Dragons take swipe at media after Shane Flanagan sacking, press conference, interim coach

Dragons chairman Andrew Lancaster has taken a swipe at the media while insisting the club came to a “mutual agreement” with Shane Flanagan after his departure was announced.

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Flanagan was fired as Dragons coach on Monday after the club called a press conference with Lancaster and chief executive Tim Watsford fronting the media.

While they were able to answer most of the questions posed by journalists, details about Flanagan’s immediate replacement will be revealed following Tuesday’s board meeting.

Flanagan is the second NRL coach gone this season, with general manager of football Ben Haran also departing the club.

The official line is that both men are leaving St George Illawarra “by mutual agreement” and Lancaster was quick to emphasise that line on multiple occasions.

“We’ve been talking to Shane the whole time,” Lancaster said.

“This is an organisation. It’s a sporting club. We talked to our head coach on a regular basis. So these conversations, whilst we didn’t get to an outcome this morning, have been taking place.”

When another journalist posed a question at Lancaster which included the words “moving on”, he was again quick to jump in and correct the reporter by repeating it was a “mutual agreement”.

That is despite Flanagan continuing to vow to turn the club’s fortunes around this season, although there did seem to be a level of resignation on his end that time was running out.

Plus, given he was contracted until 2028 there had to be some level of an agreement for him to depart early, although that isn’t to say he necessarily was on board with exiting in the first place.

Assistant coaches Dean Young and Michael Ennis are contenders to replace Flanagan at least in the interim, with whoever comes in set to face a baptism of fire against the Roosters on Anzac Day.

For the time being, who that person is remains unknown.

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“We’re meeting with the coaching staff after this meeting. Obviously this is not something that has moved slowly,” Lancaster said.

“We’ve made decisions this morning. We’ll be talking to the staff and come back with that position shortly.”

While most of Monday’s press conference went as expected, there was one interesting moment where Lancaster took aim at some of the media coverage surrounding the club.

“There’s been a lot of media coverage over the Dragons these past few weeks,” Lancaster said.

“A lot of it was absolutely deserved. Some of it was poor, and some of it was about personal agendas.

“I’ve been in media longer than most. Our coverage of this great game and of this great club should be better. Readers, viewers, and listeners do deserve better.”

The Dragons have the worst attacking record this season with just 14 points per game, with club officials needing to nail their next appointment as they look to end a finals drought that goes back to 2018.

“These are not decisions anyone takes lightly,” Watsford said.

“Shane and Ben have both worked hard for the club, and on behalf of the Dragons, I want to thank them for their efforts, professionalism and commitment during their time here. We wish Shane, Ben, and their families all the best for the future.

“This is clearly a significant moment for the club. We understand the disappointment and frustration our members and our fans feel, and we know that results and performances have not met expectations for this proud club. Our focus now is what happens next.

“First, this means providing stability for our playing group and our staff and supporting them through this transition.

“Secondly, it means making sure the team is as prepared as possible for the weeks ahead, starting this week with the Anzac Round clash against the Roosters at Allianz Stadium.

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“We will communicate our interim coaching arrangements following discussions with our coaching staff today.

“Beyond that, we will continue to undertake a thorough evaluation of our football department, including the appointment of an NRL head coach in due course. We will do that carefully, efficiently, and with the long-term interests of the Dragons at the centre of every decision.

“This club knows the standards that are expected of it, and we know that we are not meeting them. Our job now is to take the necessary steps to move the football program forward and give our members and supporters confidence in the club’s direction.”

The man who guided the Sharks to their drought-breaking premiership victory a decade ago will follow Sea Eagles counterpart Anthony Seibold, who was sacked after three winless matches, with his departure sparking an incredible turnaround.

While finals are dead and buried at St George Illawarra, the Red V faithful will be hoping that Flanagan’s departure can do something similar for a proud club that has lost 11 on the trot going back to last year.

Flanagan joined the Dragons in 2024 but won just 19 of his 55 matches in charge, with recruitment and retention a major issue for a team that has struggled for an attacking spark after stars Ben Hunt and Zac Lomax moved on.

The veteran coach signed a two-year extension last August, with the second paragraph of the media release proving to be nothing more than a pipe dream.

“This extension reaffirms the club’s commitment to stability, growth and a long-term vision for success both on and off the field,” the August 8 release read.

Dragons fans have become growlingly frustrated with the direction the club was heading, with their recruitment strategy in the spotlight after the opening seven rounds.

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Valentine Holmes missed 13 tackles against Souths on the weekend, Daniel Atkinson hasn’t registered a try assist in his past three games, while it’s unclear whether Clint Gutherson will play fullback when he returns from injury.

Star edge forward Jaydn Su’A was sent off on Saturday and is facing a lengthy ban, while he won’t even be at the club next year after agreeing to join the Eels.

The Dragons have also had to deal with disgruntled young players like Loko Pasifiki Tonga. whose request for an early release was knocked back earlier this month and led to his management leaking emails to the media.

The decision can’t be easy on Kyle Flanagan, who has had to watch his dad lose his job while at the same time deal with public criticism over his attacking output in the halves.

“Kyle is a contracted player through to the end of 2027. And yes, we’ll provide every means possible to support Kyle,” Watsford said.

“And as we happen, we’ll continue to support Shane. To Andrew’s point, it hasn’t been overly great in terms of how they’ve both been treated, but we’ll continue to wrap our arms around him as a club and move forward.”

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