Below is the letter I sent last week to every member of the football club board (and slightly altered version to Ray Dib) plus to George Peponis and Steve Mortimer from the Leagues club board. I spoke to Ray today who said that Arthur Coorey and George Peponis spoke to him about this letter.
WARNING: It's a very LONG read at around 24 pages but hopefully you will find interesting. You might find it contains your own comments as I included several posts directly from this forum (and thank you to those people who said things better than I could have myself).
I am happy that I now know the board is listening to our concerns and they will be including this and other submissions in the end of season review.
Dear .....
I am writing to you in relation to your position on the Board of Directors of the Bulldogs Rugby League Club. I apologise for writing to you at your business address but this seemed my best or possibly ONLY option of making direct contact with you and please note that I am effectively trying to assist you in keeping your position as a Director. I will be writing to your fellow directors also.
Given the poor performances of the Bulldogs team in the NRL this season (the anomaly of the round 24 win against the Sea Eagles), and the negative media stories about the club on virtually a daily basis it seems OUR CLUB is under siege at the moment and I assure you there is a general feeling among Bulldogs fans that the board are not listening to them or understanding their concerns because they cannot see any significant action being taken to fix the core problem/s. As I understand the board will be conducting a 2017 season review in a matter of weeks, I am hoping to provide you with an insight into the opinions of the average – and what I believe to be the far MAJORITY – of fans / members / Bulldogs consumers, CURRENT and recent Bulldogs players, coaches, and professional rugby league commentators as well as present some statistics on coach Des Hasler that you may not have considered previously. Not all fans are stupid. Many look at statistics also, not just Des.
Just to give you a little background on myself, I have been a passionate fan of the Bulldogs for most of my 53 years, since my late father regularly took me to games at Belmore Oval from around the age of 9. For the last 23 years I have worked in the media monitoring / media analysis industry so I am extremely proficient with conducting media research. After moving from Sydney to Adelaide 2 years ago I now obtain my fix of daily news by reading every online news article about the Bulldogs. I regularly read all the latest posts on the Bulldogs’ Facebook page, on the fan website The Kennel, and relevant posts on Twitter thus I believe I have an extremely good understanding of the opinions and emotions of my fellow, typical, average Bulldogs fans at all times. I am aware also that rugby league talk-back radio programs in Sydney are literally flooded by Bulldogs fans expressing similar concerns to those appearing on social media.
As I know the Bulldogs have both external and internal media monitoring services in place I hope you are aware that virtually EVERY single post on Bulldogs’ fan forums are now 100% negative in perception of the performances of the Bulldogs board, CEO, coach Des Hasler, and team. As any decent opinion poll would identify, these huge volumes of negative sentiment demonstrate that the far MAJORITY of fans / voting members hold similar opinions and this is obviously going to impact on yourself and the rest of the Directors during the election in February next year.
Some fans believe that specific members of the board (particularly Ray Dib) feel relatively safe in retaining their positions because they have a large number of friends and relatives as voting members. I truly hope this is not the case because we should remember that votes are anonymousand friends and even relatives may say one thing but do another and just like any other fan, ANY ONE would be sick of attending games only to see poor performances by their team week after week after week and EVERYONE will be frustrated or even angry when there appears to be nothing done to alleviate the situation. Many people (including myself) saw the signs several years ago of the sad position we now find the club in and many fans are disappointed that the board – the leaders of our club - apparently didn’t see the same signs at the same time and proactively act to fix the problems much sooner.
Just a few weeks ago many fans (including myself) were left very angry after reportedly no official warning was given to Des Hasler when he fronted the board and afterwards Des appeared happy to say so.
As a media report summed up the feelings of most:
(Quote) Just a fortnight ago the club held a scheduled board meeting at which Hasler was present. Castle and the Dogs were at pains to say to a frenzied media it was a regular "nothing to see here" board meeting. It may have been scheduled, but to say it was regular was belittling to their bewildered fans.
The following morning Hasler told the club's fans, via the media, that the board had merely asked him about budgets.
That's insulting to people who pay memberships and cop weekly emails imploring them to part with more hard-earned to attend games or turn out to support departing club hero Josh Reynolds (who's been sent on his way to make room for Kieran Foran).
As 2SM radio commentator and former Bulldogs player Graeme Hughes expressed also:
Hasler fronted the board on Tuesday night but claimed after the meeting that his future wasn’t discussed. That comment went down like a lead balloon with Hughes who said if that was the case the board “should be ashamed”. “If that board never raised anything strong with him then they should stand down, the lot of them,” Hughes said on 2SM. “But if they did raise something strong with him and then he freely spoke about something that happened in a board room, then somebody should have come out and pulled him into line.
What reflection does it have on the Bulldogs board WHEN:
· Our coach Des Hasler comes out and says things in the media like the below proving he has “dumbed-down” the team’s style of attacking play, provinghe has total belief in his structures and provinghas no intention of changing:
(When it was suggested they were forward-oriented, he said) "Forwards are part of the game. We don't have to (change). We've been playing a good style of footy. We've been playing catch-pass. Don't turn something simple into something difficult." (AAP 4/4/17)
· When our CEO openly states that RESULTS DO NOT MATTER totally infuriating most fans.
"Results have never been part of the discussion, it's about having the right head coach to take the Bulldogs forward and we know we've got that in Des," (AAP 4/4/17)
· When our Chairman says things like –
"The simple fact is that we have a coach and we have no plans to remove Des. All of this talk is unfair on Des. We are behind Des. He is doing it tough because it all falls on him when he is trying his best. The players are trying their best for him. All clubs have their down years . Look at the Roosters last year. The end can't come quickly enough for this year. Next year is already exciting and we will have Des in charge to take us there." (29/7/17 Sydney Morning Herald)
Comments like those above just make Bulldogs fans see RED. Talk of changing coach is UNFAIR on Des ? SERIOUSLY ? This only implies Des is not being held accountable whatsoever. “Des is doing it tough” - Des isn’t doing anything tough in the eyes of fans but THEY ARE and because of him. They all know that Des is receiving $1M+ a season for his efforts and sitting in the air-conditioned coaches box while they actually pay to attend games often in the rain and cold. “The players are trying their best for Des” - When fans witness things like our entire front row (3 players) failing to stop an average size Parramatta Eels forward taking a standard hit up and dragging the 3 Dogs players 3 metres as he scores the softest of tries it’s strikingly OBVIOUS the players ARE NOT trying their best for Des, the club, or for the fans.
The opening try to the Eels spoke volumes of the Bulldogs desireand form when Daniel Alvaro forced his way through the entire Canterbury front row of James Graham, Aiden Tolman and Moses Mbye to score. (Daily Telegraph 4/8/17)
“The end can't come quickly enough for this year. Next year is already exciting and we will have Des in charge to take us there” - This PROVES our club as a whole have totallygiven up this year which is very unlike the Bulldogs most fans know, and it obviously means that no matter how bad our team perform for the rest of this year there will be NO CONSEQUENCE whatsoever and Des will keep his job for next year. This implies to a degree that we have already given up for next year also. How did we sink to this lowest of lows ?
