Jack Bird and his St George Illawarra coach Shane Flanagan share a lot in common.
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The Dragons centre was part of the Cronulla side who Shane Flanagan coached to a 2016 NRL premiership.
The previous year Bird made his NRL debut for the Sharks and went on to be named Dally M Rookie of the Year for 2015.
This Sunday the 29-year-old will play his 150th NRL game at Shark Park, the place where he played his first ever NRL game.
On Tuesday Bird said he would love nothing more than to celebrate his milestone game by helping the Dragons topple the table-topping Sharks and earn "big brother" bragging rights for St George Illawarra in the process.
"I've played for both clubs and I know how big this local derby is for both clubs and their supporters," he said.
"It's massive. They talk about little brother, big brother......I feel like there's a bit of tension between the two clubs, I don't think they like each other very much, the fans definitely don't like one another.
"It's a very special moment for both clubs so obviously you want to go out there and try and win for your club. Whoever wins they're big brother, whoever loses they are little brother.....it's just a one up thing there.
"I played for both teams and it's something special for the club.
"So we just got to go out there and try and be the big brother this week.
"It's not going to be an easy task. I remember when I played at the Sharks, we used to hate the Dragons and now vice versa.
"It's going to be a bit of tension flying out there but I'm really looking forward to getting back there for my 150th.
"It's kind of like a full circle moment. I got my debut at the Sharks and at Shark Park. So to play my 150th there against my former club and where it all started pretty much, I'm really looking forward to it and pretty excited."
His coach Flanagan also stated recently how excited he was about the clash against the Sharks.
Though his comment "we play a team from down the Shire that I am really interested in beating", came in the aftermath of the Dragons' heavy Anzac Day loss to the Roosters.
Flanagan definitely deflected pressure from his players in making those comments but it's fair to say he would love nothing better than beating a club he quit on the eve of the 2019 season after he was deregistered by the NRL for flouting his 2014 suspension for his part in the club's peptides scandal.
Bird said the Sharks homecoming was a "touchy one" for Flanagan.
"He won a competition there, so I'm sure he wants to go back there on a good note and get a win and get one on his old team," he said.
"I'm pretty sure he'd be pretty excited to get back there and tell all his mates back in the Shire that he's still the king of the Shire.
"Hopefully we get a win for him and for all of us playing. We need to get back to winning ways.
"We've addressed our loss against the Roosters but we've got to move on from that. We know we are better, we know we have to be better in tough games like that.
"Obviously the [Roosters] game wasn't up to our standard.
"We've been a bit inconsistent this year and we know what we can do when we play good. It's a bit of a write-off but I think we've just got to improve from that and keep moving forward and look to improve against a very good Cronulla side."
Flanagan has resisted making wholesale changes for the clash against the table-topping Sharks.
The Dragons coach has made just one forced change for the local derby against his former club, with Mikaele Ravalawa onto the wing for the Red V after missing the Roosters game with a knee issue.
His return pushes Zac Lomax into the centres with Moses Suli unavailable having suffered a head knock against the Roosters.
Suli was ruled out of the remainder of the Anzac Day clash after a head clash with Jared Waerea-Hargreaves off the kickoff.
Bird will play in the centres for his 150th NRL game.
"I've gone over the left so Lomax stays in the right centre and I go to the left centre," Bird said.
"I've played left centre before at this club now and at the Broncos, it's no different to what I'm used to."
Agron Latifi
Wollongong born and bred. I love reporting about the Illawarra region and have been doing it for more than 20 years. I've moved into sport recently after covering the education round for the last five plus years for the Illawarra Mercury. It's been a great pleasure.
Wollongong born and bred. I love reporting about the Illawarra region and have been doing it for more than 20 years. I've moved into sport recently after covering the education round for the last five plus years for the Illawarra Mercury. It's been a great pleasure.
