Dogs Of War
On the Warpath
- Joined
- Sep 2, 2003
- Messages
- 2,107
- Reaction score
- 1,733
From
http://www.leaguehq.com.au/news/new...1195753308470.html?page=fullpage#contentSwap1
http://www.leaguehq.com.au/news/new...1195753308470.html?page=fullpage#contentSwap1
So what date do they move, and exactly whereabouts will they be located in the complex?Even before the sudden departures of Willie Mason and Brent Sherwin, the Bulldogs players were always going to be feeling the heat next season.
As part of sweeping changes aimed at keeping the club up to date with modern trends, the Bulldogs are moving to Sydney Olympic Park and will have access to state-of-the-art training facilities - including a climate-controlled gymnasium.
"It's going to be good," Bulldogs coach Steve Folkes told the Herald. "You can control the temperature and the humidity, so if we're going to North Queensland early in the season the guys can get acclimatised to the conditions they're going to meet up there. It's the same for New Zealand or Melbourne."
It's improvements like these which are dominating the thoughts of the players as much - if not more - than how they will cope without Mason, Sherwin and Mark O'Meley. And despite the mountains of publicity Mason's dramatic shift to the Roosters has attracted, his name hardly rated a mention at the Bulldogs' induction day this week.
News a delegation of players headed by captain Andrew Ryan and fullback Luke Patten met directors the day they agreed to release Mason might have suggested the meeting was solely about the 27-year-old international, but one of the chief topics was the impending shift from Belmore.
An earlier meeting of players and coaching staff had decided to update the Bulldogs' playing style after their disappointing end to the 2007 season, and the loss of two representative props in Mason and O'Meley and their long-serving halfback has ensured the changes will be implemented.
"I guess we'd probably been left behind a touch over the past few years," Ryan said.
"We were still playing the same way we did when we won the comp in 2004 so the players spoke to Folkesy about changing a few things and, to his credit, he was really positive about it.
"We've only been back at training for two weeks and we're already doing skill sessions, whereas in the past you wouldn't see a ball until near the end of the off-season."
Despite the perception that the Bulldogs lacked attacking potency last season, statistics show otherwise.
"I think we made more line breaks than anyone else last year and scored the third-most tries so we are doing some things right," Folkes said. "But the game is being played a little differently than it was a few years ago so we'll be changing things slightly and we think the players we have bought will complement the style we want to play."
Of the 30 players in the Bulldogs' full-time training squad, 10 have either been recruited from outside the club or promoted from lower grades.
Among them are former Cronulla hooker Michael Sullivan, rookie Manly halfback Aaron Groom and props Justin Tsoulos (Parramatta), Charlie Leaeno (Dragons) and Danny Williams (Roosters).
Wingers Leon Bott and Heka Nanai, centre Tim Winitana, lock Gary Warburton and prop Luke Thompson are the other new faces.
After Mason signed with the Roosters last week, Ryan revealed the senior players called a meeting at which they told their younger teammates there would never be a better opportunity to cement a position in the side.
"I think guys like Chris Armit, Jarrad Hickey and Kane Cleal are ready to step up but no one's position is guaranteed," Ryan said. "There's probably five or six guys vying to play in the front row."
Ben Roberts, Daniel Holdsworth and Groom are expected to battle it out for the halfback and five-eighth jobs, although Sullivan, Reni Maitua and Nick Kouparitsas could also slot into one of those roles if necessary.
"I think we've got a third of our full-time squad that haven't been there before so that brings enthusiasm and it's just a good feeling and a good vibe," Folkes said. "Everyone is getting on well, there's no egos and they are all prepared to knuckle down, train hard and see what comes of it next year."
As for Mason, who last weekend savaged his coaching in his column in The Sun-Herald, Folkes said: "That's old news and we've decided to move on. We're looking to the future, not the past."
