Ben Hunt drops hint on Dragons future after Shane Flanagan call

The future of St George Illawarra skipper Ben Hunt looms as the next big issue facing the NRL club after the Dragons finally ended their long-running search for a new coach, with the appointment of Shane Flanagan. The former Cronulla premiership-winning coach has signed a three-year deal to take over the Dragons from 2024.

The Dragons board unanimously voted on Flanagan as Anthony Griffin's coaching successor ahead of current NRL assistants and Dragons greats Dean Young and Ben Hornby. The Dragons ultimately ended up with the experienced Flanagan instead of apparent first choice Jason Ryles, who turned down the chance to coach his former club after deciding to re-join Melbourne to be part of Craig Bellamy's Storm coaching staff.

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One of Flanagan's first big tasks will surely be convincing Hunt that his future is with the Dragons. The star halfback is signed on until the end of the 2025 season and has not ruled out a return to Queensland to finish his career.

While the 33-year-old remains coy on his future, he made it clear before Flanagan's appointment that he was not interested in a club rebuild at his age. In a hint that perhaps he could be leaning towards staying with the Red V, Hunt has endorsed Flanagan's appointment and believes the club needed an experienced coach at the helm, rather than a rookie.

"He's obviously shown he can do it before. He's won premierships and knows what it takes to build a good team and successful club," Hunt said at Maroons camp as he prepares for State of Origin Game II. "I think that's why they went in that direction.

Flanagan, who coached Cronulla in 185 games and led them to the 2016 premiership, previously worked at the Dragons as assistant coach and as a list management consultant. "That (Flanagan's history with Dragons) could have had a bit bearing on why they brought him in," Hunt added.

"He probably has a good feel of what the club's like, how it's run, what he can change and make better." Hunt - who played 187 games for the Broncos - has been linked with a return to his home state as well as the Canterbury Bulldogs, among other clubs. The classy halfback says he hasn't spoken with Flanagan yet or made a decision about his future beyond this year.

Ben Hunt refuses to rule out move away from Dragons

"At the moment I'm getting through Origin camp and then I'll talk to those guys," Hunt said. "There's always a couple of clubs interested that have thrown their hat in the ring.

"I'm not going to go into too many details. I haven't had any official offers or anything from anyone at all. At the moment I'm contracted to the Dragons." Hunt is from Central Queensland and admits a return home to play for one of his home state's NRL teams could be appealing.

"The career is coming to an end pretty quickly. I've only got a few years left," he said. "I'd never say no, that's for sure. I love Queensland, I grew up here and will definitely come back here after footy."

Hunt has won a World Cup with Australia as well as State of Origin series with Queensland, but an NRL premiership has so far eluded him. The 33-year-old said it will likely be a motivating factor on his next big career decision.

"It's always a factor, for sure," he said. "There's a lot of things that go into making a decision. A premiership's one of them."

Flanagan has assured Hunt he will remain at halfback if he stays, after Griffin started him at hooker for one game, to Hunt's displeasure. "I've always made it clear I'd like to play halfback at club level. Flanno understands that and said if I was there that's where he'd want me to play."

with AAP

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