Canterbury Bulldogs director of football Phil Gould has stated that his club is still signing players.
In what has been a turbulent period off the field for Canterbury, Gould has now put an end to any speculation that Josh Addo-Carr will be released immediately.
Josh Curran, who was released by the New Zealand Warriors, was confirmed as the Bulldogs’ latest signing yesterday.
It will begin to address some of the club’s fans’ concerns about the forward pack, with the Bulldogs primarily signing backs for 2024 to this point – all of Stephen Crichton, Jaeman Salmon, Blake Taaffe, and Bronson Xerri will report to Belmore in November.
Curran is the club’s first forward, and according to reports, the club has also signed Siosiua Taukeiaho, who will be an important upgrade in the forward pack and will help to replace Luke Thompson, who is returning to England after an injury-plagued stint at the Bulldogs, as well as Tevita Pangai Junior, who has retired.
When asked on 9 News if the signings were complete, Gould said no, and that despite turning the roster over in the last two years, there is still work to be done.
“No, not by any means,” Gould said to 9 News.
“We’ve been running this program for a couple of years and have almost completely changed the roster in that time.”
“We’ve also done a lot of work in the junior pathways during that time, and hopefully it will all come together in a couple of years.”
“That’s the plan anyway.”
In addition to turning over their roster and signing five new players for next season, the Bulldogs have made calls on Paul Alamoti, Jake Averillo, Kyle Flanagan, Jay Okunbor, and Corey Waddell, all of whom will leave the club, as well as Matt Burton, Jacob Kiraz, Jacob Preston, and Blake Wilson, all of whom have re-signed.
During his time at the club, Gould, a controversial figure, was influential in turning the Penrith Panthers around through their own junior pathways, with Penrith now winning three premierships in a row with a squad made up primarily of local juniors.
Canterbury will struggle to have the same impact given their geographical location, but they have made inroads into Queensland, signing a partnership agreement with the Western Clydesdales.
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