with former NRL boss Todd Greenberg in 2018, they talked about their desire to invest, to build, to turn the Dragons into the mega-club one of the most recognisable brands in Australian sport should be.

That was music to the ears of long-suffering fans. How does a club with such a proud history, with such a strong brand, splutter along as it has for 20 years, save for that glorious sliver of time when Wayne Bennett delivered a premiership?

As Smith has said before, the Dragons should be the New York Yankees of Australian sport. Instead, since the club's restructure, it has slid further into ordinariness.

It has shed staff, cut costs and found itself in a situation so dire it can't sack coach Paul McGregor because it doesn’t have the money to sack Paul McGregor.

Actually, let’s correct our own misreporting here: the club has the money, it just doesn’t want to spend it.

A cursory glance of St George Leagues Club’s annual reports for the past three years tells the story. In 2017, it contributed $2.5m to the joint venture. In 2018, that was cut to $1.7m. In 2019, it dropped to $500,000. But it has $19m in cash reserves, which is up from $15m the year before.

WIN Corporation is privately owned but, according to the Australian Financial Review’s annual Rich List, Bruce Gordon has an estimated worth of $702m.

Just how much the Dragons would have to pay McGregor to get him out of the building is up for debate, although $1m appears to be the accepted figure of his settlement.

Either way, it would be a significant payout because he’s only four matches into a fresh two-year deal after the board inexplicably re-signed him after five matches last year.

The Dragons hit rock bottom against the Bulldogs on Monday.Credit:Getty

So, instead of moving on the coach, despite the horror start to the season, despite winning just two of their last 17 matches - both of which were against the Titans - with young players wanting out of the club, with the joint in crisis, the Dragons did a very Dragons-like thing ...

They did nothing.

“We are committed to Paul as coach of the St George Illawarra Dragons and look forward to seeing him right the wrongs of the opening month of the current campaign,” Andrew Gordon said in a lukewarm statement on Tuesday.

Rather, McGregor is being afforded the opportunity to right the board’s wrongs in re-signing him.

What frustrates the Dragons faithful isn’t so much the losses as not having a say in the club’s direction. Unlike most other clubs, members do not have voting rights because the joint venture is a private entity.

The cliché is that it remains a “boys’ club” and it’s hard to disagree. It's never been more evident than in recent years.

The WIN Corp deal was facilitated by then-chairman Brian Johnston, who, as part of the deal, replaced Doust as chief executive. After all those years of looking at "Oust Doust" signs on the hill, the one who ousted Doust was Doust.

Then, earlier this year, Johnston resigned just 18 months into the role. Who replaced him on the board? Doust, of course. You couldn't make this stuff up.

Now, fans genuinely fear for the future of their club. The old rumour about the Dragons merging with fierce rivals Cronulla often gains traction in times like this, and it’s certainly been getting a run this week.

You would hope such a move was never on the table but, unless there is a fundamental change in the way St George Illawarra operates, those drums will start beating louder.


https://www.smh.com.au/sport/nrl/th...ns-savaged-by-ex-premier-20200611-p551me.html

Well done Mr Webster.

Here is the catalyst for an enquiry in the way things are run and deals are done in this a#seho!e organization

 

[SaintPauli]

Seriously if we sign Tamou that'll do me.
Evans is doing a good job off the bench at the moment but playing in a good side in form is a bonus. Not sure he's a gun starting prop.

Here we go again. The retirement club approaching players at the end of their careers.

 

[SaintPauli]

H

In the forwards we just need two marquee forwards to replace Frizell and Graham. McInnes can go to lock and Hunt to hooker.

In the backs we just need a marquee fullback and promote some good young juniors who will be ready in 2021. Ramsey, Sailor, the Peagai brothers, Saab, Clune and Sullivan.

Main thing is that we need to find a way to sack Mary and hire Bennett to oversea the this young team.

I hope JDB stays. He loves the place and has ticker. My only concern who is out on the market to buy that is worthy of instant success. Guys with ticker!

 

[Dorothy the Winowhore]

H


I hope JDB stays. He loves the place and has ticker. My only concern who is out on the market to buy that is worthy of instant success. Guys with ticker!

