Bulldogs Suffer Third Consecutive Defeat in NRL Clash
Canterbury’s struggling attack once again failed to make an impact as the Bulldogs suffered a 28-12 loss against North Queensland at Accor Stadium. This defeat marked their third straight loss on Friday, with the Cowboys securing a crucial win that could help head coach Todd Payten extend his contract.
Payten’s team has been one of the most entertaining and high-scoring sides in the 2026 NRL season. However, they opted for a more defensive approach during this match, relying on their strong defense to secure their sixth win in seven games. The Cowboys were forced to defend 43 Canterbury play-the-balls within their own 20m zone throughout the game.
Despite the pressure, the Bulldogs managed to score two tries. The first came from a solo effort by halfback Lachlan Galvin, who broke through the Cowboys’ defense in the seventh minute. The second try was scored by back-rower Josh Curran, who capitalized on a spilled aerial bomb by Zac Laybutt.
“There’s no doubt that we’re going to have to be more resilient as a group when we defend and we showed that tonight and have showed it in periods through this year,” said Payten. “The thing I also like is how consistent we’ve been getting out of our own end and not making the errors and putting us under pressure. Everyone’s contributing and that was a real team performance tonight.”
On the other hand, Cameron Ciraldo’s side has struggled with attacking cohesion all season. The debate over the Bulldogs’ spine intensified this week after NRL Immortal Andrew Johns questioned Galvin’s ability to lead the team alongside Matt Burton.
“The way we finished to let in three really soft tries is not good enough,” Ciraldo said. “We’re in a bit of a spot at the moment where clearly we’re a bit low on confidence and we need to remember that there was a lot of good stuff in that first 60 minutes.”
Galvin continued to find ways to the tryline in recent weeks, scoring the opening try in the seventh minute. However, that was about as good as it got for Ciraldo’s side, as the Cowboys took a 12-6 lead at halftime.
Reuben Cotter applied pressure on a Tom Dearden grubberkick to the in-goal, while former Bulldogs hooker Reed Mahoney set up fullback Scott Drinkwater on a short ball. Curran made the most of Laybutt’s error, scoring a try to tie the game at 12-12 in the 52nd minute.
Although the Cowboys had limited possession, a damaging run from Jason Taumalolo helped them open up a gap that the Bulldogs couldn’t close. The Tongan forward offloaded in heavy traffic, and Tom Chester made a surging run through a switched-off Canterbury defense, offloading to Drinkwater for his second try.
Jake Clifford and Braidon Burns both scored in the final five minutes, adding to the Bulldogs’ woes as many fans left early. The only negative for the Cowboys was the loss of back-rower Jeremiah Nanai, who suffered a recurrence of a shoulder injury requiring off-season surgery.
“He (Nanai) is going to get a scan but it’s really disappointing for him because he’s worked super hard… it’s not great,” Payten said.
