Bulldogs Rebuild – CEO Aaron Warburton Confident of Success

wendog33

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Toby Rudolph would be a great pick up along with Bunty..
Finucane is aslo available and would be a great defender to bring back some experience to the pack
Yes I just added those extras not talked about. Fitzgibbon went well for Knights but has been injury plagued of late.

Rudolph would be just what we need.

Dale too but all depends on money. We are getting a bit close to too many overs for sustainable good cap management.
 

piggy

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Love the part about recruitment for 2022.
But what quality is available for 2022? Please tell me what quality? we obviously need 2 quality props and centre is also another issue. Cotric is not a fukin centre yet we paid him big money to play centre and Corey Allen? What the fuk was Barett thinking ? And we need obviously another hooker. big decisions for barett. I remember him saying so many times that he needs to nail recruitment. Well fukin nail it Barett. because if you don't your head is on the line !
 

GUSLER

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Love the part about recruitment for 2022.
Before a ball was kicked I know for a fact that agents had bulldogs as a priority for free agents, as they all knew the path forward was one of success and growth. I just hope this hasn’t change with the woeful results and al this media reasoning (blanket approach) for why teams are failing.
We won’t have any horrible contracts that are holding us back. We have some that aren’t fantastic but considering Jackson is our highest lpaid player on 750k, that’s not too bad.
Warburton needs to start getting on the
Front foot and on tv a bit to reassure the fans and sponsors that were on the right path, and to start correcting the media when they put us in the tigers, manly and cowboys bucket
 

BlackDawg

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Corporates in my opinion are hot air balloons. I will respect him when the club goes forward and we don't see his name in the press every week like we did Greenturd & Raelene. We need runs on the board not "feel good" spin.
 

ddt192

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But what quality is available for 2022? Please tell me what quality? we obviously need 2 quality props and centre is also another issue. Cotric is not a fukin centre yet we paid him big money to play centre and Corey Allen? What the fuk was Barett thinking ? And we need obviously another hooker. big decisions for barett. I remember him saying so many times that he needs to nail recruitment. Well fukin nail it Barett. because if you don't your head is on the line !
It’s a long season. ANYONE could come up on the open market. We just need to be ready to strike. So much could happen in the space of 12 months. Players break contract all the time. Oh & Cotric wasn’t a Baz signing FFS he was already announced before Baz joined us. Just relax before u collapse lol
 

Spoonman84

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I just hope we can turn it around on the field because it will make recruitment harder if things don't improve.

The feel good factor around Tbaz and the club will quickly disappear if we at least look competitive by the end of the season.
 

D- voice

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REBUILD is a word that often gets thrown around in professional rugby league, particularly with the modern game being such a success-driven business.

That’s why it’s imperative to have a strong stable in charge. As the great Jack Gibson famously said; winning starts in the front office.



Well reported dramas in the boardroom, major salary cap mismanagement issues and a worry of disharmony among key stakeholders has haunted the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs of recent seasons.

Despite the results of 2021 thus far, it’s not unfair to say that the aforementioned problems have been rectified. But one would be forgiven for thinking the club was actually on the way down, if you were to focus solely on match results. That simply isn’t the case.

A new coach, new coaching staff, new players, a new board, a new Chief Executive Officer in Aaron Warburton and a lot of new sponsors. This is a club on the up. The foundations of a genuine rebuild, as Warburton describes it, have been laid.

“I think we’re in the thick of a genuine rebuild,” he said. “In that round one week we spent two full days building our vision which is an off-field piece that has a lot of on-field undertones to it.”

Warburton is no stranger behind the scenes of the NRL world. An extremely talented and motivated individual, he was the club’s Head of Commercial Partnerships from 2010-2017, following a successful stint at the Parramatta Eels.

FUTURE PLANS
Trent Barrett
Trent Barrett
Warburton says the club’s vision includes, obviously, wanting to be a top four side for a long time. That is a goal that may seem light years away. But perhaps it isn’t.

“On the field we’re at ground level but we’re on the way up. When we’re that powerhouse club we’re feared on and off the field,” he said, alluding to the peak that the club is striving to achieve in all facets of the sport.