Not sure of availability, but we certainly need one or two tough mongrels in our pack. We need a Fonua-Blake type in the front row. Another guy who has a bit of mongrel in him is Hetherington who can't get a run in firsts at Penrith.

 

[denis preston]

NRL player replacements for 2021 should be like for like or better.

Forwards to leave the Club
De Belin 550k
Frizell 600k
Graham 400k
K Sims 300k
$1.85m

Backs to leave the Club
Aiken 350k
Lafai 450k
Ravalawa 250k
Dufty 350k
Norman 800k
$2.2m

Likely 17 for 2021
1. Fullback; New Signing 900k, Ramsey
2. Left wing: Ramsey, Sailor, Pereira
3. Right centre; Lomax, Feagai
4. Williame, Feagai
5. Saab, Feagai
6. Sullivan, Sailor, Hunt
7. Clune, Sailor, Hunt
8. New prop 700k, Kerr
9. Hunt, McInnes
10. Vaughan, Lawrie, Blacker
11. T Sims, Host
12. New backrower 900k - maybe D Fifita, Ford
13. McInnes, Merrin

So, aproximately $4m to spend on 3 new marquee players (aprox. 2.6m) plus upgrades to promoted players; Ramsey, Max Peagai, Matt Peagai, Saab, Clune, Sullivan, Sailor and Blacker (aprox. $1.4m).

Now there you go Millward, all the work is done for you. Just go and earn your keep and make it happen!

Your 800k short before you start Poss , no way Norman will leave and nobody else will pick him up on that salary.

 

[The calm one]

H


I hope JDB stays. He loves the place and has ticker. My only concern who is out on the market to buy that is worthy of instant success. Guys with ticker!

You don't need to find a way to sack Mary. The board had the perfect opportunity last week and wouldn't do it or wouldn't spend the money to do it. Take your pick

 

[Forbes Creek Dragons]

Not sure of availability, but we certainly need one or two tough mongrels in our pack. We need a Fonua-Blake type in the front row. Another guy who has a bit of mongrel in him is Hetherington who can't get a run in firsts at Penrith.

We had AFB until he stuffed it up by bashing his missus.

 

[RedVDave]

The feagai boys are 98kg on the dragons website. They are 19 for christ sake. Get em in there.

That would negate Mary's no blooding of young guns policy.

 

[piesplusreturns]

Wow! When all the players are listed like you have done Saints Forever, it shows that we do have a lot of ordinary players. It means that Millward's recruitment has been generally poor overall and McGregor has a case against Millward for arranging the signing of those players.

You realise that's what they want you to think.

It's his job, no it's his job.

Dragons may not do much well, but they are experts in excuses, obfuscation and disingenuity.

 

[Slippery Morris]

Poor Milward has a tough gig imo. You have Saab and Tristian looking for a release and it is his job to try and get them to stay. How can he when he does not have any control of who gets picked each week? They want a crack at 1st grade and Mary chooses Rava ahead of Saab who can't read defense at all. An easy target for the opposition. Then Clune gets picked ahead of Sailor who played well last year when he had a run against Roosters especially (benchmark side). Why was he not given another crack if Norman was to be moved to fullback?

Saints had Garrick, he left because he got no game time. He killed it in reserves but let go, Herbert, Leuilua etc. All left because of $hit coaching. Millward then has to go and pick up cheapies to replace them rather than use what they have and then gets slammed. He was able to keep a majority of the big guns only for the juniors to leave because Mary sticks with the old guys who have run out of legs. Frizzel left only because he can see Mary is not going to win them a comp. Tyrell looked the goods and can fill the void but he got dropped for the Dogs game so go figure that out? How?

As for Dufty, his returning of the ball is a huge issue. Saints need someone to return the ball and make meters not be dragged back to where he came from. That is the biggest issue. You need to start strong from a return as that is when you can make some serious damage. Norman was excellent last week. If anything Saints best at the back. Jordan and Zac were also strong, the rest were very ordinary.

People from every other club still wonder why Graham still gets picked when he really adds no value these days?

