News Dominance and disruption: Is Galvin really to blame for mid-season malaise?

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spscand said:
Usually I'll laugh at any "Galvin fault" jokes.

This one isn't one.

2 things:
1. No one should ever EVER be named in the vain of fuxking Nitinyahu the zub.
2. Its not a war. Was never a war. Its a genocide.

Soz sometimes I can't help it.
Click to expand...
Fuck Satanyahu and fuck zion.
 
djdeep4172 said:
Since Lachlan Galvin’s mid-season transfer to the Bulldogs, the popular narrative seems to be that the big headed, arrogant kid with a dodgy haircut has disrupted and destabilised the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs’ 2025 premiership tilt.

Toby Sexton is one of the Bulldogs best players and a key cog in a well-oiled machine.

There’s a fair degree of after the fact myth making to most of that. Below is a breakdown of the Bulldogs season to date.

Get that sweet 12-months-free-roadside-assistance kind of care. Get the care you deserve at mycar Tyre & Auto. T&Cs apply.

Dragons (currently 11th) 28-20

The Bulldogs started the game well and were up 28-6 with 28 minutes to go. They switched off early allowing the Dragons the slightest sniff at 28-20 with eight to go.

Titans (17th) 40-24

This game was never in doubt but twice the Dogs gave up unanswered runs of 12 points to the Titans turning a potential rout into a good win.

Eels (15th) 16-8

Canterbury genuinely struggled to get on top and put points on against an at the time winless Parramatta who were conceding 44 points per game.

Sharks (10th) 20-6

Tight first half before the Dogs kicked away in the second 40. Genuinely good win although the Sharks haven’t done much since to frank that form.

Knights (13th) 20-0

Canterbury enjoyed 58% possession, 62% territory and 52 tackles in the Knights’ 20. Struggled to turn dominance into points, scoring just three second half tries after being held 0-0 at the break.

Rabbitohs (16th) 32-0

Overall a good performance. However again the Dogs dominated with 61% possession, 70% territory and 63 tackles in Souths’ red zone. In the second half the Dogs were camped in an exhausted Souths 20, but could only find one try.

Broncos (5th) 18-42

The Dogs came out completely asleep at the switch. Their defence couldn’t handle Haas’ offloads and Reynolds took advantage of the compressing defence with an attacking masterclass. 34-0 at half time.

Titans (17th) 38-18

Scoreboard possibly makes the Bulldogs six tries to four victory look a little stronger than it was, but never in doubt.

Raiders (1st) 32-20

The Bulldogs’ best win of the season, but again were caught napping in the first 40, going into the sheds 20-0 down. Stephen Crichton put the team on his back and the Raiders lead was gone 17 minutes into the second stanza.

Roosters (9th) 24-20

Another half game from the Dogs, trailing 14-0 at half time. Possession and territory was evenly split, but again the Bulldogs had 49 tackles in the Roosters’ 20, but struggled to find tries from close range

Dolphins (7th) 8-44

Bulldogs looked off in the first half but the 8-12 scoreline gave no indication what was to come in the second.

Eels (15th) 30-12

Another game where the Bulldogs had 60% of the ball, 68% of possession and 47 tackles in the Eels’ 20 but struggled to put on points. The game was in the balance at 14-12 with 20 minutes to go, before kicking away late.

Rabbitohs (16th) 24-18

Another Jekyll and Hyde performance. The Bulldogs led 18-0 after 17 minutes. Looked like teams had swapped jumpers when they came out after the storm break with the Dogs just holding on.

Panthers (6th) 6-8

Arguably the game of the season. In the first half the Bulldogs had 55% of the ball, 52% possession and 18 tackles in the Panthers’ 20 for just one try.

Broncos (5th) 18-22
Another half game performance from the Bulldogs. Again the Bulldogs won possession (53%), territory (51%) and tackled in opposition 20 (35-17) but struggled to come up with points, with tries coming from two hoist and hope kicks and a scrum play.

So, looking at these performances, four things become immediately clear.

1) The Bulldogs have had a soft draw. Sometimes it hurts to admit and you go looking for reasons why it’s tougher than it actually looks, but it’s a fact that 20 of the Bulldogs’ 28 competition points have come from the bye and the bottom five.

