Dean Pay believes fun and family will be the bedrocks for Canterbury’s revival

IT’S a new era for the Bulldogs and this week new head coach Dean Pay was laying down the law in his own unique way as families joined the players for a pre-Australia Day getaway.

EMBARGOED UNTIL THURSDAY NOVEMBER 9 — NRL Bulldogs are forming a Captains Circle of past 5 Premiership captains at Bulldogs under new coach Dean Pay (front) L-R Andrew Ryan, George Peponis, Peter Tunks, Terry Lamb, and Steve Mortimer. They will act as Mentors to the squad this year and be present more at training and games. Picture. Phil Hillyard

IT’S a new era for the Bulldogs and this week new head coach Dean Pay was laying down the law in his own unique way as families joined the players for a pre-Australia Day getaway.

It’s no secret that some of the club’s former greats grew frustrated with Des Hasler’s hard-nosed approach, which the likes of Terry Lamb and Steve Mortimer believed was tearing apart the Canterbury DNA.

But while Pay is adamant his players are working as hard as any of their rivals in the countdown to the 2018 NRL season, the former Bulldogs enforcer also says playing rugby league has to be fun.

So when Bulldogs headed off to the holiday hotspot of Terrigal on the Central Coast, it was a case of taking rugby league’s family club on a trip back to the future.

Dean Pay wants the Bulldogs to enjoy themselves.

Chairman Ray Dib came up with the idea to take families along with the players on the trip and Pay was more than happy to go along with it.

“There are a thousand kids here,” Pay said. “It has been really good.

“I said to Ray when we started off, we want to get the club back to people coming here and enjoying coming to work.

“It is the best time of their life playing footy.

CHARGED: Eels recruit to face court

SWITCH: Mbye confirms move to the back

“They should enjoy what they are doing. That is what we want to do.

“There is a lot of hard work that goes into it and we are not going to shy away from that.

“But we want them and their families to enjoy what they are doing. You are going to get more out of them.”

The Bulldogs announced this week that inspirational back-rower Josh Jackson would take over from James Graham as skipper.

But Pay said he still hadn’t settled on who would be partnering star recruit Kieran Foran in the halves.

Pay has worked hard to get the Bulldogs back to their roots.

The Bulldogs have signed young Newcastle halfback Jack Cogger for next year but right now the spot Cogger will eventually fill long-term is up for grabs.

With Moses Mbye shifting to fullback, it appears a race between Matt Frawley, Josh Cleeland and Nu Brown to see who partners Foran.

“Kieran will be one. I just have to the trials and see who goes the best,” Pay said.

“I am really excited to watch them play. We have done some hard work.

“There have been a fair few blokes who have lost a fair few kilos and some have put some weight on (that was needed).

“That is what the club has always been based on — hard work — making sure we are all together and we enjoy what we are doing.

“It is no different.”

Originally published as Dean Pay believes fun and family will be the bedrocks for Canterbury’s revival