I don't buy that excuse, the players are supposed to be professionals, some are literally playing for a contract and their NRL career.

I want to see a better attitude next season, the handful of players that are trying are being let down by the rest.

Our spine players need to sharpen up their execution.

I can only put it down to players who are going know that they are no chance of getting a contract for next season. There is nothing to play for and they are trying to win the easy way.

Most unlike the dogs, but we have had seasons like this in the past.

The team we fielded should have tried harder and should have done better.

I think CC has lost his way a bit this season, hopefully he learns from it. He has to be better next season.

We really need to develop our own players Max King and Marhoney are the only imports playing with passion and commitment most weeks. Wardell tries hard, but he is a reserve grader who is handy at NRL level.

Yeah it's a real sloppy end to what has been a really underwhelming season.

Not sure what internal discussions have taken place with player retentions etc but the players just don't look like they want to be there.

I know the cue is well and truly in the rack but this level of disinterest is mind boggling in professional sport.

They make Tomic the Tank Engine look a a player that is all heart....

It's disappointing that we have switched off for weeks now.

Even after the 3rd BYE, our team should have looked to finish the year strongly and even if we were out of finals contention, we should have used these end of season games to practice Do-or-die top 8 scramble situations which we will no doubt face in the next few years, as I don't see us improving remarkably.

The way I see it, we are no less than 3 years before we compete for top 8 spot and I'm not even sure we have even hit rock bottom yet.

Marki, why should you even care?. You made it obvious how you feel.

Lolol and your response was beautifully brutal…

I feel that the players just ran out of puff. At least going by current reports. Players not wanting to spend an eight hour day training or not being ready to train that much really looks poor. Obviously there are problems within the playing group. I just hope it’s easy to push out players not putting in. 

What I find strange is that the player that have been let go or are unsigned seem to be the players putting in the most effort. Waddell and Avo have been our best. 

Wardell is playing for a new contract and he always tries hard.

I would always prefer to give a player one season too many than one too few.

If a player is trying hard a one year extension is a  good idea.

For Avo CC seemed to have decided Critter was fullback for 2024 and was trying to convert Avo into a centre. Avo at centre wasn't a total flop, but Perham at fullback didn't work out.

I will be glad when this season is over.

Perhaps the players can surprise us with 80 mins of committed well organised footy in the last game?

What is most disappointing is the occasional patches of good footy this season showed some potential, but rarely lasted more than 10-15 mins.

I would give CC next season, the whole season to get some results, and show that we are moving in the right direction.

I do agree that he has made some mistakes, but IMO the playing group has let themselves, their families, their team-mates, the coach, the club, fans and sponsors down badly.

I don't want a team full of players who melt like butter when the going gets tough.

First question when considering contract extensions and in recruitment. - Is this guy up for the fight?

Young players can lose confidence and be overwhelmed, we need a core of experienced hard heads who don't take a backwards step. 

If CC has another woeful season like this year definitely needs the punt or put back to assistance coach . 

We can't change coach every season.

Potter just took the shackles off and made a few smart moves like moving Averillo to fullback.

CC seems to have more of a long term plan. He wants the team to play a particular style and will try to find players that suit that style. If it doesn't seem to be working Gus will change the coach.

Gus is responsible for the pipeline of young players coming through the grades.

It's nice to read that Luke Thompson is repaying the club for all the rehabilitation we gave him by looking to sign with the rorters for unders. If it's true it's a real class act.

We should stick with Ciro fir a few more years to see if he can turn the club around. Clearly injuries hurt us early and most likely that in turn gave players room to make excuses. A few more years be we will know if he can make his system work when he had the right players. But if we are not pushing for a spot in the top eight by 2025 I’m confident he will be moved on. 

Whilst I agree wholeheartedly with your observation, the last time we signed an experienced coach it's taken us 7 years and counting to dig ourselves out of the hole he helped create. It is my opinion that Gus hired Ciraldo to oversee the junior pathways route for logetivity rather than an unsustainable quick fix for a couple of shots at a title that an experienced coach would be looking at.

Danny Weasler is the class act… 

These hack grub germoulist presstitute oxygen thieves lie about almost everything and use words such as ‘sources’, ‘club insiders’ ‘a person close to the player’ to cover their lying arses…

Cant have it both ways so I believe not a word they say… I don’t click… I don’t subscribe… I get the free paper when it’s on offer to start the fire…

on the list of absolute grubs, a few of the top candidates include rugby league germoulists, bankers, player managers, parking officers, and parra players….