2) The Bulldogs have struggled to play 80 minutes. That’s probably true of a lot of teams. Games often seem to involve big momentum swings, but no doubt the Bulldogs have regularly switched off during games… and when they switch off they switch off hard.

They conceded 20 points in 40 minutes against the Raiders, 34 in 40 against the Broncos, 32 in 40 versus the Dolphins, 14 in 40 against the Roosters, 14 in 20 against the Dragons, 22 in 20 against the Broncos.

3) The Bulldogs have regularly dominated possession, territory and tackled in the opposition 20 metre stats. Often by a long way. They’ve struggled to turn ball and territory into points – currently eighth for points scored – despite playing teams mostly at the “defence ain’t our jam” end of the ladder.

4) As much as it pains, this suggests the Bulldogs haven’t been as dominant and well-oiled as their extended stint at the top of the ladder would suggest. Wins against teams in 17th, 17th 16th, 16th, 15th, 15th, 13th, 11th, 10th, ninth and first with losses against fifth, fifth, sixth and seventh, tells a pretty clear story.

The signing of Lachlan Galvin hasn’t fixed any of this, but it certainly hasn’t made it worse. He’s played two games off the bench and two as a starter for two wins against bottom three sides and two losses against top eight sides. He hasn’t destabilised the Bulldogs. It’s been the story of their whole season.

Response to Sexton not being offered a contract for 2026 has ranged from incredulity to outrage. Some of the hyperbole has been ridiculous; comments like “Sexton is one of the main reasons the Bulldogs have been on top of the ladder” or “Sexton has been killing it”.

This season Sexton sits 27th for line engagements and 12th for halfbacks. For try assists he’s 42nd and 13th for halfbacks. Line break assists he’s 48th and 10th for halfbacks. Line break involvements he’s 39th and 17th for halfbacks. Kick metres he’s 11th and 9th for halfbacks. He’s scored two tries in 15 games and has zero line breaks.

This isn’t a witch hunt for Sexton. He’s been a good player for the Bulldogs and worked his backside off to improve. However, when you take into consideration how much attacking ball the Bulldogs have had this season against teams at the bottom end of the ladder, his returns aren’t close to good enough for a top flight No.7.



It’s telling that Sexton has been on the open market for next season since 1 November 2024 and hasn’t been picked up by an NRL club, despite an apparent dearth of quality halfbacks. The brutal truth? My club doesn’t want him. Neither does yours.

Is Galvin the answer to any of these Bulldogs issues? That remains to be seen.

But he sure as hell isn’t a cause of them.
Click to expand...
In my opinion, At the beginning of the season most of us doggie supporters were hoping for a top 8 finish. This was mainly because of our roster. Compared to the likes of the Storm and Brisbane not too mention others we are lacking some X factors in the team. But thanks to Ciro and the coaching staff and possibly the draw we started winning and kept winning and all of a sudden we were looking like maybe we could win this season. Most of the so called Footy experts never really considered us contenders. In my opinion maybe getting Galvin early might have disrupted things a little but a lot of our players were playing well but not great. Critz, King, and to a lesser extent Kirz(due to Injury) are our star players. The thing I am proud of is that all our players have played great for each other which makes a great side. maybe this has been disrupted with the inclusion of Galvin I don't know. We are good enough to go much further this year but there needs to be some decisions made and everybody needs to buy in.
 
SARGE said:
Fuck Satanyahu and fuck zion.
Click to expand...
The amount of hate and anger i hold towards that guy is insurmountable. Unmeasurable. Fuxking infinite! The brief joy i got when Iran and the lebanese resistance slapped him was amazing but short lived. Like the lebanese resistance fuxkinf found his house and bombed it directly those BIG BALLED BEASTS OF HUMANS!
 
Our biggest issue is size. Yes we can wear teams down with our fitness, but if you look at say Brisbane, they can create opportunities simply through their big boys opening space, either by drawing in more defenders, or breaking tackles.. we don't have that luxury in the middle, and we often end up attacking a set line.
 
