Shane Flanagan casts his eye over the training paddock and watches on in awe.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Setting the pace out the front is 31-year-old Clint Gutherson.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s not where you\u2019d typically expect a 13-year NRL veteran who arrived in Wollongong under an injury cloud, but it\u2019s exactly where Gutherson prides himself on residing.<\/p>\n
Flanagan can\u2019t help but smile. This is why he pounced on the fullback when he fell out of favour with the Eels in late 2024.<\/p>\n
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Clinton Gutherson Try<\/p>\n
Having coached a young side through a challenging season, the coach knew he needed more experience if the Dragons were to climb the ladder and get the best out of a talented crop of emerging juniors.<\/p>\n
Gutherson\u2019s impact on the squad was immediate. From the moment he won the club\u2019s annual time trial up Mt Keira, the veteran has set the tone on and off the field.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s amazing what he can do,\u201d Flanagan told NRL.com. \u201cHe just wins most things we do. He puts his mind to it and away he goes.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s a great example that he\u2019s setting for the side. My push to the players is to stay with him and push with him, so he\u2019s got an important job as a leader.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gutherson will commence his second season in the Red V under the bright lights of Las Vegas this weekend, as St George Illawarra take on Canterbury in the final game of a triple-header at Allegiant Stadium.<\/p>\n
The fullback played every minute of every game in 2025, defying expectations of his body breaking down to win the club\u2019s Player of the Year award.<\/p>\n
Many outsiders were surprised by Gutherson\u2019s durability and impact on the field. Flanagan was not.<\/p>\n
The fullback\u2019s recruitment comes from a playbook the coach has turned to before.<\/p>\n
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From Las Vegas: Shane Flanagan<\/p>\n
As Sharks coach, Flanagan was quick to pounce in 2012 when it became clear Luke Lewis was headed for an early exit from the Panthers.<\/p>\n
The edge forward joined a Cronulla club in crisis in 2013 and helped lead the side through one of their darkest chapters.<\/p>\n
Three years later and Lewis played a key role in the Sharks\u2019 drought-breaking 2016 premiership.<\/p>\n
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GF: Clive Churchill Medallist – Luke Lewis<\/p>\n
Flanagan can see the similarities with Gutherson at the Dragons.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey play different positions but they\u2019re very similar people,\u201d the coach said. \u201cLuke was a hard trainer, a real club man, people loved being around him and he was funny.<\/p>\n
\u201cGutho\u2019s got those qualities as well. People love being around him, he trains really hard, they\u2019re very similar players with a similar impact.\u201d<\/p>\n
Such is Gutherson\u2019s relentless work ethic, the Dragons coaching staff are constantly trying to rein him in.<\/p>\n
At 31 years old, managing his body to ensure he remains on the field is a key consideration for Flanagan and the medical team.<\/p>\n
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Las Vegas tactics: Dragons<\/p>\n
It\u2019s often easier said than done.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s hard to manage him,\u201d Flanagan said. \u201cHe wants to do everything. We take him out of stuff and then he sneaks around the back and all of a sudden he\u2019s back in.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe understands why we\u2019re doing it but it\u2019s a challenge to keep him out because he wants to just get in there and do it all the time. We\u2019re trying to reduce his loads because he\u2019s fit enough.<\/p>\n
\u201cHis work ethic is exactly why we wanted him at the club, we just don\u2019t want him to burn himself out.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gutherson, for his part, recognises he is closer to the end than the start of his career.<\/p>\n
With no plans to slow down anytime soon, the veteran has dedicated more time to managing his recovery and looking after his body.<\/p>\n
Contracted through to the end of 2027, Gutherson is determined to make the most of the next two years as he looks to lead the Dragons back to the top eight.<\/p>\n
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Return of the King<\/p>\n
\u201cThe goal is to play every game,\u201d he said. \u201cYou never want to miss a game of footy. You never know when your last game\u2019s going to be so you want to be able to do everything.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m no different to the other people in this team, I\u2019m doing all the little things right and it might work out for me. Luck does play a big part in it as well, so you\u2019ve got to go there and make your own luck as well.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Dragons enter Saturday\u2019s clash (local time) heavy underdogs against a Canterbury side many expect will contend for the premiership.<\/p>\n
On the flipside, plenty of fans are tipping St George Illawarra to win the wooden spoon.<\/p>\n
Internally, however, expectations are high for a club that has gone through a major overhaul in the off-season.<\/p>\n
Halfback Dan Atkinson arrived as a marquee recruit, prop Josh Kerr is back at the Dragons a more mature, consistent player, and new assistant coach Michael Ennis has taken charge of the team\u2019s attack.<\/p>\n
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Las Vegas Game Plan: Atkinson the spark<\/p>\n
The Las Vegas season opener provides an immediate chance to silence the doubters and Gutherson is looking forward to shocking plenty of rugby league fans this weekend.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s always people that write every team off,\u201d he said. \u201cWe believe in what we\u2019re doing and where we\u2019re going as a team and as a club.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve just got to believe in-house that we can do it and I know we\u2019ve got the personnel that can go out there and shock a few people.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Shane Flanagan casts his eye over the training paddock and watches on in awe.\u00a0 Setting the pace out…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":509761,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[568],"tags":[64,63,761,762,158,85],"class_list":["post-509760","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nrl","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-national-rugby-league","tag-nationalrugbyleague","tag-nrl","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/509760","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=509760"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/509760\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/509761"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=509760"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=509760"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=509760"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}