Round 16 vs Titans

[Crush]

I would have contacted Wane and Griffin to ask them if they are interested in the head coach job before I sacked Mary. If one of them said yes under terms that were suitable to both parties. I would announced the appointment of the new coach about an hour after announcing the departure of Mary. And I would leave it up to the new coach to select his staff.

Bennett, Bellamy, Fitzgibbon all have said that they are not available. Wane and Griffin remain available so those are the people I would immediately approach to fill the position. Both have a track record and both could do the job well. By doing it this way, the new coach would have the rest of the season to sort out his roster and train/coach his squad in the way he wants and to his standards.

No offence but you live in a fantasy land.

 

[Dragonslayer]

I would have contacted Wane and Griffin to ask them if they are interested in the head coach job before I sacked Mary. If one of them said yes under terms that were suitable to both parties. I would announced the appointment of the new coach about an hour after announcing the departure of Mary. And I would leave it up to the new coach to select his staff.

Bennett, Bellamy, Fitzgibbon all have said that they are not available. Wane and Griffin remain available so those are the people I would immediately approach to fill the position. Both have a track record and both could do the job well. By doing it this way, the new coach would have the rest of the season to sort out his roster and train/coach his squad in the way he wants and to his standards.

Issue here Possm is that Mary wasn't sacked. He was going finish at least this season but due to the 'selection' committee which he stated wasnt working, he himself decided to step down.

 

[Old Timer]

Has Flanno said he is leaving? And did he say he was taking Shepherd ? Or did Shepherd say he was going? Not that I care too much although thought he might be hanging around to help Young or some other plan was planned.

Flanno only signed with us for 1 year as did Shepherd and not a single word about them being extended.

 

[redv13]

No offence but you live in a fantasy land.

Possm world where things are a tad different

 

[Brutalitops]

I would have contacted Wane and Griffin to ask them if they are interested in the head coach job before I sacked Mary. If one of them said yes under terms that were suitable to both parties. I would announced the appointment of the new coach about an hour after announcing the departure of Mary. And I would leave it up to the new coach to select his staff.

Bennett, Bellamy, Fitzgibbon all have said that they are not available. Wane and Griffin remain available so those are the people I would immediately approach to fill the position. Both have a track record and both could do the job well. By doing it this way, the new coach would have the rest of the season to sort out his roster and train/coach his squad in the way he wants and to his standards.

Possm posts are usually fantasy land type stuff as it is, but suggesting the immediate appointment of Shaun Wane an hour after the Mary sacking to see out season 2020 when he is in fact in the UK is right up there with science fiction.

Season would be over before he could even be in the same room as the players.

 

[possm]

Possm posts are usually fantasy land type stuff as it is, but suggesting the immediate appointment of Shaun Wane an hour after the Mary sacking to see out season 2020 when he is in fact in the UK is right up there with science fiction.

Season would be over before he could even be in the same room as the players.

Wane and Griffin aren't under contract coaching a club. Our Board should have prepared for May's sacking two weeks before and decided on a replacement a short time before that. I grant that Wane has some hurdles to get here quickly because of the covert 19 virus however, it can be done and he just has to go into quarantine for a couple of weeks. As for Griffin he could have been slotted in right away.

The Board always trying to please Mary, agreed to let him resign rather than sacking him; it looks better on a resume.

 

[Smurf]

Very honest

https://www.dragons.com.au/news/2020/08/27/coachs-preview-round-16-v-titans/
https://www.dragons.com.au/news/2020/08/27/coachs-preview-round-16-v-titans/

 

[denis preston]

Very honest

https://www.dragons.com.au/news/2020/08/27/coachs-preview-round-16-v-titans/
https://www.dragons.com.au/news/2020/08/27/coachs-preview-round-16-v-titans/

Fair enough.Sensible that whilst they are a mathematical chance to make the semis he needs to be responsible and pick the best side.I'only hope that once we are definitely out he gives some of the younger blokes a go. Looks like he is taking training application as part of his selection criteria as well. Just hope that is for everyone not just the kids in the squad. Cant see Merrin as being their best trainer .

 

[True_Believer]

Looks like he is taking training application as part of his selection criteria as well.

I think this is a very valid point to make and something we are not privy to. I for one as a fan don't want Dean to just hand a position over to a player who isn't putting in at training just because one of the team had a bad game.

It sends the wrong message to the player and the team and means he's already back tracking on the standards he wants to set.

 

[possm]

Fair enough.Sensible that whilst they are a mathematical chance to make the semis he needs to be responsible and pick the best side.I'only hope that once we are definitely out he gives some of the younger blokes a go. Looks like he is taking training application as part of his selection criteria as well. Just hope that is for everyone not just the kids in the squad. Cant see Merrin as being their best trainer .

Didn't Merrin and Young play together for the Dragons?

