After a disappointing loss to Eels on Sunday, which saw 54 missed tackles, Cameron Ciraldo has hinted that the Bulldogs are in for some major changes to the squad.

While Ciraldo applauded the efforts of three of the most inexperienced players in the team (Karl Oloapu, Khaled Rajab and Jacob Preston), he took aim at the veterans of the squad.

He indicated that some key changes will also come after the NSW Cup side defeated the Eels 64-12 in a comprehensive effort.

โ€œDefensively we were terrible,โ€ Ciraldo said.

โ€œThe 54 missed tackles shows that. A lot of lack of effort off the ball, no togetherness in our defence and just some really poor tackling which pi**es me off the most.โ€

โ€œWe've got a system in place... Everyone's been given a chance to show they can do this system but at the moment if they can't, we're going to have to find people that can."

โ€œOur NSW Cup side won convincingly, they scored 64 points but it's their defence that's impressed me the most. Some of those guys are really putting their hand up to play NRL."

One of these players who is expected to earn a recall into the team is Kyle Flanagan. After falling out of favour as a halfback, the 24-year-old has shifted to the hooker role where he has been instrumental in the NSW Cup.

Flanagan scored four tries on Sunday and ended the game with 32 points.

โ€œHe's training really well, he's really bought into the new position,โ€ Ciraldo stated post-match when asked about Flanagan's chances to return back into the team.

2 COMMENTS

  1. Stuck behind Burton at 7 and Mahoney at 9 he seems to have limited future at the Bulldogs.

    When the coach says: “maybe at some stage that might mean a bench spot moving forwardโ€ then that is hardly a ringing endorsement of a player’s future at the club.
    I wonder if he fancies playing for Wests?

Comments are closed.