St George Illawarra coach Shane Flanagan has backed the side's new-look spine to hit the ground running after unveiling off-season recruits Damien Cook and Clint Gutherson as his co-captains for 2025.
The duo will combine in a revamped spine, with Kyle Flanagan the only player to return from last year after the off-season departure of Ben Hunt.
Joining Flanagan in the halves will be former Rabbitoh Lachlan Ilias, with Cook at hooker and Gutherson at fullback.
The quest for combinations has been hampered by Ilias' recovery from a fractured leg however he returned to full training on Monday and Flanagan is confident the new spine will deliver instant results.
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"We'll be a lot different [in attack]," Flanagan said. "At dummy half, Damien likes to roll the ruck a bit more and takes a bit of control, comes out to the left and plays to the right and vice versa. He's always testing the marker system where Jacob's [Liddle] more of a runner and uses his speed.
"We've got a good mix there and the challenge for me is to get both of them on the field at the same time, which we will do.
"We're definitely going to be different from a hooker perspective ... then Gutho at the back, defensively his organisation skill are pretty special. That's going to help us as a team defensively and he hasn't missed a training session, he's fit, he's healthy and he's moving well so that's a positive for us."
The changes at the Dragons have led to questions about the team's attacking options, with 2024 leading try-scorer Zac Lomax also departing in the off-season.
Valentine Holmes' arrival from North Queensland will help fill the void, while Flanagan is banking on Gutherson's class to help improve the side's execution in attack.
"It underestimates our style of footy and the way we played last year," Flanagan said. "It wouldn't matter who was out the back of some of the shape, we created opportunities and we'll still create opportunities this year, we've just got to ice them.
"Our structure and our coaching will give us those opportunities, the guys just have to do their job [and execute]. We've got two back-rowers that are Origin standard in Luciano Leilua and Jaydn Su'A ... then our centres, Val's class and Moses [Suli] had his best year last year and he'll get better again this year.
"Then we've got four or five wingers who will fight it out [for a spot] and get the job done. We have enough points in us, it's just executing well and giving ourselves as many chances as we can."
While attacking plays make the highlight reels, Flanagan has built a reputation as a hard-nosed defensive leader. It’s a mindset reinforced by assistant coach Dean Young, one of the toughest players of his generation.
In Cook and Gutherson, Flanagan has two players known as much for their work off the ball as their attacking exploits.
Their attitude and effort played a key role in their selection as co-captains, with the coach eager for the team's playing style to reflect their leaders.
Gutherson set the fitness benchmark from his first training session while Cook is an Illawarra junior returning to the side he made his NRL debut with in 2013.
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The hooker has achieved plenty in the 12 years since but said captaining the Dragons is a career highlight.
"I played all my junior footy here, with Helensburgh and a bit at Thirroul," Cook said.
"Growing up in the area and debuting here in 2013, I've been away for a bit so to come back and lead the side alongside Gutho was a special moment when the coach told me. It's definitely a highlight of my career."
