St George Illawarra Dragons
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| St George Illawarra Dragons | |
 |
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| Full name | St George Illawarra Dragons Rugby League Club |
| Nickname(s) | Dragons |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1999 |
| Ground | Oki Jubilee Stadium Kogarah, Sydney; WIN Stadium Wollongong |
| Capacity | 20,541 20,000 |
| CEO |  Peter Doust |
| Coach | Nathan Brown |
| League | National Rugby League |
| 2006 | National Rugby League, 4th |
The St. George Illawarra Dragons are a team in the National Rugby League (NRL), the premier rugby league football competition in Australia.
The St. George Illawarra Dragons entered the NRL competition in 1999 as a joint venture between the St. George Dragons and the Illawarra Steelers. Officially they formed the game’s first joint venture on September 23, 1998.
In their first year as a joint venture the new Dragons came within minutes of winning the 1999 Grand Final, but were beaten by the Melbourne Storm in only their second season of the NRL competition. Since the relative success of 1999, the Dragons' performance has been fairly inconsistent, despite a talented playing roster. Factors include repetitive injuries to star players, off-field distractions and the constant travel between their multiple home grounds at Kogarah and Wollongong. The team has kept the red "v" on their white shirt, ensuring the legacy of the famous St. George club has endured the change.
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[edit] Club History
In the wake of the Super League war of 1995 and 1996, and the resulting split competition of 1997, the St. George Dragons and the Illawarra Steelers found themselves struggling financially, so with the NRL's intention to rationalise the competition from 20 teams down to 14 teams and with substantial financial incentives and a relaxing of salary cap requirements for joint ventures, the Dragons and the Steelers ensured their survival by forming the League's first joint venture on September 23, 1998.
Joint ventures being a new concept in Australian rugby league, the public watched closely in anticipation of success or failure. No-one was certain how the top players sourced from the joint venture's two feeder clubs would perform when they ran out onto the field. They were unsuccessful in their first outing, losing to the Parramatta Eels 20-10, but by the 4th round they had started to form some cohesion and would go on to achieve a top 8 position on the competition ladder by the end of the regular season.
In the semi-finals the Dragons won against the Melbourne Storm at Olympic Park, before returning to Sydney to dispose of the Roosters and Cronulla to reach the Grand Final.
In the Grand Final the Dragons were leading by 14-0 at the break. A fairytale of a maiden title in their first year seemed destined to come true; something of an advertisement to any other clubs considering the option of a joint venture, but the Storm recovered from their poor start and went into the final minutes of the game with the Dragons leading by 18-14. The Dragons were forced to perform a drop kick from their own goal line, and on the fifth tackle Brett Kimmorley kicked high towards the Dragon's corner of the field. As the Storm's winger Craig Smith caught the ball over the try-line he was knocked unconscious in a tackle by Jamie Ainscough and lost the ball. Referee Bill Harrigan deferred to the video referee who ruled a penalty try on the grounds that contact had been made with the head, giving Melbourne a 20-18 lead and the premiership title.
[edit] 2005 Season
After their worst start to a season yet (losing 5 of their first 6 games) the St. George Illawarra side finished second in a close season on the ladder at completion of the 2005 season, just behind minor premiers the Parramatta Eels on points difference. After progressing to the finals they defeated local rivals the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks in the quarter final of the finals series though the Dragons eventually fell 12-20 to eventual champions the Wests Tigers in the Preliminary Final.
The Dragons broke the ground record at WIN Stadium twice this season. First against rivals the Sydney Roosters and then at their home quarter final game against the Cronulla Sharks.
[edit] 2006 Season
After a shaky start, the Dragons put on a mid season 7 game winning streak. This was followed by an unfortunate form slump, with a record five consecutive losses, only to return to form with a victory over the Tigers, and continue this positive form leading into the finals. The Dragons ended the regular season in sixth position.
In the first week of the finals, the Dragons beat the Broncos 20-4 at Suncorp Stadium, and in the second week of the finals, the Dragons defeated the Manly Sea Eagles 28 - 0 at Aussie Stadium. The team then suffered a devastating blow to their finals campaign, losing 24-10 to the Melbourne Storm the following week in the grand final qualifier at Telstra Stadium.
[edit] Noted Past Players
| Current Squad (pre-season 2007) Outside backs |
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Australia
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See also: All Time Player List
[edit] Internationals
- Jamie Ainscough
- Luke Bailey
- Trent Barrett
- Wayne Bartrim
- Nathan Blacklock
- Matt Cooper
- Ben Creagh
- Mark Gasnier
- Brent Kite
- Jason Ryles
- Shaun Timmins
[edit] Dally M winners
- Trent Barrett (2000)
[edit] Coaches
- David Waite 1999-2000
- Andrew Farrar 1999-2002
- Nathan Brown 2003-current
[edit] Home Grounds
- WIN Stadium (1999 - current)
- OKI Jubilee Stadium (1999, 2003 - current)
- Aussie Stadium (2000 - 2002)
NB. The Dragons have taken the 2004 and 2006 ANZAC Day match against the Sydney Roosters at Aussie Stadium as their home ground, and not the Roosters.
Highest Attendances at Oki Jubilee Stadium
- 18,223 - Dragons v Bulldogs (14/7/2006)
- 17,523 - Dragons v Eels (21/8/2005)
- 17,113 - Dragons v Sharks (24/7/2005)
- 16,915 - Dragons v Wests Tigers (20/6/2004)
- 16,713 - Dragons v Sharks (4/5/2003)
Highest Attendances at WIN Stadium
- 19,608 - Dragons v Sharks (10/9/2005)
- 19,512 - Dragons v Roosters (29/7/2005)
- 18,932 - Dragons v Panthers (18/4/2004)
- 18,267 - Dragons v Bulldogs (15/5/2004)
- 17,367 - Dragons v Knights (8/4/2006)
[edit] Leagues Clubs
As well as having two administrative offices, St George Illawarra are supported by two separate Leagues Clubs - appropriately, one in each of the St George and Illawarra areas.
The St George Leagues Club is located on Princes Highway at Beverley Park close to the northern home ground of OKI Jubilee Stadium at Carlton.
Steelers Club is situated alongside the southern home ground of WIN Stadium, directly across the road from the ground's Western Grandstand.
[edit] External links
- Official site
- DragonArmy.com.au - home of the Mighty Dragon Army (fan site)
- Jubilee Avenue fan site
- 1Eyed Dragon- Dragons news and fan site
- Dragons History- History of Mighty Dragons