Knowing that Sexton won't be re-signed and believing Galvin is the future of the club, I imagine Ciro and Gus were likely aware that shoehorning him into the 17 wasn't ideal but, since we're top 4, were probably happy to take a few Ls in order to have him in the NRL side sooner, rather than later, playing and forming partnerships.
 
spscand said:
Usually I'll laugh at any "Galvin fault" jokes.

This one isn't one.

2 things:
1. No one should ever EVER be named in the vain of fuxking Nitinyahu the zub.
2. Its not a war. Was never a war. Its a genocide.

Soz sometimes I can't help it.
Click to expand...
Why does everything have to return to this... its a bulldogs forum nothing to do with Gaza.
 
Great article and I agree 100%. Really proud of the boys this year (even Sexton's effort), but it has been clear all season we've both struggled in attack and would turn off for significant periods each game. We haven't got to the top 4 because of Sexton but in spite of him, and that's proven by his extremely poor attacking stats even though he gets more possession than almost any other half in the game. Sexton and Mahoney were both clearly on the way out before Galvin came and while this may have accelerated them biting them bullet and signing elsewhere, any implosion has nothing to do with him. Move on - we aren't yet the number 1 team in the comp despite sitting there for a while. We are still in with a chance this year if everything clicks but we are building well for the next few seasons.
 
Harry Oz said:
Crichton has spent too much time trying to make Galvin feel at home in the Bulldogs culture, and this affected Cleary and the other Panthers players and Luaui last night as well.
I expect that to be the topic on 360 tonight, is Galvin is to blame for last night's loss?
Click to expand...
Sack Daley
Changes should have been done straight away when bluse lost in Perth
 
Down with the sickness hahaha.
 
djdeep4172 said:
Since Lachlan Galvin’s mid-season transfer to the Bulldogs, the popular narrative seems to be that the big headed, arrogant kid with a dodgy haircut has disrupted and destabilised the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs’ 2025 premiership tilt.

Toby Sexton is one of the Bulldogs best players and a key cog in a well-oiled machine.

There’s a fair degree of after the fact myth making to most of that. Below is a breakdown of the Bulldogs season to date.

Get that sweet 12-months-free-roadside-assistance kind of care. Get the care you deserve at mycar Tyre & Auto. T&Cs apply.

Dragons (currently 11th) 28-20

The Bulldogs started the game well and were up 28-6 with 28 minutes to go. They switched off early allowing the Dragons the slightest sniff at 28-20 with eight to go.

Titans (17th) 40-24

This game was never in doubt but twice the Dogs gave up unanswered runs of 12 points to the Titans turning a potential rout into a good win.

Eels (15th) 16-8

Canterbury genuinely struggled to get on top and put points on against an at the time winless Parramatta who were conceding 44 points per game.

Sharks (10th) 20-6

Tight first half before the Dogs kicked away in the second 40. Genuinely good win although the Sharks haven’t done much since to frank that form.

Knights (13th) 20-0

Canterbury enjoyed 58% possession, 62% territory and 52 tackles in the Knights’ 20. Struggled to turn dominance into points, scoring just three second half tries after being held 0-0 at the break.

Rabbitohs (16th) 32-0

Overall a good performance. However again the Dogs dominated with 61% possession, 70% territory and 63 tackles in Souths’ red zone. In the second half the Dogs were camped in an exhausted Souths 20, but could only find one try.

Broncos (5th) 18-42

The Dogs came out completely asleep at the switch. Their defence couldn’t handle Haas’ offloads and Reynolds took advantage of the compressing defence with an attacking masterclass. 34-0 at half time.

Titans (17th) 38-18

Scoreboard possibly makes the Bulldogs six tries to four victory look a little stronger than it was, but never in doubt.

Raiders (1st) 32-20

The Bulldogs’ best win of the season, but again were caught napping in the first 40, going into the sheds 20-0 down. Stephen Crichton put the team on his back and the Raiders lead was gone 17 minutes into the second stanza.

