Front Office

[Eric]

St George Illawarra Dragons board of directors wish to advise that Craig Young has formally commenced his new role as club chairman.
Young's long history and wealth of experience as a player, coach and administrator extends to all levels of rugby league including local, club, state and national teams.

Young has acted as a St George Illawarra board member and the club's integrity officer more recently, in addition to his long-held role as St George District chairman.
Young also previously had an esteemed career with the New South Wales Police Force.
As per the agreement established upon WIN's acquisition of the Illawarra component of the joint venture in 2018, Young replaces Andrew Gordon as chairman. Gordon remains on the Dragons' board.
"It's an honour to be appointed chairman of the St George Illawarra Dragons," Young said.
"I'd like to thank Andrew for his leadership over the past three years in what has been a very difficult period for the club.
"One of my key focuses will be to ensure the discipline and connection across the entirety of this proud organisation continues to progress in a positive manner."
"I, like our valued members, partners and fans, expect a competitive team. I am confident we have the right coaching and performance staff in place to get the best out of the squad so we are regularly competing in finals football."

---

Anyone have any thoughts on this? I really don't know much about what's what in the front office.

 

[RedV01]

St George Illawarra Dragons board of directors wish to advise that Craig Young has formally commenced his new role as club chairman.
Young's long history and wealth of experience as a player, coach and administrator extends to all levels of rugby league including local, club, state and national teams.

Young has acted as a St George Illawarra board member and the club's integrity officer more recently, in addition to his long-held role as St George District chairman.
Young also previously had an esteemed career with the New South Wales Police Force.
As per the agreement established upon WIN's acquisition of the Illawarra component of the joint venture in 2018, Young replaces Andrew Gordon as chairman. Gordon remains on the Dragons' board.
"It's an honour to be appointed chairman of the St George Illawarra Dragons," Young said.
"I'd like to thank Andrew for his leadership over the past three years in what has been a very difficult period for the club.
"One of my key focuses will be to ensure the discipline and connection across the entirety of this proud organisation continues to progress in a positive manner."
"I, like our valued members, partners and fans, expect a competitive team. I am confident we have the right coaching and performance staff in place to get the best out of the squad so we are regularly competing in finals football."

---

Anyone have any thoughts on this? I really don't know much about what's what in the front office.

They are probably hunkering down to avoid Covid.

 

[Morgan]

St George Illawarra Dragons board of directors wish to advise that Craig Young has formally commenced his new role as club chairman.
Young's long history and wealth of experience as a player, coach and administrator extends to all levels of rugby league including local, club, state and national teams.

Young has acted as a St George Illawarra board member and the club's integrity officer more recently, in addition to his long-held role as St George District chairman.
Young also previously had an esteemed career with the New South Wales Police Force.

As per the agreement established upon WIN's acquisition of the Illawarra component of the joint venture in 2018, Young replaces Andrew Gordon as chairman. Gordon remains on the Dragons' board.

"It's an honour to be appointed chairman of the St George Illawarra Dragons," Young said. "I'd like to thank Andrew for his leadership over the past three years in what has been a very difficult period for the club. "One of my key focuses will be to ensure the discipline and connection across the entirety of this proud organisation continues to progress in a positive manner." "I, like our valued members, partners and fans, expect a competitive team.

I am confident we have the right coaching and performance staff in place to get the best out of the squad so we are regularly competing in finals football."

---

Anyone have any thoughts on this? I really don't know much about what's what in the front office.

My only thoughts are good luck to Craig Young. Not sure if he had much to do with retaining Price and Baldy McGregor for so long but if he did, hope he has learned his lesson. No old boys as coach unless they have served a lengthy apprenticeship elsewhere.

 

[Chris M]

My only thoughts are good luck to Craig Young. Not sure if he had much to do with retaining Price and Baldy McGregor for so long but if he did, hope he has learned his lesson. No old boys as coach unless they have served a lengthy apprenticeship elsewhere.

Craig Young is a Covid hospitalization just waiting to happen! I agree, good luck to him.

