Wittenberg
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True but that means another season of gloom and doom in 2020.
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True but that means another season of gloom and doom in 2020.
The St George Illawarra Dragons have lost their identity
Provided by Sporting News
They are one of the proudest clubs in rugby league history with some of the most passionate fans - but the St George Illawarra Dragons have completely lost their identity.
This has been coming for some time mind you, but heading into the 2020 NRL season it appears that the Red V have lost all sense of what made them great to begin with.
The fall of the Dragons is more complicated than what is happening on the field, where they finished 15th in 2019 - the lowest in their history.
St George's issues are deeper than losing games and players under-performing - it is widespread and it is cultural.
The Saints had one of the lowest average attendances of any NRL club in 2019, and that is clearly a response to the poor management as much as it is the results on the field.
A lot of the blame for the Dragons issues are linked back to Paul McGregor, who in six seasons as head coach has managed to make the finals just twice for a highest finish of 7th.
Ahead of the 2018 season he declared that he 'finally had the squad he wanted' and the side managed to go very close to a preliminary final. We'll give that a pass mark.
In 2019, they picked up Corey Norman and Korbin Sims and looked set to challenge for the NRL premiership - but losing Jack de Belin before the season had even started derailed things.
It set in motion a domino effect, amplified by the injury to Gareth Widdop in round 3 - that almost led to the side boycotting a game against Newcastle during the season.
Players were dropped in and out of the side, and by the time the Origin period finished they had a chance against the Raiders to turn things around and make a run for the finals.
But despite playing against 12 men for the majority of the second half, they were defeated 36-14 and from there the season continued to spiral.
After their season finished, the club held a review - and, apparently, McGregor is still the man to lead the club forward. Since then there have been some huge concerns.
Ben Hornby - a club legend and premiership-winning captain - was made a scapegoat and shown the door despite being well-liked and respected by players.
The former halfback has since moved to South Sydney and will hone his coaching craft under the legendary Wayne Bennett.
The man replacing Hornby is disgraced former Sharks coach Shane Flanagan - who has been at the centre of not one, but TWO cheating scandals for peptides and salary cap anomalies.
When the Dragons were at their peak there is no way that Flanagan, despite his strong coaching record, would have been welcomed so easily into the fold after past indiscretions.
Despite desperately needing outside backs, they opted to sign veteran hooker Issac Luke even though they have an 80-minute rake in Cameron McInnes already at the helm.
Reports surfaced last week that local junior Matt Dufty embarrasingly found out he wouldn't be first-choice fullback for 2020 in the Sunday paper, showing a clear lack of communication from the coach.
The 23-year old has been told he can look elswhere despite a stellar debut season in 2018 that saw him ink a rich new deal until the end of 2021, and is one of the side's biggest threats in attack.
Speaking of threats in attack - the club for some unknown reason released skilful back-rower Luciano Leilua to the Tigers despite the giant reportedly wanting to stay at the club long-term.
Another local junior, Leilua had been in the Dragons system since his early teens and was starting to come into his own in the NRL before being discarded by the Red V.
And his replacement is former Dragon Trent Merrin - who despite having a wealth of experience, is about five seasons past his best football and underperformed in the UK Super League.
The list of baffling decisions and internal issues is a mile long, and it has led to Dragons fans becoming increasingly disheartened with the club they love.
I need ideas on who I can support if I punt the dragons. Any club that sign Issac Luke and plays McInnes in the back row I can no longer commit to. 40+ years gone because of the imbicile running and coaching at the joint
— Benny (@saintbenny63) November 16, 2019
STGEORGE #ILLAWARRAMAFIA DRAGONS RECRUITMENT pic.twitter.com/nJSm5lObbE
— agrothedragon (@agrothedragon1) November 29, 2019
The first thing Wayne Bennett did when arriving at https://t.co/3Z7hM64Ok4 was fire that bum McGregor. Bennett doesn’t suffer fools. Good luck Ben Hornby, you might actually now learn what to do as a coach under Bennett, rather than what not to do under McGregor. @Mcgrexit#redvhttps://t.co/vJ08cFql4w
— Saint Benny (@Saint_Benny) November 28, 2019
Letting Leilua go for a bloke that severely underachieved in the Super League is the clubs way of admitting Mary and his coaching staff cannot develop talent. What a disgraceful decision #themyththatismary#2020spoon#maryout
— Murray23 (@murray23) November 29, 2019
2020 for the Dragons will largely depend on whether or not Jack de Belin successfully fights his sexual assault charges - but the issues are so deeply rooted.
