Matthew Johns: Lachlan Galvin is worth the risk - and the roster collateral damage that will follow at Bulldogs

Canterbury’s success has come from a delicate formula involving their utility-style forwards and playmakers. Matty Johns reveals why throwing Lachlan Galvin in the mix is worth disrupting the team’s harmony.

Lachlan Galvin could very well disrupt Canterbury’s successful 2025 NRL season, but it’s a risk worth taking.

I’m not sure what the immediate plans are for Galvin, but as I’ve stated previously, in my opinion he will develop into a playmaking back-rower. However, in the short term, his best number is six, the jersey currently occupied by five-eighth Matt Burton.

It’s going to be a tricky puzzle for Cameron Ciraldo to solve. The Bulldogs’ attack is different to most; they don’t rely on a centrepiece playmaker.

Halfback Toby Sexton directs the team into position, but the threat is created from numerous very clever utility players who operate through the centre field, using short passing and fast feet to dismantle an opposition’s defence.

Lachlan Galvin is Bulldogs bound

Bailey Hayward, Kurt Mann, Jaemon Salmon and even Josh Curran all work in combination and, at their best, produce a relentless rolling threat, rarely using set-up plays, always looking for a short pass or a neat step, none of them invading each other’s space.

It’s a delicate formula because on top of all of that creativity you still have Sexton, Burton and hooker Reed Mahoney looking for a reason to call the football

You can’t just throw another playmaker into that mix without teething problems.

It’s taken Ciraldo time to get this intricate attack to work. That’s what pre-season is all about — day after day running the same drills, operating the same plays, ball runners complementing their ballplayers and vice versa.

There will come a time into the future where the Bulldogs’ attack will form around Galvin and his talents, but not this season. This season it will be about him finding his place in this established system.

So where is his place?

I would be surprised if Galvin is thrown the No.7 jersey any time soon. He’s not a pure halfback and it would be asking too much of the 19-year-old to enter a new system and have the responsibility of steering the team, while still learning the principles of the game plan.

The two men who are feeling the pressure of Galvin’s arrival are Mahoney and Sexton.

Reed Mahoney and Matt Burton could both be impacted by Galvin’s arrival.

Sexton has done a terrific job in the last 12 months. His improvement as a playmaker is a major reason why the Bulldogs sit top of the ladder. But of late, he seems to have fallen out of favour.

Meanwhile, rumours that Mahoney is not in the Bulldogs’ future plans have been confirmed.

I’m curious to see if Ciraldo gives Sexton an opportunity to form a combination with Galvin.

If Galvin moves into the six and they fire, it may just save Sexton and convince the Bulldogs to offer him a new deal.

But if Galvin wears six, where does Burton play?

He can play in the centres, but only if Bronson Xerri or Stephen Crichton are injured.

He could play lock, but his tall body shape and skill set doesn’t quite fit into how the Bulldogs like to play middle-field football.

Some are suggesting he may play fullback or halfback. However, I don’t think Burton is express enough for fullback, while the seven jersey, in my opinion, would burden him, like the No.6 role did initially.

A key man in all of this is Hayward.

Bailey Hayward has a big future, but in what position?

Toby Sexton’s future is uncertain at the Bulldogs.

It will be Hayward, in my opinion, who forces Mahoney or Sexton out of the team.

In this squad, Hayward’s natural position has been the No.14-style utility role, coming on and threatening with his speed and skill through the middle.

But the noises are getting louder that Hayward will be thrown the halfback jersey soon.

I also wouldn’t be surprised if he slots in at hooker.

Whether it’s seven or nine, Hayward’s elevation to the starting line-up would allow Galvin to assume that 14 role, easing him into the system and giving Ciraldo attacking flexibility.

Some recent performances from the Bulldogs show, in terms of being able to snatch this premiership, they still have a way to go.

You can’t ignore the heavy defeat to Brisbane and the Round 12 belting at the hands of the Dolphins.

The Bulldogs are a far greater premiership threat with Galvin coming into this squad.