The Bulldogs should never have put an emotional Kyle Flanagan in front of the media on the day that he was dropped, NRL great and NSW coach Brad Fittler says.
In doing so, Canterbury highlighted the gap between a strong and a lesser club, Freddy suggested. However, former Bulldogs premiership-winning coach Phil Gould lauded Flanagan's courage in speaking out and backed him for success in the NRL.
Flanagan was near tears while speaking with reporters on Tuesday, reflecting on being 'hooked' during a loss to the Dragons, plus the huge influence on his career of his father, NRL title-winning coach Shane Flanagan. The young halfback's omission for Saturday's clash against the Raiders was confirmed later that day.
Bulldogs chief executive Aaron Warburton said that Flanagan was being supported by the club; yet also admitted to The Sydney Morning Herald that he was unsure if the 22-year-old had been told of his axing before or after the media appearance.
"It's most probably a lesson to Canterbury. I still haven't seen (Roosters teenage star) Joseph Suaalii in front of a camera yet," Fittler said on Wide World of Sports' Freddy and the Eighth.
"There's a real time of pressure at the moment. Don't put him up, if you don't need to. He hasn't had that much [media] practice."
Gould said that Flanagan had been brave to step in front of the cameras at such a difficult time, having assured Canterbury officials that he was OK to do so. He was also dropped mid-season by the Roosters last year, before being dumped by the club at season's end; a fate that shocked him and left him with plenty to prove in his Canterbury stint.
Gould said that Flanagan had clearly just been a stop-gap player for the Roosters, despite decent performances in his only season at the club, and was understandably finding things harder in a vastly inferior Bulldogs team. It has been a steep learning curve for the young No.7.
"That's all pretty tough for people to watch, people say, 'Well, why did they put him up in front of the camera. These are things sometimes kids have got to go through." Gould said on his Six Tackles with Gus podcast.
"It mightn't have been the right week to put him up in front of the camera but it shows the personality and the character of the kid. He took it head-on, I don't think he's running away from what's happening at the moment.
"He is a victim of the Bulldogs, the Bulldogs are not a victim of Kyle Flanagan. We saw him perform greatly for the Roosters last year. They made a decision to move him and we've all seen why they made that decision; because Sam Walker's appeared on the scene.
"They had a succession plan in place for Cooper Cronk, they just needed someone to do it for 12 months until Sam Walker was ready and they felt he was ready, so they needed to move on that because Sam Walker's coming off contract. They couldn't have Kyle Flanagan there for another year and Sam Walker playing reserve grade, or Kyle Flanagan playing reserve grade. It makes more sense now why the Roosters did what they did.
"The Bulldogs picked up a 21-year-old halfback who's now 22, still very, very young in his career. Players being benched or dropped at this stage of their career is part of the process, it's not the end of your career, it's part of the building of your career and the building of a person."
Gould said that Barrett would have carefully considered the impact of pulling Flanagan during the Dragons game. He said that the former Test playmaker was an outstanding halves coach who was working with Flanagan well before his prime years.
"Trent Barrett wouldn't make that decision lightly. He was a half himself. He would not make that decision lightly but he obviously feels he needs some thinking time, he needs some breathing time," Gould said.
"Whether that means going back and playing reserve grade for a few weeks and building his confidence; I don't know that missing football's going to do him any good, he needs to play football.
"The first thing that happens is, when Kyle Flanagan goes back to play reserve grade, you see that he's too good for reserve grade. He's a standout half back in reserve grade. He's an NRL player and he will be a very good NRL player.
"Halfbacks don't reach their peak until they're 26, 27. Honestly, they don't, so he's still halfway through his early development. I wouldn't see this as a setback, I'd just see it as part of the process.
"I thought he was very brave to give the interview that he did. Obviously when you start talking about family and the influence or your father, and him probably at the time feeling as though he's let someone down with his performances, it just got a little bit too much for him.
"But that's a strength of character. He put himself out in front of the cameras; there are plenty that hide, there are plenty that don't, so all kudos to him.
"And I know Trent Barrett wouldn't make that decision lightly. He would not do that to a kid, because he was a young footballer himself and a young halfback who was scrutinised. I just think it's part of his development.
"I know Kyle Flanagan will bounce back, no risk in the world."
