The St George Illawarra Dragons have played finals footy twice since Wayne Bennett’s departure in 2011.
Their last appearance was in 2018, the second-longest drought of any club.
CEO Tim Watsford knows things have to change and has outlined his blueprint for building a Dragons dynasty, beginning with a top eight finish this year.
Taking a page out of the Penrith Panthers’ book, Watsford aims to build a dynasty centred around the Illawarra region’s talent-rich nursery.
The issue is that the club has been trying to build a dynasty with juniors for years now.
Reuben Garrick and Tyran Wishart are two extremely talented footballers and Dragons juniors.
But the club let them both go, opting to build a squad around players like Tyrell Sloan, Talatau Amone and Jayden Sullivan, only one of which is still at the club and fighting for a spot in the starting squad.
So, what has Watsford changed?
The appointment of Daniel Anderson as a recruitment manager and to oversee the pathways program was crucial.
The club no longer wants to develop their juniors into NRL players, they want to develop them into NRL stars.
“We want to invest in the players who have grown up in our backyard and are ultimately going to bleed the Red V. I can see that particularly in Hamish Stewart, Dylan Egan, the two Couchman brothers. They all are from the Illawarra and have such a connection to the jersey.” Watsford told the NRL website.
“You can see when they’re on the field how much they want success. Our job is to replicate that right across the field.
“If I could fill up a team full of Illawarra and St George juniors, we will do that. Our job’s to invest and make sure these guys have every opportunity to play first grade and win in the Red V.”
However, time is off the essence.
With the Perth Bears and PNG Chiefs starts in the NRL imminent, they will need to sign players from somewhere, and the Dragons nursery will be one of the first places to look.
2025 debutants such as Loko Pasifiki Tonga, Hayden Buchanan and Jacob Halangahu will no doubt be on the radars of the new franchises.
For the Dragons too, Watsford understands it’s now or never or never for the Dragons to build the next NRL dynasty, but first they need to break their finals drought.
“That’s the phrase we’re implementing across the club. Be better tomorrow than we are today.” Watsford said.
“Finishing 15th isn’t acceptable but there were green shoots coming through that showed us what this club can be. We have to be better in 2026 and then in 2027 we’ll be better again.
“We’re not going to win a premiership overnight, but we’re genuinely on the journey now. I’d like to be vying for finals in 26, that’s absolutely within our grasp. We want both the men and the women to be climbing the ladder next year.”
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