Discarding club legends like Hornby or local juniors like Leilua is a clear sign that the Dragons have lost their way.
If things don't change soon, the once proud club will become even more of a shell of itself than it is right now.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/othe...a-dragons-have-lost-their-identity/ar-BBXCbk8
P.S Thanks Taxidriver
That was pretty much guaranteed when the 'Independent' report come out, confirming McGregors retention and minimal meaningful changes. You know deep down, those pair will be our centres whilst McGregor is in charge.
Yep the truth is starting to come to journalism surface (especially from the ones that matter more)..The St George Illawarra Dragons have lost their identity
They are one of the proudest clubs in rugby league history with some of the most passionate fans - but the St George Illawarra Dragons have completely lost their identity.
This has been coming for some time mind you, but heading into the 2020 NRL season it appears that the Red V have lost all sense of what made them great to begin with.
The fall of the Dragons is more complicated than what is happening on the field, where they finished 15th in 2019 - the lowest in their history.
St George's issues are deeper than losing games and players under-performing - it is widespread and it is cultural.
The Saints had one of the lowest average attendances of any NRL club in 2019, and that is clearly a response to the poor management as much as it is the results on the field.
A lot of the blame for the Dragons issues are linked back to Paul McGregor, who in six seasons as head coach has managed to make the finals just twice for a highest finish of 7th.
Ahead of the 2018 season he declared that he 'finally had the squad he wanted' and the side managed to go very close to a preliminary final. We'll give that a pass mark.
In 2019, they picked up Corey Norman and Korbin Sims and looked set to challenge for the NRL premiership - but losing Jack de Belin before the season had even started derailed things.
It set in motion a domino effect, amplified by the injury to Gareth Widdop in round 3 - that almost led to the side boycotting a game against Newcastle during the season.
Players were dropped in and out of the side, and by the time the Origin period finished they had a chance against the Raiders to turn things around and make a run for the finals.
But despite playing against 12 men for the majority of the second half, they were defeated 36-14 and from there the season continued to spiral.
After their season finished, the club held a review - and, apparently, McGregor is still the man to lead the club forward. Since then there have been some huge concerns.
Ben Hornby - a club legend and premiership-winning captain - was made a scapegoat and shown the door despite being well-liked and respected by players.
The former halfback has since moved to South Sydney and will hone his coaching craft under the legendary Wayne Bennett.
The man replacing Hornby is disgraced former Sharks coach Shane Flanagan - who has been at the centre of not one, but TWO cheating scandals for peptides and salary cap anomalies.
When the Dragons were at their peak there is no way that Flanagan, despite his strong coaching record, would have been welcomed so easily into the fold after past indiscretions.
Despite desperately needing outside backs, they opted to sign veteran hooker Issac Luke even though they have an 80-minute rake in Cameron McInnes already at the helm.
Reports surfaced last week that local junior Matt Dufty embarrasingly found out he wouldn't be first-choice fullback for 2020 in the Sunday paper, showing a clear lack of communication from the coach.
The 23-year old has been told he can look elswhere despite a stellar debut season in 2018 that saw him ink a rich new deal until the end of 2021, and is one of the side's biggest threats in attack.
Speaking of threats in attack - the club for some unknown reason released skilful back-rower Luciano Leilua to the Tigers despite the giant reportedly wanting to stay at the club long-term.
Another local junior, Leilua had been in the Dragons system since his early teens and was starting to come into his own in the NRL before being discarded by the Red V.
And his replacement is former Dragon Trent Merrin - who despite having a wealth of experience, is about five seasons past his best football and underperformed in the UK Super League.
