Im calling out for an NRL Reporter to stand up, show some balls and report on a story that finally needs to be told.
Our salary cap drama's have been widely reported, but apart from stating Hasler's habit of back ending deals not much else has been said.
What Im calling for, is for an NRL reporter to give this story the coverage that it deserves.
Its time for one of them to have some balls and shame the 3 key figures responsible for the demise and current state of affairs at the Bulldogs.
I'd love to see a full page story with a picture of each of their heads, Des, Raelene and Dib each stamped with a big "SHAME" over the top of their photo. So the story title across the page is "SHAME, SHAME, SHAME ".
The story should then go on blaming and shaming the role they each played in it all & questioning their abilities and also if they should ever be considered by any any future employee, especially Des.
For mine, theses 3 people have got away with it way too easy and its time for them to be shamed accordingly.
Will an NRL Reporter please stand up?
Hasler has back-ended the Bulldogs into a huge hole
Des Hasler’s reliance on back-ended contracts as left the Bulldogs’ roster management in a mess
The Australian - 12:00AM June 16, 2018
So Moses Mbye will play his last game for the Bulldogs this afternoon. That’s a shame; this was the bloke I thought Dean Pay could build the club around.
And what a great club it used to be. Winner of multiple premierships, combative on the field, powerful in the boardroom, more like a family than a franchise. Not today.
This once proud and successful organisation currently sits second last on the competition table mired in defeats and distractions. The reasons for the demise are plentiful, well documented, and have been building for some time.
So when did things start to turn sour for the “family club”? You probably have to go back to 2011 when a decision was made to sack head coach Kevin Moore and pay big money for a big-name replacement.
Wayne Bennett, Craig Bellamy and Des Hasler were all the rage at the time. The Bulldogs board chose Hasler and told then CEO, Todd Greenberg, to get into his spy gear and convert the asset. Greenberg went in under the cover of darkness and completed the mission. Des became a Dog.
What an interesting study is Des Hasler. He has the ability to leave you feeling enlightened and insulted all in the one conversation. Genius or weirdo, teaser or tyrant, one could never tell, and that’s exactly the way Des liked it I suspect. During his very successful tenure at the Sea Eagles Hasler adopted a rather scientific approach to coaching. He had metrics on metrics feeding a fancy player rating system that significantly shaped his filter on the game.
Premierships in 2008 and 2011, runners up in 2007, it seemed the Hasler method had much going for it. But as all good coaches know, players win comps, and after Des’s players won a couple, he had to figure a way to keep his best players together. The answer? Back-ended contracts.
The basic premise: players take less in the early years of their deal for big increases in the final years. It’s a delicate and risky undertaking. The AFL won’t allow the practice; they believe it’s a flawed system that leads to only one thing — chaos.
Des wasn’t deterred, the Sea Eagles were winning, and by the time he left Manly to join the Bulldogs, contract chaos was nowhere to be seen.
When Hasler arrived at Belmore it seemed a perfect fit. Old school Bulldogs fused with modern-day methods would result in, well, better results.
Grand final appearances in 2012 and again in 2014, with finals footy either side, told the story of a successful partnership. But something troubling was happening in the background.
Despite the fact the Bulldogs board had cited their opposition to back-ended contracts, Hasler began to use the practice as he became desperate to win a premiership. The team’s style of football, much celebrated early in Des’s tenure, became more predictable and less effective. The science wasn’t holding up on the field.
As cracks appeared the very passionate Bulldogs supporter base started to make some noise. Change was required, but that early success was all the evidence Hasler needed to stick to his guns. It’s at this juncture the unravelling process hit full throttle.
The board backed the coach, the coach struggled to change, the quality of football diminished, the fans got jumpy, the board forced change on the coach, results didn’t improve, then the board got jumpy, and ultimately lost its way.
The flashpoint: club legend Steve Mortimer stood down from the board after publicly criticising the head coach.. The place was falling apart.
You need look no further than the past 12 months of Des Hasler’s tenure for real insight into the Bulldogs’ current woes. With a football club board election looming, chairman Ray Dib was doing everything he could to win back his constituents’ confidence. It started with the resigning of Hasler and finished with his sacking.
In between, CEO Raelene Castle was moved on, and a roster management strategy was employed that could best be described as “man with corn chips mistakes baby poo for peanut butter”.
Ultimately Dib and his ticket would be voted out with a mighty big mess left behind. For Lynne Anderson and the new Bulldogs board, fixing that mess will be a slow burn.
Rebuilding the roster on it’s own is a sizeable project. Blooding youngsters, finding cheap talent, investing in junior pathways, identifying then securing marquee players, there’s much to do but little patience from those you’re doing it for.
It is also important that the back-to-the-future narrative being touted by the club is balanced with a modern and systemised approach to business.
Des Hasler gave the Bulldogs a glimpse of what new thinking can do for an old-fashioned club. It worked for a while, but then it stopped working, and Des didn’t adapt.
Sports science, player rating systems, old school DNA, all these ideas have merit at some point. But in the end, the only idea that matters is the one that works, because if it doesn’t work, nor will you.