What do you think the average member / fan is going to think of the board WHEN:
· We are running 14th in a 16 team competition largely due to the fact we are LAST in the competition for average points (14), tries (2.5) and line breaks (3.4) per game.
· When we have to go back 28 yearsfor a more ineffectual Bulldogs attack, or back 48 years for a more dismal record away from home,
· When this is the 5th consecutive season the Bulldogs have lost 11 or more games. Only once before in our proud history have Canterbury lost 11 matches across five straight seasons going back 58 years.
· When the Bulldogs attack is so ineffective that our regular fullback Will Hopoate is the first NRL fullback in at least a decade to go through a season without scoring a try (only 3 games to go) and only has 1 line-break from his 15 games.
· When Dogs' crowds, memberships and merchandise sales are down and are further decreasing.
· When the football club posts a $1.25 million loss last year and are headed for a similar result this year.
· When of the NSW under-16s, under 18s and under 20s sides that beat Queensland this year, NONE of them featured a single Bulldogs junior.
· When large numbers of Bulldogs fans are openly stating they will not watch another Bulldogs game until Des is removed.
· When large numbers of Bulldogs fans openly comment that they prefer to watch NRL games not involving the Bulldogs.
· When many Bulldogs fans (including myself) have virtually been forced to find better things to do on game days that are GUARANTEED to bring enjoyment and entertainment. Please consider that a percentage of these fans may be lost FOREVER from attending games or from television audiences.
· When teams that for the last 20 years were always weaker than the Bulldogs, having less funding and a poorer roster (eg: The Sharks, Raiders, etc) improve consistently enough to even win an NRL Premiership while the Bulldogs become more inconsistent and turn into a weaker club with every game under one of the highest paid coaches in the NRL.
· When a Bulldogs legend, former CEO and former board member (Steve Mortimer) reportedly walks out of a game just after half-time due to his frustration at the Bulldogs’ inept performance in attack.
· When virtually every single professional rugby league commentator / former player and Bulldogs fan has been criticising our team’s style of attacking structure since early last season, most agree Des has been with the Bulldogs too long and should be moved on yet our board continue to back and extend Des. (Please find 2 pages of full quotes/comments attached)
Why has Des Hasler been allowed to alienate the majority of fans, former players, former members of your board, even employees of Bulldogs sponsors (eg: Brydens Lawyers), and rugby league commentator like no other Bulldogs coach ever before – for so long ? Why will Des go down as the most hated coach in the history of the Bulldogs ? Des has done more damage to the Bulldogs brand / to the club’s consumers than any other coach in the Bulldogs history. One certainty is that under Des’ coaching the Dogs boring style of play and poor results are definitely not attracting new fans, new sponsors or growth in revenue. He’s effectively KILLING THE CLUB.
As some fans have mentioned, Des seems to forget (and no-one seems to remind him) what business the Bulldogs are in. The Bulldogs are in the “ENTERTAINMENT” business, COMPETING for every dollar against many other sports and against literally THOUSANDS of other forms of entertainment. The Bulldogs are even competing for fans / consumers against other NRL clubs who ALL play a much more enterprising style of football than the Bulldogs, and several clubs have tasted greater and more consistent success and even won premierships more recently than the Bulldogs.
I recently came across the post below by a fan on the Bulldogs Facebook page which sums up the emotions of many fans:
I don’t have a problem with a down season or a rebuild year but this shouldn’t be that year. The Dogs still have a roster that is better than 13th and out of finals contention with six weeks to go. The team is not just having a bad season, they are under-performing by a SIGNIFICANT distance.
The problems with the Dogs’ attacking structures haven’t suddenly appeared, it’s a decline that’s been happening since 2013. The frustrating part is that it appears from the outside that very little has been done from a structural, tactical or personnel point of view to turn things around. The Dogs’ attack creates no space, no extra men, no danger. They have no shape, no structure, no bodies in motion. It’s amateur stuff but the warning signs have been there for a while.
Our Chairman says Des hasn’t been sitting on his hands but his signings so far are a ‘damaged’ Foran, an over payment on a prop – the one position we have covered and a fringe first grade utility. It doesn’t scream turn-around in fortunes to me. I don’t see anything that suggests the Bulldogs are going to turn things around tactically for next season.
These are the same conversations that were happening at the same time last year and after about round four this year. We keep hearing that things will change but nothing has. After their third 30 point flogging, Hasler fronts the press conference and says “we’ll have to look at the video and see where it went wrong.” Really ? This has been going on for years but one video is suddenly going to provide the answer ?.
It’s all well and good telling the fans to be solution focused but how about the coach gives it a go ?
As another recent article stated:
It was clear through the back half of last year the team was faltering, losing a string of games then getting belted by the Panthers in week one of the finals. It was time for fresh thinking, time for a new teacher.
This week I came across the very worrying post on The Kennel forum below from a fan with supposed inside knowledge from a current Bulldogs junior player and the player’s father. While it may or may not be true it would be relatively easy from the facts provided to identify the player and if there is ANY TRUTH to this it needs to be looked into by the board and action taken.
This morning I had the horror of hearing what exactly is happening at the club right now and appears to have been for some time now.
Some time ago a thread was posted asking about a young kid (whose name I won’t mention) who was making great progress at the Bulldogs. He had a union background and was very much a hot property item within some league circles including Raiders, Roosters, Bulldogs, Tigers, Eels and Warriors...the Bulldogs got him thanks in part to his family connections with many high profile sports people and a long association with Noel Cleal.
This kids father is also an ex international for NZ and is currently certified to be a super rugby coach if he wanted, he has a real understanding of both codes and can spot talent a mile away according to many, this is his son who the Bulldogs recruited and whilst he obviously supports his son he knows he is a super talent. They have another son who is good but nowhere near this kid.
Cop this, he is a fullback through and through and made no secret of it and was recruited as a centre/fullback.
This kid (19 years old) was training in the off season with the NRL squad, so well was he going, he was the fastest player in the club bar nobody and really has it all. 98kgs, 6ft 2, runs like the wind, great hands and vision...in fact the Roosters tried to pouch him earlier this year.
The Bulldogs recognised him as making great progress and signed him to a 2 year deal, but on low money as they claimed to all that they had 'no funds' and the cap space was hopeless.
The month following his signature he was promoted as a winger, he played 6 games and was told he did everything asked of him but he didn’t like playing wing and felt he was of better use to the club elsewhere. He had been earmarked as Josh Morris replacement expected to be in 2019.
The father then chimed in and started saying that the club coaches and trainers are completely clueless and have no idea who to teach skills. The players are completely unfit and apparently some of the long term first graders started telling the new trainers that they won't be doing any of the things being introduced.
Donny Singe hates the place and cant wait to leave along with at least 4 other trainers and there is massive division between the teams, confirmed big time. These guys were amazed the club functioned at all, it is such a bad 'toxic' environment and has been for a while but appears to be getting worse.
