It’s a question Dragons fans have posed in the weeks since he signed with bitter rivals Cronulla. 

Forget about next year, the future is now, after coach Paul McGregor shifted Dugan to the centres, naming Matt Dufty at fullback following his stunning debut in the win over Manly. 

Dugan missed the WIN Stadium clash on Sunday with a hamstring complaint, as he also felt the heat from his boozy afternoon in Origin camp with Blake Ferguson.

The frustrations had grown within NSW and Dragons coaching staff over Dugan’s conduct and the Origin fallout, if not with the players. And so McGregor, who bore the brunt of some of the criticism of Dugan’s exit to the Sharks, even though he’s not in control of recruitment, acted swiftly. 

McGregor is banking on Dufty proving himself as the club’s long-term fullback, as well as helping them to the NRL finals this year. 

For Dufty’s part, he’s admitted struggling in the early part of the season, playing against men in the NSW Premiership for Illawarra, a step up from the under 20s competition he starred in last year. But the performance on debut, scoring one and setting up other tries, is enough for the Dragons to believe Dufty has arrived. 

Meanwhile, centre Euan Aitken could be out for the rest of the season after a partial shoulder dislocation. 

"Euan Aitken suffered a shoulder subluxation against the Sea Eagles on Sunday afternoon and underwent follow up scans on Monday afternoon," Dragons head of athletic performance Nathan Pickworth said.

"Following results from those scans, we plan on consulting with a specialist to determine the best course of action. A return to play date will be determined from there."