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The St George Illawarra Dragons attack in season 2016 has been pathetic.
With the State of Origin series upon us, having no Josh Dugan presents an opportunity of sorts for coach Paul McGregor to perform a massive shake up. It would not only send a wake up call to some of the team’s more experienced players who haven’t been good enough this season, but also start to experiment with an attack and game plan that just isn’t working.
Even the most one-eyed Dragons supporter (like myself) can see the attack is fragile and simply not working.
From various Josh Dugan swaps to centre, failed attacking plays and Gareth Widdop’s kicking game looking like that of an under 20’s player – plus Benji Marshall being off the field more than he is on it – the Dragons have a forward pack that at times looks like it doesn’t want to be there.
It is easy to see why the Dragons are the second-lowest scoring team in the competition, only ahead of the hapless Newcastle Knights.
With the defence quite clearly not at the same sort of levels it was at last season, the Dragons are right under the pump. Yet somehow they have managed to win five games and sit just outside the top eight.
In saying that, when the team is released for their Round 12 clash against what is going to be a very understrength North Queensland Cowboys team, there needs to be a major shake up, and that then needs to translate onto the field.
Last week against the South Sydney Rabbitohs, who held the ball like a schoolboys team was the low point for the Dragons. While they had already suffered two losses in a row against last year’s grand finalists – the Brisbane Broncos and Cowboys – being held scoreless on both occasions, being beaten by a dysfunctional Rabbitohs team as badly as they were was simply not acceptable.
Defence was hardly a part of their game, and only scoring three tries with a mountain of possession made it look like a battle of men against boys.
So, what does McGregor need to do this weekend to get the Dragons back on track?
It is obviously worth noting straight away that there will be no Josh Dugan or Tyson Frizzel – who have both received a call up to the State of Origin arena, although for Dugan he may have been injured anyway after picking up a hyper extended elbow at the end of last Thursday’s match.
So, who should fill in at fullback? It may be more than a case of getting someone to fill in – based on the way the Dragons attacking structure is ran if they are to score a reasonable amount of points or actually look threatening on the opposition’s line.
Nonetheless, it could be time for a major change. Gareth Widdop has proved his ability to play at the back before, and this could be the Dragons golden opportunity to not only unlock his horrific form of late, but to get a ball playing fullback at the back. It would also allow him and Marshall to not step on each others toes so much.
If Widdop was to move to the back, the question would be who comes into the halves. Former Canberra Raiders player Josh McCrone has played solidly for the Dragons this year, but not brilliantly. More often than not he is able to provide important kicks to get the team out of trouble – however, his defence and creativity still leaves a lot to be desired.
For that reason, it is time to bring Drew Hutchinson back into the side for a prolonged shot at first grade. He is mightily talented and proved that playing for the Junior Australian Kangaroos last year but for one reason or another has almost been completely overlooked so far this season.
He has a strong kicking game, and his passing is more often than not on point plus he has a fantastic turn of speed. For someone who should be the future of the club the Dragons coaching staff aren’t doing a great job of making that clear.
Now, I can hear you all questioning why I used the word prolonged. That’s right, this shouldn’t be a one off switch. Josh Dugan in his own right is a fantastic fullback and many of you will point to his shocking performances in the centres this season as reasoning to why he should remain fullback.
I was his biggest advocate to be fullback in the lead up to the season, and again before the State of Origin teams were picked yesterday.
However, Dugan excelled during a run at centre during the 2014 season because he got quality ball. What he hasn’t had this year is the ball in positions where he can make things happen and that in effect was because of Widdop’s poor form. Shift him to the back and let Benji take over a little bit more, Dugan may be able to recapture that 2014 form in the centres, where he also had a wonderful combination with the Kiwi.
The next question that has to be answered is how McGregor is using his bench rotation. There has been plenty of criticism in the last few weeks about why players like Jacob Host are being picked, and then not being used until the last ten minutes of the game. With no Frizell, and Host being the talented youngster he is there should be plenty more minutes on the cards for him.
Other than that, it is hard to pick on the Dragons forward pack. They have had plenty of games this year where they dominated the middle, only to be left behind on the scoreline by an incompetent back line.
One way or another the Dragons need big, wholesale changes now while their season is still in tact or they go at risk of losing it completely in the next few weeks.
Follow Scott on Twitter @sk_pryde