The changes that should be made and not only because they are not happy is Saab for Rava and Tristian for Clune. Also bring in someone else for Graham. Host and Ford offer much more than he does. Graham has the heart and desire but his body is just not what it use to be and you can see his is way off the pace.

 

[dragonreddy]

Not sure of availability, but we certainly need one or two tough mongrels in our pack. We need a Fonua-Blake type in the front row. Another guy who has a bit of mongrel in him is Hetherington who can't get a run in firsts at Penrith.

Sad thing is we had Fonua - Blake and then he got on the wrong side of the law .

Hetherington would be good ,as would Lindsay Collins from the Roosters , Liam Martin from Penriff ,there is plenty of young blokes around and contracts don't count for much these days , it's time Millward got off his arse like all the other recruitment guys do ,instead of trying to get guys that dont seem to have any upside and yet we still pay too much for them.

Sadly we had one of the best recruiters in Pete Mulholland and he quickly walked when he saw how much of a shithole the club is these days.

 

[dragonreddy]

Poor Milward has a tough gig imo. You have Saab and Tristian looking for a release and it is his job to try and get them to stay. How can he when he does not have any control of who gets picked each week? They want a crack at 1st grade and Mary chooses Rava ahead of Saab who can't read defense at all. An easy target for the opposition. Then Clune gets picked ahead of Sailor who played well last year when he had a run against Roosters especially (benchmark side). Why was he not given another crack if Norman was to be moved to fullback?

Saints had Garrick, he left because he got no game time. He killed it in reserves but let go, Herbert, Leuilua etc. All left because of $hit coaching. Millward then has to go and pick up cheapies to replace them rather than use what they have and then gets slammed. He was able to keep a majority of the big guns only for the juniors to leave because Mary sticks with the old guys who have run out of legs. Frizzel left only because he can see Mary is not going to win them a comp. Tyrell looked the goods and can fill the void but he got dropped for the Dogs game so go figure that out? How?

As for Dufty, his returning of the ball is a huge issue. Saints need someone to return the ball and make meters not be dragged back to where he came from. That is the biggest issue. You need to start strong from a return as that is when you can make some serious damage. Norman was excellent last week. If anything Saints best at the back. Jordan and Zac were also strong, the rest were very ordinary.

People from every other club still wonder why Graham still gets picked when he really adds no value these days?

The changes that should be made and not only because they are not happy is Saab for Rava and Tristian for Clune. Also bring in someone else for Graham. Host and Ford offer much more than he does. Graham has the heart and desire but his body is just not what it use to be and you can see his is way off the pace.

Millward is part of the problem ,our BIG GUNS wouldn't be BIG GUNS at other clubs that's why we get them.

 

[redVinme]

Sad thing is we had Fonua - Blake and then he got on the wrong side of the law .

Hetherington would be good ,as would Lindsay Collins from the Roosters , Liam Martin from Penriff ,there is plenty of young blokes around and contracts don't count for much these days , it's time Millward got off his arse like all the other recruitment guys do ,instead of trying to get guys that dont seem to have any upside and yet we still pay too much for them.

Sadly we had one of the best recruiters in Pete Mulholland and he quickly walked when he saw how much of a shithole the club is these days.

Big fan of Liam Martin too. Would make a good lock

 

[getsmarty]

Hadley fires back at Dragons star, doubles down on explosive claim over De Belin rift
Dragons

• June 12, 2020 1:43pm
• by Zac Rayson
• Source: FOX SPORTS

Ray Hadley has hit back at Dragons captain Cameron McInnes in their feud over the role of Jack de Belin.Source: FOX SPORTS
Veteran broadcaster Ray Hadley has doubled down on his claim that the Dragons’ squad is split over Jack de Belin continuing to train with the team, after St George skipper Cameron McInnes hit back at his ‘pretty insulting’ and ‘disgusting’ attack.

Jack de Belin has been suspended under the NRL’s ‘no fault stand down’ policy, but continues to train as he awaits trial over a 2018 aggravated sexual assault charge. De Belin pleaded not guilty to the charge.

Hadley started the firestorm by claiming on 2GB Radio: “There’s a major problem at the club and it goes way beyond Mary McGregor.


