News 'We’ve got time': Bulldogs playing the long game after Manly drubbing, Kiraz

[2144superman]

We have a connection problem, it's the 7
And I don't mean 7 goals

Boom Tish

 

[PeteHazz]

Like everyone said sick of hearing the connections, if the connections were so good then we should of at least put a fight up till 80 minutes yet we looked so disjointed after we were down by 12+ that it looked like we gave up. Hopefully they prove us wrong this week because that was disgusting considering they should of all been fresh to play and at least not leak 31 points…

That's the thing the I truly can't stand. We were in the contest at least, for 35 minutes, defending well and then leaking 2 tries in 5 mins both sides of HT, then totally drop our heads. We get our tails up (say against Parra last year) we looked like world beaters. Get a few put on us, we drop our bundle and get belted

 

[jordansaba]

fuck this shit bro

 

[RookieDog]

That's the thing the I truly can't stand. We were in the contest at least, for 35 minutes, defending well and then leaking 2 tries in 5 mins both sides of HT, then totally drop our heads. We get our tails up (say against Parra last year) we looked like world beaters. Get a few put on us, we drop our bundle and get belted

we are a mentally weak football team

 

[CBDoggies]

Ok now I’m convinced the club has gone to far the connection moto! Please give us a break with all the bullshit talk. The only connection I saw was the connection between this last game and the last few years! Losers! The attitude when they were down was appalling! The no give up attitude was non existent and they come out saying crap like this. Getting really tired of the bs talk.

 

[TwinTurbo]

That's the thing the I truly can't stand. We were in the contest at least, for 35 minutes, defending well and then leaking 2 tries in 5 mins both sides of HT, then totally drop our heads. We get our tails up (say against Parra last year) we looked like world beaters. Get a few put on us, we drop our bundle and get belted

Take a look at the play by play, there are very good reasons in that 13 minute period just before and after half time;

33 mins Score 6 - 6
34 mins Flanagan Sin Bin
35 Mins Garrick Try, Conversion
36 Mins Score 12-6
37 Mins Penalty Burton
40 Mins Error JAC, Manly No Try
42 Mins Error Alamoti
42 Mins Try Cheery Evens, Conversion
43 Mins Score 18-6
44 Mins Flanagan returns
44 Mins Penalty Kikau
46 Mins Error RFM
46 Mins Penalty Sutton

Penalty Count in the above 13 minutes Manly 0 Bulldogs 4
Set Restarts awarded in the above 13 minutes Manly 1 Bulldogs 0
Penalties and set Restarts awarded in 13 mins = Manly 5 Bulldogs 0
Then add in the 3 Errors we made in the same timeframe.
Game lost in 13 mins.

I would add that the final penalty count was 9 - 4, but 2 of those 4 came in the last 8 minutes when the game was over. Actual penalties that mattered and affected the result were 9 - 2. Errors at 15 didn't help but Manly weren't much better with 11.


Always a Bulldog

 

[Caveman]

Gee it would be nice to hear, 'we are just going to have to knuckle down and do the job we are expected to do'.

 

[bulldogsmyte]

I saw Kiraz video

Play a drinking game and drink every-time you hear him say the word “obviously “

At least 6 bottles deep

In addition to "pleasing" and "diabolical", "obviously" is the new buzzword for every NRL player and commentator and must be part of their "media training". A redundant word to use in their interview since if it is obvious then there is no point in them mentioning it.

 

[bulldogruss]

Our defence was good tbf, repelled Manly for multiple sets on our line and overall they didn't really look like threatening. We were even getting in Toms face early and limiting his impact on the game and even forced him into errors.

Everything else was a complete disaster. Burton alone is down for 4 errors but that's easily more than doubled when you include all the other dumb shit he did like throwing hospital balls to multiple players, not kicking, failing to dive on loose balls, etc. We then got hammered in set restarts, conceded multiple repeat sets from DCE, etc. We were fucking gassed and Manly only ended up crossing for their second after a ridiculous sin bin and HIA to Kiraz that pretty much fucked our right edge defence.

