The Bulldogs’ reputation as rugby league’s ‘‘family club’’ – one they are trying to restore – has taken another hit with the sacking of a man who helped guide and train some of their biggest stars during four decades at Belmore.
Garry Carden, who helped shape the careers of Sonny Bill Williams, Johnathan Thurston and Willie Mason, has been told he is no longer wanted by the club after 37 years.
Former premiership winner Mark Hughes, a key member of Tedd Glossop’s famous ‘‘Entertainers’’ sides of the 1980s, is another who is likely to go.
Carden was a trainer at the Bulldogs for many of those years.
“The club and its players have been my life,” Carden, 66, said. “I’ve been on JobKeeper because of COVID this year, but the club wouldn’t have known if I was dead or alive until they called to sack me. [Canterbury’s general manager of football] Steve Price called and I hung up on him. I got an email from their HR department. Idon’t know why I’ve been sacked. I feel like after nearly four decades, I don’t exist. So much for the Bulldogs being a family club.”
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Williams wanted to speak out when he heard from former teammates about Carden’s plight.
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“Without his dedication and expertise, I wouldn’t have been ready for first grade,” Williams said. “He helped shape my career in the important early days.”
Mason was more fired up. “Garry is part of the Bulldogs’ solution, not part of the problem,’’ he said. ‘‘You never sack this kind of bloke from a club. You treasure and respect them.’’
Thurston said he was ‘‘shocked’’ at the decision. ‘‘He looked after me,’’ Thurston said. ‘‘He is Canterbury to his core. He made players tough ... He got me ready for what was ahead in my career.”
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The Bulldogs say there was no choice but to let Carden go, given the financial impact of COVID-19 and the appointment of new coach Trent Barrett for next season.
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