A Bulldogs great says the club’s loyal fan base “could turn” on the team if they are bundled out of the finals in straight sets this Sunday.
NRL360 host Braith Anasta says it wouldn’t surprise him if the club’s fan base changed their tune on Lachlan Galvin if they lose to the Panthers at Accor Stadium.
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“The Dogs fans are sticking solid but I can tell you if they lose this weekend, that may change. They may turn,” Anasta said on Thursday.
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Foxsports.com.au’s Paul Crawley agreed, saying: “If the Bulldogs lose, there will be uproar from their fans.”
The warning came amid a heated debate over whether Galvin‘s signing has paid off.
After the talented playmaker agitated for a release from the Tigers and signed with the Bulldogs mid-season, in what has been the biggest story of the 2025 season, the Dogs parachuted Galvin into their line-up.
At the time, the Bulldogs were sitting pretty atop the ladder, and while they would end up finishing third, there were some rocky moments in the back end of the season.
Galvin, who has been playing mostly at five-eighth, has mixed his form in Bulldogs colours. His arrival was also a contributing factor to why Toby Sexton and Reed Mahoney will be forced out of the club at season’s end.
Given how messy the exit was from the Tigers, Anasta wondered if the Tigers will get the “last laugh” if the Bulldogs are bundled out this weekend.
That question led to a fiery debate between journalists Paul Crawley and Brent Read.
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“When Lachie Galvin went to the club he said ‘I want to step out of my comfort zone’, but has it worked out best for him and for the Dogs?” Crawley said.
“The Tigers fans will cheer if they don’t win and regardless of the outcome on Sunday, Lachlan Galvin will continue to be the biggest story on Sunday night. Win, lose or draw.
“It’s been six months. It’s a five year journey. You can’t say this has been an abject failure because of just this season,” Read responded.
“You can’t put a line through Lachlan Galvin. They’ve signed him for a long time believing he was a player who was going to get better and better and better.”
“When he came to the Bulldogs, they were sitting on top of the ladder. Things were rocking.”
“They weren’t rocking. They were faltering,” Read interjected.
“They weren’t rocking, they were stumbling. Look at their results.”
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Bulldogs coach Cameron Ciraldo defended Galvin amid criticism his mid-season arrival has derailed the team’s title bid.
“He is incredible,” Ciraldo told Channel 9’s Nine’s Today.
“What he has been able to achieve this year with all that attention and scrutiny on him has been remarkable for a 20-year-old.
“Without reading all the headlines, he has been doing an incredible job for us.
“The stuff he has added to our team has been awesome, and then to have Toby (Sexton) to come back last week and show some improvement was really good as well.
“Those two guys combine really nicely, they are really good friends day-to-day at training. I think they will do a really good job on Sunday.”
Ciraldo was then put on the spot whether bringing Galvin in mid-season was the right call.
“Yes I did,” Ciraldo said.
“We are really excited about both of those guys playing this week.”