Out of his father's shadow, Sydney Roosters halfback Kyle Flanagan will have big shoes to fill in 2020.
The former Cronulla playmaker may be free of the pressure of being the coach's son but walks into a back-to-back NRL premiership winning team wearing the jersey of his star predecessor, Cooper Cronk.
Father Shane is now assistant coach at St George Illawarra after serving a one-year NRL imposed ban for communicating with the Sharks while serving a previous suspension in 2014.
And while the 21-year-old Flanagan was reluctant to leave Cronulla too, he concedes starting fresh with the Roosters could be the best thing for everyone.
"Everyone talks about that pressure (of a father and son who are coach and player) and it's probably off my shoulders now," Flanagan said.
"We did get to play one game together, he coached me on my debut game so I guess that pressure is gone.
"We both love the NRL and we both love the game.
"It's good to have him back in the game and I can't wait to play the Dragons, though, its going to be unreal."
Chasing an NRL opportunity, Flanagan has walked into a whole new world with the Roosters after Cronk's retirement at the end of this season.
The four-time premiership-winning halfback will be a mentor for Flanagan in 2020.
Between Cronk and halves partner Luke Keary, Flanagan - who has played just eight NRL games - feels supported enough to ease his way into his new role.
"I'm really focused on not going from zero to 100 too quick, just the first couple of rounds to build my game to build my defence and earn the trust of my team," he said.
"Coming into the team I don't need to do too much, I just need to play basic footy and that's getting my kicks in and doing my defence and all the pretty stuff will come on the back of that.
"For me, the first couple of rounds the focus for me is just playing tough for a halfback."
Australian Associated Press
