NRL Magic Round: Dragons suffer fifth-straight loss as Ben Hunt slams 'dumb' performance against Tigers

Liam O'Loughlin

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NRL Magic Round: Dragons suffer fifth-straight loss as Ben Hunt slams 'dumb' performance against Tigers image

Dragons captain Ben Hunt has slammed the "dumb" performance from his side on Sunday, with the embattled club slumping to a fifth-straight loss.

After tight defeats at the hands of the Roosters and Bulldogs over the past fortnight, it was the same-old Saints in Magic Round, falling 18-16 to the resurgent Tigers at Suncorp Stadium.

Moses Suli bombed a late chance to give St George Illawarra the victory, but the struggling outfit will now be forced to lick their wounds and face the immense scrutiny coming their way.

Speaking to Fox League immediately after full-time, Hunt was blunt in his assessment but admitted his mid-game move to hooker could become a long-term fix.

MORE: South Sydney put NRL rivals on notice with big win over Melbourne

“Story of the season isn’t it? Honestly, we were just dumb today," he said.

"Some of the things we did is not NRL standard…you just can’t do that.

"[The spine change] could be a little bit more permanent… we didn’t give ourselves enough chance to see if it works or not. We were just dumb."

Why did Ben Hunt play hooker for the Dragons? 

Hunt started the game at halfback but shifted into the middle of the field during the first-half, opening the door for young gun Jayden Sullivan to enter the fold and score two tries in an exciting display.

Head coach Anthony Griffin believes the new-look spine worked well, but was disappointed to fall short in yet another close contest. 

“I think we’ll digest this and have a look at it, but I thought in general it worked pretty well - I thought it made us a little bit more dangerous at times," he said.

“For long periods there, we were coming to get the game in the second-half. We were patient, but at vital times we come up with the wrong option or come up with an error in the play-the-ball.

"It’s heartbreaking for everyone, but just losing by two – if you can change a few of those situations in the game, you’re not trying to score with 30 seconds to go."

Will Anthony Griffin be sacked by the Dragons? 

Griffin is expected to have the blowtorch firmly applied following the Dragons' latest shortcoming, with many pushing for his immediate exit from the club.

Quizzed on whether or not he was feeling the heat, Griffin gave very little away despite the external noise and pressure growing by the day.

“Not at all," he said during a frosty post-game press conference. 

“There’s a knife-edge in it, we could be sitting here and being in a whole different position.

“It is what it is at the moment. We’re close, but we’re just doing enough to get beat.

“We can take that attitude and become defeatist, but that’s not going to happen. We’ve got to stare it in the face and keep going.

"We could have had three or four wins in the past five weeks."

Liam O'Loughlin

Liam O'Loughlin Photo

Liam has been with The Sporting News since 2019, helping lead both NRL and cricket content, as well as delving into the world of combat sports and NFL. A true rugby league tragic, he has spent the past 20 years playing, coaching and volunteering for his beloved junior club, Penshurst RSL. 

Away from work, Liam has a lifelong passion for all things pro wrestling and has travelled abroad to attend showcase events for WWE, AEW and NJPW.