The Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs would like to announce and congratulate our newly appointed Leadership Group, which includes two Game Day On-Field Captains and one Club Captain.
The new leadership structure, which consists of a group of six (6) players was announced by Head Coach Cameron Ciraldo this week.
Among the newly appointed leaders, Ray Faitala-Mariner has been honoured as the new Club Captain and been tasked to lead the charge on Club culture alongside teammates Josh Addo-Carr, Viliame Kikau and Max King. As for the Game Day On-Field Captaincy, Ciraldo announced that the skippers post will be shared between newly appointed Co-Captains Reed Mahoney and Matt Burton.
Mahoney, who played junior reps for the Bulldogs and has just returned to the Club in 2023, said he was still trying to process the news:
“I’ve never really been involved in a leadership group before. Cam touched on it when I came that he wanted me to come and give my presence when I turn up, and I took that on board. It took me a while to sort of feel comfortable in that, but I just based everything around my actions and training hard.
“That’s what’s got me to where I am today – working hard,” he said.
Gladly accepting the honour of his new role, there’s no looking back for Reed.
“I am just super excited to be a leader within this Group, and this Club – it’s so powerful. When the Club is going this strong, you don’t want to be a part of any other club. I’m really looking forward to what the Club has in store for the future,” he said.
For Burton, his appointment comes just weeks after signing a new agreement that will see him play on in the blue and white for the long-term future (five years). While it didn’t come as a surprise to his teammates, Matt said the news had caught him off guard:
“I never thought I would have got the opportunity to Captain the side and it’s obviously a really big honour,” he said.
“I am really looking forward to it and it’s great that I’ll have Reed there beside me. It’s new to both of us so it’s going to be a big challenge, but we’re both really looking forward to leading the side.”