Jesus… re the first part…
Are we really still at this…
The  people at fault are the Board and CEO at the time… If they let a coach run the club and cap, it’s in them… Fvck Rae Rae and the Dibbies… They screwed the pooch, and then screwed it again to try and save their arses at the elections by sacking my uncle Des…

Spot on re the second part… it’s been plainly stated…

Anyone who wants to sack the coach or GM right now is an absolute fvcking moron… 

The Dibbies (and only the Dibbies) left is in a hole that can only be exited via a long term, while if club plan… And if the long term plan fails, it is still better than sacking the coach every year and failing… Wayne Bennett, Jack Gibsonc  or Craig Bellamy alone couldn’t  turn it all around in 12-24 months…

Fvck  me so many  are dumb, with zero patience, and even less vision… just glad it’s not 99% of BDP alumni…

Yep we just need to be patient and give CC a reasonable shot.

I am still not happy about how we are ending the season, but one win can change that a bit.

If not then it is definitely over, Gus, CC,  the players and us fans haven't enjoyed this season.

The coach and players need to rest, rehab, recharge, refocus and then rev up, in the off season, we need to come out of the blocks.

I feel for Ciraldo. No coach in the NRL era has had so much bad luck and chaos dumped on them in their inaugural year as a FG coach. Poor bloke couldn't take a trick, so I guess he lets the last game play through, take a deep breath, forget year 2023 even existed and start setting up for 2024.

It fucking amazes me how perfect some these ‘supporters’ must be day in day out, year in year out…  

I think that bullshit excuse doesn’t work anymore. Hasler destroying our juniors makes no sense at all. I can’t find any evidence that he hurt our junior teams in any way. Somebody please provide something more than speculation. We have the same number of junior teams in our small district as we had during the Hasler years nothing has changed. 

I think the passion has always been the problem for any fan of any club in any game. They don’t think logically about their team. Something that Marki certainly does. Although his logic is sometimes filled with fallacious nonsense. 

This gets a like up until the Flanno Snr bit.. the only guarantee with that signing is signing a coach that oversaw dodgy injections and had a team that was over the cap… except the year they won… it remains to be seen who will sign for a coach with caveats…

Let's get one thing straight. I never said Hasler destroyed the juniors, it was Greenberg who was resposible for that debacle. Hasler just failed to recognise the significance of not having junior pathways for long term sustainability, and why should he, he didn't bleed blue and white and was only interested in trying to jag a premiership or two with a reasonable roster he inherited. The damage Hasler created is, that to bolster the stocks of the roster, he went on a spending spree that was unchecked and santioned by Dib and Castle, and the back-ended deals fallout had long term effect on the salary cap and crippled us for years, this is the damage I am referring to and it's no "bullsh!t" excuse.

The issues in the Des era were scouting, development, recruitment and retention combined with salary cap management.

When a club isn't developing players the quick fix is to pay over the odds for imports.

Listening to CC and Gus we now have a good bunch of players at flegg level and below many of them are probably only a season or two away from NRL.

I am not certain how next season will go simply because this season was worse than expected.

But I expect next season to be the last disappointing season.

If Gus and CC are disappointing in 2025, there are no excuses.

It really doesn't matter how we got here, the reality of the task ahead is apparent.

As for the Tigers and Dragons apparently finishing the season better than us, it counts for nothing next season.
We do have issues in the forwards and centres that need good solutions.

I am confident Critter at fullback or centre will add a lot, Taffee and Salmon are good signings.

We do need to sort out some good props, I am not disappointed that TPJ is leaving.

Anyone know the player who walked out on the club after being punished for being late to training? 

I hope that it isn't a good young player.

Gus says the story about a player walking out is wrong.

Cjh 9 had Gus saying Bulldogs were the worse team this year .  CC apparently telling players shape up or ship out .. 
I actually like that about time some ass is being kicked . 

CC said that while we train long and hard we don't train as long as Penrith.

The style of defence CC wants to play is intense like the Penrith defence,  middle forwards need to be fit, players need to be switched on, work together and cover for their mates.

If we stepped up the intensity, then players getting tired at the end of a long hard season isn't surprising.

CC and Gus are not just aiming to win a few more games, they are aiming for the top.

I would do exactly what they are doing, but they need to find players who can handle that level. 

I would have changed a few things, played Averillo at fullback all season, tried to get a halfback earlier.

Apart from that injuries more or less dictated team selections, we rarely had NRL level players in reserve grade.

Individually I hope that the players start next season injury free, with a better base of fitness, more idea of what is required to play the system, more experience and some determination to do better.

We also need to strengthen the side.

If a player doesn’t want to be here next season, it is probably mutual. If a player doesn't want to come here it is probably mutual. No NRL player who wants to win is afraid of hard work. 

Having watched CC presser I have no doubt we are on the right track…