The future of Des Hasler has been decided at an extraordinary Canterbury Bulldogs board meeting.
The meeting was called by Bulldogs chairman Ray Dib amid growing speculation that Hasler would be ousted from the club.
Hasler’s future as Canterbury coach was cast into doubt by Bulldogs board member Steve Mortimer earlier in the week, with the Bulldogs legend publicly calling into question whether Hasler was the right man to lead the club forward.
“I’ve had a couple of footballers say to me as a director ‘Turvey, we’re losing our DNA, the Bulldogs,'” Mortimer told Fairfax Media.
“I sat down with them and I’m saying, ‘I think we might be’.
However, in a shock development to the story, it appears that Mortimer’s power play failed, with the former star Bulldog stepping down from the board and Hasler remaining as the club’s head coach for the 2017 season.
Before the meeting, Dib believed Hasler had unfinished business and should be offered the respect a veteran coach deserved.
“I would like to see Des there for at least 2017, absolutely, if not longer,” Dib said.
“One thing I want to make very clear, the club is bigger than anyone. My motto is very simple, the club comes first, the team comes second, individuals come third, including Ray Dib, Des Hasler, Raelene Castle and the board. That’s the way I base my decisions and encourage board decisions — based on that motto.”
The club chairman’s backing has seen Hasler keep his job.
Pressure had been piling on Hasler from fans and sections of the club’s administration after the Canterbury-Bankstown club’s meek exit from the finals series.
The Bulldogs were comfortably brushed aside by a rampant Penrith outfit in the first week of the finals, with the club never really looking likely to trouble the men from the foot of the mountain.
Hasler’s playing tactics had been heavily criticised in 2016, with many fans and critics believing the premiership-winning coach has an over reliance on his forwards, due, in part, to his decision to offload key playmaker Trent Hodkinson.
However, during his five-year stint at the helm, Hasler has enjoyed a remarkably consistent record. Although they haven’t won a premiership under the former Manly mentor, the Bulldogs have made the finals in each of the past five seasons, making two grand finals.
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