Bulldogs coach Dean Pay denies senior players wishes for mass changes
After the disastrous defeat to Manly last weekend, four senior Bulldogs players approached coach Dean Pay calling for a backline revamp. They got some action ... of sorts.
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Canterbury coach Dean Pay has resisted making mass changes to his side to take on St George Illawarra despite calls from senior players to shake up the backline.
News Corp Australia can reveal a group of four senior Bulldogs players approached Pay following the Bulldogs’ 32-6 loss to Manly in Gosford on Sunday expressing their frustrations at the side’s winless start to the season.
It’s believed the players asked Pay to consider moving Will Hopoate from centre to fullback, Dallin Watene-Zelezniak from fullback to the wing, Reimis Smith from centre to the wing and for Kerrod Holland and youngster Morgan Harper to be selected at centre.
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But Pay only made one change for Monday’s clash against the Dragons and that was naming Kieran Foran at five-eighth at the expense of Jack Cogger.
Foran was out injured with a serious shoulder injury he suffered last November while playing in a Test match for New Zealand against Great Britain.
His inclusion will add a much-needed boost and experience into Pay’s spine. Foran’s return also marks the Kiwi international’s 200th NRL match.
It can also be revealed that no deadline has been placed on Pay’s future but the club refused to guarantee he would see out the rest of the season.
Pay, who is off contract at the end of this year, is not only fighting to salvage his career at the Bulldogs but the team’s 2020 campaign.
It’s understood Pay met with CEO Andrew Hill and chairwoman Lynn Anderson on Monday to discuss his future and was told his side’s performance was unacceptable, but was offered any support he needed.
The club remains reluctant to sack Pay mid-season but there is no doubt calls for him to be replaced will only grow louder, particularly from disgruntled fans, if the Bulldogs can’t beat the Dragons, who are also winless and under pressure to find results.
While it is widely accepted Pay is coaching an inferior roster compared to others in the NRL, the Bulldogs entered the season on a high note.
Pay’s team ended last season with five wins in six games, giving fans hope that they could improve on their 12th placed finish in season 2020.
But losses to Parramatta, North Queensland and the Sea Eagles to open their 2020 campaign has dampened those hopes.
The Bulldogs could receive a recruitment boost this season if the club is able to secure the release of St Helens forward Luke Thompson from the English Super League. Thompson signed a three-year deal to join Canterbury from season 2021 but the club is exploring ways to get him to Belmore this season.
Canterbury recently baulked at the opportunity to bring back local junior and experienced playmaker Josh Reynolds after they failed to agree the terms of his release with the Wests Tigers.
Former Bulldogs hooker and Cronulla premiership winner Michael Ennis blasted the club’s recruitment decisions after Sunday’s loss to the Sea Eagles. Ennis said pairing up Reynolds with Foran in the halves could help turn around the side’s on-field fortunes.
"If there’s a committee for recruitment, boy, oh boy – fair dinkum, do they want to win footy games?” Ennis said.
“They cannot score a point. Yes, they keep saying we want to bring local juniors through and this is our thing, and that’s fantastic.
“The solution is put Foran in when he’s healthy, and put Reynolds next to him.
"They’re two quality halves who can manage them through this period. Josh’s deal would only be for 18 months.
“It’s frustrating, it’s really frustrating as a former player to see how hard some of their players are working, and the pain they’re going through and not getting any reward for it.”