DAI Flanagan’s reign at the Dragons started with a huge high, but it’s the missed opportunities that the former head coach will reflect on over the coming weeks as he processes his sudden exit.
If only the Sharks had been stopped in the 22 in round three.
If only the Dragons had found some energy to strike against the Lions late on in round four.
Going back even further to the start of 2023/24, if only they had given themselves a launchpad by beating Edinburgh and Cardiff.
In the end, finishing the first block of the United Rugby Championship with the one really bad display led to a change at the top.
Had the Dragons lost at Connacht, say, 24-13 after landing a few blows rather than 31-7 in an error-strewn display then there probably wouldn't have been a sacking (sorry, "mutually agreed" decision).
Flanagan will sit at home this week while the squad and coaches return from a short break to start preparations for the return of the United Rugby Championship.
The Rodney Parade club are set for another new era with Filo Tiatia, who arrived as defence coach in the summer, calling the shots.
Whether the former All Black wants the top job for the long term is yet to be seen, but he will work with the rest of the management team to attempt to ensure it is as close as possible to business as usual in the build-up to the derby at Cardiff on November 30.
The recent appointment of Jonathan Westwood as head of recruitment – a position that had, to the detriment of Flanagan, been unfilled for a year – means that work will also continue on retention and potential targets for next summer.
Professional sport moves on quickly and plans will be hatched for the Arms Park.
Meanwhile, Flanagan will be a short drive away from the Ystrad Mynach training base, mulling over what he did right and what he got wrong over his 25 months at the helm.
He is a good man and will hope that others will reap the rewards of what he has put in place for this season rather than wishing ill on the Dragons.
He’s also not daft, with half a year left on his contract the former fly-half probably knew that there should have been tentative talks about an extension by now.
Flanagan, like Tiatia, had a swift promotion to the top job at Rodney Parade after initially being brought in to work under Dean Ryan.
A shambolic opening weekend defeat at Edinburgh had exposed the fact that it was not a happy camp under the former England forward, who it must be said spearheaded some good times with a particularly strong 2020/21.
Flanagan was caretaker boss for a shock win against Munster at Rodney Parade and his first block in charge ended with a record of P6, W3, L3 thanks to successes against the Ospreys and Zebre.
He would enjoy just seven more victories (Pau, Scarlets x 2, Ospreys x 2, Oyonnax, Zebre) as head coach to end with a record of P48, W10, D1, L37.
That is the worst record of all Dragons bosses but, while pro sport is ultimately about outcomes, that doesn’t tell the whole story.
Flanagan had to deal with a raft of off-field issues with the threats of strikes, recruitment freezes, budget cuts and a takeover of the Dragons that went to the wire.
He did that as head coach rather than director of rugby and then last season, due to the club trying to save some pennies, operated without a defence coach and a head of recruitment after the exits of Simon Cross and Rob Burgess.
This felt like the first season of a squad built by Flanagan and yet just six games in there will be a new direction.
The players must take some responsibility for that after missed opportunities in the first block of the URC; performances were better even if results weren’t.
They stunned the Ospreys at the death on opening weekend but then suffered the same fate against the Sharks in a game that will haunt Flanagan.
The South Africans were relatively vulnerable – they went on to be thrashed in Treviso – but stole the spoils, then their compatriots edged to victory in Newport six days later when the Lions won 23-19.
Performances dipped against Benetton and Connacht to finish the block, meaning that the Dragons are one from bottom of the URC and likely to once again battle Zebre Parma to avoid finishing last.
The gap is already big to Cardiff and the Scarlets while the Ospreys are likely to sort themselves out.
The Dragons paid the price for missed opportunities at the start of last season when Edinburgh and Cardiff won in Newport and history has repeated.
It means that a good man has lost his job; as is so often the way, it is the head coach/manager that pays the price.
I also cover Newport County and there are shades of when James Rowberry was let go by the other pro side at Rodney Parade.
“There was disappointment from the players because fundamentally we played a massive role in the gaffer losing his job,” said Exiles centre-back James Clarke.
“The results weren’t good enough and the buck always stops with the manager, but from a players' perspective we haven't been good enough.”
Members of the Dragons squad no doubt have similar feelings and this wasn’t a case of players downing tools or feeling Ystrad Mynach was a dark place, as was the case in the final days of Ryan.
Nonetheless, the owners have decided to act and their next appointment, the first since the takeover from the WRU, will be telling.
We know that they are ambitious but are they realistic?
We have heard about pushing for the play-offs and European silverware when frankly the talk should be about steadily climbing away from the bottom two.
Rather than publicly stating about becoming Wales’ best club, it the first declaration should be about the desire to not finish as the worst for once.
Because the truth is that Flanagan DIDN’T dramatically under-perform with this squad – I would argue he deserved at least another block – and it’s a tough job for the person that will become the tenth permanent boss of the Dragons.
The cycle about being a ‘sleeping giant’ starts again.
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