Power couple: Gould and Hansen set to form NRL’s most revered alliance

Cappuccino

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They’ve been the laughingstock of the NRL for the past few seasons. Now the Bulldogs are on the verge of securing a stunning double coup with the club in talks to expand legendary All Blacks coach Steve Hansen’s involvement.
On the back of securing the services of Phil Gould as general manager of football, the Bulldogs have now turned their attention to extending and expanding Hansen’s role at Belmore.
Power couple: Phil Gould and Steve Hansen are on the verge of forming an alliance that will be the envy of all rugby league and union clubs.

Power couple: Phil Gould and Steve Hansen are on the verge of forming an alliance that will be the envy of all rugby league and union clubs.CREDIT:SYDNEY MORNING HERALD
Gould and Hansen, who spent time together at a Bulldogs business luncheon last month, are two of the most influential figures in each of the rugby codes.
They are now on the verge of uniting to create the most powerful and revered duo of all rugby league and union clubs on the planet.
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Hansen, who visited the club on a 10-day hit-and-run mission as part of his role as the club's high performance consultant last month, is off contract at the end of October.
Bulldogs chief executive Aaron Warburton is in the process of extending that deal, however the club wants Hansen to have a more significant role to play in the day-to-day operations.
Former All Blacks coach Steve Hansen has been working with Trent Barrett and the Bulldogs.

Former All Blacks coach Steve Hansen has been working with Trent Barrett and the Bulldogs.CREDIT:LOUISE KENNERLEY
"Like any new leader in an organisation, the advice is to surround yourself with good people," Warburton told the Herald on Sunday.
"With Phil and Steve at the club, we are surrounding ourselves with the best. It creates an environment for Trent [Barrett] to do what he is good at, and that's coach rugby league.
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"We are in the process of discussing Steve's future with the club and what that looks like, however it became clear to us during his time here that we can all benefit as an organisation from having him around as much as possible."
The Bulldogs were once the most powerful clubs in the league. The acquisitions of Gould and Hansen will go a long way to them returning to the top.
In an exclusive interview with the Herald last month, Hansen was adamant he saw light at the end of the tunnel for long-suffering Canterbury fans as a recent culture of mediocrity begins to shift towards a philosophy of accountability.
“There’s only two types of culture: there’s either a good one or a bad one,” Hansen said.
“The good one is the result of the same thing: either living the values you set out as a group or not living them. And living them from the top down, not the bottom up. Then when you say what you want to do, you have to go out and live it every day.
 

Bulldog wazza

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These words gentlemen will strike fear into other administrations around the game as we will be a powerhouse in the future for years to come. Our Grandchildren will be telling stories of this moment in time when the Dogs rose again from wooden spoons to Glory and success !!
 

Phalangist

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These words gentlemen will strike fear into other administrations around the game as we will be a powerhouse in the future for years to come. Our Grandchildren will be telling stories of this moment in time when the Dogs rose again from wooden spoons to Glory and success !!
what wooden spoon? We didn’t get it last year and we haven’t accepted defeat this year.

we have a good draw to finish the year so we should win a few games.

Hansen and Gould the dream team!
 
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B-Train

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All the talk around the club in the media is positive at the moment which is a nice change.

Hansen mentions building a good culture and strong values though and selecting Napa after missing training is the complete opposite of that. Hopefully Baz learns from this and everyone is made more accountable and held to a higher standard moving forward.
 

CMP

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Depends on the role they have in mind for Hansen and whether the Ego’s clash or compliment each other.

Overall positive news is great to hear for a change. We don’t however need another power struggle at the club though. Their roles need to be clearly defined.
 

Chris Harding

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These words gentlemen will strike fear into other administrations around the game as we will be a powerhouse in the future for years to come. Our Grandchildren will be telling stories of this moment in time when the Dogs rose again from wooden spoons to Glory and success !!
My grandchildren couldn't give a hoot about the Dogs. To them, rugby league is a boring game, and they wonder why grandpa is always so upset.
 

Chris Harding

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what wooden spoon? We didn’t get it last year and we haven’t accepted defeat this year.

we have a good draw to find the year so we should win a few games.

Hansen and Gould the dream team!
We'll get the spoon this year simply because we will continue to have players binned for minor infringements, lose the repeat set and penalty count by a huge margin, and have oppositions allowed to be inside the ten, and not mark up straight for the entire game. Our possession will the usual 40% or less, and we will continue to cough up the ball on the first or second tackle, metres out from our own line.

All the above have been consistent for the season; I don't see any change to our established game plan or the referee's game plans against us.
 

Cujo

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My grandchildren couldn't give a hoot about the Dogs. To them, rugby league is a boring game, and they wonder why grandpa is always so upset.
My kids are 8 & I cant watch the Dogs while they are home as I end up swearing too much during the game & have an angry head on for the rest of the day/night! They have not witnessed me happy with our team in their life.... i hope this changes over the next 18 months!!
They want to love the Dogs & do know that the pony's & eels are grubs....
 

bullanth

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My grandchildren couldn't give a hoot about the Dogs. To them, rugby league is a boring game, and they wonder why grandpa is always so upset.
Time to put them in line,I fell in love with jumper,and even though my grandchildren are still very young,I have bought both of them a doggies jumper each,a little step at the time they’ll get there.
 

diddly

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Culture has become yet another cliche, or buzzword term/ concept. People make organisations and the standards of behaviour/ decisions, skills, ability, character and attitude determine the success
 

KLil

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These words gentlemen will strike fear into other administrations around the game as we will be a powerhouse in the future for years to come. Our Grandchildren will be telling stories of this moment in time when the Dogs rose again from wooden spoons to Glory and success !!
SOunds like Gus is already rubbing off on you... Only thing missing is the dramatic camera angles.
 
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