Shane Flanagan sits in the southern grandstand at WIN Stadium overlooking the kingdom he’s confident he’s about to build.
Asked if there will be any special treatment for the son of kings and the new Dragons coach doesn’t miss a bit.
“Kyle won’t be getting any favours along the way, if anything, he has to work harder than everybody else,” Flaganan told foxsports.com.au of his recently recruited son.
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“He knows there’s no shortcuts and that I treat him exactly the same as everyone else at all times out here.
“I think he’s got the respect of all the players already. They’ve seen how hard he works and that he doesn’t get any favours – and that’s a good thing.”
There were three father-son duos in the NRL last season and their experiences differed greatly.
At one end of the scale Ivan and Nathan Cleary won their third straight premiership at Penrith, while Parramatta’s Brad and Jake Arthur were scrutinised so intensely that the latter was effectively booed out of the club.
The third father-son example in 2023 is the one Shane and Kyle Flanagan would like to replicate in 2024.
Kevin Walters signed his son to the Broncos ahead of 2022 to deafening accusations of nepotism, given Billy was 28 and had played just 12 NRL games.
But the jeers eventually turned to cheers as Billy silenced his critics in the most satisfying way possible, with red-hot form that helped take Brisbane all the way to the grand final.
Kyle finds himself at a somewhat similar crossroads after arriving in Wollongong this summer following stints at the Sharks, Roosters, and Bulldogs.
“Billy and Kevvie, Nathan and Ivan, (they) have got a good relationship going on. Me and Kyle will have that too. I can’t speak for those coaches, but coaching your son is easy,” Flanagan said.
“You’ve been with them for such long periods of time so they’ve got a really good understanding of what you expect and what standards you set and Kyle definitely has that.
“We both understand each other, he knows what I expect of him and Kyle knows he won’t be getting any favours along the way.”
Kyle was signed as a hooker or utility but has been thrust into the No. 6 jumper after Junior Amone was deregistered by the NRL following an assault conviction.
The 25-year-old made his NRL debut in 2018 under his father at the Sharks, before playing for Trent Robinson at the Roosters and then Trent Barrett and Cameron Ciraldo at the Dogs.
Kyle is adamant his father is the coach to finally unlock his full potential, but knows it will be a bumpy road at times.
“Obviously it’s going to be a rollercoaster and there will always be challenges that come your way, but he knows me better than anyone else and I feel like I’m a lot more mature now,” Kyle told foxsports.com.au.
“I’ve been on the rugby league rollercoaster for a while now but I’m feeling fresh and happy to be down here and I’m focused on winning.
“There’s always going to be a story around it but we’ve got a working relationship too and it’s about understanding what the coach wants and the way he wants to play his footy.
“It comes back to that I came down here for an opportunity in whatever role and I just want to be part of a successful team where all we want to do is win, that’s the most important thing.
“I just want to be happy, compete and train really hard every week and when it comes to game time I want to go out there and earn the respect of my teammates and just win.”
Shane also knows the scrutiny will be intense if the results don’t fall their way. But he issued a stark reminder to fans ahead of the 2024 season.
“Yeah look Kyle has been around and I’ve been around long enough to handle it, but Dragons supporters have got to understand this,” Shane said.
“Kyle was brought here potentially to play No. 9 but at the moment he’s in the halves and Kyle will do his job, that’s all he’s got to worry about.
“He hasn’t got to worry about ripping teams apart. He’s not Nathan Cleary, he’s Kyle Flanagan.
“Just do your job as Kyle Flanagan, Ben Hunt do his job, Blake Lawrie etc and if everyone does their job (then) the job will get done.
“You can’t be pinning hopes or expectations on any one individual and I’ll be getting that message across to Dragons supporters from day one that this is a team and it’s not about any one individual.
“Last year Ben Hunt was, especially in attack, the centrepiece of it all. I’d like to think Kyle can get the ball to Jaydn Su’a and Moses Suli and our strike players on the edges. We need to get them more football and that will be Kyle’s main job description.
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“Then Ben can flip from both sides of the field and play what he sees a little bit more, but Kyle will get the balls to our strike players and that will be his job.”
Kyle believes his game has come “a long way” since debuting as a teenager in 2018 and is confident he’ll be able to play his role this season.
“I probably don’t think about that too often how much my game has come around but it’s definitely evolved a lot, with the game changes as well,” he said.
“I like to think I’m a more complete football player but in saying that there’s a lot more to go.
“I was really excited to sign here, I just came down here for an opportunity to play No. 9 or in a utility role or play in the halves, I was quite happy to play anywhere.
“I played in the halves on the weekend and I thought it was a good start and plenty to improve on, but I’m feeling good going into Round 1.”
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