EXCLUSIVE
Shane Flanagan has opened up on coaching the Bulldogs... and what he would fix
NRL premiership-winning coach Shane Flanagan has told the Fox League Podcast that he wants the vacant Canterbury Bulldogs job.
Flanagan last coached Cronulla in 2018 and has been linked to the Dogs since Trent Barrett fell on his sword last Monday.
Canterbury have appointed Mick Potter as their interim for the remainder of the season, and they’re expected to sign their 2023 coach in the next fortnight.
Flanagan, who spent eight seasons at the Sharks and has been a Blues and Kangaroos assistant, told the Fox League Podcast he still has the fire in the belly to be a head coach.
“There’s only 16 jobs in the competition and some of those are definitely going to be out of the reach of me so I’ve got to look at what’s available. The Bulldogs job is available,” Flanagan said.
“They know I’m out there. I’m sure Gus or whoever is in charge of that responsibility, if they’re interested come and give me a ring over the next couple of weeks and we’ll go from there, but at the moment I’ll just sit back.”
Flanagan copped a two-year ban from head coaching at the end of 2018 after the NRL found he’d breached the terms of his 2014 ban following the supplements scandal.
The 56-year-old was an assistant to then-Dragons coach Paul McGregor in 2020, and he rejoined the club this year as their recruitment manager.
“I’m enjoying my role at the Dragons, it’s been fantastic and part of my family don’t want me to change what I’m doing at the moment,” Flanagan said.
“I go home every afternoon stress free and go to work most days enjoying it totally. Part of me thinks of them but I’ve got some unfinished business in the coaching business.
“I’d like to do it but if they’ve got another agenda I just get on with life.”
The Bulldogs won the wooden spoon last season and are last on the ladder after 11 rounds.
But they have big-man recruits Reed Mahoney and Viliame Kikau joining the club next season and Flanagan said he’s attracted to the job because the club oozes potential.
“(It’s) where they could be, I think obviously a club down at the bottom of the competition, there’s a lot of things that could be fixed up and I’m not saying that Trent did a bad job at all, it’s just the situation he was in, they weren’t winning,” Flanagan said.
“When I first went to the Sharks, the Sharks needed to decide what sort of DNA they wanted to be and obviously back then our DNA was revolved around the type of players I had in my squad.
The captain and the leader in that club was Paul Gallen, his leadership and his DNA rubbed through onto the club and I was lucky to get Mick Ennis and James Maloney and Wade Graham and then we discovered our DNA and we measured it.
“We measured it weekly, what are we, we knew what we had to per game to live up to our DNA and that’s measurable.
“You can’t just say we’re going to be a tough team, or we’re going to be a good team, you need things you can measure in a game whether that’s offensively or defensively.”
Flanagan also discussed on the podcast his son and Bulldogs halfback Kyle, and the lessons he’s learned along his coaching journey.
