Bulldogs back coach Dean Pay with one-year contract extension
Canterbury have shown a tremendous amount of faith in under-fire coach Dean Pay by extending his deal with the club for a further 12 months.
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Canterbury have shown a tremendous amount of faith in under-fire coach Dean Pay by extending his deal with the club for a further 12 months.
The new deal - which has come as a shock to many following the Bulldogs’ winless start to the season - will keep Pay at the club until the end of 2020.
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Bulldogs Chief Executive Andrew Hill said in a statement that it was unrealistic to expect great success from Pay in such a short period of time.
“The NRL is generally not a patient sport, but that said, some things simply take time,” Hill said.
“Giving a coach only 12 months with an inherited squad and several challenges was not an option for the current Board and Management.
“We support our people and believe in Dean’s ability and want to provide him with the best environment to succeed.
Many experts believed Pay’s role at the club was under serious threat following Canterbury’s heavy losses to the Warriors and Eels in the opening rounds of the season.
However Hill backed Pay as the man to lead the youthful Canterbury squad towards greater success.
“The Bulldogs are a club that absolutely believes in supporting our people to be the best they can be,” Hill said.
“We believe it is important to give Dean the backing to lead our young squad forward.
“Our role as a club is to provide Dean with the best possible environment to succeed.
“By extending his contract we are showing the faith in him that is a crucial part of that process.
“We are a strong and united club looking to lay the platform for future success and Dean’s extension is part of our overall plan moving forward.”
Chair Lynne Anderson echoed the thoughts of Hill, believing the extension gives Pay the opportunity to form a squad to his liking, rather than the one he was handed.
“The Board was unanimous in wanting to extend Dean’s contract and to show our support for him.
“Last year Dean inherited a squad and a salary cap situation that were not of his making, and we believe it would be unfair to judge him on that.
“He now gets the chance to shape the future of our football team in his own way.”