 

[Walpole]

Possm posts are usually fantasy land type stuff as it is, but suggesting the immediate appointment of Shaun Wane an hour after the Mary sacking to see out season 2020 when he is in fact in the UK is right up there with science fiction.

Season would be over before he could even be in the same room as the players.

In the current environment we would have needed to get Wane on a plane (hey, that rhymes) 2 weeks before McGregor was sacked just so he could go through quarantine first. They could have done the announcement out the front of the nearest travelodge as Wane came out wearing a Red V face mask.

 

[getsmarty]

Coach's preview: Round 16 v Titans
Dragons interim head coach Dean Young speaks to the media ahead of our Round 16 clash against the Titans.

https://www.dragons.com.au/news/2020/08/27/coachs-preview-round-16-v-titans/

 

[getsmarty]

We want to finish strong': Finals not out of the question
Corey Norman and Euan Aitken discuss a range of topics including the Dragons' ambitions to play finals footy.

https://www.dragons.com.au/news/2020/08/26/we-want-to-finish-strong-finals-not-out-of-the-question/

 

[possm]

In the current environment we would have needed to get Wane on a plane (hey, that rhymes) 2 weeks before McGregor was sacked just so he could go through quarantine first. They could have done the announcement out the front of the nearest travelodge as Wane came out wearing a Red V face mask.

You got it! See that was not so hard after all.

 

[SBD82]

Didn't Merrin and Young play together for the Dragons?

I seem to remember they played a pretty significant game together.

What’s your point?

 

[TruSaint]

I seem to remember they played a pretty significant game together.

Not sure.

 

[getsmarty]

TEAM LISTS


Presented By

24-hour warning: Round 16 v Titans
Author
Dragons.com.au dragons.com.au
Timestamp
Thu 27 Aug 2020, 06:00 PM

St George Illawarra interim coach Dean Young has trimmed his squad to 19 ahead of the Dragons' Round 16 clash against the Gold Coast Titans at Netstrata Jubilee Stadium, Kogarah on Friday, August 28.

Paul Vaughan (suspension) and Korbin Sims (calf strain) are both absent - with the latter's return time frame yet to be determined. Jackson Ford (suspension) and Billy Brittain are named in their place on the interchange.

Jayden Sullivan and Max Feagai are the players to drop out of Tuesday's initial 21-man squad.

Amended NRL squad for Round 16 v Gold Coast Titans –
1. Matt Dufty – sponsored by EFEX
2. Jordan Pereira – sponsored by Wollongong Jetski
3. Euan Aitken – sponsored by Stonemasons & Landscapers (since 1970)
4. Zac Lomax – sponsored by Floormania
5. Mikaele Ravalawa – sponsored by Nutrition Station
6. Corey Norman – sponsored by Kingsgrove Sports Centre
7. Adam Clune – sponsored by Baytek Construction
8. Blake Lawrie – sponsored by SMAI
9. Ben Hunt – sponsored by Paul's Customs and Forwarding Solutions
10. Josh Kerr – sponsored by Professionals Padstow
11. Tyson Frizell – sponsored by Modus Projects
12. Jacob Host – sponsored by Fox Property
13. Cameron McInnes (c) – sponsored by Dincel Construction System

Interchange:
14 Kaide Ellis – sponsored by TripADeal
15. Trent Merrin – sponsored by CMG Audio Visual
16. Jackson Ford – sponsored by Bodytech Fitness
17. Billy Brittain – sponsored by St.George Bank
18. Eddie Blacker
19. Tristan Sailor

https://www.dragons.com.au/news/2020/08/27/nrl-team-round-16-v-gold-coast-titans/

 

[getsmarty]

Dragons hopes shot without NRL improvement

• National Sport News
  
  
  
  Interim coach Dean Young is not content despite two NRL wins on the trot for St George Illawarra.
  St George Illawarra haven't won three NRL games in a row this season and tough-marking interim coach Dean Young says they won't unless there's improvement.
  
  In the past two weeks the Dragons have scored tight wins over Parramatta and Brisbane but Young is looking for a more consistent performance against Gold Coast on Friday.
  
  The Dragons led 12-0 after six minutes against the Broncos last week, allowed their opponents back into the game before holding on for a four-point win.
  
  The victory meant they're still a mathematical chance of making the NRL finals if they win all their remaining games, but Young said it seems "far away' at the moment.
  
  "It we don't improve on the performance against the Broncos, we won't get the job done against the Titans. We need to improve," he said on Thursday.
  
  "I thought they competed for the full 80 minutes two weeks in a row but the challenge for this group now is to compete harder in those 80 minutes, that's what I'm looking for."
  
  The Dragons will be without suspended State of Origin prop Paul Vaughan for the next two weeks - the result of a crusher tackle in his first game back from a 14-day COVID-19 hold.
  
  The Titans have their own problems with Nathan Peats (calf) joining Queensland lock Jai Arrow and centre Dale Copley in the casualty ward.
  