 

[Eric]

NRL: Paul Smith reveals how close he came to buying St George Illawarra Dragons​

Multi-millionaire Paul Smith thought he had a deal to buy the St George Illawarra Dragons in 2018 but the Sydney Kings owner reveals how it all fell apart.

Sydney Kings owner Paul Smith has lifted the lid on how close he came to buying St George Illawarra — admitting he’s glad the deal fell through because “I can’t work with people I can’t trust”.

The multi-millionaire agreed to be interviewed as part of a two-part series that delves into the merge of the once mighty St George Dragons and the blue-collar club from Illawarra, the Steelers.

Ahead of an uncertain 2022 season for the club, ‘The rise and fall of the Mighty Red V’ explores the success and failures of the joint venture, through the eyes of the club’s most influential figures.

Smith’s opinion is that the merger “should never have happened — it was poor decision-making” and that the Illawarra should have its “own team”. “As disappointed as I was at the time, I laugh at how gullible I was,” he said. “It was a huge lesson for me about how Australian business is done. “The fish rots from the head. Now it is a two-headed fish – you have the Gordons on one side and the Dragons on the other.”

Over an extended period in late 2018, Smith held high-level talks with Dragons powerbrokers over buying out the financially-stricken Illawarra side of the joint venture.

Smith had served as chief executive of sports consulting firm he founded – Repucom – for more than a decade before selling the company for nearly $300 million. He was preparing to plough some of that windfall into St George Illawarra. His love affair with their region’s NRL team has been badly strained in the wake of the failed talks that eventually resulted in the WIN Group buying 50 per cent of the Dragons.

After a meeting at St George Leagues Club in 2018, Smith was convinced a deal was on the verge of being done. That was, until he was overcome by a sense of dread.

“The strangest question we got was after I thought we had agreed to terms – everyone was nodding and winking in the room,” Smith recalls. He says he was asked: ‘What are your thoughts on getting a new CEO?’ “It was a conversation point multiple times along the way,” Smith says. “I thought we had gone over it several times. What we had said consistently is we don’t think you should hire anyone.

I thought we had a deal, frankly. “They could have pulled me aside and said, ‘Listen mate, we have a bit of a problem here, we love you but Johnno has to be CEO’. “I would have said, ‘No worries, make him CEO as long as he doesn’t get in my way’. No one ever said a word. “We jumped in our cars, happy days, thought we had done the deal. The next morning, good night. We were a stalking horse in all of it. “We got played a little bit.”

Smith recalls talks with the Dragons through a prism of suspicion and regret. “I get so many questions or people contact me about it,” Smith said. “My take on it all was the Gordons were always the preferred landing point. “They were playing hardball. I was certainly couched as a wolf in sheep’s clothing by the St George people.

They thought I was an Illawarra guy and would be another problem. “I think we offered $11.5 million cash. That would have made the Illawarra side of it whole. I know (WIN) pulled up about $5 million short on our offer. “I think we were played and there were occasions where we were lied to in the process by people with some reputations. “If that is the way they are going to handle themselves, it wouldn’t have worked. My mind would have exploded, I can’t work with people I can’t trust. “I feel sad for it and sad for the development of the game. Illawarra deserves its own team back as much as that would horrify people.’’

Other interviewees who will feature in the two-part special include Brian Johnston, David Waite and Andrew Gordon. Peter Doust declined to be involved.

How WIN was one​

The joint venture was tipped to be a financial juggernaut but by the early 2000s, Illawarra was failing to contribute its financial share. That forced St George Leagues Club to stump up millions of dollars in loans to the Steelers. The debt was nearing $10 million when WIN Corporation intervened in 2006.

WIN bought 24 per cent of the Steelers’ half-share of the joint venture and repaid $6.5m to St George Leagues Club as part of the deal, with Andrew Gordon given a seat on the St George Illawarra board and a guarantee matches would remain being played at WIN Stadium in Wollongong.

With the Steelers nearing insolvency, the Dragons started protracted negotiations with WIN to come on as equal partners as far back as 2015.

