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Canterbury's Will Hopoate could become the first NRL fullback in at least a decade to go through a season without a try.
In an indication of just how ineffective Des Hasler's attack has been in much of a campaign to forget, his No.1 approaches the final three matches of the season with no tries and only the one line break in 15 games.
Hopoate is hardly the only player at the Bulldogs to perform below expectations but his fall from grace as a genuine troublemaker for opposition defences has mirrored the steep decline of Canterbury this year.
In 2016, the former State of Origin three-quarter scored eight tries in 21 starts at fullback, including one in each of the first five rounds of the season.
He will be keen to get across the line in either of the Bulldogs' matches against Manly at ANZ Stadium on Sunday, and then the Gold Coast and St George Illawarra, to avoid an unwanted tag.
According to figures obtained from Champion Data, no fullback who has started 15 games or more in a season has gone without a try since 2008. The closest to the duck were Cronulla's Matthew Wright with a lone four-pointer in 17 games at fullback in 2012, and Josh Dugan, who collected just one try in 15 starts at No.1 for Canberra in 2009. The numbers don't always reflect the true picture. Brisbane's Darius Boyd has long been a a highly influential player but five times in his career he's been through a season with three tries or less at fullback.
It would be unfair to pin the blame for Canterbury's ugly season on Hopoate or any other individual player. It has instead been a collective failure across the board, one that is likely to cost Hasler his job.
"We get judged as a team," said Hopoate, who in July re-signed with Canterbury for three more seasons. "There are areas of my game where I definitely think I can do better and improve and these last three weeks I'll try and do that.
Canterbury's Will Hopoate could become the first NRL fullback in at least a decade to go through a season without a try. Photo: AAP
"It's been a rough road this season and it's obviously something we would have hoped to have done better, where we are on the ladder. But it is what it is now, we can't really go back and change that. All we can do now is try and rattle a few teams' performances heading into the finals."
The 25-year-old is a safe pair of hands at the back but does appear to have lost a bit of speed since emerging on the scene at Manly and being thrust into an Origin debut in 2011 after only 15 NRL appearances.
Yet if your team's kicking game isn't up to scratch and mistakes are being made a fullback will often be getting the ball under pressure and tired.
Hopoate doesn't blame the salary cap uncertainty around Canterbury for their poor season. "I don't read the papers much, especially on Sundays," he said.
"I think execution has played a big part in our games, in not scoring points and not completing our sets. We have to defend a lot and we're pretty gassed by the time we get the ball," Hopoate said.
"We've made a few little tweaks [to the attack] each week to try to adapt to the team that we're playing and obviously we would have hoped that we would have done better."
TRIES BY NRL FULLBACKS IN 2017
Will Hopoate (Bulldogs) 0 tries in 15 games at fullback
Lachlan Coote (Cowboys) 2 in 15
Valentine Holmes (Sharks) 3 in 16
Darius Boyd (Broncos) 3 in 16
Josh Dugan (Dragons) 3 in 12
Brendan Elliot (Knights) 3 in 7
Matt Moylan (Panthers) 4 in 10
James Tedesco (Tigers) 4 in 18
Jarryd Hayne (Titans) 5 in 10
Jack Wighton (Raiders) 5 in 20
Michael Gordon (Roosters) 6 in 17
Billy Slater (Storm) 6 in 15
Roger Tuivasa-Sheck (Warriors) 7 in 20
Clint Gutherson (Eels) 7 in 9
Alex Johnston (Rabbitohs) 8 in 11
Tom Trbojevic (Sea Eagles) 10 in 19
In an indication of just how ineffective Des Hasler's attack has been in much of a campaign to forget, his No.1 approaches the final three matches of the season with no tries and only the one line break in 15 games.
Hopoate is hardly the only player at the Bulldogs to perform below expectations but his fall from grace as a genuine troublemaker for opposition defences has mirrored the steep decline of Canterbury this year.
In 2016, the former State of Origin three-quarter scored eight tries in 21 starts at fullback, including one in each of the first five rounds of the season.
He will be keen to get across the line in either of the Bulldogs' matches against Manly at ANZ Stadium on Sunday, and then the Gold Coast and St George Illawarra, to avoid an unwanted tag.
According to figures obtained from Champion Data, no fullback who has started 15 games or more in a season has gone without a try since 2008. The closest to the duck were Cronulla's Matthew Wright with a lone four-pointer in 17 games at fullback in 2012, and Josh Dugan, who collected just one try in 15 starts at No.1 for Canberra in 2009. The numbers don't always reflect the true picture. Brisbane's Darius Boyd has long been a a highly influential player but five times in his career he's been through a season with three tries or less at fullback.
It would be unfair to pin the blame for Canterbury's ugly season on Hopoate or any other individual player. It has instead been a collective failure across the board, one that is likely to cost Hasler his job.
"We get judged as a team," said Hopoate, who in July re-signed with Canterbury for three more seasons. "There are areas of my game where I definitely think I can do better and improve and these last three weeks I'll try and do that.
Canterbury's Will Hopoate could become the first NRL fullback in at least a decade to go through a season without a try. Photo: AAP
"It's been a rough road this season and it's obviously something we would have hoped to have done better, where we are on the ladder. But it is what it is now, we can't really go back and change that. All we can do now is try and rattle a few teams' performances heading into the finals."
The 25-year-old is a safe pair of hands at the back but does appear to have lost a bit of speed since emerging on the scene at Manly and being thrust into an Origin debut in 2011 after only 15 NRL appearances.
Yet if your team's kicking game isn't up to scratch and mistakes are being made a fullback will often be getting the ball under pressure and tired.
Hopoate doesn't blame the salary cap uncertainty around Canterbury for their poor season. "I don't read the papers much, especially on Sundays," he said.
"I think execution has played a big part in our games, in not scoring points and not completing our sets. We have to defend a lot and we're pretty gassed by the time we get the ball," Hopoate said.
"We've made a few little tweaks [to the attack] each week to try to adapt to the team that we're playing and obviously we would have hoped that we would have done better."
TRIES BY NRL FULLBACKS IN 2017
Will Hopoate (Bulldogs) 0 tries in 15 games at fullback
Lachlan Coote (Cowboys) 2 in 15
Valentine Holmes (Sharks) 3 in 16
Darius Boyd (Broncos) 3 in 16
Josh Dugan (Dragons) 3 in 12
Brendan Elliot (Knights) 3 in 7
Matt Moylan (Panthers) 4 in 10
James Tedesco (Tigers) 4 in 18
Jarryd Hayne (Titans) 5 in 10
Jack Wighton (Raiders) 5 in 20
Michael Gordon (Roosters) 6 in 17
Billy Slater (Storm) 6 in 15
Roger Tuivasa-Sheck (Warriors) 7 in 20
Clint Gutherson (Eels) 7 in 9
Alex Johnston (Rabbitohs) 8 in 11
Tom Trbojevic (Sea Eagles) 10 in 19
