“He is Liam Martin everywhere”: The rookie for the Dragons is vying for a Round 1 spot.
A talented rookie is apparently working very hard to get into the St George Illawarra Dragons’ Round 1 roster as the 2024 season draws closer.
Dylan Egan, coach Shane Flanagan’s replacement for Liam Martin, captained the SG Ball Cup the previous year before joining the NSW Cup team.
But since then, he’s emerged as one of the standout players in preseason training, especially in the Dragons vs. Manly Sea Eagles scrimmage. Ben Hunt, the captain, has also given him his complete support for this.
Shane Flanagan has confirmed to News Corp that Egan is now a real contender to start in the second row for the team against the Gold Coast Titans in Round 1.
Recruitments Raymond Faitala-Mariner and Tom Eisenhuth, who joined from the Canterbury Bulldogs and Melbourne Storm, are other candidates for the open back-row spot.
“Since we’ve returned, Dylan Egan is a young kid who has really impressed me,” Ben Hunt stated in a recent News Corp interview.
“He’s no nonsense; if you give him an assignment, he completes it. He’s one of our fittest forwards; he makes excellent defensive decisions and always seems to be in the right place at the right time.
“He just performs all the minor tasks correctly.” He reminds me of my Broncos teammate Matt Gillett; both guys never fail to support one another.
“He has shown great promise.”
Shane Flanagan also discussed the young player’s presence and expressed the belief that he will stay in the Dragons’ NRL system for a considerable amount of time.
He is a genuine hopeful. He is a resilient rear rower. He’s going to be a first grader for a very long time,” Flanagan continued.
“He really is Liam Martin.” He is a smart football player, tough as nails, and a great communicator in team meetings.
That’s a rap because Ben (Hunt) is happy to have him defend next to him. He is the real thing. Although Dylan Egan is a player of the future, round one is a stretch.
The 2024 NRL Season Guide by Zero Tackle is currently available, and it’s free this year! More than 120 pages of content, including player profiles, complete team rosters, statistics, and team expectations. Download it for free right now.
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Hunter expected to give Dragons significant boost following release request
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA-AUGUST 28: Ben Hunt of the Dragons sprints with the ball during the Wests Tigers vs. St George Illawarra Dragons round 24 NRL encounter at CommBank Stadium, Sydney, Australia, August 28, 2022. (Image via Getty Images/Matt King)
Ben Hunt, a veteran captain and halfback for the St George Illawarra Dragons, has reportedly made the decision to finish out his contract with the team.
For Hunt, the past 12 months have been quite strange.
Even though Hunt signed a two-year extension with the team in late 2022, remarks he made almost immediately implied that his future would be closely related to that of former coach Anthony Griffin.
Truly, there had been whispers during the talks that Hunt would only return to the Dragons if the contract included a clause addressing Griffin’s role as head coach.
In the end, the Dragons’ board remained steadfast on that, and in the midst of a miserable 2023 campaign, Griffin was fired.
Hunt then asked to be released from the last two years of his contract, which included the entire extension, but Shane Flanagan, the team’s new coach, refused to let Hunt go at least until 2024.
Journalist Michael Carayannis has now predicted that he will remain through 2025 as well. The reporter told News Corp that no clubs will be willing to pay him what he is now making at the Red V.
Carayannis informed SEN, “Not only will Ben Hunt play out this year at the Dragons, he’ll fulfill his contract next year (2025) as well.”
It will undoubtedly annoy him to not have the roster around him, but the Dragons have made it clear they won’t let him go.
He’ll be there for sure this year, and given his age—33 to 34—I believe he’ll survive next year. Few teams have enough cap space ($900,000) to accommodate that.
Hunt has promised to finish 2024 under Flanagan while the Dragons seek a quick rebuild, but he has not commented to imply he has withdrawn his request for 2025 with the team.
This season, Hunt will partner with either Kyle Flanagan or Jesse Marschke in the halves. Both players joined the team after Jayden Sullivan was released early to play for the Wests Tigers and Talatau Amone de-registered.
The Dragons play the Gold Coast Titans away from home to begin their 2024 campaign.
The 2024 NRL Season Guide by Zero Tackle is currently available, and it’s free this year! More than 120 pages of content, including player profiles, complete team rosters, statistics, and team expectations. Download it for free right now.