In 2018, the WIN Group found itself embroiled in a bidding war with Total Sport and Entertainment — led by founder and chairman Paul Smith — to take over the entire Illawarra stake.

St George Leagues Club considered buying full control of the Dragons but eventually a deal was made with WIN for a 50 per cent share. St George and WIN make up an even split of the St George Illawarra board with Gordon installed as chairman in 2018.

“Over time, our involvement at board level led to the view WIN could add value in other areas to the NRL club if an ownership position was taken up,” Gordon said. “WIN also viewed its alignment to the free-to-air NRL broadcaster and own involvement in free-to-air television as a positive for the club.”

WIN’s first task was paying off the $6m debt the Dragons owed the NRL. Brian Johnston replaced Peter Doust, who would not be interviewed for this story, as chief executive for a second stint but was in the role for just 18 months. He insists WIN was a natural fit. “St George Leagues Club carried the financial burden,” Johnston said. “It’s enabled the leagues club to get ahead again with significant money in the bank.

---

One-sided story. I bet the other side would have a different story to tell. It's too bad things didn't work out with Johnston. He was a loyal servant of the club.

 

[Eric]

Andrew Abdo rejects talk of an impending pay war with the RLPA​

Players are in dark over what they will be paid next season and there is a sense of urgency as salary cap talks ramp up.

NRL chief executive Andrew Abdo has played down rumours the code is on the brink of another civil war as he prepares to ramp up negotiations with the players union over the salary cap.

Players are in dark over what they will be paid next season and there is a sense of urgency where the union is concerned around the negotiations now that the NRL has finalised its billion-dollar broadcasting deal for the next five years. Pay talks between the NRL and their players have traditionally been volatile affairs and there is a private view among many in the game that dissent is inevitable.

It means the coming months could prove challenging for Abdo and ARL Commission chair Peter V’landys as they attempt to appease a playing group who have endured pay cuts over the past two seasons to help the game through the Covid crisis.

Those same players have no doubt watched on with interest in recent months as the code has trumpeted a record broadcasting deal, which is likely to be supplemented before the start of the season when the game extends its naming rights agreement with Telstra.

In a warning shot across the NRL’s bow, it's understood the union has asked to be given access to the game’s finances, which were rubber-stamped by the ARL Commission on Monday.

Abdo and his Rugby League players Association counterpart Clint Newton will be the men in the hotseat, charged with striking a deal that is expected to make the players richer than at any point in the game’s history.

“You never start expecting or looking for a stink,” Abdo said on Thursday at a joint press conference with premier Dominic Perrotet to announce that there would be pop-up vaccination clinics at Saturday night’s All Stars game. “When we work together — all of us inside the game — we can get amazing results. As a result we have led in a number of different areas. We talk to the players and the players’ association often; the discussions will always be robust but they will be respectful. “That’s been my experience so far and I expect that to continue.”

Newton added: “I will always start any type of negotiation with a healthy level of optimism. Our position will be clear.

“We want to create very clear separation from ourselves and every other code in this region by having the best terms and conditions for NRL and NRLW players. “It is really pretty simple. Given Peter and Andrew’s competitive nature, you would have to suggest they would be very much aligned with us. “When you take into account the invaluable and essential contribution players can make, I don’t see why that shouldn’t be our No.1 focus.

“By securing the best terms and conditions in our region, there can be no mistaking that rugby league for men and women in this country will be the sport of choice.”

Prior to the Covid pay cuts, the salary cap was scheduled to be $10 million this season with additional allowances for veteran players and the development list. That figure is expected to be the starting point for negotiations over the cap for 2023. Abdo, however, insisted it was important to balance the interests of the players with the need to propagate the game and ring-fence the code’s financial future by investing in assets.

The ARL Commission has raised the prospect of investing in its own stadium or buying a share of Super League. The players will be at the front of the queue, jostling with the clubs for their share of rugby league’s rivers of gold.