The list of baffling decisions and internal issues is a mile long, and it has led to Dragons fans becoming increasingly disheartened with the club they love.
I need ideas on who I can support if I punt the dragons. Any club that sign Issac Luke and plays McInnes in the back row I can no longer commit to. 40+ years gone because of the imbicile running and coaching at the joint
— Benny (@saintbenny63) November 16, 2019
STGEORGE #ILLAWARRAMAFIA DRAGONS RECRUITMENT pic.twitter.com/nJSm5lObbE
— agrothedragon (@agrothedragon1) November 29, 2019
The first thing Wayne Bennett did when arriving at https://t.co/3Z7hM64Ok4 was fire that bum McGregor. Bennett doesn’t suffer fools. Good luck Ben Hornby, you might actually now learn what to do as a coach under Bennett, rather than what not to do under McGregor. @Mcgrexit#redvhttps://t.co/vJ08cFql4w
— Saint Benny (@Saint_Benny) November 28, 2019
Letting Leilua go for a bloke that severely underachieved in the Super League is the clubs way of admitting Mary and his coaching staff cannot develop talent. What a disgraceful decision #themyththatismary#2020spoon#maryout
— Murray23 (@murray23) November 29, 2019
2020 for the Dragons will largely depend on whether or not Jack de Belin successfully fights his sexual assault charges - but the issues are so deeply rooted.
Discarding club legends like Hornby or local juniors like Leilua is a clear sign that the Dragons have lost their way.
If things don't change soon, the once proud club will become even more of a shell of itself than it is right now.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/othe...a-dragons-have-lost-their-identity/ar-BBXCbk8
P.S Thanks Taxidriver
Its a real pity this is just Sporting News website and not coming from one of the big papers with a widespread audience. The club might actually take notice then. Unfortunately, they all just want to write fluff pieces about McGregor and the changes made and how hypothetically he is going to turn it around despite showing nothing worthy in the past 6 years. It really annoys me to no end the lack of coverage of his incompetence.The St George Illawarra Dragons have lost their identity
They are one of the proudest clubs in rugby league history with some of the most passionate fans - but the St George Illawarra Dragons have completely lost their identity.
This has been coming for some time mind you, but heading into the 2020 NRL season it appears that the Red V have lost all sense of what made them great to begin with.
The fall of the Dragons is more complicated than what is happening on the field, where they finished 15th in 2019 - the lowest in their history.
St George's issues are deeper than losing games and players under-performing - it is widespread and it is cultural.
The Saints had one of the lowest average attendances of any NRL club in 2019, and that is clearly a response to the poor management as much as it is the results on the field.
A lot of the blame for the Dragons issues are linked back to Paul McGregor, who in six seasons as head coach has managed to make the finals just twice for a highest finish of 7th.
Ahead of the 2018 season he declared that he 'finally had the squad he wanted' and the side managed to go very close to a preliminary final. We'll give that a pass mark.
In 2019, they picked up Corey Norman and Korbin Sims and looked set to challenge for the NRL premiership - but losing Jack de Belin before the season had even started derailed things.
It set in motion a domino effect, amplified by the injury to Gareth Widdop in round 3 - that almost led to the side boycotting a game against Newcastle during the season.
Players were dropped in and out of the side, and by the time the Origin period finished they had a chance against the Raiders to turn things around and make a run for the finals.
But despite playing against 12 men for the majority of the second half, they were defeated 36-14 and from there the season continued to spiral.
After their season finished, the club held a review - and, apparently, McGregor is still the man to lead the club forward. Since then there have been some huge concerns.
Ben Hornby - a club legend and premiership-winning captain - was made a scapegoat and shown the door despite being well-liked and respected by players.
The former halfback has since moved to South Sydney and will hone his coaching craft under the legendary Wayne Bennett.
The man replacing Hornby is disgraced former Sharks coach Shane Flanagan - who has been at the centre of not one, but TWO cheating scandals for peptides and salary cap anomalies.
