Dragons boss rips 'fabricated' training report as shock Dean Young board rift revealed

With Payne Haas and Tom Trbojevic both likely out for the NSW Blues in Origin I, coach Laurie Daley has been hit by another blow after Dean Young's appointment as interim coach at the Dragons.

On Nine's 100% Footy, reporter Danny Weidler revealed the Blues' 2025 assistant coach was "slated" to have the role again but it's unlikely that will go ahead.

"If he's the head of the Dragons organisation, I don't know if that will be possible," he said.

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On his Big Sports Breakfast radio show on Tuesday morning, Daley confirmed Young has told him he won't be available to work with the Blues this year.

Young's appointment came after Shane Flanagan left the Dragons by mutual consent following seven losses to start the season.

Originally, Dragons bosses couldn't name the interim coach at that Monday press conference before revealing it was Young by Monday evening.

During the gap between naming Young, a News Corp report claimed the club had opted to cancel Tuesday training.

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However, clarification has now been provided by chief executive officer Tim Watsford, who described the detail as "fabricated".

"That's probably the most disappointing part that I've seen in the last little while. This was discussed after the game on Saturday with our high performance manager around what this week looks like," he said on 2GB's Wide World of Sports Radio.

"We're going to go into camp at Brighton on Friday ahead of Anzac Day so it was thought we'd give the boys a break on Tuesday. The fact that it's come out that we took training off the cards, that's completely fabricated, that was a decision made post-game."

Young will take his first training session as head coach on Wednesday as he endeavours to impress Dragons bosses enough to give him the job permanently.

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Watsford confirmed he is "in the frame" but the club will "cast the net wide" for Flanagan's permanent replacement.

The complications with Young's appointment reportedly came from division on the Dragons' board, according to Weidler.

"Dean Young is not loved by everyone at the Dragons ... the Illawarra side of the St George Illawarra merger don't really love Dean Young, the St George side do," he said on 100% Footy.

Gould was curious about Young's decision amid that division.

"Why would he do it? He's been an interim coach with the Dragons before and he's been overlooked for head coaching roles a couple of times. Why would he step in and do that?" he said.

Daley himself had also warned Young about taking the role because there'd been leaking against him.

One of Young's immediate roles for the Dragons will be trying to spark the club's faltering attack.

Flanagan's son Kyle and five-eighth Daniel Atkinson have been under the most pressure, with Andrew Johns calling for one of them to be axed over the weekend on Nine's Sunday Footy Show.

Weidler revealed there was a "whisper" that before the Dragons' last clash with the Rabbitohs, Flanagan was set to be named captain if Damien Cook was ruled out.

Much of the pressure on Shane Flanagan came from his son's form and his persistence with picking him.

The 27-year-old was one of many recruits under the coach which also includes experienced players like Cook, Clint Gutherson and Valentine Holmes.

Gould described some of the recruitment decisions as "quick fixes" and said the same went for previous coach Anthony Griffin. He also said any time a coach is sacked, the club has failed.

"Everything about your operation needs to be questioned and as I said on last week's show, from a club perspective, they need to sit back and be honest about how they've got themselves in this situation," he said.

"I think the last couple of coaches including Shane and Anthony Griffin have looked for quick fixes because their reputations and their careers were on the line and probably thought immediate wins would settle the noise a little bit but that hasn't worked and that never does work."

Gould said part of the reason to sack Flanagan was a "welfare issue" because the club's situation would have been difficult.

"It wasn't getting any better, it was actually detiorating and that's no good for anybody," he said.

Flanagan wasn't the only departure from the club on Monday, with long-time employee and general manager Ben Haran also sacked.