Canterbury Bulldogs General Manager of Football Phil Gould has reiterated that neither he nor any other member of the club's hierarchy has spoken with prospective coaches for the 2023 season and beyond.
Gould has continued to claim this position right across the course of the five weeks since Trent Barrett departed Belmore ahead of the Bulldogs' Round 11 loss to the Tigers.
Speaking on Nine's Wide World of Sports podcast,ย Six Tackles with Gus,ย Gould contested that despite all of the noise surrounding possible candidates, the Dogs were yet to commence the interviewing process.
"I keep saying this - I haven't spoken to anyone, nor am I going to speak to anyone in the immediate future," the 63-year-old stated.
"We're trying to get our club right so that when I do ask someone they say 'yes' immediately, because they can see what we're doing.
"We've got a lot of things to fix up. A lot of things.
"It's going to be great. Bulldogs are a big club, it's a great club. I know it's been down for a long time but it's going to turn around, I promise you.
"It's not going to happen overnight. I don't want to be going out and asking coaches and them going, 'I don't know, it will be too hard'."
With vaunted Penrith assistant Cameron Ciraldo linked heavily with a reported five-year deal from the Tigers, Kristian Woolf has been raised as a realistic option to take over from Barrett at Belmore.
Having led Super League powerhouse St Helens to a trifecta of titles since 2019, as well as playing a leading hand in crafting Tonga into an international powerhouse, Woolf's coaching credentials are clear to see.
Still, while the 46-year-old from Mount Isa is sure to be seen as a dream hire in the eyes of many Bulldogs backers, Gould again stressed that he was yet to hold formal conversations with Woolf.
"I have not spoken to anyone about coaching the Bulldogs. The only one I spoke to was Mick Potter the day after Trent Barrett resigned, and said 'Mate can you help us out for the rest of the season'," Gould said.
"As I said to that stupid bloke Paul Gallen onย 100% Footyย the other night... I said 'I'm going to give you the truth - it might not be the truth that you want'.
"People don't like the truth if it doesn't suit their cause or agenda. The truth is I'm not talking to anyone. We're getting on with our job."
Should Gould's timeline remain unaltered, and a replacement unfound until pre-season commences, Potter will earn an unimpeded, nine-game stretch to pitch his case to blue and white powerbrokers.
Although Potter and many of his beleaguered Pups will earn an opportunity to earn a week's rest over the representative break, Woolf will have his work cut out for him when Mate Ma'a Tonga does battle with the Kiwis at Mount Smart this Saturday.
