Extra man fiasco 'will fire up Bulldogs' - Sports News - Fanatics - the world's biggest events

Extra man fiasco 'will fire up Bulldogs'

26/03/2009 08:05:20 PM Comments (0)

No one at the Bulldogs will admit it but Titans boss Michael Searle fears the extra man fiasco will "fire up" their opposition in Friday night's NRL clash on the Gold Coast.

Bulldogs coach Kevin Moore admitted his team could not ignore the ongoing 14-man controversy but tried to play down its influence when his side touched down on the tourist strip on Thursday.

The Bulldogs are seeking a reduced penalty after the NRL's decision to strip the club of two competition points for having 14 men on the field when they snatched victory from Penrith last Saturday.

But Searle was convinced the Bulldogs would run out at Skilled Park determined to vent their frustration.

"I think they will come up here pretty fired up to be honest," Searle said.

"The Dogs have always been a club that has internally been very strong.

"They are strong willed and minded, so losing the two points will fire them up.

"I expect that they will be fiery.

"Kevvie Moore is a rookie coach but he certainly knows how to get his boys up so it will be an interesting game for us."

When asked about the 14-man controversy, Moore said on the Gold Coast: "Obviously it's there.

"I wouldn't say it's been a distraction. It's been a bit of a disappointment.

"But as a club we accept what happened last week and we're going to go through the process of the league to try to ensure we don't have those two points taken off us.

"But from a coaching point of view and a playing point of view it's out of our control.

"The job for us is to worry about the game and we're fully focussed on that."

Bulldogs halfback Brett Kimmorley added: "We had a pretty big session on Tuesday with a lot of media and that was a bit of a downer because you generally feel like you're guilty when they're all around.

"But we crossed it off pretty quick.

"There's nothing we can do about it and it's up to the club now to try to keep our points for us."

Meanwhile, Moore said he expected Titans co-captain Scott Prince (hamstring) to play.

Prince will be given until the last minute to prove his fitness but regular fullback Preston Campbell is primed to take over the No.7 jersey.

"We expect him to. They're a very good side at home - especially with Scott on the field," Moore said.

"He's one of the best number sevens in the game - he's up there with the top two or three.

"(But) Preston's a great player as well.

"Scott probably is more an organisational type halfback where Preston plays very much off the cuff, but that presents some dangers to us as well."

Brought to you by AAP AAP © 2024 AAP

0 Comments about this article

Post a comment about this article

Please sign in to leave a comment.
Becoming a member is free and easy, sign up here.

« All sports news