SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA - AUGUST 13: Jack de Belin of the Dragons celebrates victory with Tariq Sims at the end of the round 23 NRL match between the St George Illawarra Dragons and the Cronulla Sharks at WIN Jubilee Stadium on August 13, 2016 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Jason McCawley/Getty Images)

The Dragons struggled to score points in 2016, with the club coming second-last in points scored and having a massive negative points difference by season end.

News broke today that the club has officially signed Ben Hunt but the club will need to wait until 2018 before he can steer the team around the park.

2016 Round 1 Team

  1. Kurt Mann
  2. Euan Aitken
  3. Josh Dugan
  4. Tim Lafai
  5. Jason Nightingale
  6. Gareth Widdop
  7. Benji Marshall
  8. Leeson Ah Mau
  9. Mitch Rein
  10. Russell Packer
  11. Will Matthews
  12. Jack de Belin
  13. Mike Cooper
  14. Ben Creagh
  15. Dunamis Lui
  16. Siliva Havili
  17. Tyson Frizell

2017 will see the Dragons start a new hooker, a new halves partner for Gareth Widdop and Josh Dugan returning to the fullback.

The Dragons forward pack looks quite formidable on paper, with plenty of size and strength. The signing of Paul Vaughan and the re-signing of future stars Luciano Leilua and Jacob Host mean there will be plenty of jostling for minutes amongst the forwards.

The second-row is also another strength for the Dragons with NSW forward Tyson Frizell leading the way alongside Joel Thompson and Tariq Sims.

The real question mark on the 2017 Dragons still remains Gareth Widdop's halves partner. The club was planning on Drew Hutchison starting the season there but an ACL injury in training finished his season before it started.

Shaun Nona, Kurt Mann and Josh McCrone are the likely candidates with Josh McCrone most likely getting the nod due to his experience.

2017 Possible Round 1 Team

  1. Josh Dugan
  2. Nene Macdonald
  3. Euan Aitken
  4. Taane Milne
  5. Jason Nightingale
  6. Gareth Widdop
  7. Josh McCrone
  8. Leeson Ah Mau
  9. Cameron McInnes
  10. Russell Packer
  11. Tyson Frizell
  12. Joel Thompson
  13. Jack de Belin
  14. Tariq Sims
  15. Paul Vaughan
  16. Luciano Leilua
  17. Jacob Host

PICK YOUR NRL TEAM: Not a fan of the above team? Then take over as the coach and pick your line-up!

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