“We have worked really hard on stabilising revenue, we have worked really hard on making sure we are more efficient at head office,” Abdo said. “So any surplus we have is there to reinvest back into the game. A couple of points on that — Covid has been a big investment for us. We are not out of the woods yet. You need to plan for the future and you can’t just think about the next year or the next five years. “You need to think long term.”

---

Talking of front office. Did these f**kers also take a pay cut due to Covid? I know they blithely dismissed St George Illawarra's concerns about how it was disadvantaged by the JDB saga. At least publicly. But then the RLPA also made a few statements about how it's unfair but then true to form, did absolutely nothing! In a perfect world, the RLPA would go to war with the NRL head office and they would take each other out!

 

[RedV01]

Andrew Abdo rejects talk of an impending pay war with the RLPA​

Players are in dark over what they will be paid next season and there is a sense of urgency as salary cap talks ramp up.

NRL chief executive Andrew Abdo has played down rumours the code is on the brink of another civil war as he prepares to ramp up negotiations with the players union over the salary cap.

Players are in dark over what they will be paid next season and there is a sense of urgency where the union is concerned around the negotiations now that the NRL has finalised its billion-dollar broadcasting deal for the next five years. Pay talks between the NRL and their players have traditionally been volatile affairs and there is a private view among many in the game that dissent is inevitable.

It means the coming months could prove challenging for Abdo and ARL Commission chair Peter V’landys as they attempt to appease a playing group who have endured pay cuts over the past two seasons to help the game through the Covid crisis.

Those same players have no doubt watched on with interest in recent months as the code has trumpeted a record broadcasting deal, which is likely to be supplemented before the start of the season when the game extends its naming rights agreement with Telstra.

In a warning shot across the NRL’s bow, it's understood the union has asked to be given access to the game’s finances, which were rubber-stamped by the ARL Commission on Monday.

Abdo and his Rugby League players Association counterpart Clint Newton will be the men in the hotseat, charged with striking a deal that is expected to make the players richer than at any point in the game’s history.

“You never start expecting or looking for a stink,” Abdo said on Thursday at a joint press conference with premier Dominic Perrotet to announce that there would be pop-up vaccination clinics at Saturday night’s All Stars game. “When we work together — all of us inside the game — we can get amazing results. As a result we have led in a number of different areas. We talk to the players and the players’ association often; the discussions will always be robust but they will be respectful. “That’s been my experience so far and I expect that to continue.”

Newton added: “I will always start any type of negotiation with a healthy level of optimism. Our position will be clear.

“We want to create very clear separation from ourselves and every other code in this region by having the best terms and conditions for NRL and NRLW players. “It is really pretty simple. Given Peter and Andrew’s competitive nature, you would have to suggest they would be very much aligned with us. “When you take into account the invaluable and essential contribution players can make, I don’t see why that shouldn’t be our No.1 focus.

“By securing the best terms and conditions in our region, there can be no mistaking that rugby league for men and women in this country will be the sport of choice.”

Prior to the Covid pay cuts, the salary cap was scheduled to be $10 million this season with additional allowances for veteran players and the development list. That figure is expected to be the starting point for negotiations over the cap for 2023. Abdo, however, insisted it was important to balance the interests of the players with the need to propagate the game and ring-fence the code’s financial future by investing in assets.

The ARL Commission has raised the prospect of investing in its own stadium or buying a share of Super League. The players will be at the front of the queue, jostling with the clubs for their share of rugby league’s rivers of gold.

“We have worked really hard on stabilising revenue, we have worked really hard on making sure we are more efficient at head office,” Abdo said. “So any surplus we have is there to reinvest back into the game. A couple of points on that — Covid has been a big investment for us. We are not out of the woods yet. You need to plan for the future and you can’t just think about the next year or the next five years. “You need to think long term.”

---

Talking of front office. Did these f**kers also take a pay cut due to Covid? I know they blithely dismissed St George Illawarra's concerns about how it was disadvantaged by the JDB saga. At least publicly. But then the RLPA also made a few statements about how it's unfair but then true to form, did absolutely nothing! In a perfect world, the RLPA would go to war with the NRL head office and they would take each other out!

Well said!

