St George Illawarra's football will only continue to get better now captain Gareth Widdop is back, according to coach Paul McGregor.
The Dragons have shocked the NRL this year to sit third, and are now two points clear of fifth spot, following their 16-12 win over the Wests Tigers on Saturday.
The win was inspired by Widdop, who scored twice on return from a knee injury, to take their record to 7-1 in matches where he has been available for the full 80 minutes this year.
"Gaz was a player I thought was the form player of the competition before his injury," McGregor said.
"The boys geta lot of confidence around Gareth because he is the type of player that instils that in everyone.
"He's done a lot of work over the past five weeks to come back a week early. And I'm glad he did today because he led the boys well."
Widdop was originally scheduled to return against Canterbury next Monday, but knew by mid-week he would face the Tigers.
His early comeback was even more significant when considering the Englishman has now had a hand in 131 of the 219 points the club has scored, in matches he has played.
His return on Saturday also coincided with the club return of Origin star Josh Dugan from a jaw injury.
"Duges had five try saves and 170 metres at the back," McGregor said.
The return of Dugan and how well the Dragons have started to navigate the Origin period also has McGregor full of confidence.
"We've played the last month of footy without some high-quality players and they're all back now," McGregor said.
"We're still learning our best brand of footy.
"We're sitting third on the table. It's a good position halfway through the competition when I and the players feel we are in our best position."
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