I think we can bounce back if we cut down even just half of the dumb errors. Props are an obvious issue, as is our attack. Attack just looks like more cookie cutter panther shit. Very flat, very left edge dominated, right edge gets very little ball. I don't get the obsession with this absolutely hate it. We don't even have the chemistry or class to pull this off in the first place. The stupid take from all this is that our only line break against Manly came from the right edge after a couple of quick darts at the defence, nothing fancy. Just simple footy with player pushing up in support that eventually created the space for the break to be made. But na, obsess over the left fucking edge all fucking game. I think I just talked myself out of believing we can turn this around by the end of this paragraph

I agree with this summary. The attack for mine was the biggest issue. We nail a few more of the opportunities that we had in their red zone with either repeat sets or tries, and it changes the momentum. We had the same amount of tackles inside the 20 as them but couldn’t deliver. I was concerned about this area during off season / visiting training.

Errors next after attack, they continued to add up and applied more pressure to the defence.

There were some concerns in defence, but I think they came later under fatigue and after game was lost

 

[Dogs Rule]

Bulldogs players Ryan Sutton and Jacob Kiraz are calling on fans to be patient with the new incarnation of the team following a disspiriting 31-6 loss to Manly in their 2023 season opener.

The new era under coach Cameron Ciraldo started with more of a whimper than a bang as Canterbury felt the wrath of a resurgent Tom Trbojevic and an ageless Daly Cherry-Evans at Brookvale Oval on Saturday afternoon, but Sutton and Kiraz insisted that the long-term project was just beginning and that plenty of positives could be found in their performance.

“Our D was great,” said Sutton. “We gave away too much unforced ball and were under the pump, but I thought, especially when we were down a man, it could have been a lot worse. We backed ourselves. That’s how it’ll be. Sometimes things go against you but it’s about looking forward.


“We’ve done a lot off the field on being connected and bringing a good culture to the club. You could see that. When our backs were against the wall, giving them unforced ball and a man down, we turned up. That shows a lot of character about this squad.

“Fans should look at that and the positives. We’ve got time. There’s 20-odd rounds in this competition and finals, you can’t put all your eggs in one basket in round one. We’re ready and looking forward to round two.”

Kiraz added that, although the execution was deficient, the bond between the players was strong despite almost half of the 17 that featured at the weekend being new to the club in 2023.


“We showed our grit,” said the Lebanon international. “It doesn’t help when we complete was so bad, but defending our line as we did in the first half showed the grit we have as a team. We see the connection, so those are the positives.

“With the grit we showed, we know we can show that every game. We just need to complete more – we love defence but we don’t want to defend the whole time and eventually it breaks us. We know what we need to fix and we can focus on it this week.”

Sutton had a simple message for Doggies supporters ahead of a difficult trip to Melbourne, albeit to face a Storm missing key players in Cameron Munster, Xavier Coates and Justin Olam.

“Trust,” was his message for the fans. “We’ve got a really good system in place. You can’t dwell on round one because it’s round one and the rust is still there. We’ve only had five months together and we know as players and staff that we can do it and we just have to keep going.

“We’ve got a great test this weekend and we’re going to travel and hopefully put on a good show.

“We have games to find our feet and keep going forward. That’s what we are at the club at the minute. We’re a new squad. But, as I said, we’ve had months together and we’re ready to go.

“There’s no better place to go: Melbourne are a great side and have been for a number of years. It’s a game you want to be involved in, going down to AAMI Park and putting on a show. We want to make sure we look at the game this week and ensure that we right the wrongs.

“We’ll approach it the same way as if all their players were playing. You can’t look too much into the details, we’re going to think about ourselves.”

Kiraz said that was vital to stay calm and let the much-changed side grow into the year.

“There’s talk about what this team can do and I’ve got confidence in what this team can be, but it’s our first game together, we had three NRL debuts and a heap of club debuts, so it’s about getting the combos together,” he said.

“This year, we have more of a connection than last year, we’re all very close now. It’s a tight group. Ciro has brought some culture and we’ve got a lot of the old boys here. Bringing that in, and the connection we have, is what we have this year that we didn’t have as much last year. We just need to show it on the field and I have full confidence that we will.”

He also backed the NRL independent concussion doctor, which has come under fire after multiple incidents over the weekend.

Kiraz had been at the centre of one of them, being withdrawn before half time after a head knock that few noticed other than the NRL Bunker.

“I may have got whiplash, but I was fine after it,” said the winger.


“I got confused when the physio told me I had to get off. Obviously I know their intentions aren’t bad and they don’t want me to get out of the game, but at the time it was a crucial moment.

“I was frustrated because I wanted to go out and play and I knew I was fine to play. The last couple of years, there have been lots of head knocks and stuff like that.

“After their careers, a lot of players are suffering from that so I understand the intentions.”

I really don't get the whole... Our D was great .... We conceded 31 points..... Only 12 of them were while down a man.......

