Dragons great Dean Young joins Mary

Young, along with premiership-winning teammate Ben Hornby, are part of the new brains that coach Paul McGregor feels can lift the Dragons out of the finals wilderness.

They're certainly cut from the right red-and-white cloth. Hornby's 273 matches for the club is a record, while Young managed 209 games despite being forced to call time on his career early due to injury. Both were members of the joint venture's only premiership in 2010 which Hornby skippered.

Add McGregor's 158 games and the trio boast 640 games for the club.

"They've bled for the club and that's important to me," McGregor said. "I need people close to me that you trust and you can turn to and those two guys are very good to lean on along with Ian Millward, who's a good sounding board with his experience."

Young spent the latter years of his career battling chronic knee problems, winning Origin and Test jumpers and a premiership in the process. Injury called a halt to his career in 2012.

"I knew from a pretty young age that I wanted to coach," Young said.

"I didn't think I'd be retired at 28 and I didn't think I'd be an assistant first grade coach at 31 years of age either, but it's happened. I got everything out of my body that was humanly possible, so I've got no unfinished business in footy. This is just a path I wanted to take."

Young and Hornby coached the Dragons NYC side to a preliminary final last year and were hand-picked by NSW coach Laurie Daley to mentor the state's under-16s side.

Young gave McGregor's approach to step up to NRL level serious consideration knowing it would require him to bark orders at former teammates.

"When Mary approached me to be an assistant coach I had to think long and hard about whether I could deliver what he wanted and also the fact that I'd be coaching players that I played with," Young said.

"I had to consider that but I felt comfortable that I could deliver for Mary."

In McGregor's set-up Young looks after the middle forwards while Hornby looks after the edges, but Young says the key ingredient was the passion they all bring to the role.

"All the players that are in the squad can see how much me Benny and Mary love the club," Young said.

"None of that's going to change, we've played our whole careers here.

"All three of us aren't happy where the club's at the moment nor are the players, and a lot of hard work's going into getting it back where it once was. It doesn't happen overnight, so we're asking the fans to be patient with that."