But the final comments were left for Hasler and Dymock. After every other scout and coach who had seen this kid play and tried to poach him on a number of occasions, Dymock and Hasler told him via another coach (not even a sit down) that he lacked skills to be a NRL player at Canterbury and would need to develop some skills. This kid is loaded with skill.
The father says straight up that Hasler and Dymock are completely clueless in regards to coaching and recruitment and Hasler especially is coaching from another era.
The Bulldogs have now lost their 4 best ip and comers who have all walked out during this season for similar reasons, another big ip and comer will be also quitting at seasons end.
According to these guys today the club is a dire straits and needs a complete clean out to rid the place of the toxic environment it has become.
There were other things told to me but i seriously felt sick listening and he could have gone on for hours it seemed.
He also added that there was a terrible culture from some of the older trainers to belittle the young players which was supposed to inspire them to be better but 2 players walked out and didn’t return, it was so bad,
Ok I will stop now but the summary is that the players stopped playing for Hasler months ago, the senior players have been extremely pissed off for some time, the Reynolds departure hit harder than anyone cares to say within the group and the re-signing of Hopoate went over like a led balloon within the team. They have lost any good prospects that were there and there is massive change coming.
Sorry again for the long message but i have more to say but all similar to above really. I have been so depressed today knowing what many have thought for some time is real. We are a rabble.
Final note is that they believe Hasler has to go and will be sacked at seasons end or they will be losing some huge names who have had it with him.
DES’ FAILURE TO REACH TOP 4
Bulldogs fans are sick of hearing club officials quote Des’ ancient history of 2 grand finals and top 8 finishes every season (til this season) as proof he is STILL one of the top coaches in the NRL when Des has an extremely poor record with the Dogs at making the all- important TOP 4.
Please remember that -
NO TEAM has won the competition outside the top 4 for 21 years.
The statistics below make some interesting reading.
Craig Bellamy had Melbourne make the top 8 85% over 13 years and made the top 4
65% of the time since 2003 with 5 Minor Premiers. 29%* or 14% Bellamy wins the premiership for 4* or 2 from 14 since 2003.
Wayne Bennett had the Broncos make the top 8 100% over 20 years and made the top 4 at all clubs coached since 1999 (would be even higher if he hadn’t taken Tickler’s big money to coach the Knights)
62% of the time with 3 Minor Premiers. 24% Wayne wins the premiership for 7 from 29 since 1987.
Des Hasler had Manly make the top 8 88% over 8 years and made the top 4 at all clubs coached since 2004 for
31% of the time with 1 Minor Premiers. 15% Des wins the premiership for 2 from 13 since 2004.
So Des in his whole NRL coaching history has only half the success at making the Top 4 compared to Bellamy or Bennett.
Coaches who made the Top 4, 2012-2016 (Des’ period with the Dogs)
Craig Bellamy 4 (soon to be 5)
Geoff Toovey 3
Michael Maguire 3
Trent Robinson 3 (soon to be 4)
Paul Green 2
Ivan Cleary 1
Wayne Bennett 1 (soon to be 2)
Ricky Stuart 1
Shane Flanagan 1 (soon to be 2)
Des Hasler 1
As you can see in the 5 seasons Des has been coaching the Bulldogs we finished in the Top 4 only once - 5 years ago in 2012 with a roster put together by others, NOT by Des and largely due to one of those players in particular Ben Barba named 2012 Player of the Year. Please remember that Ben was the best player in the NRL that year due to his natural talents, nothing “coached”, nothing restricted in those days.
Recent statistics show Geoff Toovey is a more successful coach than Des Hasler and Toovey does not even have a job coaching in the NRL any longer. When you can make the Top 8 by losing more games that you win as the Titans did last season that becomes a very average 50% pass mark at best.
Wayne Bennett is famously quoted as saying:
“PLAYERS make coaches, not the other way around.”
Is it just possible that the exceptional players at Manly made Des look like a better coach than he actually was ? - as was the case also with our last premiership winning coach, Steve Folkes in 2004 who had Sonny Bill Williams, and Jonathan Thurston as “reserves” unable to even make the Bulldogs starting team.
At the Dogs, Des has always had a team stacked with representative and established international players who were already at the top of their games before they met Des. With our roster of players at his disposal, winning at least 50% of our games surely wasn’t a very difficult assignment over the last 5 seasons but now Des can no longer manage this even - even with a favourable draw and lack of injuries affecting Dogs players compared to most clubs. Under Des, the Dogs have a very poor record in general of defeating other top 4 placed teams.
Des’ philosophies and obsession with statistics sound strikingly familiar to those of Billy Beane who was the General Manager of the Oakland Major League Baseball team in the early 2000s. The movie Moneyball starring Brad Pitt told the true story. Yes Beane was successful in having their team of lower paid average (statistically good) players make the World Series play-offs but his team never ever won the title. Sound familiar ?
While Des’ simplified game has in previous seasons had limited success against the more undisciplined inconsistent teams it has always failed to compete in the biggest games against the more tactical / more skilful teams. This is why most commentators and fans agree we never looked like winning either the 2012 or 2014 grand finals. Currently, we don’t even look to be in the contest from early in most games and we even had to come from behind late in the game to beat the last placed Newcastle Knights a few weeks ago. We can’t get much worse, can we ?
COMPLETIONS / POSSESSION RATE MYTHS
After every loss, Bulldogs fans are sick to death of hearing Des blame poor handling (poor completion rates). Please look at the statistics from the first 14 rounds of this year (attached) and it shows the Dogs were on average no worse in the volume of errors than all the top teams.
Official NRL statistics on the number of errors by each club up to round 22 this year show both the Storm and the Eels have made more errors than the Dogs but they are currently running number 1 and number 5 on the 2017 NRL ladder respectively so official stats fail to add ANY real weight to Des’ argument.
If Des truly believes in his theory though why doesn’t he look into the reasonswhy his players keep making so many basic errors and do something to rectify it like concentrating on more ball work at training sessions ? By striving for 100% completion rates every week as a major or THE major priority all Des is doing is further discouraging the players from taking risks to test opposition defences. Less risk = less points.
POOR TACTICS
Comments from Bulldogs fans like those below are typical of the frustration they feel with tactics employed by Des. Most can see where and why we fail while Des cannot obviously.
· I understand the plan, it's a percentage play, put the ball up on the last and meet the catcher with a full line of defence as he catches the ball, or worst case scenario give the receiver no more than 10 metres. It's meant to limit the momentum from the first run and the start of the set right? But why on earth are we doing it (when) behind in the game?
· The Titans just beat the premiership favourites with attacking kicks on the last. We got destroyed on Thursday night by tries from kicks. With teams so even these days the value and power of the attacking kick (grubber, torpedo bomb, cross field kick to winger, banana kick) etc is massive. Work and hours on hours must be put into it at training especially considering how shit and inept our last tackle options are. Can we please fcuk off the end on end bitch bomb straight down the fullbacks throat! I believe these kicks and options are worth 12 points a game easily.
· I'm sure this is a master stroke by Des after seeing how well we were playing when Frawley took almost all the general play kicks in the first 2 games he decided to change it up. Why have we gone away from this and allowed Mbye, and in the last 2 games Renoylds, to do more kicking ?
