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Bulldogs supremo Phil Gould has shredded a report regarding Canterbury playmaker Kyle Flanagan, who was said to be in talks with Manly after being dropped to the reserves.
The Sydney Morning Herald reported on Wednesday morning that discussions about Flanagan moving from the Bulldogs to the Sea Eagles had ceased, while claiming the 24-year-old was “languishing” in the New South Wales Cup.
“This reporting is just as inaccurate as the original story, and follow-up stories, which suggested Kyle Flanagan had already signed with Manly, and that it was a done deal, effective immediately. All of it rubbish and total fabrication,” Gould wrote on Twitter on Wednesday afternoon.
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“Firstly, Kyle Flanagan was never heading to Manly.
“In this latest report the author suggests ‘Manly had expressed interest in the Canterbury halfback’. Wrong. No one from Manly contacted me regarding Kyle Flanagan.”
The report’s remark that Flanagan was “languishing” in the reserves stemmed from his outing in a NSW Cup clash with the Dragons in Wollongong on Sunday.
The former Rooster and Shark played at hooker and impressed, racking up 45 tackles and setting up a try as the Bulldogs beat the Dragons 22-12.
“The author suggests that Flanagan is ‘currently languishing in reserve grade’. Kyle Flanagan is not languishing in reserve grade,” Gould wrote.
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“He’s played one reserve-grade game in 13 months and was pretty much man of the match in that performance. That’s hardly ‘languishing’.”
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Flanagan was shifted from halfback to five-eighth for round eight, swapping positions with Matt Burton, before being axed ahead of round nine.
Club legend Josh Reynolds was elevated from the bench to the No.6 jumper as 18-year-old whiz-kid Karl Oloapu was picked on the interchange for his NRL debut.
Canterbury bagged an 18-16 win to break a three-match losing streak.
“We have a specific purpose in Kyle playing reserve grade at the moment, all in the best long-term interests of Kyle’s future NRL career,” Gould wrote.
“The author goes on to say that the ‘parties could not agree to terms’. What parties? What terms? What discussions? There have been zero discussions around Kyle Flanagan between Manly and myself. Zero!
“Give the kid a break. Please.”
If Flanagan had switched from the Bulldogs to the Sea Eagles, he would have linked up with his dad Shane, who’s an assistant to coach Anthony Seibold.
Flanagan’s current Bulldogs contract expires at the end of this year.
He’s played 70 NRL games for the Bulldogs, Roosters and Sharks.
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