Dogzof95
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He put a 'me or him' ultimatum on the table as the Canterbury board weighed up Des Hasler's future in 2016, but it came back to bite Steve Mortimer when they opted to give the under-fire coach a second chance and let their club legend go.
It took them 12 months to come to their senses and realise that Mortimer, who was unhappy with the direction Hasler was taking the club, was maybe right.
With Canterbury yielding the axe on Hasler despite giving him a new contract midway through the year, Mortimer was welcomly reappointed by chairmman Ray Dib, joining new coach Dean Pay and football club director Andrew Farrar in a new-look hierarchy filled with a Bulldogs bloodline.
Mortimer said the club was 'losing their DNA' with the former Manly mentor in charge, but the club's new 'Bulldogs only' policy has reopened the door for his return.
And he couldn't hold in a sly 'I told you so' and saved one last dig for the departing coach.
"When I previously stepped down it was because I didn't agree with the direction the football program was going in and I thought it was unfair if I stayed involved,'' Mortimer said in a club statement.
''With the situation now changing with the appointment of Dean Pay as Head Coach, I am happy to accept Ray's invitation, who I have known for over thirty years, to come back on to the Board and help restore the traditional values that the club has always stood for.
''I had enormous respect for Peter 'Bullfrog' Moore and the way that he created a family club and I look forward to seeing the Bulldogs return to those traditions."
Hasler is still yet to find a job but has been tied with the New South Wales team following Laurie Daley's sacking and the Titans who are still in the market for a replacement for Neil Henry.
It took them 12 months to come to their senses and realise that Mortimer, who was unhappy with the direction Hasler was taking the club, was maybe right.
With Canterbury yielding the axe on Hasler despite giving him a new contract midway through the year, Mortimer was welcomly reappointed by chairmman Ray Dib, joining new coach Dean Pay and football club director Andrew Farrar in a new-look hierarchy filled with a Bulldogs bloodline.
Mortimer said the club was 'losing their DNA' with the former Manly mentor in charge, but the club's new 'Bulldogs only' policy has reopened the door for his return.
And he couldn't hold in a sly 'I told you so' and saved one last dig for the departing coach.
"When I previously stepped down it was because I didn't agree with the direction the football program was going in and I thought it was unfair if I stayed involved,'' Mortimer said in a club statement.
''With the situation now changing with the appointment of Dean Pay as Head Coach, I am happy to accept Ray's invitation, who I have known for over thirty years, to come back on to the Board and help restore the traditional values that the club has always stood for.
''I had enormous respect for Peter 'Bullfrog' Moore and the way that he created a family club and I look forward to seeing the Bulldogs return to those traditions."
Hasler is still yet to find a job but has been tied with the New South Wales team following Laurie Daley's sacking and the Titans who are still in the market for a replacement for Neil Henry.
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