Fans are tired of seeing in EVERY game, in EVERY set of 6 tackles, Bulldogs forwards running one-out with no threat of passing the ball, with no support players backing them up then on the 5th tackle simply kicking the ball back to the opposition usually with no real pressure applied on the opposition catchers. A team can just do this all day every day but it’s never going to score you a single point or certainly not more points than the opposition. The successful teams pass the ball around trying different passes, running different angles. The Bulldogs just continually waste all their opportunities with the ball.
After every Dogs game fan sites almost go into meltdown with the number of complaints about Aiden “Tolman on the 4th” (tackle) and how ineffective Tolman’s runs with the ball are because he constantly gets dominated by opposition defenders, yet Des keeps picking him ahead of larger more aggressive and harder running forwards we have playing reserve grade.
Why in the 2014 Grand Final did Des obviously have such restrictions on our halves running the ball they recorded the unbelievableofficial NRL statistics as below ?
Josh Reynolds: 2 runs for 2 metres (80 minutes)
Trent Hodkinson: 1 run for 3 metres (80 minutes)
The South Sydney halves pairing had 10 runs for 61 metres between them on the day including 1 try and 1 try assist.
As Brett Kimmorley said recently:
“If the structure is too confusing, pull it back. If the players aren’t doing it by now, and they started training in November, you need to coach to the quality of the players you’ve got, not the style you want to coach as a coach”.
Yes the players may do the basics so as not to be pointed out by Des in a video session but it’s obvious they don’t give Des that extra 10% that’s often needed to score that winning try, make that try saving tackle or dive on that loose ball and win those close games. Maybe as Phil Gould suggested in a recent article the players are hiding within Des’ structures, and by simply passing the ball to another player they feel they have completed their own task / role without adding their own touch of flair.
The rotation of bench players by Des is another thing that fans and commentators cannot make sense of. Des often plays at least one of his reserves for 5-10 minutes only or not at all while other Bulldogs players remain on the field exhausted. All other NRL coaches make the most of their reserve players with fresh legs.
POOR TEAM SELECTIONS
Fans complain constantly that Des fails to drop underperforming players and promote players from the lower grades who deserve opportunity. For example earlier this year the team started performing well while Moses Mbye and Will Hopoate were missing but as soon as they were available again Des made the mistake of changing a winning team. Look at the statistics below that one fan noticed.
The rounds we scored over 20 points this season
Round 2- 24 points
Round 3- 24 points
Round 6- 22 points
Round 7- 24 points
*There is a reason we scored over 20 points in these matches. It’s because Will Hopoate was NOT our fullback and either Abbey or Morris was.
Many fans could never understand why Des kept picking Tony Williams ahead of others for first grade when he was returning game statistics like those below
Round 5, 2016
5 runs for 29 metres, 19 tackles (80 minutes)
Similarly with Greg Eastwood who in the sudden-death semi final against the Panthers last year returned the underwhelming game statistics below
7 runs for 45 metres, 14 tackles, 7 missed tackles (50 minutes) – so Eastwood effectively missed 1 out of every 3 tackles he attempted but Des upgraded his contract recently and now he is playing reserve grade.
Many fans were totally fed up when after Matt Frawley and Josh Reynolds played so well together for a few games, Des shifted Frawley back to the reserves bench as soon as Moses Mbye became available again, and Mbye failed to perform again repeatedly but Des kept on selecting Mbye.
I have literally read fan complaints in their HUNDREDS about Des constantly selecting Michael Lichaa for first grade despite the fact Lichaa had an extremely poor passing game which is an ultra important skill for any hooker / dummy half as it lays the groundwork for the team’s entire attacking structure.
Des just seems to have favourite players and no matter how badly they perform week in week out he keeps selecting them rather than giving younger players an opportunity. A perfect example was just in recent weeks when Des selectedfringe first grade centre (Chase Stanley) at half-back though the player had no real experience in that very important position apparently and Des repeated the mistake even after it proved unsuccessful the first time. Again the team struggled to score tries while Des ignores the terrific form of his reserve grade half (Josh Cleeland) who is literally a try scoring machine (6 tries in 2 games). NO-ONE can understand Des’ philosophies except Des. They just don’t make ANY sense.
FAILURE TO IMPROVE SKILLS OF PLAYERS
By definition, one of the most important roles of a coach of any sporting team is to improve the skills of every player under their watch, yet Des does exactly the opposite.
As Braith Anasta said earlier this year:
“I’ve watched a lot of Moses Mbye in the 20s and I think he’s been held back. At times you see him get in open space and no one catches him. He’s one of the quickest halves in the game but he’s got skill and a passing game. He’s got everything they need but I feel like his game has gone backwards a little bit because of how much control they give their forwards”.
(1/3/17 Fox Sports)
As former Bulldogs Assistant Coach Brett Kimmorley recently said:
“A lot of money was invested in Mbye. I have worked with him and he is a great kid with great leadership qualities, but he has very limited passing and kicking games. You would hope that those skills would develop under the right coaching, but if anything, he seems to have gone backwards”.
(4/8/17)
One Bulldogs fan recently commented:
“Why we have two of the best junior talents in league in Liccha and Mbye turned into shit players ?
Why have our halves especially Josh Reynolds never learnt to kick after being coached by him for the last 5 years in first grade footy? Why has every decent player who has joined the Dogs during his tenure gone backwards in performance, such as Trex, Hopa and Bmoz”.
Why do our playmakers lack kicking and ball passing (including cut-out pass) skills ?
Why does Michael Lichaa have constant problems passing the ball correctly ?
Why does the team not have one single attacking set plays ?
Why do our players appear confused and look like they have no idea what to do with the ball most times when in a good attacking position near the opposition try line ?
Do our players practice basic skills enough compared to the time they spend watching long video sessions ?
EXAMPLES:
Moses Mbye
I personally remember Moses Mbye just before he became a regular first grader setting up 3-4 tries in a pre-season trial game. Now he cannot get 1 try assist in 4 games.
Michael Licaa
The year before Michael Lichaa came to the Dogs I remember him scoring 3 tries in a match against our reserve grade team. Now he’s lucky to make 3 runs a game. Lichaa was selected in all the junior reps teams because of his running and kicking game but under Des he has become so poor in attack we are not renewing his contract apparently. So Des has effectively wrecked the career of this young player.
David Klemmer
Watch YouTube highlights of David Klemmer playing reserve grade where he gets away an offload virtually every second time he is tackled. Why doesn’t he do this in first grade ?. Klemmer is just a battering ram these days – and still effective as this because of his size. As the Channel Nine commentators have said several times this year Klemmer would be an even better player if he developed an offload again (but under Des this looks like it’s no chance of happening).
James Graham
James Graham used to create tries every now and then with great offloads in tackles but this is no longer part of his game. Why ?
Adam Elliott
Why did Adam Elliott run great lines and score a couple of good tries when he first came into first grade but he no longer does this now that he is a regular member of the first grade team under Des’ coaching ?
