Cameron Ciraldo is set to make a surprise selection in the Bulldogs opening game against Manly with Jacob Preston set to make his NRL debut.
Poised to be a future leader at the Bulldogs, the youngster was lured to the club via Bulldogs General Manager of Football Phil Gould.
Preston, who spent most of last season at the North Sydney Bears in the NSW Cup, has shown shades of Josh Jackson in his playing style.
For North Sydney, the edge forward made 320 tackles at a 95.2% efficiency rate and ran an average of 96 run metres per game in 12 appearances. He also scored seven tries and made seven linebreaks.
His excellent pre-season form has led to the suggestion he will debut in Round 1, with News Corp reporting his naming on Tuesday is everything but confirmed.
"I think he is a potential leader of this club," Gould said on the Bulldogs website.
"I think he is in the Josh Jackson mould in work ethic and professionalism."
Gould isn't the only one to praise Jacob Preston. Last week, Bulldogs co-captain and new signing Reed Mahoney tipped Preston to be the club's breakout star.
"Jacob Preston is going to have a breakout year. I think he's ready for the NRL and he'll definitely play some footy for us," Mahoney said.
Speaking on the Bulldogs website, Jacob Preston is eager to make his first-grade debut. He also spoke about what it meant to him when the Bulldogs signed him.
"I could just tell Gus believed in me and told me about the vision he had for the club," Preston said.
"The club seems to be heading in the right direction so I jumped at the opportunity."
