Zac Lomax, who knows how big the task before of the Dragons is, has pledged to give it his all and battle for a finals comeback before leaving St George Illawarra.
With seven games left before the finals, State of Origin is over, and 14 sides are still in the running for this year’s top eight. Whereas Gold Coast, Parramatta, and Wests Tigers are practically eliminated from contention, Melbourne and Penrith are almost certain to make it to the finals.
Twelve clubs are now fighting for the final six spots, with the Sydney Roosters and Cronulla in third and fourth place, respectively, yet only one win ahead of the pursuing group.
Based on the average ladder position of their remaining opponents, Penrith, Cronulla, and the Roosters have the easiest finish of any club, according to an AAP analysis of every team’s run home. Not good news for Canberra, who finished first in that 12-team competition with the hardest finish of any team, followed by South Sydney and the Dragons.
Despite their difficult schedule, which includes matches against Melbourne and Penrith in the upcoming two weeks, the ninth-placed Dragons are determined not to let it stop them.
Captain Ben Hunt remarked, “It’s a good time of year to be getting these tough games.”
“To test yourself against the best teams at the top of the ladder to see where you are and whether you still need to make some progress.
“It’s going to be a good measure for us the next two weeks to really see where we’re at.”
After Canterbury and Wests Tigers, St George Illawarra has the third-longest finals drought in the competition, dating back to 2018.
The NSW Origin player Lomax hopes to break his run of not playing in finals since his rookie season before moving to Parramatta for the off-season.
“Everything we have is going into that basket. All we want to do is drain the tank as much as possible,” stated Lomax.
“Right now, we’re in a fairly good position to look and play finals.
It’s been a while since the Dragons and I have played in the championship… You play for that reason. Finals is what you play for.
“There have been a lot of us boys who have gone without finals for a number of years now, and that is our focus.”