“My first meeting of my tenure was with (new coach) Trent Barrett, because it was important to get my head around the on-field stuff. We need a strategy in place on-field and I’m really comfortable with where that strategy is at.”

Warburton speaks highly of Trent Barrett. He knows, and says as much, that the players show up every day with a positive attitude because Barrett is the one with the whistle, who has a vision they all buy in to.

“The first thing he does when he introduces a new player is he sits down and shows some key videos about what it means to be a Bulldog,” Warburton explains.

“He speaks about our legacy and creating our path as a Bulldog. He grew up a Bulldogs fan. We need to carve and forge our own way forward as a unit. He’s setting that vision and it’s almost like he’s been at the club for a decade.

“You’d think a rookie coach would skim over that but he has really harnessed nearly 90 years of history.”

RECRUITMENT & RETENTION
You can expect the club to be very active in the player market for season 2022. They’ve already added Josh Addo-Carr and Matt Burton. Expect more to follow in the coming months.

“We are as active as we have ever been in terms of (the salary cap) and the scope we have to be quite active (in the player market). We also have a fair squad across the board, but they’re young and that inexperience is showing.

“We had two players over 25 years of age (on the weekend in round three), which puts it in perspective.”

Many in the media will tell you club’s like the Bulldogs will have to pay overs for players, but Warburton says that isn’t the case at all.

“I don’t think we’re in that position,” he said. “We aren’t going out and signing 15 players from other clubs, (but) we will have a good mix of current players and new talent in 2022.



“We’re looking at those off contract at other clubs, but also those who may still have a tenure on their contract, and we might poke the bear a little bit on those at the end of the season.

“What I’m seeing is that players are wanting to be a part of this club. The number of players and agents talking to us, they’re wanting to come here. The dialogue we’re having with players and agents is telling me that we will get to exactly where we need to be.”

THE FANS AND SPONSORS
Warburton said the fan base is viewed by the club as being “everything” to them.

“I know they’ve been told the same story for a number of years but I hope fans can now see how engaged we’ve been,” he said.

Our playing kit is completely full for the first time in years and, for the first time in four years, we have a waiting list for player sponsors.”

The club has also hit their target in membership numbers.

“We need really clear commercial revenue streams that deliver by attracting the right brands that will add value to our club,” Warburton said.

That has been proven with a host of major sponsors signing up for season 2021 and beyond. Major sponsors Laundy Hotels and its owners the Laundy family have been vocal and passionate about the club.

McDonalds, Ultimate Security, OnSolar and more have committed to the club. The new board, headed by the respected and highly admired John Khoury, are making nothing but positive moves. Not bad considering the apparent position that some circles of the media will tell you the club is in.

No, the club has not had a successful start on the field for season 2021. But, with everything just discussed, it’s clear to see success is coming. It may not be 2021, but this isn’t the same only story that’s been told for the past few seasons.

This is indeed a “genuine” rebuild. A long-term coach, the right people in and around the club, goals in place with proven strategies to reach those goals and a strong front office backed financially by sponsors and stakeholders.

Be disappointed, be angry if you must, but don’t give up. That’s the message from Warburton.

“I can only speak from experience, and that is 16 years in the NRL across the Eels and the Bulldogs, and I still see the game as a fan,” he said.

“I truly resonate with what it means to turn up week in and week up. You’ll never hear me say you can’t be upset. Every supporter feels the way they do because they’re a fan.

“You’ll never hear me say their opinion is wrong. A number of clubs share similar drivers to us, but I feel we have a unique fan base. Everyone needs to see that there’s light.”

DEVELOPMENT
As happy as the club are with the talent coming through, like 17 year old SG Ball centre Paul Alamoti who recently re-signed with the club until 2023, Warburton admits they are “a long way” from where they want to be as a development club.

“We’re in the process of securing some space at the Dunc Gray Velodrome in the Crest Sporting Complex in Bass Hill,” he explained.

“It will be the club’s high performance centre for our development squads. That means that all of our junior squads will be housed there.

