Has anyone on here experienced the club go through a similar period like this?

[sifter6]

Just looking at the season finishes on Wikipedia Jesus Christ, before 67 we were shit

Yep, but I bet they all tried a lot harder than this current overrated, overpaid bunch of pimples.

 

[Calibra]

Been a fan since the late 1980's, never seen the club like this, it started to unravel mid 2016 IMO and we have never recovered. Playing horrible football most games, at times scoreless in halfs like never before, when we can play ok and score points, we can not defend.

I used to see players come to Canterbury and excel, anything but that now, they come and get worse, off the field a mess with poor player movements and most times letting our best go... 7 really poor seasons now, that was unthinkale in all my time as a fan, to get hammered every so often ok... it was hard but to be easy beats most weeks of 7 years... that's unheard of but our reality.

The only glimmer of hope I have had was Potters run last year, we looked like a normal NRL team that could play footy but we go and sign a rookie coach for 5 years and back to been total duds and cant defend, our worst record ever speaks for itself.

I hope we go back to the club we were but right now it seems to hard for that to happen, I am not confident in Ciraldo.

 

[bradtalo]

I've supported the Dogs since the late 70s. I watched each and every game either at the ground, that was on TV or on the radio (sometimes had to rely on score updates during the main game radio call). That was up until near the end of the Hasler era when we became unwatchable in most games in attack. We still haven't recovered since Hasler lost the dressing room and no coach has won it since. I really thought Flanagan was our best chance at winning our dressing room again because he had the runs on the board thus would have had respect from our players. Instead we hired Ciraldo I think largely to attract more Panthers players but Gus at 1M a year should have been able to do that without Ciraldo. I would have liked to see what Pay could do with a few players he wanted. At one stage under Pay we were defending the best in the NRL.

Now our only hope is getting recruitment right which I still think is a failure until we get an experienced 7 and 2 decent BIG props. I think we should have bought Aidan Sezer for a year before the Tigers. We don't have decent back up for Sexton.

 

[CMP]

I've supported the Dogs since the late 70s. I watched each and every game either at the ground, that was on TV or on the radio (sometimes had to rely on score updates during the main game radio call). That was up until near the end of the Hasler era when we became unwatchable in most games in attack. We still haven't recovered since Hasler lost the dressing room and no coach has won it since. I really thought Flanagan was our best chance at winning our dressing room again because he had the runs on the board thus would have had respect from our players. Instead we hired Ciraldo I think largely to attract more Panthers players but Gus at 1M a year should have been able to do that without Ciraldo. I would have liked to see what Pay could do with a few players he wanted. At one stage under Pay we were defending the best in the NRL.

Now our only hope is getting recruitment right which I still think is a failure until we get an experienced 7 and 2 decent BIG props. I think we should have bought Aidan Sezer for a year before the Tigers. We don't have decent back up for Sexton.

I too have been following since the late 70s. I think unless you’re about 100 years old and remember the 1935 season. I don’t think we have been worse. Although somehow they turned that around quickly. Winning in 1938. So the torture was nowhere near as long. The post Des ears is the longest sustained run of crap in the club’s history.

I also agree Flanagan would have been the best option considering the position we were/are in.

The failure of recruitment which continues is baffling.

The argument that there has been no quality halves or Props available in recent years so we sign nobody has been really poor management. Quality needs to be measured by how they will help bring out the best in the current roster.

Not having a solid game manager 7. Not recognising that this is what we need is inexcusable. We don’t need a superstar 7. We need someone that can direct the team. Straighten up the attack and be able to kick the ball.

Look at what someone like the maligned Hastings has added to Newcastle. I think Sezer’s days are done but he would have been very handy over the last few years. There have been many come and go off the market in this style. While we put up with average 5/8s playing 7.

Props also don’t need to be superstars. They need to be solid defenders. With the ability to bend the line. Our talent identification on these types over recent seasons has been woeful.

 

[Rocket64]

No! .. this is definitely the worst era for the club since going back to the 60’s .. Like any organisation, it starts at the top, Board, CEO, Coach .. the club has made some huge mistakes recruiting the wrong people for these roles past 10 years.

 

[wendog33]

I too have been following since the late 70s. I think unless you’re about 100 years old and remember the 1935 season. I don’t think we have been worse. Although somehow they turned that around quickly. Winning in 1938. So the torture was nowhere near as long. The post Des ears is the longest sustained run of crap in the club’s history.

