What exactly were the Dragons celebrating at Paul Vaughans barbecue?
As for Vaughan, he had as much reason as anyone to par-tay. Two years ago, he was one of the best props in the competition, winning Origins with NSW and playing for Australia. This year, his form has been so indifferent the Dragons were praying he didnt trigger an option for another season in 2022. Paul Vaughan walking through his neighbourhood on Tuesday. Credit:Nine News We just wanted to enjoy each others company, Vaughan said in an underwhelming mea culpa interview on Fox Sports. In other words, they were celebrating this weekends bye. In the glory days of the Red V, they celebrated premierships. The Dragons COVID party, which led to Vaughan being sacked and a further dozen players fined and suspended for one match, is symptomatic of a deeper issue. Mediocrity and entitlement have been the standard at St George Illawarra for so long, from the board down, that the club no longer understands what success looks like. While there are conflicting reports about what actually went down at Vaughnys barbie, theres one indisputable part of this story that shines a light on the attitude of some their players. As confirmed by both the club and the NRL, coach Anthony Griffin and general manager of football Ben Harran explicitly told them in the dressing-room after the Warriors not to get their drink on last weekend. It was against the law, for starters, and breached the NRLs own level four biosecurity rules. The players did it anyway. It demonstrated something more than a lack of respect for Griffin and Harran. It was straight out betrayal. You have to feel sorry for both of them. When Griffin was appointed coach late last year, he was hailed as a tough disciplinarian who would get rid of the soft underbelly developed under Paul McGregor. The Dragons showed promise early this season but have been patchy at best since the victory over the Eels. The fact they are seventh on the ladder doesnt show how far theyve come. It exposes the weakness of this years competition. Whether Griffin is the right man for the job remains to be seen, despite some of the wild commentary about the club already turning the corner in his first season. Loading Maybe the players have been reading too much of the coachs glowing press because they are a long way from turning the corner. They arent in the same suburb as the corner. What Griffin is surely coming to understand, through this episode alone, is the enormous job ahead of him. A question for chairman Andrew Gordon and his fellow WIN Corporation appointees to the board. Meanwhile, long-time supporters drift between anger and apathy, thinking back to those glory days we mentioned earlier. The Dragons are celebrating their centenary this season. St George played their first game in the NSWRL competition on April 23, 1921, against Glebe at the Sydney Sports Ground. Now that is something to celebrate. Instead, the Illawarra side of the joint venture pretty much wants nothing to do with festivities, even rejecting the idea of representing the milestone on the players jumpers. That sums up the once-proud Dragons right there: they cant even agree on how to celebrate their own birthday. Instead of this year being remembered as a celebration of the clubs proud history, it will be remembered for the Weekend at Vaughnys  an inexcusable set of events that trashed a clubs season, undermined a coach and celebrated a bye. Newcastles just reward If there is a silver lining out of this godforsaken pandemic, its the brilliant news that State of Origin III will be played at McDonald Jones Stadium in Newcastle. How good. Loading On Tuesday night, though, there was great pessimism about it being held in NSW with the NRL set to move the match to AAMI Park in Melbourne or GIO Stadium in Canberra. The NRL couldnt get a firm answer out of the NSW government about capacity. In the end, 75 per cent of the stadium will be full. If I know that city at all, it will be a Raging Festival of Rugby League not seen since the Johns boys crowd-surfed through Civic Park to the dulcet tones of the Screaming Jets two days after winning the 1997 grand final. The Hunter has been a proverbial conveyer belt of talent over the past century or so with eight players named in the ARLs official 100 greatest players in Australian premiership history. Its great reward for a region thats stuck solid with rugby league through thick and thin. When Andrew Johns was forced into retirement through injury, and he did an emotional lap of honour, the crowd didnt chant his name. They chanted the name of their city  NEWCASTLE! NEWCASTLE! NEWCASTLE! Then there was Super League. Newcastle was the most important battleground of that ugly battle and it was a resounding win for the ARL. When he penned his memoirs years later, ARL chairman Ken Arthurson acknowledged the support of the Newy faithful on the first page. I dedicate the book to the football fans of Newcastle whose unfailing strength and support and loyalty for the ARL cause gave me the strength to carry on during the bad times of seasons 1995-96, he wrote. In times of great uncertainty, they were the true believers. BLUECASTLE! BLUECASTLE! BLUECASTLE! The week  The quote  Bullshit  The response from a Palmer United Party spokesman when the Gold Coast Bulletin informed him of Israel Folaus signing with Japanese rugby club NTT Communications. Then they sent him the press release. Sorry buddy, youve just been Folaud. Thumbs up  The Wallabies beat France 23-21 in their Test match at Suncorp Stadium on Wednesday night via a penalty goal from Noah Lolesio after the full-time siren in the 85th minute. Never in doubt. Thumbs down  Loading Paul Vaughan: Im an idiot for holding this COVID party. Jai Arrow: hold my beer. The Queensland forward has been fined, suspended, ruled out of Origin III, placed in isolation and unfollowed on Insta by his long-time girlfriend after breaching biosecurity rules by bringing a woman back to the team hotel.