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Phil Rothfield, The Daily Telegraph
June 5, 2017 7:00pm
Subscriber only
NOT long after fulltime at the ANZ Stadium debacle on Sunday evening, Bulldogs coach Des Hasler was supposed to meet face-to-face with fans at the club’s Belmore headquarters.
The Bulldogs had advertised all week that the head coach and the players would take questions from members at a meet and greet session from 7pm.
You can imagine the mood of the room after a 38-0 shellacking to the Penrith Panthers when Hasler didn’t show up on the back of such a dreadful performance.
Especially after they had been assured the 36-0 blowout against Manly in round four was a one off.
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The Panthers tore Canterbury apart.
Fans wanted and expected answers. Social media went into meltdown. It was the club’s fourth straight loss.
Hasler told The Daily Telegraph on Monday he was held up at the ground dealing with his media commitments and injuries. And that he had sent his apologies.
This was confirmed on Monday by chairman Ray Dib and chief executive Raelene Castle.
Not that it was a satisfactory explanation for furious fans who used the words “weak” and “gutless” to describe the besieged coach’s non-appearance.
There was even talk among Bulldogs members of boycotting Monday’s 4pm game against St George Illawarra at ANZ Stadium in protest.
The Bulldogs are now languishing in 14th spot.
The Bulldogs are copping it from all directions.
Not just over the team’s form but Hasler’s no-show and the decision six weeks ago to allow Josh Reynolds to join the Wests Tigers, which many believe has ripped the heart out of the playing group.
It’s a similar situation to what Many confronted after Glenn Stewart left in 2014 and Brookvale erupted.
There are rumblings about the decision to extend Hasler’s contract in Round 6 despite the team’s poor start.
At least Dib says he is happy to accept responsibility for the all the above issues.
“The buck stops with me,” Dib said. “I’m the chairman and I’ll wear it. Everyone’s emotional. We’re not winning games and I get that.
“The old boys are causing some rumblings in the background but they are entitled to have a voice. The same with the fans and the members. Anyone who pays to go the football is entitled to an opinion. They invest in the club.”
Four straight losses means the club’s season is on the brink.
Dib insists it was not Hasler’s fault he didn’t get to Sunday night’s fans meeting.
“Des got there late and I told him it was finishing up,” Dib said. “He was happy to go in there and he never avoids those things.
“He was doing media and medical reports at the ground and that’s why he was late.”
The Bulldogs boss also denied the club wanted to offload Reynolds to ease salary cap pressure from signing Aaron Woods and Kieran Foran.
He says he met with Reynolds and his agent Darryl Mather in his own offices at Sydney Olympic Park to try to convince him to stay at Canterbury for three years.
“When we got talking about the money the difference between us and the Wests Tigers was more than $1 million,” Dib said.
“It’s a bloody big difference. It blew us out of the water and we couldn’t compete with it.
LISTEN! Is there more going on at the Bulldogs than meets the eye? And Kevin Walters all but confirms Billy Slater’s return. The Monday Bunker crew dissect all the biggest issues in the NRL.
“I’ve known Grub since he was five and I advised him that he had to look after his family.
“At the end of the day he can come back if things don’t work out because he’s a Bulldogs boy through and through.”
Dib also insists that despite losing four in a row, he has no regrets about extending Hasler’s deal so early in the season.
This despite rumours senior players have fronted the coach in recent weeks about game tactics.
“For starters we never had a time limit on Des’ deal,” Dib said, “Once we were happy with the terms of the contract we signed him. His record speaks for itself.
“What happened [on Sunday] isn’t good enough. The players and Des know that. We’re not getting that consistency. In 2014 we lost four in a row but regrouped and came back. We can do it again.”
http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sp...n/news-story/7ae7e0c410ba998fccfe8c4bf89f54c0
June 5, 2017 7:00pm
Subscriber only
NOT long after fulltime at the ANZ Stadium debacle on Sunday evening, Bulldogs coach Des Hasler was supposed to meet face-to-face with fans at the club’s Belmore headquarters.
The Bulldogs had advertised all week that the head coach and the players would take questions from members at a meet and greet session from 7pm.
You can imagine the mood of the room after a 38-0 shellacking to the Penrith Panthers when Hasler didn’t show up on the back of such a dreadful performance.
Especially after they had been assured the 36-0 blowout against Manly in round four was a one off.
CONTRACT: Dogs’ ‘positive’ talks with Klemmer
TURMOIL: Canterbury are falling apart
BUZZ: The 10 best buys of the season
The Panthers tore Canterbury apart.
Fans wanted and expected answers. Social media went into meltdown. It was the club’s fourth straight loss.
Hasler told The Daily Telegraph on Monday he was held up at the ground dealing with his media commitments and injuries. And that he had sent his apologies.
This was confirmed on Monday by chairman Ray Dib and chief executive Raelene Castle.
Not that it was a satisfactory explanation for furious fans who used the words “weak” and “gutless” to describe the besieged coach’s non-appearance.
There was even talk among Bulldogs members of boycotting Monday’s 4pm game against St George Illawarra at ANZ Stadium in protest.
The Bulldogs are now languishing in 14th spot.
The Bulldogs are copping it from all directions.
Not just over the team’s form but Hasler’s no-show and the decision six weeks ago to allow Josh Reynolds to join the Wests Tigers, which many believe has ripped the heart out of the playing group.
It’s a similar situation to what Many confronted after Glenn Stewart left in 2014 and Brookvale erupted.
There are rumblings about the decision to extend Hasler’s contract in Round 6 despite the team’s poor start.
At least Dib says he is happy to accept responsibility for the all the above issues.
“The buck stops with me,” Dib said. “I’m the chairman and I’ll wear it. Everyone’s emotional. We’re not winning games and I get that.
“The old boys are causing some rumblings in the background but they are entitled to have a voice. The same with the fans and the members. Anyone who pays to go the football is entitled to an opinion. They invest in the club.”
Four straight losses means the club’s season is on the brink.
Dib insists it was not Hasler’s fault he didn’t get to Sunday night’s fans meeting.
“Des got there late and I told him it was finishing up,” Dib said. “He was happy to go in there and he never avoids those things.
“He was doing media and medical reports at the ground and that’s why he was late.”
The Bulldogs boss also denied the club wanted to offload Reynolds to ease salary cap pressure from signing Aaron Woods and Kieran Foran.
He says he met with Reynolds and his agent Darryl Mather in his own offices at Sydney Olympic Park to try to convince him to stay at Canterbury for three years.
“When we got talking about the money the difference between us and the Wests Tigers was more than $1 million,” Dib said.
“It’s a bloody big difference. It blew us out of the water and we couldn’t compete with it.
LISTEN! Is there more going on at the Bulldogs than meets the eye? And Kevin Walters all but confirms Billy Slater’s return. The Monday Bunker crew dissect all the biggest issues in the NRL.
“I’ve known Grub since he was five and I advised him that he had to look after his family.
“At the end of the day he can come back if things don’t work out because he’s a Bulldogs boy through and through.”
Dib also insists that despite losing four in a row, he has no regrets about extending Hasler’s deal so early in the season.
This despite rumours senior players have fronted the coach in recent weeks about game tactics.
“For starters we never had a time limit on Des’ deal,” Dib said, “Once we were happy with the terms of the contract we signed him. His record speaks for itself.
“What happened [on Sunday] isn’t good enough. The players and Des know that. We’re not getting that consistency. In 2014 we lost four in a row but regrouped and came back. We can do it again.”
http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sp...n/news-story/7ae7e0c410ba998fccfe8c4bf89f54c0
