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Canterbury captain James Graham has made the stark admission the renowned September specialists may have crumbled under the pressure of expectation during their meek finish to last season.
The Bulldogs made the finals for the fifth straight year under Des Hasler, but the result was such a letdown that there was speculation the premiership-winning coach may not see out the final year of his contract.
The "family club" finished seventh and was bundled out of the play-offs in the opening week, prompting director Steve Mortimer to question whether Hasler understood the unique "DNA" of the blue and whites. While Hasler ultimately survived a board meeting centred on his future – and Mortimer resigned from the board over his comments – the former Manly mentor and the club are yet to come to terms on an extension beyond this season.
Canterbury fell away during the final weeks of their campaign, a time the club normally raises its performance in line with the stakes.
"Maybe it was the pressure that got to us, what was at stake," Graham said.
"With our players – and let's be honest, players that had been there before and managed to kick onto a top-four finish – sometimes, maybe it's just sport.
"Maybe that's why we love it, because people fall off or come from nowhere. Maybe we're looking too far into it by looking at numbers and figures.
"Maybe it's just sport. That's why we love it and why we tune in."
Pressed on whether the pressure proved too much, the English international said: "Pressure can affect you immensely.
"Our job as professional athletes means pressure is a privilege. We're in a high-pressure job but there are a lot of people around that want to be doing this job."
The unexpected fadeout will make it even more imperative for Hasler and his team to start 2017 strongly to placate powerbrokers and punters.
"That external pressure is something we can't control," Graham said at the launch of the dedicated NRL channel FOX LEAGUE.
"There's no point talking about it or letting it affect us too much … we believe in ourselves and each other. It shouldn't affect us too much. No one puts more pressure, or has higher expectations, than ourselves."
The Bulldogs have been maligned for their attack, namely the inability to find the right balance between when the forwards and the backs should command the ball.
"It's funny people mention that, attack," Graham said.
"When people talk about attack I presume they mean scoring tries, they don't mean conversions or taking the two.
"If you look back at the season, I think in round 19, at the point where every team had had their two byes, we were the second-highest try-scoring team in the competition."
Asked if the statistic highlighted just how badly the Bulldogs fell away in their final matches, the 31-year-old conceded: "Exactly, you can spin it that way. Is attack about free-flowing football or scoring tries?
"There was a point in the season where we really dropped off. That is not acceptable. However, I think these criticisms were coming throughout the year from people who don't have as much knowledge or watch in as much detail as what we do at the club."
With few new off-season recruits added to the roster – coupled with the loss of Sam Perrett, Curtis Rona, Tim Browne, Tony Williams and Lloyd Perrett – any improvement will have to come from within.
"I'm not going to hide away from it – no one was more disappointed in the way the season finished than the playing group and the staff," Graham said.
"We set exceptionally high standards and targets and goals in our club and we feel we underachieved."
The Bulldogs made the finals for the fifth straight year under Des Hasler, but the result was such a letdown that there was speculation the premiership-winning coach may not see out the final year of his contract.
The "family club" finished seventh and was bundled out of the play-offs in the opening week, prompting director Steve Mortimer to question whether Hasler understood the unique "DNA" of the blue and whites. While Hasler ultimately survived a board meeting centred on his future – and Mortimer resigned from the board over his comments – the former Manly mentor and the club are yet to come to terms on an extension beyond this season.
Canterbury fell away during the final weeks of their campaign, a time the club normally raises its performance in line with the stakes.
"Maybe it was the pressure that got to us, what was at stake," Graham said.
"With our players – and let's be honest, players that had been there before and managed to kick onto a top-four finish – sometimes, maybe it's just sport.
"Maybe that's why we love it, because people fall off or come from nowhere. Maybe we're looking too far into it by looking at numbers and figures.
"Maybe it's just sport. That's why we love it and why we tune in."
Pressed on whether the pressure proved too much, the English international said: "Pressure can affect you immensely.
"Our job as professional athletes means pressure is a privilege. We're in a high-pressure job but there are a lot of people around that want to be doing this job."
The unexpected fadeout will make it even more imperative for Hasler and his team to start 2017 strongly to placate powerbrokers and punters.
"That external pressure is something we can't control," Graham said at the launch of the dedicated NRL channel FOX LEAGUE.
"There's no point talking about it or letting it affect us too much … we believe in ourselves and each other. It shouldn't affect us too much. No one puts more pressure, or has higher expectations, than ourselves."
The Bulldogs have been maligned for their attack, namely the inability to find the right balance between when the forwards and the backs should command the ball.
"It's funny people mention that, attack," Graham said.
"When people talk about attack I presume they mean scoring tries, they don't mean conversions or taking the two.
"If you look back at the season, I think in round 19, at the point where every team had had their two byes, we were the second-highest try-scoring team in the competition."
Asked if the statistic highlighted just how badly the Bulldogs fell away in their final matches, the 31-year-old conceded: "Exactly, you can spin it that way. Is attack about free-flowing football or scoring tries?
"There was a point in the season where we really dropped off. That is not acceptable. However, I think these criticisms were coming throughout the year from people who don't have as much knowledge or watch in as much detail as what we do at the club."
With few new off-season recruits added to the roster – coupled with the loss of Sam Perrett, Curtis Rona, Tim Browne, Tony Williams and Lloyd Perrett – any improvement will have to come from within.
"I'm not going to hide away from it – no one was more disappointed in the way the season finished than the playing group and the staff," Graham said.
"We set exceptionally high standards and targets and goals in our club and we feel we underachieved."
