The Dragons are reportedly targeting Daniel Anderson to head up their recruitment department as the shake-up at St George Illawarra continues. Anderson is currently Trent Robinson’s head of recruitment at the Roosters but the Tri Colours recently signed Raiders recruitment guru Joel Carbone, in a move that’s said to have left Canberra ‘fuming’.
However, the move opens the door for former Eels and Warriors coach Anderson to make the switch to Shane Flanagan’s Dragons, who have been on the lookout for a recruitment boss for a number of years. And St George Illawarra – who recently installed Tim Watsford as the club’s new CEO – are understood to have made Anderson their No.1 target.
Sydney Morning Herald league reporter Michael Chammas revealed on Nine’s 100% Footy on Monday night that the Dragons have spoken with a number of potential candidates but ‘Anderson was the clear favourite’. He said: “Daniel Anderson, he’s the recruitment boss at the Roosters there at the moment, he’s in conversations with the Dragons. He is their preferred candidate.
“Now nothing is finalised. Daniel has been at the Roosters for a long time, he’s coached in the NRL and had some success. And now the Dragons are in conversations about bringing him to the club… but if things progress as they have in the last few weeks then Daniel Anderson could be at the Dragons.”
Dragons eye recruitment boss to work with Shane Flanagan
St George Illawarra are keen to install an experienced figure to take pressure of coach Flanagan and help build a playing roster that will deliver a return to finals footy. The last time the Dragons made the top-eight was in 2018 when former coach Paul McGregor was in charge, and veteran league journalist David Riccio says the club’s search for a suitable head of recruitment has gone on for several years now.
“As far as the Dragons are concerned, this is a mission they’ve been on for some time,” Riccio told SEN radio on Tuesday. “I’m talking two years in an attempt to find a head of recruitment that can oversee that roster management alongside Shane Flanagan, his staff and obviously the new CEO (Tim Watsford).
“You can go back to their approach for Peter O’Sullivan, who moved from the Dolphins to the Newcastle Knights. It was either the Knights or the Dragons and O’Sullivan chose the Knights… but it goes back further. The problem is – not only for the Dragons but the game – is the head of recruitment officers, they don’t fall out of trees.
“They very much get recycled and recirculated because it is a very specific role. And it’s critical that they boast the best relationships in the game with both player managers, rival clubs and players… and that’s where the Saints are at. They’ve been very delicate and patient in wanting to find the best option and I’d say Daniel would be a more than suitable and more than qualified appointment.”
Dragons move comes after Roosters poach key Raiders figure
And it explains why Raiders officials were reportedly ‘fuming’ about losing their recruitment guru Carbone to the Roosters, which has opened the door for the Dragons to pounce on Anderson. Carbone has been integral to Ricky Stuart’s rebuild at Canberra and the club’s astute recruitment has been a major factor behind their rise to the top of the NRL ladder.
Canberra have had a clear strategy around developing young talent and club juniors, as well as identifying players from less traditional competitions, such as the English Super League. And Carbone has been key to that approach, meaning the Raiders – who’ve historically struggled to attract big names to the nation’s capital – are now searching for someone else to continue the club’s successful strategy.
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