Dogna88
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He has been defending outside olive
News Okunbor's journey to NRL debut
- Thread starter Spoonman84
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Awesome feel good story ahead of our tigers clash..!!
Have been waiting for this debut, and finally get to see it happen.
Good luck Jayden, well deserved indeed and we wish you all the best mate. I’m sure you will do the Doggs jersey and club proud.
Go and kill it for us bud!! I’m sure you will put your all into it..!!
Have been waiting for this debut, and finally get to see it happen.
Good luck Jayden, well deserved indeed and we wish you all the best mate. I’m sure you will do the Doggs jersey and club proud.
Go and kill it for us bud!! I’m sure you will put your all into it..!!
B-Train
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It's great that he's a genuine junior and good luck to him making his debut.
Hopefully he has a better career than fellow Colt Tim Winitana! Although there was a 3 game period there where we thought even he looked promising...
I wish Jayden the best and we need him and others like Harper, Wakeham, Toomaga and Ogden to develop into first graders to be able to get something positive out of another frustrating season.
Hopefully he has a better career than fellow Colt Tim Winitana! Although there was a 3 game period there where we thought even he looked promising...
I wish Jayden the best and we need him and others like Harper, Wakeham, Toomaga and Ogden to develop into first graders to be able to get something positive out of another frustrating season.
Hahaha and because this is PAYS FAULT?
HE has a team of ROCKIES. No other coach can do better with the players at hand
Blue&whiteAxe
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ADRIANN WE DID IT!!!!
Mr Invisible
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The only winger to ever play wing, centre, prop and second row.
haz123
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Greg Eastwood??????
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Local junior Okunbor to get first start after Pay swings axe at Dogs
If there was one positive to emerge from Dean Pay's brutal Canterbury culling yesterday, it was the inclusion of giant local junior Jayden Okunbor.
The Milperra Colts junior will be one of the most popular club debutants on Sunday in what is a new-look Bulldogs pack, which heads to Campbelltown in search of its first win against the high-flying Wests Tigers.
Pay said the changes were needed after the heavy loss to Parramatta, adding that the dumped players, including new recruits Christian Crichton and Jesse Sue, had taken the news "on the chin".
At least fans can be happy the Family Club will embrace one of its own in the form of 196cm-tall powerhouse flyer Okunbor. The only other local junior, Marcelo Montoya, was one of five players flicked to reserve grade.
"He's been in our system a long time, he played on the wing the last half of last year, and that's where he's found his spot," Pay said of the man mountain who will wear the No.2 jersey. "He's an athletic kid and he's been doing good things in second grade.
"When I told him he was so rapt. I shook his hand, then on the way out he said to me, 'I want to shake your hand again'." He's ready. And he's such a nice kid. His mum and dad are great people and it means so much to them.''
Okunbor will start on the left wing and will tower over Mahe Fonua or potentially the returning Tigers junior David Nofoaluma.
Pay has never been one to sugarcoat things and was not hiding from the fact his young team would have its work cut out against the experienced packs it was going to come up against.
A quick peek at the draw and the Dogs' best hope of a win could come in round eight against Manly and Des Hasler, the coach who took Canterbury to two grand finals but left Pay and the club with one messy cap situation that was still being felt over the summer with David Klemmer's exit.
After the Tigers at Campbelltown, Canterbury will face the Storm in Melbourne, then the Storm in Melbourne, St George Illawarra, a Good Friday clash with South Sydney and then the Cowboys.
"You can't have something you ain't got,'' Pay said. "We don't have a lot of players with 150 NRL games - we're going to build this club around our younger guys.
"We've got young guys who we hope can only get better. We've got the youngest group in the competition with the least amount of NRL games."
As for his own future, which is expected to be a hot topic at the next Canterbury board meeting in four weeks' time, Pay said: "People can say what they like, I'm here doing my job, I'm doing it the best I can, and the boys are putting in a performance each week and building towards a decent performance. That's all I'm focused on.''
Pay said he was prepared to give his players another chance after the round-one ambush in Auckland.
"I thought they deserved another week, they improved a bit, but this is the best team to go with this week, and it's the way we've gone,'' he said.
"They all copped it on the chin. I think the way we've trained in the off-season, we had a really good trial against Canberra, but we just haven't played the footy I know we can play yet.
"It was better than the previous week, but we're looking for another improvement this week.''
