I also think Harper will be a quality long term NRL centre for us if not in 2019, then from 2020 onward.

While Holland has his defensive issues the Holland/Smith combo looks good to me, I would not tamper with it.

I would like to see Woolford get a run at 9, because if he isn't our long term 9 then we need to find one.
JMK is still an outside chance to fill this role, I would also like to see him get a shot and play mainly 9/14 rather than in the halves.

All things considered, we should play Lewis in the halves for now.

So recruitment/retention is tricky at present I want to see what players already at the club have to offer.

Our budget is probably "value for money depth", I am happy with that.

Accurate or not? :)

Canterbury Bulldogs
What the hell did Dean Pay do to deserve this homecoming? The club has been beset by issue after issue.

The salary cap debacle saw them lose James Graham and Josh Reynolds before the season started, new recruit Aaron Woods failed to set the world on fire – although he did get a very funny haircut – then was shipped out to the Sharks pre June 30, while Moses Mbye also left to go to the Wests Tigers.

When Kieran Foran was ruled out for the season with injury and David Klemmer started talking about leaving the Kennel, I was wondering just how much worse it could get.

So what went wrong?
Apart from the above? Well, unsurprisingly the Dogs only won one of their first five games and only three of their first 14. They have scored the fewest tries of any side this season and have made the least line breaks. They also concede more metres per match than any other side.

The Dogs of War have been pretty toothless this season.

Will it improve in 2019?
This is Canterbury we are talking about: a proud club that fights hardest when they are down.

And there have been some bright spots – Rhyse Martin has been a real find and Lachlan Lewis looks to have plenty of promise. Add to that David Klemmer is a superb player, as is Josh Jackson, and they’ll dig their way out.

Prediction
Just miss out on the eight in 2019.

Not inaccurate.

The only point I'd question is when asking "What went wrong" there's no mention of the #1 contributor to what went wrong - which was off field and inherited.

Apart from that, fair comments.

But I'm still aiming for the 8.

Wallowing in the usual self pity you choose to wallow in...no further comment except to say I don't know how or where you got the notion Klemmer was talking about leaving. Not one mention of any close calls, being dudded against Brisbane and Canberra. We were virtually in every game....other teams would have imploded if faced with the crap we were faced with. We got rid of the administrative deadwood and our recruiting ranks seem to be reactivated. I hate losing more than anyone and feel besotted by misery when that is the case but as bad as the points tally is, and that is all you are really talking about there have been more than a few positives none perhaps better than the mental resolve of the players coach and administrators. 

Steve you really are a peanut having a go at me.

That was an article from one of todays rugby league sites. All teams are rated for 2019, and this site only being interested in Canterbury, I just re-posted our team prediction from The Roar as a matter of interest for BDP.

Zef the article doesn't make enough of the impact of the #2 contributor = refs and rotten luck with bounce of the ball.

Aiming for the 8 should be our goal for sure and very achievable. 

You do not indicate it is the copy of an article...same comment valid but wlll let you off this time...just...though a basic standard is always mention where you got something from...

100% confident no one else missed the third person composition of the writing and it surely was obvious to most ...other than a picky and pedantic peanut....same comment valid.

We don't have access to Netball Mum's Monthly and even if it was from the fekking SMH you should say so. It is just the self pitying tone that you play so often...you sure it wasn't you. 

You're still a sanctimonious, insulting peanut whose bias blinds your comprehension of what certain posters put on here...bwahahaha is the reference you keep making to netball supposed to be a put down? 

Dan..you constantly have a tone of "oh,woe is me". Nothing much to be said apart from that. There is a mix of good and bad...the close losses will become close wins and the wins will become more predominant. You rarely if ever discuss the positives and the tone of the piece you posted was so much like you would have posted (perhaps that is why it attracted you) that I for 1 didn't pick that it didn't come from you. 

I held off from joining this debate but feel i'll throw my 2 cents in now that it keeps going....

On my first read, I thought it was clearly evident that what Dan posted was a snippet from an article and not words of his own. I really don't know how Steve misinterpreted it unless he skim read it. 

In any case, whether the source needed to be posted or not - I don't think it matters. Dan simply asked if people thought it was an accurate prediction or not.
In fact it was probably better that he didn't post the source because some people cant look at things objectively and will simply form an opinion based on who the source is rather than what was actually written.

For what its worth - I think the prediction is spot on.

