The anticipated booing of Ben Hunt didn't occur in Wollongong on Friday night, but it could've been because the Dragons fans didn't want to be there either.
For the most part they gave their entire side the silent treatment as it slumped to 17th spot on the ladder on the back of a 48-18 pasting at the hands of the Warriors.
Less than seven days after rocking the club with a request for and immediate release, all eyes were on the skipper in what may or may be his final outing in the Red V if incoming coach Shane Flanagan can't sell him on his vision when they meet this week.
The club has thus far dug its heels in, but performances as disinterested as Friday's effort may leave them wondering if it's worth the fight.
Backing up after playing 29 minutes in Queensland's series-clinching win on Wednesday night, Hunt ran the ball just three times for 24 metres.
He wasn't alone in producing an uninspired effort, with the Warriors running in nine tries, Dallin Watene-Zelezniak bagging four.
Shaun Johnson continued to show all the benefits of the type homecoming Hunt craves, scoring one four-pointer and laying on two others.
The Titans are favourites to secure him should the Dragons release the 33-year-old, though it remains to be seen whether he's in the plans of incoming coach Des Hasler, who was unveiled as the club's new coach following the shock sacking of Justin Holbrook on Thursday.
With the Bulldogs and Tigers both enjoying byes this round, the Dragons will be left propping up the entire ladder. With saga likely to drag on, interim coach Ryan Carr faced a monumental task to keep the wheels on over the remainder of the season.
Fighting back tears, Hunt fronted the post-match media conference saying he wasn't sure if he'd played his last game for the club.
"I honestly don't know," he said.
I haven't had any communication [with the club] about it, we just said we put on the back burner til after this game and we'll meet.
I'm keen to get it sorted out. I'll have a meeting with the club this week and we'll get to the end of it. I totally understand the fans are going to be disappointed.
"We've got very passionate fans and they love this club and I'll keep turning up. I'm still the captain of the team mate and I'll always show up for my role until that's changed."
The performance and result will lead to questions over whether the club should have rested him from the match, but Hunt said he always intended to play.
"I was actually feeling alright coming into the game," he said.
"I did a fair bit of recovery stuff and my body was feeling OK, mentally I was excited to get back to the group. Carry had had a real good, good week of training and, you know, I was Bomber's (Jack de Belin) 200th game.
"I was excited to get out for that and just tossed up a pretty embarrassing game. I'm more just disappointed not turning up for Jack to be honest. T
"hat's his 200th game and he's a good mate and he deserves better than that. It's been a couple of tough days, a couple of really good days. It's the old roller coaster of rugby league and tonight can bring you back down pretty quick."
With the match poised at 6-4 to hosts midway through the first half, the Warriors produced three tries in seven minutes to shoot out a 20-6 lead with six minutes to play before halftime.
The second try of the blitz, to back-rower Bayley Sironen, was highly questionable given replays appeared to show a knock-on as he sought to ground a Shaun Johnson grubber.
The visitors produced a similar run midway through the second half, grabbing three tries in eight minutes to jump out to a 30-12 lead.
The Dragons produced brief hit backs through Zane Musgrove and Francis Molo only to concede tries in the subsequent set, with Dallin Watene-Zelezniak finishing with four tries on the right flank.
Watene-Zelezniak crossed untouched for the opening try four minutes in after being invited into the Dragons end by a Mikaele Ravalawa fumble.
The Dragons were stripped for numbers on the other edge six minutes later only for Marcello Montoya's try to be disallowed for an obstruction in the lead-up.
The Dragons ran with the good fortune, with Sloan slicing through on the right edge off a short ball from Sullivan to take a 6-4 lead with Lomax's conversion.
The Warriors hit back 12 minutes later through Montoya, who wouldn't be denied on his second trip over the Dragons try-line. Johnson's attempted conversion bounced off the upright, keeping the margin at two 15 minutes before halftime.
Sironen followed up courtesy of a neat grubber from Johnson four minutes later, though replays suggested he was fortunate given a far from convincing Dragons.
Jackson Ford's follow-up try just three minutes later was salt in the wounds after Sloan let a Johnson bomb fall into the arms of Dylan Walker uncontested.
It saw the score shoot out to 20-6 closing in on halftime.
Marata Niukore was marched for a high shot that saw Moses Suli leave the field with category one concussion symptoms that could well see him miss next Thursday's clash with the Sharks.
The Dragons capitalised through Musgrove, who barged across from close range off an inside ball from Liddle, Lomax nailed the extras from in front to cut the margin back to 12 just six minutes after the resumption.
It was as brief as it could be, with Metcalfe slicing through the Dragons middle and shooting into the back field in the very next set. He was grassed by Ravalawa but a quick shift saw Watene-Zelezniak grab his second try in the south-western corner.
Johnson grabbed his side's sixth try off an Addin Fonua-Blake offload next trip up the park to quickly re-take an 18-point cushion. It was also short-lived, with the visitors extending through a Watene-Zelezniak's offload that put Rocco Berry over in the same corner three minutes later.
Molo briefly stemmed the bleeding when he fell on a rolling Sullivan grubber in the Warriors in-goal, Lomax converting from in front.
Once again, the Warriors hit straight back when he completed his hat-trick in spectacular fashion in the corner, his next effort arguably better nine minutes from time.
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Mitch Jennings
Sports writer. Sport is my passion, rugby league my first love.
Sports writer. Sport is my passion, rugby league my first love.
