NRL odds 2021: Bookies make Canterbury Bulldogs $13 to go through season winless
It has been more than 50 years since an NRL team went winless — will the battling Bulldogs make unwanted history? The bookies think it’s a real chance.
As if the Jack Hetherington send off wasn’t a bad enough aftermath to the Bulldogs’ sixth straight defeat to start the season, now bookmakers have handed Trent Barrett’s team the ultimate insult.
The TAB has now listed Canterbury at $13 to go through this entire 2021 NRL season winless.
It comes on the back of another embarrassing performance in Townsville when the hapless Dogs crashed to an embarrassing 30-18 defeat to North Queensland.
In a performance that was also marred by Hetherington’s controversial dismissal, it continued the club’s worst start to a season in 57 long years.
But those proud and mighty days are now a distant memory and instead Canterbury are struggling to see a light at the end of what has been a very dark and miserable period of the club’s history.
A frustrated Barrett could only look on at times disgust as he sat on the sidelines at Queensland Country Bank Stadium and watched his team dish up another performance that for the most part just wasn’t up to NRL standard.
Reece Robson powers over the line for North Queensland.
A TAB spokesman said of the chances of them going through the season without a win: “The Dogs have a tough few weeks ahead of them with the Sharks and Eels coming up while the Dragons and Raiders follow.
“Our market has them at $5 to get their first win this week, $7.50 against Parra and the Dragons.
“If they are winless through those games we have them at $8 to beat the Dragons in Round 14 — the last time they were single figure odds to win a game this season.”
Hetherington was on Monday awaiting the NRL’s match review committee charges after being sensationally marched for collaring Valentine Holmes with a careless high tackle midway through the second half.
There was a debate on Sunday night as to whether or not Hetherington’s high shot was worthy of a send off given some of the inconsistent punishments for other illegal tackles this season.
But regardless it was high and it was dangerous and it is likely to leave Hetherington on the sidelines when the Bulldogs face the Sharks on Saturday.
Canterbury could not break through against fellow battlers North Queensland.
Although the Bulldogs fought back with two tries while down to 12 men it was simple too little too late, as they finished the round the only team without a win after six matches.
Hetherington has an awful judiciary record and missed four matches last year for a high tackle on Manly’s Martin Taupau while he was playing for the Warriors.
It’s the last thing Barrett would want to deal with as he struggles to find a way out of a world of rugby league hurt.
The Cowboys went into the round second last on the NRL ladder so Bulldogs fans are entitled to be wondering how this team will even get a win this season.
Jack Hetherington of the Bulldogs walks from the field after being sent off.
The Roosters were the last team to go winless through an entire season and that was all the way back in 1966.
Canterbury went winless from their opening seven games in 1964 before they scored a draw. Their first and only win that season was in round 14.
The Dogs now have the Sharks, Eels and Raiders in their next three games.
It must be taken into account that the Cowboys are playing without Michael Morgan and Jason Taumalolo.
Bulldogs fans have every right to be filthy.
Some of the silly schoolboy errors the players came up with were just embarrassing, while the lack of patience and ability to build pressure at vital times was horrendous.
Pretty much from a first set turnover after a clumsy mix up between Renouf Atoni and Jake Averillo it was obvious they were again going to struggle.
And there was a classic case in point of their lack of direction around the 50th minute when they were trailing 12-6 and had a set near the Cowboys line.
But after bumbling their way through the set with next to no direction it was left to Atoni to run the ball on the last play with Kyle Flanagan watching on as another opportunity amounted to nothing.
Barrett would have been furious with the performance of his halves.
To their credit the Bulldogs fired up after the Hetherington send off but they just couldn’t close the deal.
The fact of the matter is they don’t have the talent to match the better teams.
But surely their fans at least deserve better energy, intent and discipline for the full 80 minutes.