Matt Frawley
Why did Matt Frawley play so well when he first came into first grade but now after being coached by Des on a regular basis has his game slipped ? It appears Des instructed Frawley to let (poorer kickers) Mbye and Reynolds kick more often and to run more on the opposite side of the field to where he is used to (which doesn’t suit his natural kicking game) as the Channel Nine commentators suggested.
If something makes perfect sense then Des just seems to do the complete opposite (eg: like when split the Morris twins to opposite sides of the field). Most of the time it seems like Des is PURPOSELY trying to do everything he can to spoil a good performance by the team.
Recent Bulldogs players Michael Ennis and Lloyd Perrett have both openly commented how they felt shackled under Des, “forced to play a role”, and prevented from playing their natural game (the skills that got them to first grade in the first place).
The recent round 24 win against the Manly Sea Eagles had more to do with the players lifting because of their own personal motivation (seeking new contracts with other clubs) than anything Des was responsible for. Remember virtually the whole team are being shopped around according to every newspaper.
Straight after the game, outgoing player Michael Lichaa when asked by Steve Turner for the Bulldogs website why he ran a lot more than usual in the game Lichaa said he “had nothing to lose” and in the Daily Telegraph article which followed a few days later (as below) Lichaa admitted his natural running game had been in conflict with Des’ method of coaching during his 3 seasons with the Dogs.
Canterbury Bulldogs hooker Michael Lichaa says team tactics nullified his running game
MICHAEL CARAYANNIS, The Daily Telegraph
22nd August 2017
OUTGOING Canterbury hooker Michael Lichaa has heard the abuse. He knows you — the Bulldogs faithful — wanted him to run the ball more. So did he.
But he has been merely following the game plan set by coach Des Hasler. While Lichaa maintains the upmost respect for the Canterbury coach, he knows he has more to offer than being just a defensive workforce.
Touted as one of the most promising attacking young players in the game three years ago when he broke into first grade at Cronulla, Lichaa’s running game has stagnated during his stint at Canterbury.
As the likes of Newcastle and St George Illawarra circle for his services, Lichaa believes he can recapture his silky skills.
“I know I can still run the footy,” Lichaa said. “You don’t forget how to run the footy. Of course I want to run as much as possible. It’s just the way it’s panned out. Whatever happens next year, I would like to get back (to running the ball).
“It’s pretty funny (the abuse in the street). People who have no clue about rugby league just say whatever they want. The best players in the world get sprayed. I’m nowhere near that so I’m going to be copping it.
“Especially playing for the Bulldogs, they are pretty passionate fans. You lose a game and you’re the worst player in the world.
“It’s harder for my family. Family and friends see it on social media. They want to say something because they know what’s going on behind the scenes. Obviously fans don’t. I just laugh at it now.
“The usual ‘you’re shit’ or ‘you don’t run the ball’. That’s my favourite. I’d run it …”
Lichaa paused before moving on. You sense he would have finished the sentence with “if I was allowed”.
Despite the restrictions, the 24-year-old refuses to be bitter about this stint at Belmore even if he had to watch on as his junior club Cronulla lifted the premiership trophy last year.
Michael Lichaa has been frustrated by a lack of game time this season. “It’s easy to say (I regret) it and I could’ve stayed at Cronulla but I definitely don’t,” Lichaa said. “It’s not all about playing footy. All my best friends are there. I love it. It’s been awesome.
“Footy wise it hasn’t been the easiest but I’m sure next year wherever I end up I’ll be able to play that footy again and I’m looking forward to that. I don’t regret coming to the Bulldogs.
“It’s nothing personal. I love Dessie. He is a good bloke. He is a very smart man. Our game plan is a certain way and I’ve tried my best to fit into that. That’s all you can do. You can only do what the coach wants. That’s what I feel like I’ve done. I wouldn’t have a bad word to say about Dessie. Obviously I’m more of a runner but it doesn’t always pan out that way.
“I’ve learnt things that I never thought I would. I never thought I’d be able to punch out 60 tackles in a game. I remember five or six games into my Bulldogs career that happened. I thought ‘far out I never thought I’d be able to do that’.”
Lichaa, who will turn out for Lebanon at the end of season World Cup, has been in and out of the top squad in recent weeks. He started his first game in Canterbury’s win against Manly on Sunday for the first time since round 17.
“On the weekend I got back playing and we won and I loved it,” Lichaa said. “I forgot how much I enjoyed it.”
Des takes the fun out of the game for his players and fun was the reason most started playing in the first place. Why did Des sign Lichaa one of the best young attacking running hookers only to totally change his style of play and make him ineffective instead of encouraging and benefiting from Lichaa’s natural skills.
Des is all about telling players what NOT to do rather than teaching them what to do. Under Des the Dogs play more like they are trying not to lose rather than playing to win.
As several fans have asked “What the hell does Des do at training” because whatever he is doing is obviously wrong. I have read the players have to endure very long video sessions. Has Des considered spending more time on the a field where players can practice their basic skills ? It seems not and never likely to happen under Des.
FAILURE TO MOTIVATE PLAYERS
Never was Des’ inability to motivate our players even for HALF a game (40 minutes) more evident than at half time in the sudden death semi final against the Panthers last season. The Dogs went into the break leading and the television cameras showed Des in the dressing room physically screaming at the Dogs players to the extent that the television commentators made light of it but in the second half the Dogs collapsed as they let in multiple tries to the Panthers and lose the game by a significant margin. They just seemed to give up that afternoon. Maybe they tired of hearing Des’ voice.
RETENTION AND RECRUITMENT FAILURES
Tony Williams (recruited)
- Played outstanding in 2012 under coach Geoff Toovey (not Des) at Manly but Des was never able to get him to play the same at the Dogs. Williams was the Dogs highest paid player AND also the laziest player on field. In one interview towards the end of his time with the Dogs Williams was quoted as saying “I’m sure Des would be disappointed in the way I’ve been playing”. Obviously Des never actually told Williams of his disappointment though over 4 seasons.
Will Hopoate (recruited)
- Has failed to capture the form he showed in 2011 at Manly under Des. Seems to have lost speed. Why ? Needs sprint training obviously. Several league commentators say Hopoate has a decent passing game but it seems he is discouraged from using it by Des.
Michael Lichaa (recruited)
- Has totally failed at the Dogs to live up to the promise he showed as a junior representative player throughout his career with the Sharks. Reportedly he is required to be a tackling machine only under Des.
Brett Morris (recruited)
- Recruited for reportedly $600K a season to play fullback but constantly wasted as a winger seeing no quality ball in attack despite stats showing the Dogs score more points when he plays fullback.
Michael Ennis (failed to retain)
- Rugby league commentators unanimously agree Ennis played the best seasons of his long career when (unwanted by Des Hasler) he moved to the Sharks to win the 2016 NRL Premiership.
