On Monday morning, the St George Illawarra Dragons announced they would be parting ways with head coach Shane Flanagan, alongside General Manager of Football Ben Haran.

The past nine months at the Red V have been bleak both on and off the field, marked by 11 consecutive losses and growing unrest among parts of the club's young playing group.

With the Dragons now confirming the appointment of assistant coach Dean Young as the interim coach for the remainder of the 2026 season, attention now turns to who will secure the role long term.

Here are NINE contenders for the next permanent head coaching role in the NRL.

4. John Morris

With almost a decade and a half of career as an NRL player and several years of coaching, John Morris is one of the more intriguing candidates to potentially replace Shane Flanagan.

Morris has been through the wringer as a coach, taking the Sharks to finals campaigns in 2019 and 2020 before being sacked five games into the 2021 season with a 2-3 record as the club wanted to rebuild.

Being part of the Tigers re-vamp, he has been able to slot in as an assistant coach under Benji Marshall, working primarily on the defensive end.

Since joining the club, Morris has been able to improve their defence, dropping the amount of points the Tigers conceded by over 100 points from his first year in 2024 to the end of last year.

Currently, they are on pace to cut that down by almost half this season, assuming they keep their rate of 113 points conceded per seven games (16.1 per match) over the rest of the season.

The understanding and experience of knowing how to turn around a club when it is at its worst and having success to get a club to the finals could be an intriguing prospect for the Dragons to have on their list.

2 COMMENTS

  1. OK, so we are talking about a long-term coach, yes ? Not simply someone who can step in for the rest of the season.

    For an interim coach, you can rule out anyone who has already contracted as a head coach for this season: Brad Arthur, Jason Demetriou

    Ben Hornby, Matt King and John Morris _might_ get releases, but realistically I can’t see their bosses letting any of them go.

    Dean Young, Michael Ennis – well, they can step up, but would either be the right man for the job. You can’t heap the blame for SGI performance entirely on Mr Flanagan. They have to wear some of the opprobrium too.

    Kevin Walters No. Selwyn Cobbo said he was a nice guy, but no great shakes as a coach. The Broncos fined him for that; and then sacked Kevvie anyway. History does not reveal whether or not they reimbursed Selwyn’s fine.

    Ben Teo – available, and has a good reputation. He should be a DEFINITE contender.

    For 2027 and beyond:

    Dean Young and Michael Ennis – too closely associated with Mr Flanagan.

    Brad Arthur – spent a decade taking Parramatta nowhere. Success in Super League does not translate to success in the NRL

    Jason Demetriou – As with Brad Arthur; Super League success is no guarantee.

    Ben Hornby and Matt King. Maybe, but I can’t see any compelling reason

    Kevin Walters – proven that he is a good Rep team coach. Unfortunately, he has also proven he is not a good week-in-week-out team coach.

    John Morris – short-changed at the Sharks (he’d make a good replacement for Craig
    Fitzgibbon) he is a DEFINITE candidate.

    Ben Te’o – another DEFINITE candidate.

    But Magdalena, you have missed out a coach that is available now, has worked in the NRL and has a great personality to aid him winning over the dressing room, as well as having no dues to pay to anyone in the club.

    For both the Interim and Permanent head coach role, who could be better than LEE ADDISON ?