“Unfortunately it involves Jack de Belin … There are players that support him, and there are players that do not support him. And it’s illustrated on the field that the players are divided.

“I think you’ve got a major problem. You can replace (McGregor) with whoever you like, but until this matter is finalised it’ll be a divided club.”

Dragons’ captain McInnes hit back at those comments, saying: “It is pretty insulting. As a playing group we are pretty pissed off about that.

“For somebody who has absolutely no knowledge of what actually happens in here … to come out with something like that and heap more pressure on somebody who has already gone through a lot, to be honest is pretty disgusting.

“It shows the lengths people will go to almost kick a dog when they are down – I am pretty disgusted by it to be honest.”

But Hadley refused to back down from his claim of a rift in the playing group, taking full ownership of his previous comments.

“Well, it’s me Cameron. Me,” Hadley told 2GB on Friday.

“And I have been covering the game for a long, long time. I have a lot of contacts in the game, Cameron. I started covering it Cameron before you were born. But anyway, it’s me, Cameron.

“Now, (reading McInnes’ response) ‘McInnes even bristled that the Jack de Belin saga was a distraction’. Now Jack de Belin is facing serious charges and it is not his fault that he hasn’t had them finalised. It is a matter for the courts, when they are finalised.

“He is getting paid, and he trains with the team every week.

“Now I’ve said, and I will repeat today, there are people within the playing group who support Jack de Belin, and that would include obviously Cameron McInnes. And there are others who do not.

“Now, he said this to (journalist) Brent Read: ‘We have Jack who last time he played was one of the best forward’s in the game, each week he is helping us to prepare. So if you want to say it is a distraction, it has been going on for two years’.

“Well, that’s my very point Cameron. And apparently it has been lost on you.

“It has been going on for two years and the club is divided because of it.

“And I’d remind you Cameron and you don’t need reminding because it is rather unpleasant, the Dragons came second last, last year, in 2019. After Monday’s loss the Dragons have lost 18 of their past 22 matches.

“Why? Because this saga has been going on for two years. And it would illustrate to me that some people in the club are happy that Jack is being supported by the club and others are not. It is inescapable.

“How do I know? Well, Cameron, because other people within the club have told me.

“So, to try and explain it away by saying, ‘it is a distraction it has been going on for two’ … yes, it has. 18 of 22 games you’ve lost old mate. 18 of 22. Second last, last year.

“And if you think, or anyone else thinks, that replacing the coach Mary McGregor is going to make one iota of difference you are sadly mistaken. You are sadly mistaken. As I’ve said previously, you could get the late Jack Gibson there, you could get Wayne Bennett there, you could get Craig Bellamy there, you could get them all there, but they can’t solve the problem that is inherent in the club. They can’t solve that problem.”


Cameron McInnes claimed that the Dragons problems had nothing to do with coach McGregor or De Belin, but rather had a simple explanation – poor completion rates.

“Everyone has got a theory on why we aren’t performing. That’s rugby league – you’ve got to win and if you don’t questions are asked, we get that,” he said. “When I say I am disgusted by the article I am not shocked by it.

“The more media, the more shows there are, the more analysis there is, the more overthinking there is.

“But I am telling you right now, if we get our completion rate sorted it will be a different ball game out there.”


https://www.foxsports.com.au/nrl/nr...s/news-story/9a5c0cc307d20c00e8e76db294c00d97

 

[Dragons2020]

Hadley fires back at Dragons star, doubles down on explosive claim over De Belin rift
Dragons

• June 12, 2020 1:43pm
• by Zac Rayson
• Source: FOX SPORTS

Ray Hadley has hit back at Dragons captain Cameron McInnes in their feud over the role of Jack de Belin.Source: FOX SPORTS
Veteran broadcaster Ray Hadley has doubled down on his claim that the Dragons’ squad is split over Jack de Belin continuing to train with the team, after St George skipper Cameron McInnes hit back at his ‘pretty insulting’ and ‘disgusting’ attack.