 

[Morgan]

Andrew Abdo rejects talk of an impending pay war with the RLPA​

Players are in dark over what they will be paid next season and there is a sense of urgency as salary cap talks ramp up.

NRL chief executive Andrew Abdo has played down rumours the code is on the brink of another civil war as he prepares to ramp up negotiations with the players union over the salary cap.

Players are in dark over what they will be paid next season and there is a sense of urgency where the union is concerned around the negotiations now that the NRL has finalised its billion-dollar broadcasting deal for the next five years. Pay talks between the NRL and their players have traditionally been volatile affairs and there is a private view among many in the game that dissent is inevitable.

It means the coming months could prove challenging for Abdo and ARL Commission chair Peter V’landys as they attempt to appease a playing group who have endured pay cuts over the past two seasons to help the game through the Covid crisis.

Those same players have no doubt watched on with interest in recent months as the code has trumpeted a record broadcasting deal, which is likely to be supplemented before the start of the season when the game extends its naming rights agreement with Telstra.

In a warning shot across the NRL’s bow, it's understood the union has asked to be given access to the game’s finances, which were rubber-stamped by the ARL Commission on Monday.

Abdo and his Rugby League players Association counterpart Clint Newton will be the men in the hotseat, charged with striking a deal that is expected to make the players richer than at any point in the game’s history.

“You never start expecting or looking for a stink,” Abdo said on Thursday at a joint press conference with premier Dominic Perrotet to announce that there would be pop-up vaccination clinics at Saturday night’s All Stars game. “When we work together — all of us inside the game — we can get amazing results. As a result we have led in a number of different areas. We talk to the players and the players’ association often; the discussions will always be robust but they will be respectful. “That’s been my experience so far and I expect that to continue.”

Newton added: “I will always start any type of negotiation with a healthy level of optimism. Our position will be clear.

“We want to create very clear separation from ourselves and every other code in this region by having the best terms and conditions for NRL and NRLW players. “It is really pretty simple. Given Peter and Andrew’s competitive nature, you would have to suggest they would be very much aligned with us. “When you take into account the invaluable and essential contribution players can make, I don’t see why that shouldn’t be our No.1 focus.

“By securing the best terms and conditions in our region, there can be no mistaking that rugby league for men and women in this country will be the sport of choice.”

Prior to the Covid pay cuts, the salary cap was scheduled to be $10 million this season with additional allowances for veteran players and the development list. That figure is expected to be the starting point for negotiations over the cap for 2023. Abdo, however, insisted it was important to balance the interests of the players with the need to propagate the game and ring-fence the code’s financial future by investing in assets.

The ARL Commission has raised the prospect of investing in its own stadium or buying a share of Super League. The players will be at the front of the queue, jostling with the clubs for their share of rugby league’s rivers of gold.

“We have worked really hard on stabilising revenue, we have worked really hard on making sure we are more efficient at head office,” Abdo said. “So any surplus we have is there to reinvest back into the game. A couple of points on that — Covid has been a big investment for us. We are not out of the woods yet. You need to plan for the future and you can’t just think about the next year or the next five years. “You need to think long term.”

---

Talking of front office. Did these f**kers also take a pay cut due to Covid? I know they blithely dismissed St George Illawarra's concerns about how it was disadvantaged by the JDB saga. At least publicly. But then the RLPA also made a few statements about how it's unfair but then true to form, did absolutely nothing! In a perfect world, the RLPA would go to war with the NRL head office and they would take each other out!

Rightly or wrongly, our fans are so emotional/fanatical it'll take a generation for some to get over the saga of Jack De Belin.

 

[Eric]

St George Illawarra Dragons announce St George Food Distributors as new executive partner​

St George Illawarra are proud to announce St George Food Distributors as the Dragons' newest executive partner.
St George Food Distributors' branding will feature prominently on signage at Dragons' home games and throughout the season on the sternum of the on-field trainers' shirts.

