Dragons falling apart after a promising start

After a promising start which saw the Dragons sit atop the ladder after three rounds, suddenly it’s “here we go again” after the club’s embarrassing 38-6 loss to the Bulldogs on Sunday.

Seven weeks ago, the Dragons narrowly defeated Cronulla to remain one of only two undefeated teams after three rounds.

Dragons fans were convinced that after two disappointing seasons under coach Steve Price, their team was finding their mojo.

The club has lost five of its six matches since, culminating in Sunday’s capitulation against the Bulldogs which rates as one of the most humiliating losses in the club’s recent history.

It could have been worse had Brett Morris not scored a consolation try in the final five minutes of the match. Without the try, the Dragons would have suffered their worst loss against their bitter rivals since 2000, when they were shut out 28-0.

The Dragons will forever regret moving this game to ANZ Stadium, which serves as the Bulldogs’ main home ground in the competition. Des Hasler’s men have only lost once at the ground this season, against the Broncos in Round 1.

Had this match been played at either Kogarah Oval or WIN Stadium in Wollongong, we could have received a much more competitive display from the Dragons. Instead, Sunday’s loss extended the Dragons’ drought against the Bulldogs to five matches, having not beaten the men in blue and white since Round 10, 2011.

Back then, the Dragons were the defending premiers and were enjoying a dominant season before injuries and State of Origin struck at the wrong time, eventually conspiring against them as they crashed out of the finals in straight sets.

The Dragons had one of the best defences in the competition masterminded by none other than Wayne Bennett, who delivered the club a long-awaited but well deserved premiership in 2010.

The Bennett era is one that Dragons fans will never forget, as the supercoach transformed the Red V from perennial underachievers to contenders during his three years at Kogarah.

The Dragons have disappointed on the field since Bennett left the club, with the club narrowly failing to make the finals in 2012 and slumping to its worst ever season last year when it finished third from the foot of the ladder.

The one match that many fans believe set the tone for the fortunes of both clubs since the beginning of 2012 was their second-round match that season, which the Bulldogs won 30-4.

The Dragons had just come off a golden-point win over Newcastle, while the Bulldogs were equally as unconvincing in an away win over Penrith in the opening round of the season. But nobody could have forecast what was to happen at on March 10, 2012, when the two rivals collided under the Saturday night lights at ANZ Stadium.

For Dragons fans, their recent dominance over the Bulldogs gave them the belief that they could continue their winning streak against them, but sadly it was not to be.

Des Hasler’s men unleashed in the first half en route to a 30-4 rout, and that win kick-started a season in which they would eventually capture the minor premiership and narrowly lose to the Storm in the grand final.

The Dragons committed too many errors and after Round 9, they would fall out of the top eight and eventually fall short of the finals on percentage.

Des Hasler remains undefeated against Steve Price in the coaching head-to-head, and Dragons fans will have to wait until at least the finals series to earn their shot at revenge.

While the Bulldogs enjoy the view at the top of the ladder, the Dragons have crashed to 12th and could drop a rung lower pending the result of Parramatta’s clash with Cronulla.

Steve Price was re-signed as the club’s head coach after the club administration were convinced that the club had made steady progress on the back of three straight wins early last season.

What followed was the club’s worst season as a merged entity, with only the Wests Tigers and Parramatta saving them from what would have been their first wooden spoon as a joint venture.

Price responded to the club’s dismal season by going on a recruiting rampage, successfully luring English five-eighth Gareth Widdop, Canberra pair Joel Thompson and Sam Williams, and league journeyman Michael Witt to the club.

The arrival of Widdop, a premiership winning five-eighth with the Melbourne Storm in 2012, appeared to pay dividends, giving the side a new attacking direction after the departure of Jamie Soward the previous year.

Prior to the loss to the Bulldogs, Widdop was jointly leading the Dally M voting with Josh Reynolds, whose man-of-the-match performance now sees him lead outright with nine rounds of the competition almost complete.

The Dragons also secured the signature of Benji Marshall after the Kiwi’s failed stint in rugby union, and fans will be hoping that he is finally unleashed when the team takes on Parramatta this weekend.

Marshall’s arrival couldn’t come quite soon enough for the Red V. It’s hoped that his partnership with Gareth Widdop will help to reignite the Dragons’ season with State of Origin looming in two weeks.

Witt, Williams and Adam Quinlan have all been used at halfback with little success, though in Witt’s case he suffered a shoulder injury in the Dragons’ Round 1 victory over the Wests Tigers.

Price now has the team that he wants, but the reality is that with the notable exception of Widdop, their recruits are underperforming. There are now reports that Thompson could soon head back to the nation’s capital to be closer to family.

That is the last thing Price would want as speculation about his future continues to cloud the club and their season. Another heavy loss could bring his time at Kogarah to an abrupt end even before the season is out.

If anything, the Dragons’ NRL loss to the Bulldogs could either make or break their season. It will be interesting to see how they respond against the Eels this Saturday afternoon.