alchemist
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Cameron Munster? really?Exclusive: Andrew Johns lists the recruits Bulldogs should buy to rebuild around
By Ben Glover
How to rebuild the Bulldogs
Bulldogs coach Dean Pay has admitted his club need to recruit a big star to take them into their next phase of development and rugby league Immortal Andrew Johns says that star should be Cameron Munster.
Canterbury have hit rock bottom after making a mess of their salary cap over the last few years, leaving Pay with a roster that is the consensus pick for worst in the NRL after being forced to shed a slew of highly paid big names, most notably David Klemmer, Aaron Woods and Moses Mbye.
It took a vintage performance from former Test star Kieran Foran to lift the Bulldogs to an eye-catching Round 2 victory over the Wests Tigers but with the premiership-winning half facing a long stint on the sidelines with an ankle injury, it looms as a tough 2019 for Pay's men.
Million Dollar Man: Fast 5
Million Dollar Man: Fast 5
Having had his contract extended last week, Pay has an eye to the future and a roster rebuild similar to the one the Knights have recently been through under Nathan Brown.
Brown and the Knights turned the corner when they snagged the prize signature of Kalyn Ponga and speaking on NRL360 this week, Pay revealed he wanted to bring a franchise player of a similar calibre to Belmore.
While Munster only recently signed a new deal tying him to the Storm until 2023, Johns said he would be the ideal man to build a struggling club around, with young guns Victor Radley and Cameron Murray strong back-up plans.
"I'd be going after Munster. I think he's the perfect player who you could build a team around, Cameron Munster," Johns told Wide World of Sports' Immortal Behaviour when asked who he'd target if he was recruiting for the Bulldogs.
"If I had to buy another one or two I'd probably go Victor Radley or Cameron Murray. Both young players on the way up; those two players in particular train really hard and really rip in and that has a great affect on all the players at the club.
The number one would be Cameron Munster for sure."
While Munster is arguably the heir to the throne of Johnathan Thurston as rugby league's next generational playmaker, 21-year-old forwards Radley and Murray have also made huge impressions over the last 12 months.
However, neither would be easy to prise from the clubs who gave them their debuts with Murray on contract with the Rabbitohs until 2021 and Radley on a deal as long as Munster's after the Roosters rewarded him for an outstanding rookie year with a long-term deal.
Although the NRL player market has become very fluid in recent years, those contracts are likely to force Pay to look elsewhere.
“We’ve got a target, it may be a Kalyn Ponga, a player of that calibre, where he is a franchise player," Pay said when asked about Canterbury's rebuild.
“And you bring him to the club and there’s other players who want to come to the club and play with him. We’re always looking.”
there may have been a time years back when the Big 3 in Melbourne were still running around strong and Munster could have been targeted and recruited (and which we should have done to play fullback for us once Barba blew up)... but the 'Dogs are no chance in bringing him across now... he is the main attacking threat for the Storm, has won a premiership, is the current QLD five-eighth and will be the centrepiece for the Storm for years to come... and he is contracted to 2023!
seriously, how do these people make money in the media dribbling such nonsense
the 'Dogs have the worst attacking structures, attacking plays, attacking skill sets and offensive individual playing talent in the entire comp... and it is not even close... I love the club and always will but I have no issue with a neutral fan of the game complaining that the 'Dogs have since 2013 been awful to watch... we are
and therein lies the problem that needs fixing... the f*&%ing spine... the coach, the outside backs, props, back row etc. obviously need to be looked after but if your 1, 6, 7 and 9 are dunces - and they have been for the Dogs for years - then you will at best be an also-ran or at worst (like now) wooden spooners… and worse still, we wrecked our salary cap and undermined our club for years to facilitate and overpay overrated, unimportant role players instead of developing, recruiting and retaining good/great players in the spine THAT WIN YOU COMPETITIONS
we can all moan about other clubs being able to recruit and retain big name, big money players and it is fair to raise an eyebrow fair enough... but that does not explain or excuse the inept management at our club... we have been referred to as the Dogs of War or the Family Club or whatever, but all those names are transitory --> we broke a 38 year premiership drought in 1980 by being the Entertainers... when the attack stopped being effective, Warren Ryan focused the club on defence and we became the Dogs of War winning 2 premierships and making 3 GFs in a row... we then won with a rookie coach (Gould) with a hybrid team in 1988... we had a team centred on Terry Lamb and a tough, ball playing pack that were minor premiers in 1993, grand finalists in 1994, and premiers in 1995... people referred to the 2001-2006 teams as being the Bling Boys (Mason, SBW, Maitua, Tonga etc.) but they were contenders for about 6-7 seasons and should have won more than a solitary GF in 2004... 25+ years of club history and success not centred on any one philosophy or game plan or admin or coaching etc. beyond winning because that is what we were - A WINNING CLUB
now we have to send out a reserve grade side to play and get smashed by the rest of the league
Pay said he would bring back the madness... too late, Deano... little sanity at the club since 2004
