How Dogs bagged $3m bargain with ‘limitless’ star and the brutal call Panthers may live to regret

Doing smart business has never been more important than in the NRL’s salary cap era and the Bulldogs have struck gold with Stephen Crichton — right under the nose of the rest of the competition, including the club that developed him.

Crichton, 23, will go down as one of the buys of 2024. But not even that kind of label accurately captures the scale of the coup, with his development into one of the game’s most valuable players casting new light on Penrith’s seemingly-ruthless decision to let him go last year.

Crichton headlined an intriguing cast of off-season Bulldogs recruits that includes the likes of Kurt Mann and Jaeman Salmon. Outside of three-time premiership winner Crichton, the club went after a contingent of utility-style players broadly considered handy but replaceable.

The changes have certainly helped and Crichton, the marquee signing, has been the driving force. Vibes – and results – have risen sharply, off the back of a seven-win campaign that landed the club down in 15th on the ladder in 2023.

The Bulldogs have reached seven wins in almost half the games played this season, chasing its first finals berth since 2016. The Dogs currently sit sixth on the standings, entering round 17.

Crichton was appointed captain in February, a surprise call to many given he’s still just 23 years old, and his presence and leadership have been key factors in transforming the team’s culture and standards.

Nothing measures attitude and application like a team’s defensive record and the Bulldogs have conceded the second least amount of points of any team in the competition so far this year, behind only Penrith.

Crichton sets the standard in this area. If his Bulldogs teammates don’t notice it every week they would have seen him doing superbly for NSW in the State of Origin series so far.

“Without a shadow of a doubt, Crichton is the best defensive centre (in rugby league),” Matty Johns told Cooper Cronk on the Matty Johns Podcast recently.

The improvement of individuals at Belmore this season has been stark and it’s abundantly clear the players are buying what Crichton is selling.

“Stephen is a really good reader of energy,” Bulldogs coach Ciraldo said when he appointed Crichton as captain in February.

“He understands when people are a little bit flat, low on energy, and when it’s a bit quiet, and he can change the mood in an instant. Sometimes that’s with some annoying music or sounds, or loud noises that he comes up with but he’s great at bringing people together.

“He really understands bringing positive energy to the group and he’s been such a valuable asset to us.”