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Recruits shine for Red V over Roosters | 02:30
Shane Flanagan opened up on Ben Hunt’s messy exit from the Dragons before his replacements, son Kyle and Lachlan Ilias starred as they thrashed the Roosters in their first trial.
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In a convincing 26-8 win over the Roosters, Flanagan had 37 run metres, a linebreak, a linebreak assist, two try assists and a try in a man-of-the-match display, while Ilias was also solid in his first game back after a season out with a broken leg.
Prior to the match, Flanagan told The Courier Mail that while Hunt was a good player and tried hard for the club, he was always a Broncos player playing for the Dragons.
“It just didn’t work out,” Flanagan told The Courier Mail.
“When I first got the job, Ben was agitating to get out because ‘Hook’ (former coach Anthony Griffin) had left and he was good mates with him.
“He tried really hard the year I had him, but he never really settled after that.
“In the end, he said, ‘I think I want to go home’. We can’t have our captain and our leader not wanting to be here, so it was an easy decision for me to let Ben go.
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“It’s hard to make someone love you. It really is. Sometimes you try and make it work and I really believe Ben genuinely tried. I believe he had a really good season for us last year and I will never ever criticise him for not having a crack.
“Unfortunately, it turned pear-shaped at the end of the season – but that wasn’t solely on Ben.
“People will always look for cracks and the reason why he left, but the truth is it wasn’t a perfect marriage and it was best for Ben to go.
“There was no point in me trying to convince him. At some point he had to want to be there and if someone doesn’t want to be there, maybe they aren’t the right fit.
“I’ve seen Ben since and we get on fine. There’s no hard feelings from my perspective. He has moved on and we’ve moved on.”
The catalyst for the Hunt’s break-up with the Dragons last year came after a horror 44-40 loss to the Eels cost them a place in the finals.
Flanagan last week told Fox Sports’ Paul Crawley that Hunt was an ageing playmaker with a few bad habits creeping into his game.
Until then Hunt had been keen to sign an extension with the club, but Flanagan explained a heated discussion between the pair after that match was a storm in a tea cup.
“Benny and myself had a heap of honest discussions,” he said.
“People talk about that moment, it was at Parramatta Stadium and we lost 44-40, it was a ridiculous game really with that scoreline.
“Ben made a few tactical decisions. We had a discussion about sticking to our game plan.
“It was a conversation about management of a game which all coaches and playmakers have. We never had an argument or a blue during the season.
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Kyle Flanagan starred against the Roosters.Source: Getty Images“It was a candid chat between captain and halfback. It was an educational discussion.
“Ben was never a nasty person. I always asked him his opinions and valued them.”
Flanagan believes Hunt was most content at the Dragons when he was surrounded by his former Broncos teammates and coach and thinks he is back where he is meant to be.
“In hindsight, he was happiest at the Dragons when he had guys like ‘Hook’, Josh McGuire and (Andrew) McCullough,” Flanagan said.
“He had his Broncos mates at the Dragons and they had all left, which just left Ben.
“I actually think the Broncos are in for a good year with Ben there.
“Michael Maguire (new coach) will be good for them, he is a very disciplined coach and I think Ben will do well there.
Flanagan believes Hunt was always a Broncos player.Source: The Daily Telegraph“They have class across the park. They have strike players, good outside backs in Kotoni Staggs and with their best structure, attitude and depth, they will be hard to beat.”
Now life after Hunt has begun, with Flanagan stepping up and taking on more ownership of the side’s attack against the Roosters.
An honest Flanagan senior admitted he doesn’t know if Kyle can reach the heights of Hunt as an NRL playmaker, but he knows what he gets from him can help the team be successful.
“I don’t know if Kyle will be an elite playmaker,” Flanagan said.
“To be honest, I was more anxious about watching Kyle when he was at the Bulldogs.
“I felt comfortable at the Roosters because he was in a great football team there, but I would worry about him at the Bulldogs.
“One thing I will say is that Kyle is an elite competitor. He kicks well and defensively, if you ask our defensive coaches, he is one of the top three or four defensive halves in the comp.
“He will never break teams open with his attacking game, but I just need him to be consistent.
“He will never be an elite game-breaker, but he can be elite in consistency. I know what I get with Kyle. He is the ultimate competitor and that’s just as important.”