Jack de Belin has been suspended under the NRL’s ‘no fault stand down’ policy, but continues to train as he awaits trial over a 2018 aggravated sexual assault charge. De Belin pleaded not guilty to the charge.

Hadley started the firestorm by claiming on 2GB Radio: “There’s a major problem at the club and it goes way beyond Mary McGregor.


“Unfortunately it involves Jack de Belin … There are players that support him, and there are players that do not support him. And it’s illustrated on the field that the players are divided.

“I think you’ve got a major problem. You can replace (McGregor) with whoever you like, but until this matter is finalised it’ll be a divided club.”

Dragons’ captain McInnes hit back at those comments, saying: “It is pretty insulting. As a playing group we are pretty pissed off about that.

“For somebody who has absolutely no knowledge of what actually happens in here … to come out with something like that and heap more pressure on somebody who has already gone through a lot, to be honest is pretty disgusting.

“It shows the lengths people will go to almost kick a dog when they are down – I am pretty disgusted by it to be honest.”

But Hadley refused to back down from his claim of a rift in the playing group, taking full ownership of his previous comments.

“Well, it’s me Cameron. Me,” Hadley told 2GB on Friday.

“And I have been covering the game for a long, long time. I have a lot of contacts in the game, Cameron. I started covering it Cameron before you were born. But anyway, it’s me, Cameron.

“Now, (reading McInnes’ response) ‘McInnes even bristled that the Jack de Belin saga was a distraction’. Now Jack de Belin is facing serious charges and it is not his fault that he hasn’t had them finalised. It is a matter for the courts, when they are finalised.

“He is getting paid, and he trains with the team every week.

“Now I’ve said, and I will repeat today, there are people within the playing group who support Jack de Belin, and that would include obviously Cameron McInnes. And there are others who do not.

“Now, he said this to (journalist) Brent Read: ‘We have Jack who last time he played was one of the best forward’s in the game, each week he is helping us to prepare. So if you want to say it is a distraction, it has been going on for two years’.

“Well, that’s my very point Cameron. And apparently it has been lost on you.

“It has been going on for two years and the club is divided because of it.

“And I’d remind you Cameron and you don’t need reminding because it is rather unpleasant, the Dragons came second last, last year, in 2019. After Monday’s loss the Dragons have lost 18 of their past 22 matches.

“Why? Because this saga has been going on for two years. And it would illustrate to me that some people in the club are happy that Jack is being supported by the club and others are not. It is inescapable.

“How do I know? Well, Cameron, because other people within the club have told me.

“So, to try and explain it away by saying, ‘it is a distraction it has been going on for two’ … yes, it has. 18 of 22 games you’ve lost old mate. 18 of 22. Second last, last year.

“And if you think, or anyone else thinks, that replacing the coach Mary McGregor is going to make one iota of difference you are sadly mistaken. You are sadly mistaken. As I’ve said previously, you could get the late Jack Gibson there, you could get Wayne Bennett there, you could get Craig Bellamy there, you could get them all there, but they can’t solve the problem that is inherent in the club. They can’t solve that problem.”


Cameron McInnes claimed that the Dragons problems had nothing to do with coach McGregor or De Belin, but rather had a simple explanation – poor completion rates.

“Everyone has got a theory on why we aren’t performing. That’s rugby league – you’ve got to win and if you don’t questions are asked, we get that,” he said. “When I say I am disgusted by the article I am not shocked by it.

“The more media, the more shows there are, the more analysis there is, the more overthinking there is.

“But I am telling you right now, if we get our completion rate sorted it will be a different ball game out there.”


https://www.foxsports.com.au/nrl/nr...s/news-story/9a5c0cc307d20c00e8e76db294c00d97

Hadley is a complete farkwit I actually thought there might be something to the JDB situation until now but McInnes would have more credibility in his little finger to that raving lunatic

 

[piesplusreturns]

Hadley is a complete farkwit I actually thought there might be something to the JDB situation until now but McInnes would have more credibility in his little finger to that raving lunatic

Except it was posted by a forumite here before Hafley.

McInnes and Graham back the coach and the team, that's how they are programmed.

But its all still smoke and mirrors, the real issue, as it has been since forever, is governance.