When the Dragons were at their peak there is no way that Flanagan, despite his strong coaching record, would have been welcomed so easily into the fold after past indiscretions.
Despite desperately needing outside backs, they opted to sign veteran hooker Issac Luke even though they have an 80-minute rake in Cameron McInnes already at the helm.
Reports surfaced last week that local junior Matt Dufty embarrasingly found out he wouldn't be first-choice fullback for 2020 in the Sunday paper, showing a clear lack of communication from the coach.
The 23-year old has been told he can look elswhere despite a stellar debut season in 2018 that saw him ink a rich new deal until the end of 2021, and is one of the side's biggest threats in attack.
Speaking of threats in attack - the club for some unknown reason released skilful back-rower Luciano Leilua to the Tigers despite the giant reportedly wanting to stay at the club long-term.
Another local junior, Leilua had been in the Dragons system since his early teens and was starting to come into his own in the NRL before being discarded by the Red V.
And his replacement is former Dragon Trent Merrin - who despite having a wealth of experience, is about five seasons past his best football and underperformed in the UK Super League.
The list of baffling decisions and internal issues is a mile long, and it has led to Dragons fans becoming increasingly disheartened with the club they love.
I need ideas on who I can support if I punt the dragons. Any club that sign Issac Luke and plays McInnes in the back row I can no longer commit to. 40+ years gone because of the imbicile running and coaching at the joint
— Benny (@saintbenny63) November 16, 2019
STGEORGE #ILLAWARRAMAFIA DRAGONS RECRUITMENT pic.twitter.com/nJSm5lObbE
— agrothedragon (@agrothedragon1) November 29, 2019
The first thing Wayne Bennett did when arriving at https://t.co/3Z7hM64Ok4 was fire that bum McGregor. Bennett doesn’t suffer fools. Good luck Ben Hornby, you might actually now learn what to do as a coach under Bennett, rather than what not to do under McGregor. @Mcgrexit#redvhttps://t.co/vJ08cFql4w
— Saint Benny (@Saint_Benny) November 28, 2019
Letting Leilua go for a bloke that severely underachieved in the Super League is the clubs way of admitting Mary and his coaching staff cannot develop talent. What a disgraceful decision #themyththatismary#2020spoon#maryout
— Murray23 (@murray23) November 29, 2019
2020 for the Dragons will largely depend on whether or not Jack de Belin successfully fights his sexual assault charges - but the issues are so deeply rooted.
Discarding club legends like Hornby or local juniors like Leilua is a clear sign that the Dragons have lost their way.
If things don't change soon, the once proud club will become even more of a shell of itself than it is right now.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/othe...a-dragons-have-lost-their-identity/ar-BBXCbk8
P.S Thanks Taxidriver
And you get shit everywhere....
The St George Illawarra Dragons have lost their identity
The club is a laughing stock. The club and players have got 1 year to turn it all around or they will have no supporters going to games.
They are one of the proudest clubs in rugby league history with some of the most passionate fans - but the St George Illawarra Dragons have completely lost their identity.
This has been coming for some time mind you, but heading into the 2020 NRL season it appears that the Red V have lost all sense of what made them great to begin with.
The fall of the Dragons is more complicated than what is happening on the field, where they finished 15th in 2019 - the lowest in their history.
St George's issues are deeper than losing games and players under-performing - it is widespread and it is cultural.
The Saints had one of the lowest average attendances of any NRL club in 2019, and that is clearly a response to the poor management as much as it is the results on the field.
A lot of the blame for the Dragons issues are linked back to Paul McGregor, who in six seasons as head coach has managed to make the finals just twice for a highest finish of 7th.
Ahead of the 2018 season he declared that he 'finally had the squad he wanted' and the side managed to go very close to a preliminary final. We'll give that a pass mark.
In 2019, they picked up Corey Norman and Korbin Sims and looked set to challenge for the NRL premiership - but losing Jack de Belin before the season had even started derailed things.
It set in motion a domino effect, amplified by the injury to Gareth Widdop in round 3 - that almost led to the side boycotting a game against Newcastle during the season.