I also agree Flanagan would have been the best option considering the position we were/are in.

The failure of recruitment which continues is baffling.

The argument that there has been no quality halves or Props available in recent years so we sign nobody has been really poor management. Quality needs to be measured by how they will help bring out the best in the current roster.

Not having a solid game manager 7. Not recognising that this is what we need is inexcusable. We don’t need a superstar 7. We need someone that can direct the team. Straighten up the attack and be able to kick the ball.

Look at what someone like the maligned Hastings has added to Newcastle. I think Sezer’s days are done but he would have been very handy over the last few years. There have been many come and go off the market in this style. While we put up with average 5/8s playing 7.

Props also don’t need to be superstars. They need to be solid defenders. With the ability to bend the line. Our talent identification on these types over recent seasons has been woeful.

Sezer signing with Tiges will be interesting.

At the time I called for us to sign Capewell for some effort and leadership skills to bring into the team.

There have been players available but whether they want to sign well that's another thing.

It's forward leaders we desperately need. We wont get top tier but there must be quite a few up and coming guys out there to help with the rebuild....by now Gus should be fully across everyone one of them out there as a potential signing. Hopefully he comes up with some.

 

[John Matrix]

Worst that I can remember and shitest part of that is the attitude on display, cant expect to win every game and have the best players across the board but as fans we should be able to expect the players to earn it and respect the club and jersey and there is next to ZERO of that.

 

[CMP]

Sezer signing with Tiges will be interesting.

At the time I called for us to sign Capewell for some effort and leadership skills to bring into the team.

There have been players available but whether they want to sign well that's another thing.

It's forward leaders we desperately need. We wont get top tier but there must be quite a few up and coming guys out there to help with the rebuild....by now Gus should be fully across everyone one of them out there as a potential signing. Hopefully he comes up with some.

The up and coming props are out there and can be bought on the cheap. Our ability to identify these players in recent times isn’t good. Buying a couple older veteran style solid props would be a start on the experienced leadership side of things. They just need to be solid workers.

 

[gbrussell]

Yes. In the 1960’s during the unlimited tackle era when Saints were dominant.

It was the arrival of ‘Kevin Ryan from Saints as Captain Coach in the first year of the four tackle rule in 1967, that started us on an upward trend.

This was carried on when the six tackle rule arrived in 1972 (I think) by Malcolm Clift and then ultimately Ted Glossop, when we won the first Premiership of my life in 1980. You could see us building towards that from 1976 when Turvey arrived. Semis in Glossops first year in 78, GF in 79 and Premiers in 1980.

 

[Moey]

I have been following the dogs since 1983/84. This is the worst period that i have known us to go through and i have never seen thr club be in such a bad state ever.. fcuk Hasler and his cronies..

But whats done is done

End of the day, the quality of rugby league players across all 17 clubs is also the worst i have ever seen and not many classy rookies coming through either. Its the reason why so many teams are shit including Souths Roosters and Eels..

I don't see this issue gettiny any better anytime soon. We need a major xfactor player, until that happens, thie club will never change unfortunately.

 

[D0GMATIC]

Never, there where lean times before we won it in 1980.And we've had some poor periods since then. But it hasn't been this bad,for this long.

 

[Yougra]

Sezer signing with Tiges will be interesting.

At the time I called for us to sign Capewell for some effort and leadership skills to bring into the team.

There have been players available but whether they want to sign well that's another thing.

It's forward leaders we desperately need. We wont get top tier but there must be quite a few up and coming guys out there to help with the rebuild....by now Gus should be fully across everyone one of them out there as a potential signing. Hopefully he comes up with some.

Hopefully there will be some movement of players "on contract" in the off season and we might be able to snag a good prop that way

I'm thinking there could be an opportunity at Cronulla with Hamlin Uele coming off contract and they also have Rudolph, Hunt, Kaufusi and Hazelton in their rotation.

Lindsay Smith from Penrith also looks like an old fashion tough as teak type player who should develop into a really good NRL player

There are options out there, Gus just needs to make them happen

 

[InGusWeTrust]

You’d have to be 60+ I’m guessing to have lived through a period like the last 6 years. That is the only saving grace for me. I’ e enjoyed many, many great years, final series and grand finals. Attended our GF wins in 95 & 04 and many amazing finals including THAT comeback vs Parra. Was also there for our most recent GFs. So many good times and now a long period of bad times. It will just make the good times better when they come back around.