  Forward Moeaki Fotuaika is suspended for a week for a crusher tackle.
  
  While they have lost two games on the bounce, there's a more telling streak Gold Coast will need to overcome at Kogarah.
  
  The Titans have lost their past seven games in NSW, winning only two of their past 14 games in the state - both at Lottoland.
  
  However, Young has a long history with newly re-signed Titans coach Justin Holbrook and knows better than to take the side lightly.
  
  "I've known Justin for a long time, he captain-coached Dapto from where I'm from, so I had a couple of good mates in the side when he won that comp down there for Dapto as a halfback," Young said.
  
  "He coached at the 20s for the Dragons so I had a bit of association there and I think he's done a wonderful job with the titans.
  
  "What Justin does is give his players confidence, especially with the ball, to throw the ball around.
  
  "The Titans are playing some attractive footy and if you're not connected in your D-line and not focused defensively they'll score points, so we're ready for them."
  
  Australian Associated Press

https://www.standard.net.au/story/6899058/dragons-hopes-shot-without-nrl-improvement/?cs=10268

 

[getsmarty]

• 
  NRL: Dragons coach Dean Young thinks in-game rest for hooker Ben Hunt could unlock his best
  Ben Hunt has excelled at hooker for St George Illawarra, but interim coach Dean Young believes he can be even better with a spell during matches.
  
  Matt Logue
  NCA NewsWire
  August 27, 20206:15pm
  St George Illawarra interim coach Dean Young has revealed he plans to rest hooker Ben Hunt at stages through Friday’s game against the Gold Coast in a bid to make him a more dangerous player.
  
  Young commended Hunt for his successful switch to hooker at club level but believes he could be even more potent with a spell on the sideline.
  
  It’s why the Dragons mentor has chosen rising hooker Billy Brittain on the bench as cover for his starting No.9.
  
  “It isn’t easy in the middle when you are the size of Cam McInnes or Hunty,” Young said.
  
  “You’ve got 115 kilo bodies running at you for 80 minutes – it takes its toll.
  
  “I think if we can find Hunty a spell, then we are going to find even better footy out of him.
  
  “He is playing some good footy at the moment, but I think it will improve if we can find him a spell somewhere.”
  
  Dean Young fields questions from the media on our Round 16 clash with the Titans #redv pic.twitter.com/rPfPPX1VDs
  
  — St George Illawarra Dragons (@NRL_Dragons) August 27, 2020
  Young is equally confident in Brittain, the reigning Canterbury Cup player of the year who after being let go by South Sydney last year was offered a four week train-and-trial deal by the Dragons.
  
  “Billy is everything that I love in a player,” he said.
  
  “He rocks up to work every day, he rips into his training and he competes hard.
  
  “Billy has earned his right through training to come on to the interchange bench and show me what he has got.”
  
  The Dragons will be without representative prop Paul Vaughan after he copped the early guilty plea on a grade one crusher charge and has been suspended for two weeks.
  
  Vaughan was placed on report midway through the first half of the Dragons‘ tight win over Brisbane last Friday night for a tackle on Broncos winger Richard Kennar.
  
  Young concedes the Dragons will miss their Blues Origin bookend, but he has challenged other players to step up in his absence.
  
  “It isn’t ideal having Tariq, Korbin (Sims) or Vaughan out, but that just creates an opportunity for someone else to go in and there and do their best,” he said.
  
  “Vaughany missed two weeks, we get him back for a week and now he is gone for another two.
  
  “But with the NRL sending out emails to all the clubs about cracking down on those sorts of (tackles) it wasn’t worth the fight and the chance of missing him for three weeks.”
  
  With St George Illawarra still an outside chance of making the finals, Young declared he will focus on the present.
  
  The Dragons are four points outside the top eight with five regular season rounds remaining before the finals.
  
  “I’ll be picking the best available team to go out and win the game and I won’t be looking towards the future,” he said.
  
  “Down the track my thoughts on that might change but mathematically we can still make the finals, so I’ll be picking the side to get the job done.
  
  “I suppose if we win every game, we are a chance but that seems like a fair way away at the moment.”
  
  https://www.news.com.au/sport/nrl/d...t/news-story/5fb1b96ae4bdc594479337c72252de50

 

[Dragon David]

Wane and Griffin aren't under contract coaching a club. Our Board should have prepared for May's sacking two weeks before and decided on a replacement a short time before that. I grant that Wane has some hurdles to get here quickly because of the covert 19 virus however, it can be done and he just has to go into quarantine for a couple of weeks. As for Griffin he could have been slotted in right away.

The Board always trying to please Mary, agreed to let him resign rather than sacking him; it looks better on a resume.

Hey Possm. Is covert19 a new virus that has hit Australia? We are still suffering the effects of COVID 19 so will covert 19 close down rugby league like COVID 19 initially did?