I disagree. 
Its not the winning one. Its just the easy one. 
I believe our problems are that we waste our cap on non-marquee players and then when the marquee players are available, we find all sorts of excuses as to why we cant sign them, with the first being, "we don't have room in our cap"

Most other clubs build their teams around their marquee players. They come first and the peripheral players come second. Or they make room for the marquee player by offloading some average guys.

All we are doing right now is filling up our cap with fringe or reserve graders. Would have been better to front load existing players and pounce on the marquee when available. Next year is a write off anyway. Instead, we will continue our excuses for afew more years to come.

To me, that is not a sign of an effectively run enterprise. Its just a risk free method hanging on hope that you don't upset your members along the way and that they come back in droves when the tides change. Any club can do that. No prize there. I expect the Bulldogs to be abit better than just any club. 

Gee this page is heating up
For a team going close 2 get
The spoon plenty of heated
Discussions

Would you say Melbourne built their team around Marquee players that they bought in

I would. They brought in a trio of talented QLD'ers that also doubled as a trio of talented on-field coaches.
The rest just had to do their roles & leave it to the brains trust to continually organise everything on the field.

Marki, it's not an excuse, it's a fact. Are you saying all that's been reported, including by our own Board and CEO to members, is just an "excuse" because we don't want to buy any marquee players?

Man, this is where we are, it's no dream sequence that we'll soon wake up from, this is reality you're living in. We do not have the room under the cap to be signing marquees at present, especially marquees that we have to pay overs to shift.

Just let the club get on top of things first and you'll get your marquee, maybe two hopefully three. Maybe we'll even surprise you and find that those marquees in a few years time are ones we've developed ourselves and we pay marquee money to keep them, not buy them.

Live in the times we're in man, not the times you wish for.

And btw, we're not filling up our cap with fringe or reserve graders - we MUST have a minimum list. MUST, or you play for no points until you do. So with no SC space if we sign a marquee with SC space we do not have we probably won't even have enough space left to pay even minimum wage to get the numbers to fulfill the list.

I got to ask man, do you think all the reports, what the club's telling you, having to release players mid season - all of that. Do you think they're lying to you or something?

They didn't "buy" them as marquee players. They were no names when they signed them, Bronco rejects. Cameron Smith passed on because of.... wait for it.... Luke Priddis!

They became marquee players because Melbourne developed them into marquee players and then kept them

Not quite true. They were lucky enough to identify and obtain some of the most gifted players of a generation at a young age. Smith 19 Slater 20 Cronk 21 Inglis 18 Folau 18

So you see it’s all about talent identification not buying in Marquee players.

Rarely does buying in Marquee players result in long term success.

I have more faith in the current board and their management than I ever did in the previous.

Don’t forget it was Chris Anderson who was instrumental in setting up the storm system

I'm glad Marki and Zef could dispassionately comprehend what the article was about (and you both predominantly agreed with it's overall conclusion as being measured and factual and not "woe is me" as Peanut did :)

Unfortunately this observation so true... 

"some people cant look at things objectively and will simply form an opinion based on who the source is rather than what was actually written".

And to their credit, they seem to continue that talent identification with their next batch of stars coming through.

I hate their ptb tactics and wrestle, but you have to hand it to them for being a thoroughly ruthless and successful club who set, and maintain,  their high bar and standards.

I thought they played together through their junior years. It's true they would've been unheard of around age 19/20, but sure so were the Mortimers. It's up to the talent scouts to do their homework. If what you say is true, the Broncos didn't. Priddis, hehe.
Nobody had heard of Ewan McGrady either, the club or talent scouts got word & he had great overnight success. I just wish he had more years in him like the Storm guys.

I know what you mean though. It's not like they signed them after they became household names. It's up to the management to know who would be successful or not by getting out amongst it. Our previous management didn't think Cook was worth the $150k he asked for so he went to Souths (one of many signing stuff ups on their watch).

Having Anderson back is what fills me with hope.
a) for the talent spotting you mention above
b) because he understands that you need skill in the halves and backs- not just the forwards

I would not judge the club by the Des era.

We fell down badly in just about any area you care to mention, but in particular recruitment, retention and playing style.

Normally football clubs understand a) + b) and also c)..z)

Fans seeming to know more than those running the club is rare, but I have a lot of question marks over our club 1999-2017, I'm now happy for the first time in nearly 20 years.

I think we will make the 8 next year even with Holland in the centre.  

Wow not happy for 20 years  poor thing.

I'm hard to please :)

I want the Dogs to be close to the best operators in all areas.

I wish you much more happiness in the next 20 years HD. If you are happy that means I will be happy:)

I haven't been posting much I better get a move on. Always wanted to be hard core.