The Bulldogs’ last premiership was 20 years ago.
It’s been two decades since Hazem El Masri’s winning try and Andrew Ryan’s premiership-saving tackle.
And it feels like a lifetime ago that a baby-faced Johnathan Thurston handed his premiership ring to injured skipper Steve Price.
Those were the glory days. Brent ‘Shifty’ Sherwin and Braith Anasta in the halves, the dependable Luke Patten at the back, ‘Big Willie’ Mason and Mark O’Meley in the forwards, and of course ‘El Magic’ and the powerful Matt Utai on the wings.
Round 5
It was a special team destined for great things, but it took a bit longer than expected to get there.
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“We had such a weird few years before it,” Anasta told foxsports.com.au when reflecting on the 2004 Grand Final.
“We’d been knocking on the door for so long, and we knew we deserved to win a competition — and should have — but we had salary cup issues.
“We were just relieved to be there to have a chance to win because we believed we should have earlier.”