Damien Cook (failed to retain)
- After making the mistake of moving on Michael Ennis to replace him with Michael Lichaa, Des Hasler had a second chance to make amends when Cook starred for the Dogs in their last 5 games of the 2016 season scoring individual tries and winning Man of Match honours in 2-3 of the few games he played but Des decided not to retain Cook due to his preference for Lichaa who himself was finally dropped for the last few games this season and apparently will not be re-signed for next season.
Trent Hodgkinson (failed to retain)
- Our organiser and highly successful goal kicker was let go by Des Hasler in preference to Moses Mbye despite the fact Mbye has proven he does not have the training or skills to organise the team or become a successful goal kicker.
Frank Pritchard (failed to retain)
- In his last season with the Dogs most commentators and fans agree he was our best attacking forward yet he was not re-signed by the Dogs.
Shaun Lane (failed to retain)
- Similar to Cook, Shaun Lane starred in a handful of games when given the chance late in 2015 scoring a few nice tries. Things looked bright for 2016 but from the opening round Des failed to include him in the top 17 squad for several months and then he was swapped for a Warriors player who Des even now uses sparingly. Des Hasler just seems to have a strange obsession with getting rid of players who are good in attack.
Martin Taupau (failed to retain)
- Has the 3rd highest figure in the NRL for offloads and regarded as the 3rd hardest running forward in the game in 2017. Under Des Hasler he was prone to a few handling errors but nothing that could not have been fixed with training emphasis on skills.
Curtis Rona (failed to retain)
- Was a try scoring machine with the Dogs and finished equal top try scorer in the NRL even when the rest of the team were finding tries difficult to come by but Des let him move on to rugby union.
Tim Lafai (failed to retain)
- Des replaced centre Lafai with Will Hopoate letting Lafai go to the Dragons where he is now one of the top centres in the NRL for line-breaks while Des Hasler usually plays Hopoate as his preferred fullback – not centre
Dale Finucane (failed to retain)
- Has been a regular member of the very successful Storm team since leaving the Dogs. Storm coach Craig Bellamy has constantly pushed for him to be selected in the NSW State of origin team.
Ben Barba (failed to retain)
- Player of the Year in 2012 and the man most responsible for getting the Dogs to the 2012 Grand Final. Reportedly requested a contract upgrade in 2013 which was refused and left the Dogs soon afterwards.
FITNESS
Why are the Bulldogs the only team with two players who physically look overeweight in Greg Eastwood and Sam Kasiano. I have read that some fans often see Kasiano smoking cigarettes around Belmore which would seems ridiculous in this day and age. Kasiano was never able to play long stints in games due to his lack of fitness - despite the fact he was reportedly on big money with the Dogs. Why did Des never cane him to get him fitter and get the most value from him – just as Craig Bellamy will obviously do when Kasiano moves to the professional Storm club from next season. Kasiano reportedly took a pay cut to go to the Storm because he wants to be in the starting 13 once again. Obviously he would have been prepared to make the same commitment to the Dogs under the right circumstances.
CULTURE
Please read the comments below of former players Reni Maitua (who played under Des) and Willie Mason (who met with Des) who give an insights into the total lack of Bulldogs culture our team has under Des – just as Steve Mortimer and Terry Lamb have complained about previously.
Former Bulldogs players Reni Maitua, Willie Mason say coach Des Hasler has eliminated club’s history
Matt Logue, The Daily Telegraph
August 19, 2017 9:30am
Subscriber only
FORMER Bulldogs star Reni Maitua has questioned Canterbury’s culture under Des Hasler, saying he felt like an “outsider” when he returned to the club in 2014.
After stints with Cronulla and Parramatta, Maitua rejoined the Bulldogs but says it was a very different place to when he started his career at Belmore in 2004. And that was largely down to Hasler.
“The work ethic was still the same, but from someone who had played 100 first grade games, plus 50 Flegg and reserve grade games there, I came back and I felt like a complete outsider,” Maitua said on Skipi TV.
“That wasn’t because of not being accepted by the players or anything like that — the place had changed. It was just not the Bulldog culture that was bred into me.
“When I came to the club as a Souths junior, it wasn’t long before I bought into the Bulldogs environment and culture.
Willie Mason and Reni Maitua fool around during a team photo for the Bulldogs. Pic; Gregg Porteous
“I knew everything about every ex player. I knew what every player did throughout the 80s and the legacy they built in the 90s and into the early 2000s.
“I was lucky enough to come into a system in the ‘04 season and win the grand final, but Canterbury had been building towards that.
“But when I went back in 2014, it was like I’d never played there before.”
Maitua believes Canterbury changed under Hasler purely because he is a Manly man.
“Des is a Manly person with a Bulldogs shirt on,” he said. “I don’t think they wanted to have any sort of history with the club.
“That is his vehicle to be successful as a coach to be at Canterbury, but he will always be Manly.
“If you take him into a room and held him at gunpoint and said, who do you do for? — he is going to say I’m a Manly person.”
Fellow Bulldogs legend Willie Mason, who won the 2004 premiership alongside Maitua, also expressed his thoughts on Hasler.
Mason revealed he seriously considered finishing his career where it started at the Bulldogs after his one-year stint with Manly in 2015.
He even met with Hasler to discuss a contract, but says he was put off by his focus on statistics.
“At that stage it really put me off rugby league and pretty much forced me to France,” he said.
“It did my head in. I was thinking, ‘I don’t know how to play football anymore.
Des Hasler. is too smart for rugby league says Reni Maitua pic Stephen Cooper
“I met Des in Darling Harbour and we had a coffee and started talking about football.
“Then he just put out this big book with stats on everything.
“In his eyes, I don’t know if they are twisted or football has just got to him, but Aiden Tolman was the best prop in the game.
“But to me, no disrespect to Aiden, but I was 35 and I’d still dust him up.
“In my eyes I was no, Sam Burgess or George Burgess at that time.
“I said, do you ever go by the eye test Des and look at what he brings and what sort of emotion and physical presence.
“The best thing Des said was go to France and enjoy the last year.
“I’ve got so much respect for Des, but that was the best thing he said in the entire meeting.”
Maitua rates Hasler highly, but says he is too complex for most NRL players.
He insists this style is a major reason behind the Bulldogs’ struggles in the past two seasons.
“Des is a super, super intelligent human being and I think he is too smart for rugby league,” he said.
“I think you need to peel it back a bit.
“Have your team fit, but you don’t need to give them so much information.
“They are rugby league players and when you overload them with information it’s just typical of the way they are playing now.”
After our thrashing by the Panthers this year, our Chairman reportedly went into the dressing room and asked Des’ permission to speak to the players. After Des left the room our Chairman asked if any of the players had a problem with Des. He then told them that they need to get behind Des. I sincerely hope that this was not the only time the players have been asked their true opinion of Des. As any corporate business does on a regular basis, have the players ever been polled with the promise of anonymity as to their thoughts about Des ?
In the corporate world many of us employees do weekly performance reviews and we are asked what will we do different. The definition of madness they say is to keep doing the same thing while expecting a different result yet Des seems to escape being held accountable by the club even though he is paid like a coach who is winning the premiership each and every season
Kieran Foran (IF he manages to keep free of injury) and Aaron Woods cannot make that much of a difference to turn us from one of the worst performing teams in the NRL into the best team in the competition. Did Foran change the Warriors into a real premiership force ? No, and they weren’t performing as bad as the Dogs before he arrived.
