St George Illawarra Dragons captain Ben Hunt has revealed he has been kept informed of the club's search for a new head coach, and that he has spoken to Shane Flanagan.
The Dragons, who punted Anthony Griffin a month ago after two and a half years of poor form, are yet to announce their new boss, despite the search beginning well before Griffin had officially been moved on.
Hunt, who is a noted supporter of Griffin, has been in constant headlines, both before and since the departure of the former Brisbane Broncos and Penrith Panthers boss regarding his own future at the Red V, told the media after Saturday's narrow and high-scoring victory over the South Sydney Rabbitohs that CEO Ryan Webb has kept him informed and that he spoke to Flanagan during the week.
He revealed Flanagan wants the job, and that if he gets it, Hunt would remain halfback, instead of playing hooker as he did for brief periods during Griffin's final weeks in charge as the besieged coach looked for answers at the Red V in a desperate, but ultimately futile bid to keep his job.
โI had a small chat with โFlanno' about his intentions, that he wanted to come in and coach. If he did get the job, he wanted me to play halfback," Hunt said at the post-match press conference after the narrow win.
Hunt has been heavily linked with an exit from the Dragons despite having two years to run on his current deal, having re-signed before the beginning of this year, and publically expressed he didn't want to start again under a new coach at the club at this stage of his career.
The Dragons, however, had little choice but to move on Griffin after two seasons without finals and a six-match losing streak rolling into his departure.
Shane Flanagan, who has spent two stints at the club previously - one as an assistant coach and one as a list manager - has become one of the front runners for the job after Jason Ryles snubbed the club in favour of a return to Melbourne.
It's believed Flanagan could be announced as soon as this week, with the Dragons otherwise looking at a pair of former players in Ben Hornby and Dean Young, who currently hold assistant coaching jobs at the South Sydney Rabbitohs and North Queensland Cowboys respectively.