Players were dropped in and out of the side, and by the time the Origin period finished they had a chance against the Raiders to turn things around and make a run for the finals.
But despite playing against 12 men for the majority of the second half, they were defeated 36-14 and from there the season continued to spiral.
After their season finished, the club held a review - and, apparently, McGregor is still the man to lead the club forward. Since then there have been some huge concerns.
Ben Hornby - a club legend and premiership-winning captain - was made a scapegoat and shown the door despite being well-liked and respected by players.
The former halfback has since moved to South Sydney and will hone his coaching craft under the legendary Wayne Bennett.
The man replacing Hornby is disgraced former Sharks coach Shane Flanagan - who has been at the centre of not one, but TWO cheating scandals for peptides and salary cap anomalies.
When the Dragons were at their peak there is no way that Flanagan, despite his strong coaching record, would have been welcomed so easily into the fold after past indiscretions.
Despite desperately needing outside backs, they opted to sign veteran hooker Issac Luke even though they have an 80-minute rake in Cameron McInnes already at the helm.
Reports surfaced last week that local junior Matt Dufty embarrasingly found out he wouldn't be first-choice fullback for 2020 in the Sunday paper, showing a clear lack of communication from the coach.
The 23-year old has been told he can look elswhere despite a stellar debut season in 2018 that saw him ink a rich new deal until the end of 2021, and is one of the side's biggest threats in attack.
Speaking of threats in attack - the club for some unknown reason released skilful back-rower Luciano Leilua to the Tigers despite the giant reportedly wanting to stay at the club long-term.
Another local junior, Leilua had been in the Dragons system since his early teens and was starting to come into his own in the NRL before being discarded by the Red V.
And his replacement is former Dragon Trent Merrin - who despite having a wealth of experience, is about five seasons past his best football and underperformed in the UK Super League.
The list of baffling decisions and internal issues is a mile long, and it has led to Dragons fans becoming increasingly disheartened with the club they love.
I need ideas on who I can support if I punt the dragons. Any club that sign Issac Luke and plays McInnes in the back row I can no longer commit to. 40+ years gone because of the imbicile running and coaching at the joint
— Benny (@saintbenny63) November 16, 2019
STGEORGE #ILLAWARRAMAFIA DRAGONS RECRUITMENT pic.twitter.com/nJSm5lObbE
— agrothedragon (@agrothedragon1) November 29, 2019
The first thing Wayne Bennett did when arriving at https://t.co/3Z7hM64Ok4 was fire that bum McGregor. Bennett doesn’t suffer fools. Good luck Ben Hornby, you might actually now learn what to do as a coach under Bennett, rather than what not to do under McGregor. @Mcgrexit#redvhttps://t.co/vJ08cFql4w
— Saint Benny (@Saint_Benny) November 28, 2019
Letting Leilua go for a bloke that severely underachieved in the Super League is the clubs way of admitting Mary and his coaching staff cannot develop talent. What a disgraceful decision #themyththatismary#2020spoon#maryout
— Murray23 (@murray23) November 29, 2019
2020 for the Dragons will largely depend on whether or not Jack de Belin successfully fights his sexual assault charges - but the issues are so deeply rooted.
Discarding club legends like Hornby or local juniors like Leilua is a clear sign that the Dragons have lost their way.
If things don't change soon, the once proud club will become even more of a shell of itself than it is right now.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/othe...a-dragons-have-lost-their-identity/ar-BBXCbk8
P.S Thanks Taxidriver
Sorry slippery have to disagree about the cattle. Forwards ok if they are injury free and work together but they don't stack up against Melbourne, Raiders, Roosters even Brisbane. Our outside backs including fullback are shockers wouldn't feed them. Lomax too young as is Saab.
Was it the song or band Deck Chairs Overboard I check internet's
Have read in the media that he was prepared to stay at Saints and sign a three year contract. Apparently only a one year extension was offered and when Luc asked them to reconsider their stance the Club started offering him around. All of a sudden Luc wanted to leave. I sort of understand why he ended up “happy “ to leave .
Just imagine if we were called the Titans.
