Bulldogs coach Cameron Ciraldo has backed the club’s decision to shut off social media comments on a post earlier in the week after some fans went too far with their criticism of the team following the loss to Newcastle.

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An Instagram post on Tuesday led to the social media team turning the comment section off, after some players received death threats and other vile messages from angry supporters.

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Some supporters thought they were being silenced by the club given they pay for memberships, merchandise and other things, but Bulldogs supremo Phil Gould wasn’t having any of it when asked on X about the death threats in the comments.

“They are not fans,” he simply replied in a tweet on Thursday morning.

Gould received strong support from his coach later in the day.

“We love our fans and we love their passion, but if it crosses the line, we have a duty of care to protect our players,” Ciraldo said.

“I’m really proud of our club that we decided to do something about that and just shut it down. Everyone’s got their right to an opinion, but on our channels, you don’t step over the line. So really proud of our club for making that move forward.

“I think Gus’s tweet there, he couldn’t have summed it up any better, so I’ll leave that with him.

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“Everyone loves their footy, loves their sport in general. And I don’t think this is a Bulldogs problem. I think it’s a society and game problem as well.

“At some stage, someone somewhere higher up needs to figure out what we want to stand for, and I’m glad someone in our club has.”

While the comments have been blocked, disgruntled fans still have the power to message individual players.

“It’s up to the players if they want to be on those channels,” Ciraldo said.

Bulldogs coach Cameron Ciraldo has backed the club’s swift response to online trolls. Picture: Ian Hitchcock/Getty ImagesSource: Getty Images

“We just try and educate them as much as we can around what’s good for them and what’s not. And then just create an environment where they understand that it’s all right to make mistakes and it’s all right to have a bad game.

“There are leanings in everything. Hopefully that’s the environment we’ve created here.”

Much of the fans’ frustration has stemmed from Canterbury’s lack of points through the opening few rounds, with the Bulldogs averaging 15 points per game this season.

Their defence will win them most games, but even that couldn’t save them against Newcastle last week on a day Ciraldo made a significant switch with Matt Burton going to left centre with Stephen Crichton playing five-eighth.

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That sparked something in the second half, but Burton has returned to five-eighth where he’ll partner Lachlan Galvin, with experienced playmaker Sean O’Sullivan on the bench.

“There’s a bit in our attack that I really like where we’ve won the possession every week, we’ve made the most meters every week, we’ve also made the most line breaks in each game every week. So they’re all really good signs,” Ciraldo said.

“We haven’t been able to execute every opportunity and we played against some teams that have scrambled really well. So we’re just trying to take leanings out of that.

Stephen Crichton and Matt Burton will return to their usual positions after a midgame switch last week. Picture: Ayush Kumar/Getty ImagesSource: Getty Images

“We’re trying to show our guys what we’re doing well and where we can improve. And that process doesn’t change whether we win, lose, (based on) reactions or anything.

“We’re just trying to get better every week. It’s our third game on the weekend, we’re coming into our fourth game and we just want to see an improvement.

“We’ve won two games, we’ve lost one, so I don’t think there’s any need for panic stations.

“I think a lot got made of Critta (Crichton) moving in a little bit last week. Burto took a bump, needed a little rest out wide. Critta came in and got involved with the ball in his hands and we scored two tries pretty quickly after that.

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“So I’m not sure of all the hysteria around that, but there are a lot of things we’re doing well.”

The Bulldogs take on the Rabbitohs on Good Friday but will be without Harry Hayes after the workhorse forward was ruled out for the second week in a row.

Ironically, Hayes was the player used in Tuesday’s Instagram post, with Logan Spinks to replace him on the bench.

“Unfortunately, Harry won’t be playing tomorrow,” Ciraldo said.

“He hasn’t pulled up as well as we would have hoped from training earlier in the week, so that gives an opportunity for other guys. Harry’s very important, but they’re all very important in our squad.”