“It will basically be a replica to what the NRL squad is and will have structures and developments in place exactly the same as the NRL. That has been one of Trent’s main visions and it’s happening soon.”

Our thanks to Aaron Warburton and the Bulldogs club for the story. Follow Nothing But League on Twitter and Facebook.
Finally the true rebuild is on the way...
 

spikestar

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It’s a long season. ANYONE could come up on the open market. We just need to be ready to strike. So much could happen in the space of 12 months. Players break contract all the time. Oh & Cotric wasn’t a Baz signing FFS he was already announced before Baz joined us. Just relax before u collapse lol
Exactly - look at AFB moving to the Warriors as the perfect example
 

Bulldog1966

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But what quality is available for 2022? Please tell me what quality? we obviously need 2 quality props and centre is also another issue. Cotric is not a fukin centre yet we paid him big money to play centre and Corey Allen? What the fuk was Barett thinking ? And we need obviously another hooker. big decisions for barett. I remember him saying so many times that he needs to nail recruitment. Well fukin nail it Barett. because if you don't your head is on the line !
Calm down champ you will blow a valve lol, try and have some faith things turn around and we buy well for next year(which won't be easy i agree)i'm sure people are working hard behind the scenes to make that shit happen.
 

wendog33

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Calm down champ you will blow a valve lol, try and have some faith things turn around and we buy well for next year(which won't be easy i agree)i'm sure people are working hard behind the scenes to make that shit happen.
We need to be accepting that it will be another 2-3 years of good roster management anyway to build the team to Top 4.
 

B-Train

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I know people are sick of the lip service and we all want to see proof etc but at the same time, sending a strong message and conveying such info to the fans is a huge part of being a CEO or Chairman etc.

Half the time when the Andersons spoke, we had more questions than answers and were left less confident than ever. I was uncertain about Warburton as I thought Hill was coming into his own, and the jury is still out on Khoury but we seem to be in a far better place at admin level than a few years ago and there's a hell of a lot more stability and a vision...

Plus signing Burton and Addo-Carr are the most important signings the club has made in decades which will help recruit other players and our juniors are stronger than they have been after being neglected for 15 years.

So I understand and share everyone's pain, but it's for those reasons I'm more optimistic for next year and beyond than I have been in a while..
 

dogwhisperer

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I know people are sick of the lip service and we all want to see proof etc but at the same time, sending a strong message and conveying such info to the fans is a huge part of being a CEO or Chairman etc.

Half the time when the Andersons spoke, we had more questions than answers and were left less confident than ever. I was uncertain about Warburton as I thought Hill was coming into his own, and the jury is still out on Khoury but we seem to be in a far better place at admin level than a few years ago and there's a hell of a lot more stability and a vision...

Plus signing Burton and Addo-Carr are the most important signings the club has made in decades which will help recruit other players and our juniors are stronger than they have been after being neglected for 15 years.

So I understand and share everyone's pain, but it's for those reasons I'm more optimistic for next year and beyond than I have been in a while..
Yep, I agree.

Players and player managers aren't stupid when considering coming to the dogs.
They know Burton and JAC are coming next year and know we will be buying more players.
No reason for other players not to want to come to the dogs next year.
But it's very important we get better this year as the season progresses to really show we are on the up.
 

Matilida

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they should stick together we will get there eventually.
 

Spoonman84

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Yep, I agree.

Players and player managers aren't stupid when considering coming to the dogs.
They know Burton and JAC are coming next year and know we will be buying more players.
No reason for other players not to want to come to the dogs next year.
But it's very important we get better this year as the season progresses to really show we are on the up.
Despite the awful start I still think we are on track for 22 as the club has shown they can get the players they target.

The biggest concern will be if there is no improvement for the rest of the season because it will make it a very hard sell even with Burton and JAC coming.

In saying that the bad start could work in our favour in terms of recruitment as even the most minor improvements will look like massive strides forward at the minute.
 

gbrussell

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Long term coach with a vision. Seems like club is going all in with Trent's vision. Hard to see them firing him this season or next as some have been suggesting.
A club has to give a new coach at least 2 years to get the roster in shape. Even longer if the roster he inherited is full of duds like we are.
 
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