The St George Illawarra Dragons' search for a long-term head coach has taken another unexpected twist, with Michael Cheika now emerging as a serious contender for the role.

Cheika joined the Roosters coaching staff last October and is off contract at season's end, positioning him as a genuine candidate should the Dragons opt for a bold external appointment rather than another internal promotion.

The Daily Telegraph have revealed that the former Wallabies coach and current Roosters assistant coach has expressed his interest in claiming the Dragons' top job as their next full-time coach.

Cheika coached the Wallabies from 2014 to 2019 and is one of Australian rugby's most decorated coaches, leading the Wallabies to the 2015 World Cup final.

He later broadened his international resume, coaching Argentina in 2022 and 2023, and is currently head coach of the Lebanon National Rugby League team.

At the Dragons, Dean Young will coach the Dragons for the rest of the year as an interim coach, as the club again resets following the departure of Shane Flanagan.

The prospect of Cheika transitioning fully into rugby league leadership has already divided opinion, but former NRL star Matty Johns has strongly backed the idea.

“Michael Cheika would be great for the Dragons,” Johns said on Fox League.

“I believe he can unite the club.

“You have to be able to handle the heat these days, and ‘Chek' is experienced enough to do that.

“There's only one coach at the Dragons who has convinced the blazers at the club to row in the same direction and that was Wayne Bennett because of his strength and presence.

“Chek is exactly the sort of senior coach who could do that.

“The Dragons have sacked coach after coach after coach.

“It might be time to shift a bit left of centre and show some faith in Michael Cheika.”

Former Roosters playmaker Luke Keary, who worked closely with Cheika during his first stint as part of the coaching staff at the Roosters, also believes the 57-year-old has the presence to succeed in the NRL system.

“He's got a presence, he's got an aura, like he's a head-coach,” Fox League analyst Keary said.

“You can tell, even though his rugby league knowledge wasn't very high when he first came. It is now.

“I can tell you, even talking to him now, he's been an assistant, he's in a much better position.”

Keary suggested that the final question is not about capability but about confidence in stepping fully into a head coaching role in rugby league.

“It's probably more about him, and I guess his knowledge and development around rugby league, or does he think he can take over a rugby league team?” Keary said that Cheika's confidence and readiness are the only hurdles in the way.

“He's got a bit of Craig Fitzgibbon about him. He's a man's man.

“He's got the aura of a well-travelled man who's coached in different parts of the world.”

“I don't know who could coach there,” said Keary, who has joined Fox League's coverage full-time this season.

“The coach is very important, but the general manager is the most important thing there.

“They need someone to be able to deal with what's going on up top, and leave the coach to coach.”

As the Dragons continue to weigh up their long-term direction, Cheika's name looms as an ambitious, if unconventional, option — and one that could signal a significant shift in how the club approaches its next chapter.