St George Food Distributors are a family owned and operated food service distribution company with over 25 years of dedicated success toward meeting customer needs and demands across a large variety of cafes, clubs and restaurants. St George Food Distributors managing director Ali Choker expressed his delight in expanding his own relationship with the club. "Reminiscing on my early years cheering for the Dragons from the crowd, I speak with great privilege and gratitude to become an executive partner of this great club," Choker said.

"Everyone at St George Food Distributors aims to provide continuous support and encouragement throughout the club for many successful seasons to come. "I am looking forward to working alongside the club in expanding on our corporate relations and ventures. Dragons chief executive Ryan Webb thanked St George Food Distributors for their commitment to St George Illawarra.

"St George Food Distributors have played a crucial role in the St George region for almost three decades. Their dedication and success are welcomed traits as a new partner of our club," Webb said. "We are proud to welcome our latest executive partner to the Dragons organisation and look forward to expanding our relationship in the coming seasons."

---

I must admit, as far as off field action goes, the head office seems to be making all the right moves. This is probably worth something similar to the Shonkies major jersey sponsor.

 

[Eric]

PREMIERSHIP WINNER JOINS ST GEORGE ILLAWARRA DRAGONS BOARD​

Jason Nightingale is the latest ex-Dragon to join the St George board. Nightingale has joined former skipper Ben Creagh on the board of the St George District Rugby League Football Club. A special resolution was passed by club members which enabled directors to appoint three additional directors to the board last year. Creagh and Nightingale make up two of the three spots after Mark Gasnier declined an opportunity to join the board.

---

Good news but anyone have any idea on why Gaz rejected a position?

 

[RedV01]

PREMIERSHIP WINNER JOINS ST GEORGE ILLAWARRA DRAGONS BOARD​

Jason Nightingale is the latest ex-Dragon to join the St George board. Nightingale has joined former skipper Ben Creagh on the board of the St George District Rugby League Football Club. A special resolution was passed by club members which enabled directors to appoint three additional directors to the board last year. Creagh and Nightingale make up two of the three spots after Mark Gasnier declined an opportunity to join the board.

---

Good news but anyone have any idea on why Gaz rejected a position?

Just as long as they keep these old boys from choosing coaches.

The club needs to make it a rule: Absolutely no rookie old boy head coach, EVER. An old boy coach who has head coach experience elsewhere shouldn't be ruled out. Should be given the same chance as anyone else but no special treatment.

 

[Morgan]

Just as long as they keep these old boys from choosing coaches.

The club needs to make it a rule: Absolutely no rookie old boy head coach, EVER. An old boy coach who has head coach experience elsewhere shouldn't be ruled out. Should be given the same chance as anyone else but no special treatment.

Agree with that because if an old boy has been a head coach elsewhere, is he still an "old boy"? The club he was an assistant at and or the club he was head coach at could call him "an old boy". But Trent Barrett will surely never coach St George Illawarra. Some people seem to make excellent assistant coaches but terrible head coaches. As an assistant, success has stalked Barrett and Steven Price. As head coaches, the complete opposite.

 

[RedV01]

Agree with that because if an old boy has been a head coach elsewhere, is he still an "old boy"? The club he was an assistant at and or the club he was head coach at could call him "an old boy". But Trent Barrett will surely never coach St George Illawarra. Some people seem to make excellent assistant coaches but terrible head coaches. As an assistant, success has stalked Barrett and Steven Price. As head coaches, the complete opposite.

Craig Fitzgibbon is the latest. Let's see how he goes. Then Ryles, Dean Young and Ben Hornby are waiting in the wings.

 

[Morgan]

Craig Fitzgibbon is the latest. Let's see how he goes. Then Ryles, Dean Young and Ben Hornby are waiting in the wings.

Craig Fitzgibbon played for I think Illawarra and then St George Illawarra but he's well and truly a Roosters old boy. Good luck to Jason Ryles, Dean Young and Ben Hornby as long as it's as you said, they prove themselves as a head coach elsewhere before being considered for St George Illawarra head coach.

