2021 Review: St George Illawarra Dragons

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Justin Davies looks back at the unravelling of the Dragons' first season under Anthony Griffin.

The start of the Anthony Griffin era promised brighter days for Dragons fans after finally getting the McGrexit they had hoped for at the end of 2020. Griffin had prior relationships with some of the Dragons key playmakers and hoped he could add some old school grit to the squad.

Dragons got off to a positive start which helped to bed in his ideas. The opening weekend loss in the driving rain against the Sharks sucked but it was followed up with four straight wins including the scalp of Premiership heavyweights Parramatta Eels. 

Losses to the Warriors and Roosters brought the Dragons back down to earth as cracks started to appear in their work. Wins became rare and usually against the bottom four sides like Bulldogs and Broncos. The first half of the season ended in style with two comeback wins against Canberra and the Warriors which left them in prime position to make the top eight. 

Then we all know what happened. There was a barbeque which turned their season into ashes after the fallout. Dragons failed to win any of their final eight games of the season to finish 11th on the season. 

Now the season becomes another "what if" for the Dragons and turns the flames up on Anthony Griffin after the team lost their way spectacularly. He will get a stay of execution with new signings and some exciting youngsters, but failure isn't tolerated by the fanbase so it is set up for an interesting 2022. 

Turning Point

There is only one place to start right? THE barbeque which saw the Dragons lose every game which came after and saw the sacking of representative forward Paul Vaughan. Twelve Dragons were fined and suspended for their actions and a team which were in the top eight when the incident happened, crashed and burned without a trace.

Before that, the Dragons were sitting comfortably in the top eight and were in most contests every weekend, chasing another finals appearance before it all went up in smoke. Now, it becomes another lost season which probably helped the club shift some dead weight in their chase for another premiership. 

What Worked

When things were rolling for the Dragons it was through a simple philosophy and formula which helped them spring surprises on teams through their defence. At times they seemed to flaunt the six again rules, racking them up like high scores on a pinball machine, alongside a strong kicking game from Ben Hunt which got them into the top eight.

They also had a lethal right side combination with Zac Lomax and Mikaele Ravalawa which produced a majority of their points this season.

What Didn't Work

Griffin 'changed his mind like a girl changes clothes' (as Katy Perry once sung), deciding to chop and change his line-up every weekend unnecessarily - and it didn't help them gel and find some form. Also the constant selection of Corey Norman was one of the massive bug-bears of the fanbase, alongside Griffin's constant running battle with Matt Dufty which saw the speedster fullback in and out of the line-up. 

Best Players

There were a handful of players that excelled in a lost season for the 'Red V'. Captain Ben Hunt was a consistent performer despite suffering some serious injuries and showed that he was worth the leadership position. Mikaele Ravalawa was a try-scoring machine.... when he could stay on the field. The powerful winger scored 14 tries in 16 appearances but also was suspended several times which hurt the Dragons backline potency.

In the forwards, Josh Kerr moved into the back row and produced some solid football for the joint venture, and his offload helped to start the Dragons' attack in many instances. Otherwise it was a mixed bag for them including the return of Jack De Belin, which didn't help when they weren't able to match it with the rest of the packs in the NRL. 

Rookies

Despite their late season fade, the last few months of the season gave Dragons fans a glimpse into their future in 2022. Fullback Tyrell Sloan, halves Jayden Sullivan and Talatau Amone brought energy to the side, created points and helped salve some of the losses which ended their season. 

Sloan, Amone and Sullivan will hope to create the backbone of the Dragons backline for the next few seasons which hopefully leads them back to the finals. Sloan particularly will slot into the fullback spot after scoring six tries in his five appearances while Sullivan and Amone have partnered each other moving through the ranks and offer promise after years of the Corey Norman experience. 

Looking Ahead

There are some green shoots of optimism for the Dragons headed into 2022 with a raft of new signings to bolster their forward pack alongside some youngsters sprinkled into the backline can help them make a charge to the top eight.

If Hunt can find a solid combination with either Amone or Sullivan and the Dragons avoid more outside distractions it might help them be in that top eight number.

Keep across 2022 Player Movements for the NRL season across all 16 clubs here.

2021 results

(NOTE - 'N' in H/A column indicates match played at a neutral venue)

2021 player record

All stats courtesy of RugbyLeagueProject.