Rugby league icon Phil Gould says he’s “staggered” that many pundits have St George Illawarra in contention for this year’s NRL wooden spoon, dissing those calls and touting the Dragons as “a top-eight chance”.
For the majority of the off-season most bookies had the Dragons level with Wests Tigers to finish the season in last place, after the club was rocked by the barbecue scandal and lost the last eight games of its season.
But the Dragons hauled in a host of prized recruits over summer – including the bulldozing George Burgess, Jayden Su’A, Aaron Woods, Francis Molo and Moses Suli – and have been rejuvenated by several electric youngsters debuting in recent seasons, including Tyrell Sloan, Cody Ramsey, Jayden Sullivan and Talatau Amone.
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The Dragons, captained by Ben Hunt, also gained the services of former Queensland State of Origin playmaker Moses Mybe over the off-season.
“I was staggered that some people were tipping them as a wooden spoon. They’ll be a lot closer to the top than the bottom when we call a halt to this competition. I think they’re a top-eight chance,” Gould said on Wide World of Sports’ Six Tackles with Gus.
“They’ll be in that sort of middle rung; somewhere between sixth and 10th is where I see them at the moment.
“I see them as much better than a number of teams in this competition.”
The likes of Sloan, Ramsey and Amone had terrific moments in St George Illawarra’s two trial games, which saw them beat Parramatta and South Sydney.
Those performances followed bright glimpses on the NRL stage in 2021, including in July a stellar runaway try from Sloan and a brilliant set-up for a Gerard Beale four-pointer.
“These young kids are very, very special,” Gould said.
“They’ve got points in them. The hardest part of getting out of the cellar is the belief that you can score points.
“Defence wins you comps, the best defensive teams win the comps, generally.
“But the ability to score points is what gets you up the ladder and gets you in contention. You need to find points because that gives your team confidence, it gives you more points to defend until your defence comes up to scratch. If you have an inability to score points as soon as the opposition is up 6-0 or 12-0, heads drop, belief is sucked out of them, they start to play catch-up.
“The Dragons with these kids – I don’t think the scoreboard’s ever going to intimidate them. They play with a freeness and a spirit that I hope is not taken out of them. I hope they can be themselves and find their own way.”
Gould highlighted the importance of the big-framed men to the Dragons this season.
Recruits Burgess, Su’A, Molo and Woods will form a forward pack already bolstered by Tariq Sims, Jack de Belin, Josh McGuire, Tyrell Fuimaono and Jack Bird.
“With these big boppers they’ve put in front of them – hopefully they’re taking them forward and getting them on the front foot and also defending the points they’ve scored,” Gould said.
The Dragons will begin their campaign against the Warriors at Sunshine Coast Stadium on March 12.
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