Nathan Brown admits he owes St George Illawarra a debt he can probably never repay.
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But that won’t stop him trying to put a dent in their play-off hopes by steering Newcastle to an upset victory at Hunter Stadium on Saturday.
“It’s definitely the first time I’ve been against the Dragons, as a full-time coach,’’ the Newcastle tactician said.
“They’re a club that I hold close to my heart. I spent 17 years of my life there … which is a long time in any industry.
“But we’ll be doing our best from a coaching and playing staff’s point of view to win.’’
Brown wore the famous Red V in 172 games between 1993 and his premature retirement in 2001, including grand final appearances in 1993, 1996 and 1999.
Within two years of hanging up the boots, he was coaching his former teammates and spent six seasons – or 151 games – in the hot seat before the arrival in 2009 of master coach Wayne Bennett.
It is now eight years since he was employed by the joint-venture outfit, but Brown said he remained on friendly terms with the club’s key figures.
“I’ve got some very, very good friends there, on the board,’’ he said. “Peter Doust, the boss, is one of my dear friends, and [coach] Paul McGregor is a good mate, and so are the Young family.
“There’s so many people involved in the Dragons that I’ve got a great relationship with and I’ll always maintain a great relationship.
“So it will be a little bit different, I’d imagine, but I’m looking forward to it.’’
Last-placed Newcastle are coming off eight successive defeats, and have the worst attacking and defensive statistics in the NRL.
But, despite winning seven games, the Dragons have had their own issues, especially in attack. Their points-for tally (179) is only marginally better than the Knights (162)
“They’re a grinding side,’’ Brown said. “They’re one of probably a number of sides who are fighting for that sixth, seventh, eight spot at the moment.
“There’s a fair few sides in and around each other that are really trying to win those spots, but that top four looks pretty nailed on.’’
Brown was hopeful the return of senior forward Robbie Rochow (broken arm), combined with last week’s bye, will boost his struggling team.
“The good thing is we’ve come off a bye, so they’ve had a chance to freshen up,’’ Brown said.
“A lot of the younger guys, you can actually see in their demeanor that it’s like they’ve had a bit of time off.
“They were very keen to train … they enjoyed being back, whereas there’s been a few Mondays lately where they’ve been a bit battered and bruised.’’
