Interim coach Dean Young will face a baptism of fire this weekend when the Dragons take on the Roosters on Anzac Day, but he’s being tipped to keep the job full-time.
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There was reportedly some consternation among some factions of the joint venture club to name Young as the interim coach, but ultimately, the Dragons handed the club legend the gig.
The Daily Telegraph’s Brent Read believes the Dragons’ gig is “his to lose”.
“This is his chance to show he’s the right man for the job,” Read said.
Journalist Michael Carayannis says Young’s promotion was a no-brainer for now.
“He was the right guy for the right time,” Carayannis said,
“Whether or not he’s the right guy for the long-term head coaching job, that’s something that remains to be seen. But for right now, what the club needs, Dean Young was the perfect (hire).”
Young hasn’t wasted anytime shaking up the side in the wake of Shane Flanagan’s exit.
Promising playmaker Kade Reed will start at halfback in what will be his NRL debut with Kyle Flanagan demoted to the bench.
Given the swath of young talent on the roster such as Reed, Dylan Egan, Lhykan King-Togia and Loko Pasifiki-Tonga, being able to develop the unproven guys will be key in whether Young keeps the job.
Carayannis touched on this when he revealed what the Dragons could potentially be looking for when they hire their next full-time coach.
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“You look at their last couple of coaches, Anthony Griffin and Shane Flanagan. Experienced coaches, right? So I feel like now they’re going to go for a younger guy,” Carayannis said.
“Dean Young is obviously a candidate. Ben Hornby is the other one, right? And then you look around the league and you look at some of those young coaches. Is it a John Morris? Is it a Matt King if they go outside the box.
“But I feel like it’s going to be a younger guy who can produce junior talent. That’s going to be the number one criteria around getting that emerging talent at the club.
“A development-style coach and someone who’s got some gravitas in the player market because that’s where they’ve struggled at as well.”
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