2009_Bulldogs_RLFC_season
The 2009 Bulldogs RLFC season was the 75th in the club's history. They competed in the NRL's 2009 Telstra Premiership, finishing the regular season 2nd (out of 16), a vast improvement on the previous season, when they came last. The Bulldogs came within one match of the grand final but were knocked out by the Parramatta Eels.
After an extremely disappointing 2008 season, in which the club finished with the wooden spoon, 2009 will be a season of rebuilding for the Bulldogs. A number of high-profile new recruits, including Brett Kimmorley, Josh Morris, Michael Ennis, David Stagg and Ben Hannant along with mid-season signing of Greg Eastwood will join the club.
During the regular season, the Bulldogs will play most home games at ANZ Stadium in Homebush Bay. ANZ Stadium is also the home ground of the South Sydney Rabbitohs, and one of the home grounds of the Parramatta Eels, so Bulldogs away matches against these two teams will also be played at this venue. Two Bulldogs home games will be played away from Homebush Bay: the Round 11 match against Melbourne will be played at Bluetongue Stadium in Gosford, and the Round 19 match against the Gold Coast will be played at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane.
Trial Matches
St. George Illawarra Dragons  |
24–12 |  Bulldogs |
|---|---|---|
| Tries: Cooper, Nightingale, Thorby, Clarke Goals: Soward 4/4 |
Tries: Utai, Barba Goals: El Masri 1/1, Ennis 1/1 |
Trial 1 21 February 2009 7:00pm Local |
| Bulldogs |
24–16 |  Canberra Raiders |
|---|---|---|
| Tries: Goodwin, Ennis, Patten, Armit Goals: Ennis 3/3, El Masri 1/1 |
Tries: Monaghan 2, Purtell Goals: Campese 2/3 |
Trial 2 28 February 2009 8:00pm Local |
Meakin Park, Brisbane |
Regular season
| Bulldogs |
34–12 |  Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles |
|---|---|---|
| Tries: Goodwin 2, Idris 2, Morris Goals: El Masri 7/7 |
Tries: Ballin, Lyon Goals: Orford 2/2 |
Round 1 14 March 2009 7:30pm Local |
Penrith Panthers  |
26–28 | Bulldogs |
|---|---|---|
| Tries: Waterhouse 2, Aiton, Tighe Goals: Gordon 5/5 |
Tries: Eastwood, Idris, Kimmorley, Roberts, Stagg Goals: El Masri 4/5 |
Round 2 21 March 2009 7:30pm Local |
Gold Coast Titans  |
20–12 | Bulldogs |
|---|---|---|
| Tries: Campbell, O'Dwyer, Rogers, Tonga Goals: Rogers 2/5 |
Tries: Goodwin, Ryan Goals: El Masri 2/3 |
Round 3 27 March 2009 7:35pm Local |
| Bulldogs |
24–12 |  Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks |
|---|---|---|
| Tries: El Masri, Goodwin, Morris, Ryan Goals: El Masri 4/4 |
Tries: Gallen, Tupou Goals: Covell 2/2 |
Round 4 5 April 2009 2:00pm Local |
| Bulldogs |
14–12 |  South Sydney Rabbitohs |
|---|---|---|
| Tries: Morris, Ryan Goals: El Masri 2/2, Ennis 1/1 |
Tries: Champion, Pettybourne Goals: Luke 1/1, Sandow 1/1 |
Round 5 13 April 2009 7:00pm Local |
Parramatta Eels  |
18–48 | Bulldogs |
|---|---|---|
| Tries: Hauraki 2, Hayne Goals: Burt 3/3 |
Tries: Morris 2, Patten 2, El Masri, Goodwin, Hodgson, Kimmorley, Warburton Goals: El Masri 6/9 |
Round 6 19 April 2009 3:00pm Local |
