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.
“Defensively we were terrible,” Ciraldo said.
“The 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.”
“We'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."
“Our 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.
“He's training really well, he's really bought into the new position,” Ciraldo stated post-match when asked about Flanagan's chances to return back into the team.