Novel way Trent Barrett kicked off new Canterbury Bulldogs era
Head coach Trent Barrett has only been in the job for one day but he’s already made in impression at the Canterbury Bulldogs.
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New Canterbury Bulldogs coach Trent Barrett will give his players a detailed history lesson into the club’s halcyon days of the 1980s and 1990s, declaring: “It would be nice to get back to those days.”
Barrett officially started as Bulldogs head coach on Monday morning, his first task to show the 20-strong football staff a video of the club’s amazing success over the past 85 years.
And in another crash course, Canterbury players will watch the footage when they return next Monday from their off-season break. The club’s long-term past is glorious, their short-term history diabolical.
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Canterbury has not won a premiership since 2004 and has only claimed two titles in the past 25 years. The Bulldogs have not reached the finals since 2016 and since that time the underachieving Dogs have won just 31 of 92 games.
Barrett will provide new hope and enthusiasm for Bulldogs fans who have endured 61 losses in the past 4 years.
“This is a club the local area should be really proud of and I know that they are.” Barrett said. “Our fans and members certainly deserve some success and we will have to work really hard to give that to them.
“This is a very proud and big club, one of the biggest clubs in Sydney. You probably don’t realise it until you look a little deeper about how big the area is and how big the club is and how much success we have had.
“It would be nice to get back to those days. We had a bit of a history lesson on the club today. We watched the success the club had through the 1980s and then the grand finals we made and won in the 1990s, then the same in 2004, then a couple of grand finals under Des Hasler.
“Canterbury has been a very successful club for a long time. The club has a hell of a lot of history. It is important the players and staff know that.
“The video started when the club was founded right through the Berries and the club’s eight premierships. The more the players know about the club’s history the better. You could use the video as a recruitment tool as well.”
Barrett was due to begin as coach next Monday but decided to kick off seven days early. While he arrives having just guided Penrith to a grand final as the attacking coach, he is aware lifting the 15th placed Bulldogs will be his greatest challenge.
“We have some work to do and the club is not happy where we finished this year. The goal is to get better. I think we have a talented squad,” he said.
“It’s a new season and our job is to get in there and improve the players and improve our performances.
“It’s a short pre-season. We only have a five-week block before Christmas so it is really important we don’t waste a session.
“The club did lose a lot of close games last season and there are areas we have identified as coaches where we need to get better.
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“We will go in with an open mind and to coach the players the best we can and get them as fit as we can.
“There are some blokes that we don’t know a hell of a lot about given there was no Canterbury Cup this year which was difficult. We are hoping there might be a few surprises there and a few players that jump out of the ground. It was good to get all the staff together today. We will now spend the week planning and getting ready for next Monday when the boys come back.”
Canterbury has secured Kyle Flanagan, Nick Cotric, Jack Hetherington and Corey Waddell for next season while continuing to talk with Panthers half Matt Burton.
While he still has another year to run at Penrith, Canterbury is monitoring the future of Panthers and NSW centre Stephen Crichton. Blues and Penrith teammate Isaah Yeo is another player Barrett is closely watching.
Bulldogs shake-up: Canterbury move on Green
By Michael Carayannis
Blake Green’s return to Belmore has lasted just nine days with Canterbury officially releasing the injured half.
The Bulldogs had signed the veteran half on a one-year deal earlier this year as cover for Kieran Foran before Green ruptured his anterior cruciate ligament soon after, forcing both parties into a rethink. Canterbury will make an announcement later today.
Green is expected to stay on with Newcastle after joining the club mid-season from the New Zealand Warriors.
The 34-year-old may have a dual coaching/playing role with the Knights but will miss the early part of the 2021 season because of the injury.
Green’s arrival was supposed to be a homecoming of sorts having played for Canterbury in 2010, but The Daily Telegraph last month revealed Green could backflip on his deal to remain in Newcastle.
The Bulldogs have since signed Sydney Roosters halfback Kyle Flanagan and are pursuing Penrith’s Matt Burton.
On Monday afternoon the Bulldogs confirmed they had reached an agreement for Green to remain with the Knights for next season.
“When we signed Blake we were really looking forward to the experience and teaching abilities that he could bring to our club for next season and the effect that could have on our young halves,” Bulldogs CEO Andrew Hill said.
It was heartbreaking to see Blake suffer an ACL injury when he did and I know how disappointed he was at the timing.
I must really thank Blake for the integrity he has shown during this whole process so that the decision could be made early enough for us to sign Kyle Flanagan.
Everyone at the club sincerely wishes him and his family all the best for the future.”
Barrett era officially kicks off with massive changes
By Paul Crawley
Trent Barrett officially kicked off a new era for the Canterbury Bulldogs on Monday, turning up with a team of new staff to begin the rebuild of one of rugby league’s most famous brands.
And Barrett’s former club the Penrith Panthers better get ready for what comes next.
The Bulldogs have made no secret of the fact they are head hunting the signatures of several of the Panthers’ young guns who Barrett worked closely with this year, led by outstanding prospects Matt Burton and Stephen Crichton.
The Bulldogs have already tabled a two-year offer to Burton believed to be worth $800,000 starting from season 2022, but you can expect the chase will move to the next level now Barrett is officially on board.
While Burton has a year to run on his current deal with the Panthers, there is every chance he could be training with the Dogs by this December if negotiations go to plan.
They are also watching Crichton’s movements with interest as he goes through a change of management.
The Panthers have a stack of other players coming off contract at the end of next year including the likes of Jarome Luai, Isaah Yeo, James Fisher-Harris, Spencer Leniu and Tyrone May.
Take it as fact that the Bulldogs certainly won’t restrict their interest to just Burton and Crichton, although plenty of other clubs will be just as keen to join what is sure to be a feeding frenzy.
It is going to be a huge test to see how Ivan Cleary handles these negotiations after such a successful season.
Of course, Cleary’s reputation copped a whack for the salary cap management employed during his stay at Wests Tigers, where they had to pay massive overs to get outside players to sign.
But this time the challenge is to keep a red-hot squad together after making the grand final.
Given you would imagine most of their off-contract players will be chasing significant upgrades, it’s no wonder the Panthers are said to be desperate to find a new home for Josh Mansour and also Dean Whare, who are reportedly taking up close to $1 million in salary cap space.
Meanwhile, Barrett will bring with him a complete new team of staff that includes assistants David Furner, Craig Sandercock and David Tangata-Toa.
The Bulldogs also have a new strength and conditioning head in Dan Ferris, while Luke Portese also comes across from Penrith, and the new club doctor is Luke Inman who has previously worked with the Melbourne Storm.
Barrett and his staff have a week to get their systems up to speed before the earliest of the players arrive back to start pre-season training next week.