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Narrow focus paying off for McGregor
Mitch Jennings@@Mitch_Jenno
30 Mar 2017, 3:25 p.m.
SHORT GAME: Dragons coach Paul McGregor has benefitted from a short-term mindset in 2017. Picture: Getty Images
ST GEORGE Illawarra coach Paul McGregor knows better than most how it feels to be in interim Wests Tigers coach Andrew Webster’s shoes.
McGregor was thrust into the same role at the Dragons following the sacking of Steve Price in round 12, 2014. Like Webster, he lost his first game in charge but went on to win seven of 13 games to earn the full-time gig at the club for three seasons.
With Ivan Cleary waiting in the wings, it’s unlikely Webster will have that long in the job, but McGregor can still empathise with his counterpart in Sunday’s round five clash at ANZ Stadium.
“It’s difficult. In a short time you’ve just got to to the best you can and I’m sure that’s what [Webster’s] working towards,” McGregor said.
“How much change you can make in a short period is minimal. You’ve just got to make sure that you do your best and I’m sure he’s done that and it certainly showed last week in the first 40 minutes they played against Melbourne. [Our] boys have had a couple of tough weeks and are coming up against a side that will be desperate and looking to really build on their first half last week.”
Jason Taylor’s sacking came as the Tigers’ so-called ‘big four’ of Aaron Woods, James Tedesco, Mitch Moses and Luke Brooks continue prolonged contract negotiations with the club, something many point to as a destabilising influence.
It’s something McGregor dealt with in a tough second year at the helm of the Dragons, admitting ongoing contract speculation surrounding the likes of Benji Marshall and Mitch Rein, who subsequently moved on, hampered the club’s 2016 campaign.
With stars like Gareth Widdop and Josh Dugan off-contract this year, McGregor – who is also without a deal for 2018 – said it was important he take a step back from recruitment this season and focus purely on coaching. It’s proven a fruitful approach with the club sitting in third spot after four rounds, a start McGregor attributes to his short-term focus.
“We had a really good look at our systems at the back end of last year with [2017] being my last year under contract at the club, and it was important that the focus for me was solely on footy and the players I have on my roster,” McGregor said.
“I have empathy around anyone off-contract, it’s a pretty important part of their lives, but the best thing the players can do is go out there and play well for each other and for themselves. They’re doing a very good job at the minute, all those guys who are off-contract, and from the club’s perspective we’ve got Ian Millward looking after that side of it.
“For me it’s just about preparing the boys to play well through the week to give them the best opportunity to go out there and put themselves on the best show on the weekend.
Under pressure at the start of the season, McGregor has done his chances of earning a new deal no harm with the performances he’s extracted from his side over the opening four rounds but he remains unburdened by speculation about his future.
“It’s great when you enjoy what you’re doing and I’ve always done that,” he said.
“It’s certainly challenging at times but pressure’s a privilege in rugby league and in any sport when you’re at the top level. Any pressure that you have is a pressure that you’ve got to enjoy because if it’s taken away from you it means you’re not at the top anymore.”
http://www.illawarramercury.com.au/story/4566422/narrow-focus-paying-off-for-mcgregor/?cs=3713
