No NRL coach will be losing more sleep over what his best starting 17 for 2024 will look like than Cameron Ciraldo.
The Canterbury Bulldogs have been incredibly active in the player market over the last 12 months, but eyebrows were once again raised last week when Connor Tracey became the latest utility to be added to the pile after being released by the Cronulla Sharks.
He joins Kurt Mann, Drew Hutchison, Jaeman Salmon and Blake Taaffe, as well as back-up dummy half Jake Turpin in the club's signing list for 2024.
For a club who have been widely believed as one desperately needing forwards, the list of signings does create a puzzle. Their forward signings read Josh Curran and Poasa Faamausili.
Curran could be anything of course and has shown glimpses of that during his time at the Warriors, and Faamausili is solid, but they are hardly moves that will have a long-time suffering fan base hanging out of their tree, particularly when you consider Tevita Pangai Junior, Franklin Pele and Luke Thompson - a lot of size in that list - have headed for the exit gates.
In the name of full disclosure, here are the Bulldogs player movements for 2024 as they stand:
Bulldogs 2025 Player Movements
| 2025 Gains None |
| 2025 Losses Harrison Edwards (North Queensland Cowboys) |
| Re-Signed Samuel Hughes (2026), Max King (2027) |
| Off Contract 2024 Liam Knight, Joseph O'Neill, Chris Patolo, Hayze Perham, Toby Sexton, Jeral Skelton, Zane Tetevano, Jackson Topine |
» Bulldogs full 2024 squad, latest news
Earlier this year, Zero Tackle's founder Matt Clements wrote that it might actually be best to have Matt Burton and another arrival in three-time Penrith Panthers premiership-winner Stephen Crichton in the centres come the start of the 2024 campaign.
Crichton has of course been signed on fullback money to wear the number one jumper, but the more signings the boys from Belmore make, the harder it is to see that being the long-term reality given the incredible play he has displayed in the centres over the last three seasons.
Since that theory - that Crichton and Burton should be the Bulldogs' centres in 2024 - has been written, the club have added yet more utilities to the puzzle, with Connor Tracey, who wants to play fullback, and Drew Hutchison, who wants to play five-eighth, also arriving.
Kurt Mann has made the journey to Belmore too from the Hunter, although he will be more likely in contention for the 13 jumper, or the 14 where he could play a bit in the middle and serve as a back-up option to Reed Mahoney, who is as close to an 80-minute hooker as you're likely to see in the modern game.
But even then, he isn't guaranteed a spot - the Bulldogs have been widely ridiculed for their signing strategy, which includes another back-up hooker in Jake Turpin from the Sydney Roosters, heading into 2024, but one thing is for sure, they will never have a problem when it comes to depth during the upcoming season.
Once you add the returning Bailey Biondi-Odo, Hayze Perham and Jackson Topine who are already at the club, the number of players who can slot into other positions than their primary is almost baffling.
But could it be a stroke of genius?
If Ciraldo works out how to fit all of his players into the puzzle, and they gel, then it could be.
If it backfires, then he, Director of Football Phil Gould and whoever else has been involved in the recruitment process for 2024, where it feels like they have signed players simply because they can at times without due thought process, will be ridiculed, and rightly so.
One of the key signings heading into 2023 was Brandon Smith at the Sydney Roosters - it started to work at the back-end of the season, but for the most part, it felt as if the Roosters had made the signing which sent Sam Verrills to the Gold Coast without actually thinking about it beyond "hey, he is a good player and we have money."
That, albeit to a lesser extent given none of these incoming players are Brandon Smith, feels as if it has been the thought process at Belmore over the last 12 months.
As mentioned, the questions over the Bulldogs' best 17 for 2024 start at the back. Stephen Crichton has been signed to play there, but Blake Taaffe and Connor Tracey (who is reportedly unlikely to play the opening weeks due to an ankle injury) will be eyeing off the jersey.
So too will Jacob Kiraz, although he is far more likely to suit up in the outside backs as he did during 2023.
Crichton is something of an unproven force at fullback despite the money he has been signed on. That could set alarm bells ringing for the Bulldogs. That, and the fact he is a Dally M centre of the year could yet have Ciraldo tempted to name him in the three-quarters where he has been so destructive for Penrith.
Taaffe is a more than suitable fullback, having filled in for Latrell Mitchell over the journey at South Sydney, and a change of scenery could be exactly what he needs to spark the next stage of his career.
Tracey too has plenty of talent, although it has to be said sections of Cronulla fans have not been backward in celebrating his departure.
If Tracey or Taaffe don't play at fullback, then it's difficult to understand how they slot into the side. Centres Paul Alamoti (Penrith Panthers) and Jake Averillo (The Dolphins) have both found new homes in 2024, but with Bronson Xerri's arrival, the potential of Matt Burton shifting into the centres, the likely debut of Jeral Skelton at some point this year, and the fact the rest of the backline - Josh Addo-Carr, Jacob Kiraz and Blake Wilson - appears set, there is little in the way of wiggle room.
Burton's potential shift could be one of the big talking points of the pre-season, and indeed the opening weeks of the competition in 2024.
The idea has already been floated, and while he wants to play at five-eighth, he will do what is best for the side, and there is a thought process which says he is far more lethal out wide than he is in the five-eighth role.
Taaffe is one option to play the six if Burton doesn't, while Drew Hutchison, who has been solid wherever he has been placed, be it centre, five-eighth, hooker or lock, during his stint at the Sydney Roosters.
With mid-season recruit Toby Sexton likely to play at halfback, it means the trio are fighting for a jumper, although their use elsewhere leaves Ciraldo options.
Then there is the forwards. Kurt Mann and Jaeman Salmon could both yet be fighting for the number 14 jersey, although Salmon is another option to play five-eighth if overlooked for either that or a role in the back-row, while Mann would likely be in contention for the 13 jersey.
It's unclear who is likely to start there in 2024, although Josh Curran's recent addition adds another who can play in the middle and on the edge. The likes of Ryan Sutton and Max King could also be in the mix for the 13, while a fit and healthy Viliame Kikau is not only crucial for the Dogs but also adds yet another roadblock to the team's 2024 additions from making the best 17.
That doesn't even take into account Jake Turpin, who himself would be considered an option for the 14, or even the 15 if the Bulldogs elect to go with a smaller bench that features either Mann or Salmon, as well as Turpin or a player like Bailey Biondi-Odo.
What is clear is that the Bulldogs side that runs out for Round 1 in 2024 is not going to be remotely the same as the one that finished 2023.
What is also clear is that Cameron Ciraldo has a major headache on his hands over the next three months as he elects to settle on the side that will commence in 2024.
For argument's sake, this is how I've currently got the Bulldogs lining up:
1. Blake Taaffe
2. Jacob Kiraz
3. Stephen Crichton
4. Bronson Xerri
5. Josh Addo-Carr
6. Matt Burton
7. Toby Sexton
8. Max King
9. Reed Mahoney
10. Ryan Sutton
11. Viliame Kikau
12. Jacob Preston
13. Josh Curran
14. Kurt Mann
15. Drew Hutchison
16. Liam Knight
17. Raymond Faitala-Mariner
Rest of Top 30: Bailey Bidoni-Odo, Sam Hughes, Drew Hutchison, Kitione Kautoga, Zac Montgomery, Karl Oloapu (injured), Chris Patolo, Hayze Perham, Jaeman Salmon, Jeral Skelton, Jackson Topine, Connor Tracey, Jake Turpin, Blake Wilson
