Canterbury’s halfback future set?: Bulldogs open talks with Toby Sexton

After Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs boss Phil Gould announced the club wouldn't be pursuing Daly Cherry-Evans, he has now steered his attention to their current off-contract halfback, Toby Sexton.

Sexton has been pivotal in the Bulldogs' rise to the top of the ladder, steering the side in the absence of star halves partner Matt Burton.

His elite performances and impressive growth over the last 18 months are set to be rewarded, with the Bulldogs opening talks with his management about an extension that would keep him in Belmore.

Many believed that the club's initial disinterest towards Ben Hunt, Mitchell Moses, and Daly Cherry-Evans was due to the rise of Bulldogs prodigy, Mitchell Woods.

However, with Bulldogs coach Cameron Ciraldo not wanting to rush Woods into first grade, and an earlier-than-expected premiership window creaking open in Belmore, it seems to be the perfect time to get Sexton locked into the Blue and White.

When asked by The Sydney Morning Herald if Canterbury management approached him about the Cherry-Evans situation, he admitted, “No, there was nothing and I didn't think anything of it."

“To be honest, and it's pretty cliched, I didn't look at it at all,” Sexton said of Cherry-Evans.

“If the club wants to go after him, they can go after him.

“I didn't look at it once, I never thought of it at all. I just focused on myself and what I can do for the team."

It is clearer than ever now, after a 4-0 start to the season, the Bulldogs have found their guy in the No. 7 jumper, and the belief is reciprocated through Sexton.

“I feel like we're building a really good connection to this team and I love playing with them each week, and that was no different [against Cronulla].”

The Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs are off to their best start to a season since 1993, and it's clear both Ciraldo and Gould want to keep that chemistry flourishing.