The St George Illawarra Dragons are believed to be close to signing off on a new head coach for the 2027 NRL season and beyond.
Dean Young is unsurprisingly on the final shortlist of candidates to take over the role which was held by Shane Flanagan until he left at the end of Round 8.
The Dragons endured a torrid start to the season under Flanagan, and ultimately lost their first seven games of the season under his leadership, and suffered an 11-match losing streak once the final four games of 2025 were added.
The Dragons lost another four games under their interim coach, before eventually snapping the streak in Brisbane against the Broncos.
They have won just one more game since, but the signs have been better for a side who have already signed a host of talent next year - Keaon Koloamatangi, Scott Drinkwater, Luke Metcalf, Phillip Sami and Connor Watson - and have one of the game's brightest young cores in the system.
Young has made his case to take over the job on a fulltime basis, but The Sydney Morning Herald are reporting three candidates reached the final stage of interviews that have taken place this week.
South Sydney Rabbitohs assistant coach Ben Hornby, who has been endorsed by Wayne Bennett, is a former premiership winner with the Dragons and a great mate of Young's, is also on the list.
A third candidate is also understood to have been interviewed, however, there is no knowledge of who that is.
It's understood the Dragons board will meet to review candidates on Monday, with an eye towards making a decision on their new fulltime boss in the coming weeks.
Both sides of the joint-venture must agree on the coach to take the club forward.
Young is believed to be the favourite, although there is also plenty of support around the outfit for Hornby.
Maybe working in Young's favour is the fact marquee recruit Scott Drinkwater has stated more than once that he wants to play under Young, who was formerly an assistant coach at the North Quensland Cowboys before returning for his second stint at the Dragons when Flanagan took over from Anthony Griffin.
Most expected the Dragons would have made a call by now, but with negotiations and potential further interviews with the board to come, it still could be some time before a call is made.
The Dragons have already completed most of their recruitment for next year in what is another reason to not stress about rushing into a decision that could backfire.
Since Wayne Bennett left the club at the end of 2011, the Dragons have moved on from Steve Price, Paul McGregor, Anthony Griffin and Shane Flanagan, having made the finals just twice in that time period.
