What can we expect from another Bulldogs rebuild?

FOR years we’ve heard the chatter. The Bulldogs are re-building. New coach, new players, new hope for fans. Alas it didn’t work out with Dean Pay nor Trent Barrett. It didn’t work out for players like Matt Dufty, Brent Naden or Jack Hetherington.

But this time around, something feels different. Something feels right.

A major difference between now and then is the influence of Phil Gould, who took over as the general manager of football towards the end of the 2021 season.

Another key difference is stability and unity off the field. The club has a strong board, a thriving CEO and a chairman with nothing but good intentions at the forefront of his decision making.

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While Gould has his hands all over junior development for the club, an area that’s been lacking for some time, he also has his hat in the ring for recruitment. He helped fix what was a shambles of a salary cap and mismanaged roster. He’s had to walk players for the better of the club, but has brought in some top recruits along with coach Cameron Ciraldo.

It’s the perfect recipe for success. When that success will come remains to be seen, but surely this is their last chance on hitting the reset button.

“There are signs we’re on the right path to success. We’re very willing to undertake the hard work behind the scenes that fans won’t see,” CEO Aaron Warburton said.

“It’s the simple things that aren’t tended to over the years that are small gaps that turn in to big gaps. It’s getting the right pathway systems, attracting the right athletes and that. It all starts with people (and) we’ve been able to attract the right people on and off the field.”

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Those people include Reed Mahoney and Viliame Kikau, the game’s best high performance manager Travis Touma, assistant coach Chad Randall and pathways expert Shane Millard. There are plenty more to list.

The club will also have official affiliation in the Queensland Cup with the Clydesdales and will have a Bulldogs team in the Ron Massey Cup.

Attracting the calibre of these people to the club has been a struggle in the past. But not now. 

“We share our vision and that attracts people to the club. It gives them a platform to strive for excellence no matter what area we’re in,” Warburton said.

“We can attract those people because we have an aspiration of being a top four team in all grades. It was a reason we could get someone like Cameron (Ciraldo).

“He did his research, he had a number of options including staying at Penrith, but he can see our vision and we’ve been able to show him that he can add that leadership to the club to help ensure we’re a successful club in all grades on and off the field.”

Getting things right with your roster is just one piece in a big puzzle for any NRL club. Financially it is more important than ever to be a big player in the sponsorship market. That is an area the Bulldogs have truly excelled, topped off with a massive five year front of jersey sponsorship with Laundy Hotels.

Player sponsors are full with waiting lists, corporate sponsorship is thriving, massive international companies like Kentucky Fried Chicken are even on board with more to come. It’s exciting after many years of uncertainty and ensures a strong commercial future for the club, which allows other areas to thrive, such as junior football.

“We’ve got close to 3,500 participants. There’s just under 10,000 in that western Sydney corridor,” Warburton said.

“We’ve always looked outside our backyard when we’ve needed to. We now have a direct link to the QLD cup. That western corridor in Queensland still produces some of the best talent north of the border.

“To have a team now in the NSW Cup and now QLD Cup is fantastic.”

There are also plans for a Women’s NRL team in 2024, with Warburton confirming they will put in an application with the powers that be.

“We did put in an application for an NRLW team to come in in 2024 and we will continue to take guidance from the NRL about that,” he said.

“If we put in perspective our junior participation has increased by 25 per cent so we have high hopes of having a successful women’s participation. We will have three women’s teams in 2023 across three competitions – Tarsha Gale cup, Harvey Norman NSW Women’s Premiership  and the Lisa Fiaola cup.

“That gives us a great backing to have a strong developed NRLW team whether it be in 2024 or 2025. Young girls can now aspire to be a Bulldog.”

The last bit of good news for Bulldogs faithful is the confirmation of a new all-in-one centre of excellence due to be built at Belmore Sports Ground.

“We have a commitment from the NSW government to build the centre of excellence on the eastern side of Belmore Sports Ground,” Warburton confirmed.

“It will be a two-storey centre that will house all our female and male teams. We hope that development starts next year.”