 

[Chris M]

Agree with that because if an old boy has been a head coach elsewhere, is he still an "old boy"? The club he was an assistant at and or the club he was head coach at could call him "an old boy". But Trent Barrett will surely never coach St George Illawarra. Some people seem to make excellent assistant coaches but terrible head coaches. As an assistant, success has stalked Barrett and Steven Price. As head coaches, the complete opposite.

Nathan Brown seems to be another well on his way to flaming out as a head coach. He'd be an excellent replacement for Shane Flanagan if the latter takes a head coach role elsewhere.

 

[GCRV]

Agree with that because if an old boy has been a head coach elsewhere, is he still an "old boy"? The club he was an assistant at and or the club he was head coach at could call him "an old boy". But Trent Barrett will surely never coach St George Illawarra. Some people seem to make excellent assistant coaches but terrible head coaches. As an assistant, success has stalked Barrett and Steven Price. As head coaches, the complete opposite.

Did Price ever play first grade or NRL?

 

[Morgan]

Did Price ever play first grade or NRL?

Yep. A handful of games in the top grade for St George. i.e. before the merger. And I mean, a handful of games. Not sure the exact number but less than 10. Average players sometimes make really good coaches. But not in this case.

 

[Eric]

According to News Ltd, there's a good chance Shane Flanagan will be heading to the Tigers sooner rather than later. Probably this season. It will be a real shame if it happens soon as he won't have had time to do a lot with our pathways. There could be a silver lining if Browny is sacked by the Warriors. As long as a line is put through him to work as a head coach, he'd be an amazing pick up to bring home and work in Flanagan's present job.

It's easy to say Falangan is much better credentialed and as a head coach that's true but Browny is the guy who brought Gaz, Coops, Bull Bailey, Ryles, Ben Creagh, Hornby, Dean Young and more into the NRL. Chase Stanley is another who made his debut under Brown when I think he was 18. Injuries cruelled his career but early on there were huge wraps on him. Browny didn't so much with them once he got them into the NRL but someone who has that kind of foresight would be perfect for the job.

Or was that just a fluke? He didn't bring many stars through at Newcastle or hasn't at New Zealand.

 

[GCRV]

According to News Ltd, there's a good chance Shane Flanagan will be heading to the Tigers sooner rather than later. Probably this season. It will be a real shame if it happens soon as he won't have had time to do a lot with our pathways. There could be a silver lining if Browny is sacked by the Warriors. As long as a line is put through him to work as a head coach, he'd be an amazing pick up to bring home and work in Flanagan's present job.

It's easy to say Falangan is much better credentialed and as a head coach that's true but Browny is the guy who brought Gaz, Coops, Bull Bailey, Ryles, Ben Creagh, Hornby, Dean Young and more into the NRL. Chase Stanley is another who made his debut under Brown when I think he was 18. Injuries cruelled his career but early on there were huge wraps on him. Browny didn't so much with them once he got them into the NRL but someone who has that kind of foresight would be perfect for the job.

Or was that just a fluke? He didn't bring many stars through at Newcastle or hasn't at New Zealand.

Hopefully the club can keep Flanagan but if not and if he were available, Browny would be an excellent and natural substitute.

He also handed the Morris brothers their debuts.

 

[Morgan]

According to News Ltd, there's a good chance Shane Flanagan will be heading to the Tigers sooner rather than later. Probably this season. It will be a real shame if it happens soon as he won't have had time to do a lot with our pathways. There could be a silver lining if Browny is sacked by the Warriors. As long as a line is put through him to work as a head coach, he'd be an amazing pick up to bring home and work in Flanagan's present job.

It's easy to say Falangan is much better credentialed and as a head coach that's true but Browny is the guy who brought Gaz, Coops, Bull Bailey, Ryles, Ben Creagh, Hornby, Dean Young and more into the NRL. Chase Stanley is another who made his debut under Brown when I think he was 18. Injuries cruelled his career but early on there were huge wraps on him. Browny didn't so much with them once he got them into the NRL but someone who has that kind of foresight would be perfect for the job.

Or was that just a fluke? He didn't bring many stars through at Newcastle or hasn't at New Zealand.

Trent Barrett might become available soon.