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A forward pack is key to winning a competition; that has to be Des Hasler’s opinion, because that is where most of the Bulldogs’ cap is wrapped up.
2016 on paper wasn’t a bad year for the Bulldogs since they made the eight, but in reality it was kinda poor.
Their season started off hot but they tapered out by the end. Their forward pack was consistently good as always, but their spine seemed lost. They struggled to leave an attacking impact, and by the end of the season they were barely getting the ball, with the forwards getting most attacking ball.
As such, there was criticism and turmoil regarding Hasler’s position, with many fans and those inside the club wanting him gone. However, he historically has been a good coach.
So can Des make the finals with this team once again, or will they slip out of the eight for the first time since he joined the club?
Strengths
Forwards. I could just end the strengths aspect here, couldn’t I?
Their forward pack is full of huge guys, which means the Bulldogs are never out of a match. James Graham, Aiden Tolman and David Klemmer are an amazing trio of middle forwards that have the ability to completely dominate over less powerful packs. They are all very good at laying the groundwork for the spine to get to work. And Sam Kasiano has incredible skill and size for a prop, with his only real weakness being that he needs to have a break after 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, Josh Jackson is one of the best workhorse second-rowers in the game, you can always trust him to perform a whole bunch of tackles, do a hell of a lot of running and spend a long time on the paddock. As for Greg Eastwood, he may not have the biggest motor, but he is huge and able to just smash the opposition edges.
Raymond Faitala-Mariner is your typical x-factor forward. When he is switched on and playing well he can be devastating.
Weaknesses
William Hopoate refusing to play on Sunday is one of the strangest contract decisions ever. Why would you sign a player who won’t play a quarter of your season? I am completely baffled by it.
It isn’t even like Hopoate is that good, he is still one of the weakest fullbacks in the game. He is on the wing in my Bulldogs side, because you can’t have a fullback that sits out every fourth game.
Then again, maybe he was signed out of desperation, because the Bulldogs have the spine of an 80-year-old sloucher. It is just terrible.
Brett Morris is not a fullback. He was terrible there at the Dragons, was useless there in 2015, and to make matters worse he is constantly injured. He is your typical ‘I can only make kick returns and finish things’ fullback, which can work if you have other creative options, but the Dogs do not.
Michael Lichaa is one of the most boring dummy-halves in the game. He can tackle a bunch, but offers nothing in attack with his average service. To be fair, Hasler’s system itself has issues with making his dummy-halves look worse than they are – look at how much Mick Ennis improved after he moved to Cronulla.
So Lichaa and Brett Morris can’t create points to fight out of a wet paper bag, but what about their halves? Well you know, their halves are talented, but they don’t work well together at all.
First, Josh Reynolds’ running game is great and he has the spark to set things up. However, he is more of a dummy-half, or at the very least needs to be paired with a dominant half. So Moses Mbye has been forced to step up into that position but, just like Reynolds, his kicking game is below par and he is more of a five-eighth than a halfback.
Since the halves play too similar a game, they lack an acceptable kicking game, which is probably why the Bulldogs refused to kick the ball in the back end of the season.
Then, to solve the issue of their lacklustre spine, the Dogs decided they would be better served giving their forwards the good ball in the opposition 20. But this doesn’t solve anything, and you saw multiple times at the back end of last year they would struggle to put offensive pressure on top teams, even if they were camped in their opposition’s end.
Summary
This is a side with a wonderful forward pack, acceptable backs and a terrible spine. Now, where have I heard this before? Oh yeah, in my Dragons preview. And honestly, that is what this side reminds me off: a better version of the Dragons.
But considering the Dragons will do terribly this year, so too will the Bulldogs. Their spine just isn’t good enough to really challenge anyone, and the strife involving their coach will more than likely come to a head.
They will never be totally out of games, this forward pack is too good for that, but this squad will fail to make the eight for the first time since Des took charge.
They should finish the season at 13th, although I could see them sneaking into the eight.
2016 finish: seventh
Predicted 2017 finish: 13th
Transfers
Gains: Zac Woolford, Josh Cleeland, Rhyse Martin, Brenko Lee, Tom Carr, Francis Tualau, Richard Kennar, Asipeli Fine, Rod Griffin, Andy Saunders
Losses: Pat O’Hanlon, Sam Perrett, Curtis Rona, Tim Browne, Tony Williams, Richard Coorey, Makahesi Makatoa, Jarrod McInally, Graham Clark, Jake Kamire, Reubenn Rennie, Lamar Liolevave, Lloyd Perrett
Full-strength team
1. Brett Morris
2. Will Hopoate
3. Josh Morris
4. Richie Kennar
5. Brenko Lee
6. Josh Reynolds
7. Moses Mbye
8. Aiden Tolman
9. Michael Lichaa
10. James Graham
11. Josh Jackson
12. Greg Eastwood
13. David Klemmer
14. Craig Garvey
15. Raymond Faitala-Mariner
16. Sam Kasiano
17. Danny Fualalao
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