Jason Ryles was the perfect fit for Dragons. His rejection shows why they've replaced Tigers as NRL's basket case

The news that St George Illawarra’s been snubbed by Jason Ryles in their search for a new coach means the Dragons have now overtaken the Wests Tigers as the NRL’s least attractive destination. 

Nine News reporter Chris O’Keefe summed it up for his fellow long-suffering Dragons fans by tweeting that the club has sunk so low now that one of their former favourite sons as a player, who lives in Wollongong, would prefer to head elsewhere. 

“It’s extremely difficult to stomach, that the state of the club is such, that we can’t convince a bloke who has never coached a game of NRL, to be the Head Coach of the club he once played for, that happens to be based in the place where he lives. #redv,” he tweeted in response to his colleague, Danny Weidler, breaking the news on Wednesday morning.

If he doesn’t want to come back, what hope do they have of signing any marquee recruits.

The Wests Tigers had a similar situation last year when another in-demand rookie coach in Cameron Ciraldo said “yeah, nah” despite being offered a long-term lucrative deal. But he had no history with the club, unlike Ryles and the Dragons.

This is the snowball effect of a series of ill-conceived decisions by the club in recent years. 

It’s easy to blame the Dragons’ descent on Anthony Griffin after his two and a half years as coach produced an overwhelming mix of on-field mediocrity and off-field headlines of seemingly never-ending disciplinary issues. 

But he didn’t appoint himself. And he can’t take all the heat for the dubious recruitment decisions.

It’s little wonder the Dragons fans are militant about the board and the key decision-makers at the club.

Jason Ryles. (Photo by Graham Denholm/Getty Images)

And equally unsurprising is that major sponsor St George Bank is not renewing its deal when it ends after next season.

This is a club that was prepared to sign Jarryd Hayne in 2019 and when that went pear-shaped, sought NRL permission to recruit Israel Folau in the wake of his controversial exit from the Wallabies. 

The club was well within its rights to stand by Jack de Belin during his two sexual assault trials but did the Dragons really need to offer him a big-money contract extension, with an option in his favour for 2024, or hand him the captaincy last week when their regular skipper was out?

Signing mercenaries with chequered off-field records has been a theme with some of their lower-profile recruits. It was painted as cashing in on players from rival teams but in actual fact it was a case of picking up the scraps that had been left behind by clubs with a stronger culture.

Ryles is viewed in NRL circles as the next head coach in waiting but such is the state of the Dragons, he’s turned his back on the club where he came through the Steelers junior ranks and spent nine seasons playing 156 games before incoming coach Wayne Bennett told him that he’d be better off elsewhere when he took over in 2009.

A Kangaroos representative after his first full season in the NRL and an Origin starter with NSW the year after, he’s now done a lengthy apprenticeship as an assistant coach, including his initial stint with the Storm from 2016-20 then a pandemic-interrupted sojourn with England’s rugby side under Eddie Jones, and it should have been a no-brainer for him to accept the Dragons’ long-term offer. 

That is, if the club had its house in order.

You can’t blame him for turning his back on their four-year deal to rejoin Melbourne’s coaching staff as Craig Bellamy’s eventual successor.

“It wasn’t an easy decision to make but I am very comfortable knowing I am returning to Storm and can’t wait to get back the club,” said Ryles, who has left the Roosters after they were unhappy with him negotiating elsewhere while being under contract. “This was a decision I made with my family, and I know it will be best for my coaching growth and development.”

Dragons CEO Ryan Webb put on a brave face after the news broke but this is a huge body blow to the club’s chances of turning their fortunes around.

“The search is going, that’s the best way I could say it. A work in progress,” he told reporters at a charity announcement at WIN Stadium on Wednesday. “Multiple talks still going on but like all these things, trying to do it relatively privately, confidentially as best we can.”

Ryles previously worked as an assistant under Bellamy and with the veteran coach set to retire after next season, he could take over in 2025 as part of a long-term succession plan. Unless, of course, Bellamy yet again delays his retirement plan.

But even that potential scenario is viewed as a better bet than inheriting the crumbling castle at the Dragons. 

And let’s face it, there’s not much to write home about (or return home in Ryles’ sense) for a club which has lost nine of 12 outings this season to be rooted to the bottom of the ladder (a sentence which may not need the last six words). 

They’ve taken the wooden spoon favouritism from the Tigers and their next five opponents – Penrith, Souths, the Warriors, Sharks and Raiders – all in the top eight, it’s hard to see where their next win will be.

While there is optimism that young prospects Tyrell Sloan, Jayden Sullivan, Junior Amone, the Feagai twins and Toby Couchman will turn into NRL stars, the rest of the roster contains too many players who are past their prime.

Their only bona fide star is Maroons representative Ben Hunt, who is 33 and his impact will inevitably drop off in the next couple of years as the effect of 301 games over 14 seasons take its toll.

Jason Ryles. (Photo by Mark Kolbe/Getty Images)

Ryles’ decision opens the door for his former teammates Ben Hornby and Dean Young to land the St George Illawarra head coaching role.

Hornby has been impressive as part of South Sydney’s coaching staff while Young has also thrived as an assistant to Todd Payten at North Queensland.

Maroons mentor Billy Slater looks like he has what it takes to be a success at NRL level but he quickly told the Dragons early in their ham-fisted process to replace Griffin that he was not interested.

The Dragons were set to keep interim coach Ryan Carr looking after the current squad until the end of the season even if Ryles had joined the club mid-year. Carr led them to a win over the Roosters in the first match after Griffin was sacked as well as a loss last week to the Dolphins.

They are rank outsiders heading into this Sunday’s trip to Penrith even though the premiers have six players hampered by Origin duty.

Even if the Panthers rest all six, it’d be hard to see the visitors causing an upset.

The more you delve into the details of the dramas at the Dragons, the more you can see why Ryles rejected his hometown team. 

It’s a sad state of affairs for a club that should be one of the powerhouses of the NRL.