Bulldogs coach: Aiden Tolman urges club to consider interim coach Steve Georgallis for top job

Bulldogs veteran Aiden Tolman has urged the Canterbury board not to rush a decision on appointing a new coach and to consider the club’s interim coach for the top job.

Canterbury veteran Aiden Tolman believes caretaker coach Steve Georgallis should be considered for the top job as the proud club slumped to its worst season in almost 60 years.

Georgallis was installed as interim head coach after the Dean Pay resigned from his poston Tuesday.

Penrith assistant Trent Barrett is the front-runner to take over at Belmore from 2021. But Tolman has urged powerbrokers at the club not to rush into a decision and give Georgallis until the end of season to prove he can stay on as head coach permanently.

“Trent Barrett’s is one of those [candidates] I see in the media,” Tolman said.

“But at the moment we have another guy here in Steve Georgallis who has taken over and if we go well this season I don’t understand why he shouldn’t be putting his resume forward to takeover the top job as well.”

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Interim Bulldogs coach Steve Georgallis has already made some changes at training. Picture: Phil Hillyard

On the field, a loss against St George Illawarra on Saturday would be Canterbury’s worst start to a season since 1964 – when the best result was a draw from the opening 10 matches, according to Fox Sports Lab.

Making matters worse for the last placed Bulldogs is the fact they are scoring the fewest points (10.4) and tries (1.8) per game of any side in the competition.

A candid Tolman admitted the Bulldogs had ‘missed the jump’ on the six again rule change and their attack had suffered as a result. It’s an area Georgallis has focused on during training this week in a bid to rejuvenate the Bulldogs’ listless attack.

“He’s come in with his own style. We’ve been trying to bring a few [simulated] games into our training, trying to suit the new style of footy with the six again rule. We’ve changed a bit of our structures, a bit of our shape,” Tolman said.

“Our attack was quite clunky so we’ve had to simplify it, go back to the basics. Our execution was poor, things like that … that’s what we tried to fix up this week because we are creating opportunities we just aren’t good enough to execute them and get across the line.”

Bulldogs prop Aiden Tolman has urged the club’s board not to rush a decision on a new coach. Picture: Mark Evans

With Pay’s future finally decided, Tolman had a strong message for the club’s administration and board – who have again been dragged into factional infighting creating a feeling of instability.

“I don’t think the players need to get involved in board goings on but I will say that leadership starts at the top of places and we need that to filter down,” Tolman said.

“I’m not saying what they’ve done is right or wrong. But I am saying that we have some clear clarity now in the direction that we’re moving.

“We want some clear decisions in place but they don’t have to be quick decisions. Everything needs to take due course and they need to make the right decisions. For me, they’re in charge of the club for a reason and they’re there to do a job … we want to be moving in the same direction as a whole club. With clarity comes confidence with where we are and it gives players no more excuses going forward.”

Josh Jackson revealed Dean Pay’s parting message to his players. Picture: Getty Images

Skipper Josh Jackson labelled Pay’s decision to step aside as head coach mid-season as ‘selfless’. The veteran forward also revealed the parting message Pay delivered to his players on Tuesday morning.

“You have to give him credit for turning up,” Jackson said. “He wished us well and wished us all the success. He wanted us to go out there keep putting in really good performances and to never give in.

“It’s one thing he showed this group how to do, to never give up.

“Dean’s decision was a selfless decision, he put the club and the team first ahead of his own ambitions just to give everyone a feeling or clarity around the place with all the speculation in the media in the week, I think it was a selfless decision.”

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Experienced Canterbury playmaker Kieran Foran sought out interim coach Steve Georgallis at training on Tuesday as the duo plotted to salvage the Bulldogs’ tumultuous season.

The Daily Telegraph spotted Foran and Georgallis chatting during the side’s first session without Dean Pay at Belmore, who quit his post as head coach on Tuesday morning.

Foran said Georgallis wasted no time in preparing his side to take on rivals St George Illawarra on Saturday with the last-placed Bulldogs searching for just their second win of the season.

Dean Pay has made the shock decision to quit as Bulldogs coach. Picture: Getty Images

“Georgie has been chatting to a number of us senior guys about what the week looks like moving forward and we were just discussing footy as we’ve always done,” Foran said.

“It has been a pretty hectic morning with everything that was going on. We didn’t want to delay training, we don’t want to postpone it.

“We thought that the best thing for all the staff and players was to jump straight into it and get out onto the field and pour our attention into this week’s game.”

Pay’s last day at Belmore lasted less than an hour. He was spotted arriving at Belmore just before 8am and had left before 9am. It was enough time for Pay to meet with CEO Andrew Hill and then addressed his players for a final goodbye.

“It caught everyone definitely by surprise this morning,” Foran said.

“We all turned up this morning only knowing what was reported in the media late Monday. We were notified to head to an area to have a quick meeting to be told of the events that had transpired regarding Dean and the club.

“Then Dean himself came in after that and spoke to all the players.”

Canterbury plunged into further chaos with assistant Steve Antonelli following Pay out the door. Antonelli was in line take over as interim basis before quitting on Tuesday morning.

Despite the upheaval the squad was put through their paces in a series of running and passing drills with Georgallis keeping a watchful eye over proceedings.

“We have no time to be rattled, as it is this season has been disappointing so far. We as a club need better results and we need to turn it around,” Foran said.

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In 2018, Georgallis coached the club’s reserve grade side to the Instrust Super Premiership title and joined Pay as a full-time assistant coach in 2019.

Foran conceded he and his teammates, through the lack of on-field results, helped seal Pay’s fate.

“If you asked any player at any club, of course they play a role (in a coach’s exit) … at the end of the day we’re the ones out there on the field and the ones trying to get the results. All could agree that we’ve been pouring everything we have into each and every game. We’ve never given up, we’ve never rolled over and we’ve given it our all but we just haven’t been getting the results,” Foran said.

Canterbury Bulldogs players were put through their paces by Georgallis. Picture. Phil Hillyard

The New Zealand international refused to weigh in on the speculation that assistant Penrith coach Trent Barrett is the favourite to take over at Belmore from 2021 and beyond.

But Foran said the playing group would welcome back Jayden Okunbor and Corey Harawira-Naera. The pair were deregistered for breaching the game’s code of conduct for their role in the Port Macquarie schoolgirl sex scandal in February but that ruling has been overturned on appeal on Monday.

“It would be great to have them back, they have served their time and they [NRL] have ruled that they can be back now. They are teammates of ours and they would be certainly welcomed back from our point of view,” he said.

Originally published as Bulldogs coach: Aiden Tolman urges club to consider interim coach Steve Georgallis for top job