Uncertainty around the coaching role at the Canterbury Bankstown Bulldogs has been on the top of our news feeds over the last few weeks. The club and the fans are unhappy with the job current coach Des Hasler is doing, and I can’t help but agree with them.
Loyal Dogs supporters have thrown around statements such as ‘he’s ruined the attack’ and ‘he’s killing the club culture’.
Des has won two grand finals at Manly, and his record of taking teams to the finals every year is top notch, but whispers began that Hasler might be on his way out.
If Hasler was given the sack, it is likely that either Jim Dymock or Ivan Cleary would replace him. But what if this all blows over and he takes the Bulldogs into 2017?
You will find no better evidence that Des is past his best before date, then the state of the Bulldogs attack at the end of this season. More specifically the form of franchise hooker Michael Lichaa.
Lichaa has potential to be a quality hooker for any club, but the way Hasler had the Dogs playing in 2016 made Lichaa look, for lack of a better word, useless. He was making the wrong options and overall wasn’t playing to the best of his ability.
We can’t completely put this down to Des’ game plan but for the sake of my argument I definitely will. The idea of bashing through the middle of the park with the forwards may work for a certain period of time, but it makes the attack predictable and easy to stop.
This is especially the case with the buckets of talent and speed they have out wide. It baffles me as to why they persist with this hit up the middle strategy.
So Bulldogs fans, and league fans in general, I have a couple of questions. What do you think is the best option for the Dogs in 2017? Who would you like to see coaching the Belmore-based club?
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