Roosters (9th) 24-20

Another half game from the Dogs, trailing 14-0 at half time. Possession and territory was evenly split, but again the Bulldogs had 49 tackles in the Roosters’ 20, but struggled to find tries from close range

Dolphins (7th) 8-44

Bulldogs looked off in the first half but the 8-12 scoreline gave no indication what was to come in the second.

Eels (15th) 30-12

Another game where the Bulldogs had 60% of the ball, 68% of possession and 47 tackles in the Eels’ 20 but struggled to put on points. The game was in the balance at 14-12 with 20 minutes to go, before kicking away late.

Rabbitohs (16th) 24-18

Another Jekyll and Hyde performance. The Bulldogs led 18-0 after 17 minutes. Looked like teams had swapped jumpers when they came out after the storm break with the Dogs just holding on.

Panthers (6th) 6-8

Arguably the game of the season. In the first half the Bulldogs had 55% of the ball, 52% possession and 18 tackles in the Panthers’ 20 for just one try.

Broncos (5th) 18-22
Another half game performance from the Bulldogs. Again the Bulldogs won possession (53%), territory (51%) and tackled in opposition 20 (35-17) but struggled to come up with points, with tries coming from two hoist and hope kicks and a scrum play.

So, looking at these performances, four things become immediately clear.

1) The Bulldogs have had a soft draw. Sometimes it hurts to admit and you go looking for reasons why it’s tougher than it actually looks, but it’s a fact that 20 of the Bulldogs’ 28 competition points have come from the bye and the bottom five.

2) The Bulldogs have struggled to play 80 minutes. That’s probably true of a lot of teams. Games often seem to involve big momentum swings, but no doubt the Bulldogs have regularly switched off during games… and when they switch off they switch off hard.

They conceded 20 points in 40 minutes against the Raiders, 34 in 40 against the Broncos, 32 in 40 versus the Dolphins, 14 in 40 against the Roosters, 14 in 20 against the Dragons, 22 in 20 against the Broncos.

3) The Bulldogs have regularly dominated possession, territory and tackled in the opposition 20 metre stats. Often by a long way. They’ve struggled to turn ball and territory into points – currently eighth for points scored – despite playing teams mostly at the “defence ain’t our jam” end of the ladder.

4) As much as it pains, this suggests the Bulldogs haven’t been as dominant and well-oiled as their extended stint at the top of the ladder would suggest. Wins against teams in 17th, 17th 16th, 16th, 15th, 15th, 13th, 11th, 10th, ninth and first with losses against fifth, fifth, sixth and seventh, tells a pretty clear story.

The signing of Lachlan Galvin hasn’t fixed any of this, but it certainly hasn’t made it worse. He’s played two games off the bench and two as a starter for two wins against bottom three sides and two losses against top eight sides. He hasn’t destabilised the Bulldogs. It’s been the story of their whole season.

Response to Sexton not being offered a contract for 2026 has ranged from incredulity to outrage. Some of the hyperbole has been ridiculous; comments like “Sexton is one of the main reasons the Bulldogs have been on top of the ladder” or “Sexton has been killing it”.

This season Sexton sits 27th for line engagements and 12th for halfbacks. For try assists he’s 42nd and 13th for halfbacks. Line break assists he’s 48th and 10th for halfbacks. Line break involvements he’s 39th and 17th for halfbacks. Kick metres he’s 11th and 9th for halfbacks. He’s scored two tries in 15 games and has zero line breaks.

This isn’t a witch hunt for Sexton. He’s been a good player for the Bulldogs and worked his backside off to improve. However, when you take into consideration how much attacking ball the Bulldogs have had this season against teams at the bottom end of the ladder, his returns aren’t close to good enough for a top flight No.7.



It’s telling that Sexton has been on the open market for next season since 1 November 2024 and hasn’t been picked up by an NRL club, despite an apparent dearth of quality halfbacks. The brutal truth? My club doesn’t want him. Neither does yours.

Is Galvin the answer to any of these Bulldogs issues? That remains to be seen.

But he sure as hell isn’t a cause of them.
Click to expand...
Well said!
Comprehensive and clear!!
 
Galvin isn’t to blame for anything….!!!!!!!

Trust in CIRO and GUS….!!!!!!!

Team work
Team first
 
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