Crichton and Sue, two players brought to the club by Pay, were part of the carnage. Raymond Faitala-Mariner, Montoya and Danny Fualolo were also dropped, while Nick Meaney will start at fullback in his first game for the club, with Will Hopoate shifting to the centres.
Pay said Jack Cogger was also keeping the pressure on halves Kieran Foran and Lachie Lewis.
Canterbury had a horror season last year, with players squeezed out of the club due to cap pressure, including Moses Mbye, who is now the skipper of the Tigers. Josh Reynolds, another much-loved local Bulldog, also joined the Tigers but is unlikely to force his way into the 17 to play against his former mates this weekend.
If there was one positive to emerge from Dean Pay's brutal Canterbury culling yesterday, it was the inclusion of giant local junior Jayden Okunbor.
The Milperra Colts junior will be one of the most popular club debutants on Sunday in what is a new-look Bulldogs pack, which heads to Campbelltown in search of its first win against the high-flying Wests Tigers.
Pay said the changes were needed after the heavy loss to Parramatta, adding that the dumped players, including new recruits Christian Crichton and Jesse Sue, had taken the news "on the chin".
At least fans can be happy the Family Club will embrace one of its own in the form of 196cm-tall powerhouse flyer Okunbor. The only other local junior, Marcelo Montoya, was one of five players flicked to reserve grade.
"He's been in our system a long time, he played on the wing the last half of last year, and that's where he's found his spot," Pay said of the man mountain who will wear the No.2 jersey. "He's an athletic kid and he's been doing good things in second grade.
"When I told him he was so rapt. I shook his hand, then on the way out he said to me, 'I want to shake your hand again'." He's ready. And he's such a nice kid. His mum and dad are great people and it means so much to them.''
Okunbor will start on the left wing and will tower over Mahe Fonua or potentially the returning Tigers junior David Nofoaluma.
Pay has never been one to sugarcoat things and was not hiding from the fact his young team would have its work cut out against the experienced packs it was going to come up against.
A quick peek at the draw and the Dogs' best hope of a win could come in round eight against Manly and Des Hasler, the coach who took Canterbury to two grand finals but left Pay and the club with one messy cap situation that was still being felt over the summer with David Klemmer's exit.
After the Tigers at Campbelltown, Canterbury will face the Storm in Melbourne, then the Storm in Melbourne, St George Illawarra, a Good Friday clash with South Sydney and then the Cowboys.
"You can't have something you ain't got,'' Pay said. "We don't have a lot of players with 150 NRL games - we're going to build this club around our younger guys.
"We've got young guys who we hope can only get better. We've got the youngest group in the competition with the least amount of NRL games."
As for his own future, which is expected to be a hot topic at the next Canterbury board meeting in four weeks' time, Pay said: "People can say what they like, I'm here doing my job, I'm doing it the best I can, and the boys are putting in a performance each week and building towards a decent performance. That's all I'm focused on.''
Pay said he was prepared to give his players another chance after the round-one ambush in Auckland.
"I thought they deserved another week, they improved a bit, but this is the best team to go with this week, and it's the way we've gone,'' he said.
"They all copped it on the chin. I think the way we've trained in the off-season, we had a really good trial against Canberra, but we just haven't played the footy I know we can play yet.
"It was better than the previous week, but we're looking for another improvement this week.''
Crichton and Sue, two players brought to the club by Pay, were part of the carnage. Raymond Faitala-Mariner, Montoya and Danny Fualolo were also dropped, while Nick Meaney will start at fullback in his first game for the club, with Will Hopoate shifting to the centres.
Pay said Jack Cogger was also keeping the pressure on halves Kieran Foran and Lachie Lewis.
Canterbury had a horror season last year, with players squeezed out of the club due to cap pressure, including Moses Mbye, who is now the skipper of the Tigers. Josh Reynolds, another much-loved local Bulldog, also joined the Tigers but is unlikely to force his way into the 17 to play against his former mates this weekend.
Mr Invisible
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Eh?!?!?!? So Pays planning to drop Lewis..because he wouldn't drop Foran.
haz123
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I don't think he said he was planning on dropping either .
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His missus is a top sort to lucky dude
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Just stay on your wing son my only advice,really hope he nails it though would be great to have 2 tall fast wingers
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Not between the ears where it really counts.