St George Illawarra star Ben Hunt says Dragons players need to ask themselves why it took the sacking of coach Paul McGregor to elicit a tough win.
The Dragons upset the Eels 14-12 on Friday night, inflicting just the third loss for Parramatta this season. Meanwhile, the Saints (5-9) are five points adrift of the top eight and McGregor departed after Friday's farewell victory.
Hunt, the side's $6 million Test star, admitted that such a performance should have been forthcoming long before this weekend.
"That's the big question, isn't it?" Hunt told The Sunday Footy Show.
"It's very happy and pleasing to send him out like that but also disappointing that it's taken this long to put in a real gritty performance like we did."
Hunt has shifted from halfback to five-eighth to the bench and now to hooker during McGregor's final season in charge. He said that he expected to remain at No.9, where he made 55 tackles on Friday, for at least the remainder of the year.
"Where we're at now, I think I will be playing hooker for the rest of the year," Hunt said.
"Just with what we've got in the forwards and how our team's made up, it's obviously working well with me there and Cam [McInnes] at lock, so for the rest of this year I think that's where I'm going to be.
"But the crystal ball and the future, I'm not too sure. I really enjoy playing halfback but I also enjoy playing nine as well. We'll see how things go for us."
Hunt has admitted that he prefers halfback, while there have been concerns over McInnes as a viable long-term option at lock; due to his size, rather than his elite toughness.
The Dragons have many questions to answer heading into next season; primarily, who they will opt for as their next head coach. Former boss Wayne Bennett, currently at South Sydney, has been touted for a possible return.
Current assistant coach Shane Flanagan and Roosters assistant Craig Fitzgibbon are strong tips but seemingly won't be available until 2022, due to a head coaching ban and ongoing club commitments respectively.
from WWOS https://wwos.nine.com.au/nrl/ben-hunt-response-dragons-beating-eels-paul-mcgregor-final-game/70efdcf1-435d-40dc-9c99-78b370365a8e
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