NRL great Andrew Johns has defended Roosters halfback Kyle Flanagan after the Roosters were eliminated from the Finals in straight sets.
Sydney were in good position for a third consecutive NRL premiership, before losses to Penrith and Canberra ended any chance of a three-peat.
With a lot of the focus on Flanagan, who the Roosters are prepared to give up with a year to run on his contract, Johns says the critics are being too harsh on him.
On the real, the Kyle Flanagan hate is astounding. The kid hasnโt even been bad by any means. Was leading point scorer at one stage and helped his team to a top 4 spot after his first full season in the NRL. Think heโs been majorly hard done by from the RL community. Just my take
— Matty (@mattymoy__) October 13, 2020
โGo and watch Jonathan Thurston when he was 20โฆ go and watch Cooper Cronk, he was coming off the bench playing dummy-half,โ he said on Nineโs Wide World of Sports.
โIt takes so long to try and master the half back positionโฆ the people who are being too tough on him donโt know what theyโre talking about.โ
Johns also argued that with the number of injuries that the Roosters had this season, in addition to the retirement of Cooper Cronk, the role Flanagan had was incredibly demanding.
โWhen Victor Radley got hurt, Radley was their link in the middle of the field, when he went, Kyle Flanagan took on a lot more responsibility, Also Luke Keary had those head knocks.โ he said.
According to reports, Canterbury are the hot favourites to secure his signature with Matthew Johns telling NRL 360 that the Bulldogs under new coach Trent Barrett would be an ideal fit.
BULLDOG BID CONFIRMED
Kyle Flanagan is under contract at the Roosters for next season but it is becoming increasingly likely he wonโt be there, via @BulldogRitchie. https://t.co/VgD3Mea2yi
— Telegraph Sport (@telegraph_sport) October 13, 2020
โI actually think going to a club like that where the expectation is lower would suit him,โ he said.
โ(Barrett) heโs done a good job with Nathan Cleary (at Penrith) this yearโฆ Theyโre a club on the build thatโs for sure.โ