Competition for spots can push Dean Pay’s Bulldogs to another level in 2020
After a terrific finish to 2019, now Bulldogs coach Dean Pay wants players ignore critics who rank Canterbury among spoon contenders.
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Canterbury coach Dean Pay will travel close to 13,000km as he embarks on a long-haul pre-season mission to instil more belief in the Bulldogs
This time last year, Pay entered the season as the NRL coach under most pressure to keep his job.
But while Pay is again off contract this year, he has earned the right to start 2020 with a spring in his step.
Canterbury won seven of their last 10 games in 2019 and most of those were against teams in top eight contention
Pay says for that reason his players deserve more respect, even though most experts have them among the spoon favourites.
Pay conceded what was crucial now is that they don’t underestimate how good a football team they can potentially be.
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“That is our mentality,” Pay said.
“I want these kids to believe in themselves and get better again this year, and the results will look after themselves.
“We built a little bit of belief over the last 10 rounds of last season and it was all off the back of our defence.
“We didn’t score that many points, but at the end of the day if you have more than the opposition that is the aim of the game.
“We just need our younger blokes to keep improving.
“And there is a different feel among them now. They are not just starting their careers, they have got a few games under their belt so they are walking around feeling like first grade players.
“We finished up only missing the finals by a couple of games last year so our aim is to get up there as far as we can.”
After travelling to Perth for the NRL Nines, Canterbury will take on Cronulla in Port Moresby on Saturday followed by a hit out against grand finalists Canberra the following weekend in Port Macquarie.
The players will leave for PNG on Thursday, return home on Sunday, then bus it up the NSW north coast on Tuesday before returning home on March 1.
It’s going to give the squad plenty of time to enjoy each other’s company and there is also a chance to cement a starting spot with several positions still up for grabs.
Of course there is going to be far greater pressure on his young halves given the long term injury to Kieran Foran which will leave Lachlan Lewis to partner either Jack Cogger or Brandon Wakeham.
Reimis Smith is going to get his shot at centres during the trials while young Morgan Harper is a terrific talent.
The wing spots are also up for grabs and with Nick Meaney suffering a hamstring strain Christian Crichton and Jayden Okunbor have a chance to nail down a spot.
Pay plans to play Josh Jackson on an edge this year but the skipper won’t be playing this weekend as he recovers a broken nose, while Adam Elliott and Raymond Faitala-Mariner have ankle injuries.
But there is enough depth in the forwards that Pay says is creating a competitive environment.
“They are not really big household names but they are turning into qood quality first grade footy players,” Pay said.
Jeremy Marshall-King is also recovering from shoulder surgery and will struggle to be fit for round one with former Panther Sione Katoa a welcome addition.
But when he’s fit Marshall-King is exactly the type of player Pay says has to really start believing in his ability.
Pay has a massive opinion of Marshall-King and reckons he has all the qualities to be Canterbury’s long term dummy half.
SUPERCOACH INSIDER
Bulldogs are the least fashionable side in SuperCoach this year with no player owned by more than 8.5 per cent. However, SuperCoaches have their fingers crossed Brandon Wakeham ($277,000) scores a halves spot ahead of Jack Cogger and Morgan Harper ($277,700) scores a backline spot. If so, both are near must-have cheapies.
— Tom Sangster