| Canberra Raiders |
20–30 | Bulldogs |
|---|---|---|
| Tries: Monaghan, Purtell, Thompson, Tongue Goals: Dugan 2/4 |
Tries: El Masri, Ennis, Goodwin, Hannant, Millard Goals: El Masri 5/5 |
Round 7 26 April 2009 2:00pm Local |
| Bulldogs |
22–20 |  Wests Tigers |
|---|---|---|
| Tries: El Masri 2, Ennis, Goodwin Goals: El Masri 3/4 |
Tries: Moltzen, Payten, Ryan 2 Goals: Gallant 2/5 |
Round 8 3 May 2009 3:00pm Local |
| . | Bye | . |
|---|---|---|
Round 9 9–11 May 2009 |
| St. George Illawarra Dragons |
20–18 | Bulldogs |
|---|---|---|
| Tries: Creagh, Poore, Weyman Goals: Soward 4/4 |
Tries: Hannant, Idris, Kimmorley Goals: El Masri 3/3 |
Round 10 16 May 2009 7:30pm Local |
Round 11 22–25 May 2009 7:30pm Local |
Round 12 29 May - 1 June 2009 3:00pm Local |
| . | Bye | . |
|---|---|---|
Round 13 5–8 June 2009 |
Round 14 12–15 June 2009 7:35pm Local |
Round 15 19–22 June 2009 7:35pm Local |
Round 16 26–29 June 2009 7:35pm Local |
Round 17 3–6 July 2009 7:35pm Local |
Round 18 10–13 July 2009 2:00pm Local |
Round 19 17–20 July 2009 8:30pm Local |
Round 20 24–27 July 2009 5:30pm Local |
Round 21 31 July - 3 August 2009 3:00pm Local |
Round 22 7–10 August 2009 7:30pm Local |
Round 23 14–17 August 2009 7:35pm Local |
Round 24 21–24 August 2009 7:00pm Local |
Round 25 28–31 August 2009 3:00pm Local |
Round 26 4–6 September 2009 7:35pm Local |
Finals Series
Qualifying Final 12 September 2009 8:35pm Local |
Preliminary Final 25 September 2009 7:45pm Local |
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | B | PF | PA | PD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  St. George Illawarra Dragons |
24 | 17 | 0 | 7 | 2 | 548 | 329 | +219 | 38 |
| 2 | Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs |
24 | 18 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 575 | 428 | +147 | 381 |
| 3 | Gold Coast Titans |
24 | 16 | 0 | 8 | 2 | 514 | 467 | +47 | 36 |
| 4 |  Melbourne Storm |
24 | 14 | 1 | 9 | 2 | 505 | 348 | +157 | 33 |
| 5 | Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles |
24 | 14 | 0 | 10 | 2 | 549 | 459 | +90 | 32 |
| 6 |  Brisbane Broncos |
24 | 14 | 0 | 10 | 2 | 511 | 566 | −55 | 32 |
| 7 |  Newcastle Knights |
24 | 13 | 0 | 11 | 2 | 508 | 491 | +17 | 30 |
| 8 | Parramatta Eels |
24 | 12 | 1 | 11 | 2 | 476 | 473 | +3 | 29 |
| 9 | Wests Tigers |
24 | 12 | 0 | 12 | 2 | 558 | 483 | +75 | 28 |
| 10 | South Sydney Rabbitohs |
24 | 11 | 1 | 12 | 2 | 566 | 549 | +17 | 27 |
| 11 |  Penrith Panthers |
24 | 11 | 1 | 12 | 2 | 515 | 589 | −74 | 27 |
| 12 |  North Queensland Cowboys |
24 | 11 | 0 | 13 | 2 | 558 | 474 | +84 | 26 |
| 13 | Canberra Raiders |
24 | 9 | 0 | 15 | 2 | 489 | 520 | −31 | 22 |
| 14 |  New Zealand Warriors |
24 | 7 | 2 | 15 | 2 | 377 | 565 | −188 | 20 |
| 15 | Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks |
24 | 5 | 0 | 19 | 2 | 359 | 568 | −209 | 14 |
| 16 |  Sydney Roosters |
24 | 5 | 0 | 19 | 2 | 382 | 681 | −299 | 14 |
1 The Bulldogs were deducted 2 competition points after an interchange breach in Round 2.
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