 

[InGusWeTrust]

The thing is, if we had a bad year, you always knew the following year we would bounce back again.

I guess back then, our junior systems were run well and we recruited smarter and the players we recruited really bought into the bulldogs culture.

Exactly right, which is why we’ve been spoiled as fans tbh. Some clubs go years without finals and even if they make finals have no hope. I remember through the 90s and 2000s, I felt we always had a chance. On the off chance we missed the finals, we were back the year after. That isn’t true for most clubs.

 

[InGusWeTrust]

Sezer signing with Tiges will be interesting.

At the time I called for us to sign Capewell for some effort and leadership skills to bring into the team.

There have been players available but whether they want to sign well that's another thing.

It's forward leaders we desperately need. We wont get top tier but there must be quite a few up and coming guys out there to help with the rebuild....by now Gus should be fully across everyone one of them out there as a potential signing. Hopefully he comes up with some.

Oh how I miss James Graham! Even Tolman was better than most of our current pack, because you knew you could rely on him to bust his arse. Same with Jacko… I think it’s a major part of our being so shit. Having Bupa lead from the front you knew he was going hard all game. Most of our forwards these days play half hearted. Tevita has a cracking 5 to 10 minutes then goes home. King, Sutton, Waddel et al all just plod along most of the time. I think some of that is down to the coach, not inspiring them to be better than they should be, like the good coaches do.

 

[gbrussell]

You’d have to be 60+ I’m guessing to have lived through a period like the last 6 years. That is the only saving grace for me. I’ e enjoyed many, many great years, final series and grand finals. Attended our GF wins in 95 & 04 and many amazing finals including THAT comeback vs Parra. Was also there for our most recent GFs. So many good times and now a long period of bad times. It will just make the good times better when they come back around.

That's correct. I'm 70 in January.

 

[dogwhisperer]

1942 to 1980 was a 38 year wait to win a comp

2004 was 20 years ago

Enough said

 

[OldDogFan]

I have been a supporter of the Berries/Dogs since 1960. Yes we had some lean times, but that was more due to other sides being very strong. The 7 years of mediocracy in recent times I believe began with Greenberg, he didn't give a sh!t about the club and just used us as a stepping stone to further his own career with the destruction of our juniors as a legacy of his quest. Des followed immediately and was equally uninterested in junior developement and was only looking for 1st grade premiership wins to record on his resumé, this as well as the arrival of Aunty Raelene proved to be the final nail in the Bulldog coffin. Raelene was clueless in the running of a Rugby League club and it appears that her appointment was a PR stunt as the first female CEO in RL. This entire saga coupled with the dodgy salary cap manipulations lasted six or seven years and has probably cruelled us for 9 or 10 meaning we should be free of this sh!t stain on our history
by 2025 or 26.

 

[Taylforth]

I have been a supporter of the Berries/Dogs since 1960. Yes we had some lean times, but that was more due to other sides being very strong. The 7 years of mediocracy in recent times I believe began with Greenberg, he didn't give a sh!t about the club and just used us as a stepping stone to further his own career with the destruction of our juniors as a legacy of his quest. Des followed immediately and was equally uninterested in junior developement and was only looking for 1st grade premiership wins to record on his resumé, this as well as the arrival of Aunty Raelene proved to be the final nail in the Bulldog coffin. Raelene was clueless in the running of a Rugby League club and it appears that her appointment was a PR stunt as the first female CEO in RL. This entire saga coupled with the dodgy salary cap manipulations lasted six or seven years and has probably cruelled us for 9 or 10 meaning we should be free of this sh!t stain on our history
by 2025 or 26.

There is not much difference between success and failure. 2-3 “go forward” forwards + a LEADER, added to our squad in ‘ 24 and we will be competing for the 8. A few wins will change the current poor attitude and defence issues, and voila!!

 

[jordansaba]

With an attitude change and mongrel competitiveness, some tougher forwards and a far more astute Ciraldo doing a far better coaching job in his 2nd year here, then maybe next year will also be better.

said that last year abiut this year