 

[judyisapunk]

To be fair to Kiraz, he at least played with genuine intent.

 

[GoTheDoggies]

I really don't get the whole... Our D was great .... We conceded 31 points..... Only 12 of them were while down a man.......

The delusional ones are going on with the mantra of "we have a defensive guru" they are just searching for anything positive to take from the game.

 

[dog 4life]

The minute cc said he built a friendship with the players i knew we're in trouble, tbuz 2.0
The coach is not here to make fuckin friends, here to win and demand the players to perform or get tf out

 

[judyisapunk]

I wouldn't be so quick to put Ciraldo on the buddy buddy.. he was known at the Panthers for being a "fatherly" type figure, so he clearly had that level of respect at Penrith.. Of course he's going to stick with the same team. Yeah last week was shit, but the attitude won't change by making a change or two, it's gotta be a team thing.

 

[1967]

Take a look at the play by play, there are very good reasons in that 13 minute period just before and after half time;

33 mins Score 6 - 6
34 mins Flanagan Sin Bin
35 Mins Garrick Try, Conversion
36 Mins Score 12-6
37 Mins Penalty Burton
40 Mins Error JAC, Manly No Try
42 Mins Error Alamoti
42 Mins Try Cheery Evens, Conversion
43 Mins Score 18-6
44 Mins Flanagan returns
44 Mins Penalty Kikau
46 Mins Error RFM
46 Mins Penalty Sutton

Penalty Count in the above 13 minutes Manly 0 Bulldogs 4
Set Restarts awarded in the above 13 minutes Manly 1 Bulldogs 0
Penalties and set Restarts awarded in 13 mins = Manly 5 Bulldogs 0
Then add in the 3 Errors we made in the same timeframe.
Game lost in 13 mins.

I would add that the final penalty count was 9 - 4, but 2 of those 4 came in the last 8 minutes when the game was over. Actual penalties that mattered and affected the result were 9 - 2. Errors at 15 didn't help but Manly weren't much better with 11.


Always a Bulldog

Similar stats to the Rorters who also had a tough penalty count and 6 agains go against them plus a player binned. Was a good story for the Nrl having the new Fins franchise win. not many teams can win defending all those extra sets, especially when their starting engine room is missing and they’re not 100% match fit.

A lot was self inflicted, but we were also definitely up against it.

 

[King Gus]

Does this mean we beat Melbourne.

 

[Okunbors Cradle Snatchers]

The minute cc said he built a friendship with the players i knew we're in trouble, tbuz 2.0
The coach is not here to make fuckin friends, here to win and demand the players to perform or get tf out

i can't stand this 'family club' bullshit - I'd rather fucking win and surely this 'connection' stuff is not the way to go about it

 

[Art Vandelay]

I get the connection talk which does come over time, however, they can’t just zero in on just connections alone.
Rolling the sleeves up & showing grit, is another major factor.
Demanding big money, and not producing to that salary, as far as I’m concerned, that’s fraud. Only round 2, but I think if Dogs lose, season over.

 

[AlzzBulldog]

Our defence was good tbf, repelled Manly for multiple sets on our line and overall they didn't really look like threatening. We were even getting in Toms face early and limiting his impact on the game and even forced him into errors.

Everything else was a complete disaster. Burton alone is down for 4 errors but that's easily more than doubled when you include all the other dumb shit he did like throwing hospital balls to multiple players, not kicking, failing to dive on loose balls, etc. We then got hammered in set restarts, conceded multiple repeat sets from DCE, etc. We were fucking gassed and Manly only ended up crossing for their second after a ridiculous sin bin and HIA to Kiraz that pretty much fucked our right edge defence.

I think we can bounce back if we cut down even just half of the dumb errors. Props are an obvious issue, as is our attack. Attack just looks like more cookie cutter panther shit. Very flat, very left edge dominated, right edge gets very little ball. I don't get the obsession with this absolutely hate it. We don't even have the chemistry or class to pull this off in the first place. The stupid take from all this is that our only line break against Manly came from the right edge after a couple of quick darts at the defence, nothing fancy. Just simple footy with player pushing up in support that eventually created the space for the break to be made. But na, obsess over the left fucking edge all fucking game. I think I just talked myself out of believing we can turn this around by the end of this paragraph

You actually speak a lot of sense bruh
Attack was shit because of constant defence and Burton shitting the bed

 

[judyisapunk]

TIL conceding 31 points in a one-sided affair is "good defence".