If left in the job is Des suddenly going to do the complete opposite to what he has been all his career ? History suggests NOT. If Des is incapable of change – which he has proven over 5 seasons that he is – it is time to move him on. Given the totally desperate plight of the team this season Des has surely tried EVERY idea he is capable of already. As we have seen though his version of a new idea is selecting a fringe first grade centre at half-back while ignoring a try-scoring machine half-back in the lower grade. NO-ONE can understand Des’ philosophy but Des. I don’t know how much more Des can physically demonstrate he is out of ideas. Do the Dogs have to lose EVERY game for multiple seasons before you and the rest of the board realise Des has NOTHING !
If Des is the CAUSE of all these problems how can he also be the SOLUTION ? We need someone with new ideas that will encourage players to perform better, not the same or worse. Following Des, fans will be so relieved they will give a new coach a few years to build and achieve decent results. While Des remains coach the complaints will just continue to grow louder with every loss.
If the only thing preventing the dismissal of Des is concern that this will make the board look incompetent after recently extending his contract then please consider alternatives. Is there a stipulation in Des’ contract referring to his job title as “head coach” ? If not, Des can remain as defence coach while another takes over as head coach. Swap Des’ role with that of Bulldogs ISP coach Steve Georgallis who has resurrected his team this season and has them attacking brilliantly. If Des doesn’t like this idea he is free to walk into the NSW coaching role or coaching under 6’s in the Manly junior comp near his home and the club saves a lot of money. What a win-win for the club and fans that would be.
Please remember that Des is not a mad scientist or any kind of football God - as he pretends to be with journalists. He is just another former footy player using other people’s ideas for his philosophy. Rather than putting all your eggs in one basket hoping for supercoach-NOT Des to save you, you are better off putting your faith in ANYONE else because Des has already proved he is out of ideas and he cannot save himself let alone anyone else.
Our players may hold a grudge against Des for getting rid of Josh Reynold, for letting them being shopped around, for his complicated directions requiring them to memorise a list of up to 24 individual instructions per game. A new coach will come in without any of this baggage and can start fresh. A new coach will have new ideas while we will get nothing new from Des. Just imagine how much better every single Bulldogs player could perform if only encouraged by a coach to use their natural talent. With Des there will be no change, NO HOPE (of improving). With ANYONE else as coach this will bring
HOPE
Regards
Brad
2016
Andrew Voss:
“The Bulldogs attack remains questionable inside their opponent’s 20. We need to see more from Moses Mybe”
Peter Sterling:
“I think it’s an overhaul. They have to look at their style of play. It really hasn’t evolved over the last 3 years. It has been good enough to get them maybe into finals but not good enough to win a title. They certainly got to vary things”
Brett Kimmorley:
“They had a thousand opportunities to attack the line against Souths but it didn’t look like they were going to score the try. Moses Mybe needs a bit more first ball”.
Darren Lockyer:
“They’re just in and out, in and out over the 80 minutes and you’re not going to win premierships playing that style of football”.
Steve Renouf:
“They lack a little bit of creativity. I think they’re a bit too forward dominated. I’d like to see their halves be given a bit more of a go in the game and a bit more direction”.
Laurie Daley:
“They need to look at how they attack. That was an area of their game where they struggled. They need an overhaul”.
Greg Alexander:
(When asked by Ben Ikin - Who owns the Bulldogs attack ?) “Des owns it. I don’t think anyone on the field owns it. It seems to be controlled by their forwards. They need a complete overhaul of what they’re doing with the footy. They need to allow Moses Mybe to play like a half-back. I’m sure he has the ability to do it but they don’t allow him. I’ve been wondering this for the last 6 weeks. They have been dreadful. They have been dreadful !. The month before the finals they were the worst team in the comp to watch. They were the worst team to commentate on because nothing was happening with the ball. They look like a side that can’t change on the run so if Plan A isn’t working the way they want, if you can’t be adaptable in a game and if you haven’t got the flexibility to, if someone is jamming in, to just change your depth a little bit or just change things up. If you can’t do that on the run then you can’t win big games”
Andrew Johns:
(while commentating during the Bulldogs V Panthers semi-final this year at a scoreline of 24 – 6 to the Panthers with 13 minutes to go, and Dogs attacking right on the Panthers try-line) “There’s been 4 plays and the half-back hasn’t touched the ball – hasn’t looked like touching the ball. (Prop forward James Graham loses the ball after a poor pass from dummy half by Michael Lichaa)
2017
Peter Sterling:
“I don’t think they’ll be playing finals football for the first time under Des Hasler,”. “I just think their style of play hasn’t improved in the last couple of years well enough to stay with some of the sides that have improved their style of play.”. “I still think there’s a question mark in the combination between (Moses) Mbye and Josh Reynolds in the halves.” (26/2/17 Daily Telegraph)
Braith Anasta:
“I’ve watched a lot of Moses Mbye in the 20s and I think he’s been held back. At times you see him get in open space and no one catches him. He’s one of the quickest halves in the game but he’s got skill and a passing game. He’s got everything they need but I feel like his game has gone backwards a little bit because of how much control they give their forwards. Reynolds has got to have that control but I don’t know if Reynolds has got it (in him) either. Reynolds is more an off-the-cuff player himself. That’s where they could be going wrong. They’ve got [Michael] Lichaa in there. He’s only a young bloke too. He doesn’t really have that ability like when [Michael] Ennis was there to get them to certain places on the field or take control. None of them are really dominant, which is why their forwards get so much ball. Reynolds is the obvious choice to try and be that leader to take the pressure off Mbye and Lichaa, and let them play eyes-up, instinctive football. That’s what they’ve got to do. They need a dominant nine, six or seven and play footy off the back of that.” (1/3/17 Fox Sports)
Paul Dunn:
"All I'll say is it was very difficult sitting there watching and taking it seriously. They've lost seven out of their last eight games now. It doesn't look like anything is changing. It's going to be a long year." (27/3/17 Sydney Morning Herald)
Peter Tunks:
"Des has been there a long time. He'd have to understand there comes a time when a coach has been somewhere for long enough and what he's telling them is maybe going in one ear and out the other. They talk about losing the dressing room. Well, there was a lot of effort put in [on Saturday] but there was something missing. I haven't seen that from a Canterbury team for a long, long time. There is a sell-by date for everybody. It didn't look like the players are in on what Des is trying to get them to do. When you have a result like [on Saturday] it's not a good sign. Des has made the semis every year [since he arrived at Canterbury in 2012] and two grand finals. But they've had one win this year and in round four to get beaten 36-0 by a team that had only won one game before then you've got to be pretty concerned." (27/3/17 Sydney Morning Herald)
Ben Ikin:
“Apparently they’ve tried to introduce a new style this year. If that’s the case it hasn’t been fully embraced and they’ve defaulted back to last year’s style and they’re struggling.” (29/3/17 NRL 360)
Michael Ennis:
