Dragons coach Anthony Griffin reportedly failed to inform both Zac Lomax and Jacob Liddle why they had been axed ahead of Magic Round in a shock move.
Griffin’s decision to drop the centre and dummy-half came after the Red V slumped to their fourth straight loss against the Bulldogs in Round 9.
According to NRL 360 co-host Paul Kent, Lomax reacted emotionally to the news and wasn’t told exactly why he had been axed from the Dragons’ starting side.
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Rugby league legend Braith Anasta said as an ex-player he would be desperate for feedback and Kent backed Griffin’s decision to allow Lomax to cool down for a few days.
The Daily Telegraph’s Paul Crawley questioned how else Lomax was meant to react after he was made the “scapegoat” for the Dragons’ poor form.
“What do you want him to do, cartwheels out of the joint?” Crawley said.
“It is a coach’s job, if you were told you’re not hosting the show tonight you’d expect an explanation.
“Even if you were in a bad mood it is the coach’s job to talk some sense into you, and I will tell you it hasn’t helped the situation down there.”
Crawley also questioned Griffin’s ability to maximise the talent of the players within his squad, pointing to the 2016 Australian Schoolboys team.
Both Lomax and Rabbitohs gun Campbell Graham featured in the team — and Graham has since kicked on to play for the Kangaroos, with a potential Origin debut looming in 2023.
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“You’ve got a player there that honestly when he was coming through the grades was spoken about as a potential Origin player,” Crawley said.
“He came through in the same Australian Schoolboys side as Campbell Graham, and look at the trajectory of the two players at different clubs.
“Lomax would have been ahead of him… the bloke’s gone backwards.
“Under the three years of Anthony Griffin’s tenure I can’t spot one player that you’ve seen develop beyond their expectations.
“You and I both know Zac Lomax has had issues in the past, the club has signed him until the end of 2026, it is the coach’s job to try and find a way to get the best out of him.”
The Daily Telegraph’s David Riccio also explained a lack of communication has been a consistent issue that has arisen at clubs coached by Griffin.
He agreed that Lomax needed a circuit breaker and his form was deserving of being dropped.
“The output at roughly $700,000-a-season, I can’t argue with the decision of Anthony Griffin,” Riccio said.
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“However I do have an issue with the feedback that we are getting with the decision and the feedback Lomax may not have received in regards to his relegation.
“So to Jacob Liddle, this is a consistent discussion point around Anthony Griffin’s coaching structure, his lack of communication.
“This is another example of it and players deserve better, certainly a player chewing up that much of your salary cap and not performing to the standard of what you expect.
“I would think some sort of feedback… is fair enough.”
As it stands Griffin has been informed that he will have to reapply for his own job for 2024, with his contract expiring at the season’s end.
Kent believes Griffin has now decided the “gloves are off”, realising he won’t be in his role for much longer after a disappointing display against an undermanned Bulldogs outfit.
“The bigger problem here too is that Zac Lomax and Jacob Liddle have become the scapegoats for a poor performance against a Bulldogs side that were missing Jacob Kiraz, Josh Addo-Carr, Viliame Kikau, Max King and Luke Thompson,” Crawley said.
“The bigger issue is that now they take on the Tigers coming off a win against the Panthers… it is an incredible position for a club to be in.”
