NRL dual premiership winner James Maloney has taken aim at the Bulldogs declaring they’re getting it all wrong in 2026.
The Bulldogs scored their fifth win of the season on Monday afternoon with an unconvincing 14-12 victory over an injury-ravaged Eels side.
In what can only be described as one of the stinkers of the year, the Dogs came away with the competition points but were anything but impressive.
After back-to-back finals appearances, including a top four finish last year, Canterbury have failed to live up to expectations in 2026.
And Maloney believes while part of it comes down to the stubbornness to play Lachlan Galvin out of position, there are far bigger problems at the club than the young half.
“I don’t think in a perfect world he’s (Galvin) a halfback. At the moment, he is playing there because they are obviously not happy with the job Sean O’Sullivan is doing,” Maloney said on news.com.au’s Extended Bench.
“I think they’re trying to work with him on that (becoming a halfback) but he’s definitely not. I think he’s more of a five-eighth or a lock.”
But Maloney says while Galvin is clearly struggling in the No. 7 jersey, a bigger concern is the team’s attacking structure.
“But it’s not just Galvin. I think there is enough talent across that footy side that you can structure that attack so they score a lot more points than they are,” Maloney said on the Extended Bench.
“They look better when they play with punch (through the middle), but at the moment they are much more sideways.
“As an attack that should be how you play. Get small groups, small shapes and find one-on-ones to give you ruck speed and go again.
“From there you’re on the front foot and can play, but they just go to their edges too quickly.
“All the good sides now play direct and play through the middle. They are a threat at the ruck. As the play the balls get quicker, you can get in behind the ruck and from there you can compress the defense.
“Then you can move the ball from there. So I think it’s like it’s a pretty simple blueprint for how the game needs to be played.”
Canterbury’s attack has gone from averaging over 22 points per game in 2025 to less than 18 in 2026.
Th have also only scored 30 points or more on two occasions this season.
Despite this, Bulldogs coach Cameron Ciraldo has persevered with Lachlan Galvin and Matt Burton in the halves.
However, Maloney’s 2016 premiership-winning halves partner Chad Townsend has called for him to give O’Sullivan a chance and end the Galvin halfback experiment.
“I want to see what a different spine looks like just to have some different personnel,” Townsend said on SEN on Tuesday.
“They have Sean O’Sullivan on the bench who can do a job.
“I saw Alex Conti in the NSW Cup, and he was outstanding.
“Ciraldo just doesn’t look like he’s prepared to make any tweaks to the spine.
“If you’re a Dogs fan, this is the way they seem to be going and think they can make a run with the personnel they have at the moment. Their attack is just so clunky.
“They keep going back to this structure that doesn’t appear to be working for them at the moment.”
The Bulldogs have two weeks to sort out their attacking deficiencies before they host an in-form Manly side in Round 16.
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Originally published as James Maloney slams Bulldogs’ attacking structure, delivers Lachlan Galvin truth