It was a mixed year for St George-Illawarra Dragons fans but Zac Lomax is confident a host of new recruits will lift the club from a disappointing 11th place finish in 2021.
“In 2022 our backs are against the wall so there’s only one way to go,” Lomax told dragons.com.au.
“There’s a lot of young lads in the team who will be looking to come out and prove their point and look to hold their positions best they can.
“We have a lot of new faces coming to the club. Obviously there’s people leaving the club, but I feel the club is moving in the right direction.”
Joining Lomax at the Dragons will be Jaydn Su’A, George Burgess, Moses Suli, Francis Molo, Aaron Woods, Moses Mbye, Tautau Moga and Jack Gosiewski.
While losing their final eight games was a disappointing end to the year, there were plenty of positives to take into next season.
2019 SG Ball Cup winners Junior Amone, Tyrell Sloan, Jayden Sullivan and Mat Feagai all showed flashes of brilliance this year. By combining their raw talent with the incoming veterans, Lomax believes coach Anthony Griffin has the right mix.
The Short Side with Jamie Soward & Jayden Sullivan
“Hook’s (Griffin) made some changes here that’s best for the club and there’s a lot of experienced players as well so I’m really excited,” Lomax said.
“We’ve shown we’ve got exciting young players and youth coming through so it’s an exciting time.”
It was a heartbreaking year for Lomax who established himself as one of the best centres in the NRL before breaking his hand in round 8 and missing the majority of the year.
Lomax was a part of the 2020 State of Origin campaign as a member of the extended bench although he was in contention to go one better in 2021 before the injury.
The 2017 NSWRL Under 18s Player of the Year finished the season with 12 games, four tries, 35 goals, three try assists, three linebreaks and 17 tackle busts.
