Matt Dufty ‘free to go’ as Dragons turn attention to Nicho Hynes

The Dragons have reportedly informed off-contract fullback Matt Dufty to find another home for next season with the club poised to enter the race for Melbourne’s Nicho Hynes.

Channel Nine reporter Danny Weidler claims the lightning quick Dufty, who is currently sidelined with a shoulder injury, has been informed by Dragons management he won’t be re-signed beyond this year.  

Dufty has been the Red V’s most damaging attacking weapon over the past two seasons, however talks over an extension haven’t progressed as the season has worn on.

Back in April, after leading the Dragons to their fourth straight win with a dominant individual performance against the Eels, Dufty admitted his future in Wollongong was still “touch and go” despite his strong start to the year.

Weidler told Nine’s 100% Footy the Dragons have now informed Dufty he’s free to look elsewhere, with the Red V understood to be interested in breakout Storm fullback Hynes.

“It’s my understanding that Matt Dufty has been told by the Dragons that he is free to go. I don’t think they want him for next year,” Weidler said.

“The information I’ve got is that he’s been told they don’t want him and ‘go look around’. All the information I’ve got is that they don’t want him at the club.

“I’m hearing perhaps they’re looking at Nicho Hynes. But I don’t know what Matt Dufty has done wrong as a footballer.

“They’ve had a chance to re-sign him for a while now at the Dragons and they’ve decided not to.”

Dufty has scored 44 tries in 77 games for the Dragons since debuting in 2017 and leads the tryscoring tally for the club this year with eight. 

While it’s news that could stun some of the Red V faithful, Dragons coach Anthony Griffin has been pressed over Dufty’s future continuously throughout the year and hinted the club wasn’t in a rush to re-sign him.

“He’s good, he’s been improving (but) he needs to,” Griffin said after the win over Parramatta.

“He’s a really good kid and he’s learning the fine arts of playing fullback in tight football games, like he did tonight.

“He needs to keep improving to unlock his potential.

“That’s the challenge with a lot of us. He’s always been great with the ball, that’s never been a question, it’s about mastering his craft as a fullback at this level.

“He’s worked really hard.”

Rugby league guru Phil Gould, who oversaw a review of St. George Illawarra’s football department in the wake of their horror 2019 season, said Dufty has been on the outer at the club for some time due to matters that don’t necessarily relate to football.

“They’ve been trying to move him for two off-seasons. I’m not going to go any further than that, it’s just the truth,” Gould said on 100% Footy.

“Matt’s aware of that and the Dragons have certainly got other plans.

“As to the reasons why the Dragons don’t want him, I don’t think that it’s football related.”

The Dragons are now poised to enter the race for Hynes, whose emergence since stepping in for the injured Ryan Papnehuyzen at fullback for Melbourne has caught the eyes of many across the competition.

Off-contract next season, the Storm are resigned to losing Hynes, who’s expressed his intentions to secure a regular starting spot with his next deal, something he won’t be guaranteed in Melbourne.

The Broncos are widely reported to have shown interest in the Sunshine Coast product but are yet to have offered him a contract.