"The game has moved in a new direction in the past 18 months and the good teams have evolved. Clunky block plays and structures are a thing of the past and the teams at the top of the ladder have recognised this. It's allowed halves to dominate and play what's in front of them. They play through the middle third and above the advantage line and the halves can capitalise by playing fast and direct to the edges. For me, the Bulldogs haven't evolved in this area. Moses Mbye, Matt Frawley and Michael Lichaa need to be able to play what's in front of them. Changes to their attacking structures would help their chances, because in defence they've been brave." (1/6/17 Fox Sports)
Greg Alexander:
"We have been analysing the dogs attack since the middle of last year. They have been woeful. They have a dummy half that offers very little, a fullback that is not a running fullback and halves that dont play like halves". (29/6/17 Fox Sports)
Michael Ennis:
“The style of football they play, there’s no beating around it, it’s horrendous to watch.“It’s diabolical, it’s slow, it’s boring, it’s block plays, and I think Brandy’s exactly right, unfortunately they are so set in their ways in terms of this structure that there’s no way out.” (20/7/17 Fox Sports)
Michael Ennis:
“It’s a really tough one for me, I spent a lot of time at that club, I played under Des. In all honesty, his time’s up. They’ve scored the least amount of points this season, they’ve been drastically disappointing. They really haven’t evolved, in my opinion, with the style of football they play. They’ve got their recruitment and retention horribly wrong. People may think that’s bitter because I left the place, but it’s (former players they let go) Dale Finucane, Marty Taupau.” (25/7/17 Fox Sports)
Brett Kimmorley:
“Watching them Thursday night, there were so many times in the attacking end the forwards were catching the ball and standing still. If the structure is too confusing, pull it back. If the players aren’t doing it by now, and they started training in November, you need to coach to the quality of the players you’ve got, not the style you want to coach as a coach. The attack these days is a second to two seconds faster than what it was two years ago, which means you need to play more over the ‘ad-line’, straighter running, more momentum football. “They haven’t evolved. They’ve got a fullback (Will Hopoate) who runs for 250m but rarely passes, and they’ve lost faith in their No. 9 (Michael Lichaa), so they’ve turned to their halfback (Moses Mbye) who they paid too much money for to go from a half to a dummy-half. I think your spine has to have four dynamic playmakers who can all pass and look at what is in front of them and play some adlib football.’’ Kimmorley, who finished his NRL career with the Bulldogs, said new recruits Kieran Foran and Aaron Woods would make a difference, but it was a case of ‘’replacing what they’ve got with what they’ve got’’. “And everyone gets a year older,’’ Kimmorley said. (28/7/17 Daily Telegraph)
Graeme Hughes:
“I don’t understand their attack, and I don’t see anything creative at all in what they do”. (28/7/17 Daily Telegraph)
Unnamed current NRL player:
A month ago, in the middle of the Bulldogs’ insipid slump, I ran into one of the top halves currently in the NRL, and the conversation turned to how woeful Canterbury had become.
"I watch them and I can't work out how they've turned into such a bad team," he said. "They've got a six (Josh Reynolds) who's won a State of Origin series and a seven (Moses Mbye) who's won lots of Friday night man-of-the-match awards and played Prime Minister’s XIII in PNG. But they look like they can't play. They're going side-to-side. It's not all their fault. No go forward. No shape. Nothing.". “It looks to me like they've stopped learning,'' he said. "Des obviously can't teach them anymore and has run out of ideas. The structure's not working and they're not learning a new way.'' (Wide World of Sports, 4/8/17)
Greg Alexander:
“They’ve got no idea and they’re going out there trying not to lose rather than trying to win. I think the way things are going you need a change. He’s a great coach (but) he’s been in the same place for too long with the same players. You would just think they need someone new in there.” (Daily Telegraph, 4/8/17)
Andrew Johns:
“The Eels have offloaded 12 times to the Bulldogs’ five. It’s an area of their game that they could improve. Just at the moment, there’s absolutely nothing in attack. If they can generate some offloads, when the offload comes off the back, they can get the ball to their strike players. The Morris twins have plenty of pace but they just don’t see any clean ball at all. There’s no science to the way they are playing. The worrying thing for the Bulldogs, if it was dry, the scoreboard could be anything.” (Daily Telegraph, 4/8/17)
Brett Kimmorley:
“At times last night the general play produced by the Bulldogs was appalling. The biggest thing I noticed when watching the Bulldogs players was that they clearly weren't enjoying their footy. These guys have the best job in the world, playing the sport they love and making a good living out of it, yet they looked like they were completely miserable. Simply going through the motions, wishing for the fulltime siren to blow, another horrible day at work.
I still think Hasler is a great coach. Like great players, great coaches don't lose their ability, I just fear he might have gone too far with his focus on statistics. The club has reached the point where you would think Hasler would be willing to try anything to turn things around. He moved Chase Stanley into the halves, but had him play to the same flat, poorly organised game plan. It seems Hasler sees no problem with the style of play he is demanding from his players, he is just trying to find the players capable of making that style work. So he shuffles a centre into the halves with predictable results.
Hasler has to realise that the game changes almost on a three to four year cycle. Rules are tightened, strategies evolve and the style of play changes. Craig Bellamy has been so successful with the Storm because he is not only adaptable, but he actually changes the way the whole game is played.
A few years back when the Bulldogs were going well under Hasler, defences were dominating, rushing up and dictating the way the game was played. The Bulldogs played it through the forwards, with lots of interplay between the big guys to create momentum and crack open the fast-moving defences. These days the play-the-ball is a lot quicker and the game has turned in favour of the attack. To be successful you need to play the game over the advantage line, win the play-the-ball and gain momentum that way. The Bulldogs just haven't adapted.
You can say they just don't have the talent to make it work, but they only have themselves to blame there, as they have messed up their player recruitment and retention during Des Hasler's reign. In fairly recent times they have let players like Michael Ennis, Trent Hodkinson, Frank Pritchard, Dale Finucane, Martin Taupau, Ben Barba, Tim Lafai and Curtis Rona go, while overpaying players like Tony Williams and Moses Mbye on long-term contracts. Now Sam Kasiano and Josh Reynolds are leaving as well.
The club is rumoured to be struggling to once again squeeze under the salary cap. When you run your eye down the team sheet you have to ask yourself; where is all the money going? Will Hopoate has the most running metres at the club, but he can't pass the football - all the great fullbacks these days have great passing games. A lot of money was invested in Mbye. I have worked with him and he is a great kid with great leadership qualities, but he has very limited passing and kicking games. You would hope that those skills would develop under the right coaching, but if anything, he seems to have gone backwards.
The future looks bleak for the club as they look towards the arrival of halves saviour Kieran Foran. Unfortunately, I can't see how Foran can hope to have too much of an impact at a club where they still have no idea who will partner him in the halves. The Bulldogs have dug themselves into a hole that could take another three or four years to solve. Whether Hasler is allowed to dig them out, or whether they bring in someone new, there is no quick solution”. (ESPN 4/8/17)
